GPU more determine to find Chief Manneh

Source AfricaNews
The president of the Gambia Press Union, Ndey Tapha Sosseh has declared that the Union is today "more determined than ever to leave no stone unturned" in its mission to trace the whereabouts of Journalist Chief Ebrima Manneh and to determine who is responsible for his disappearance.

Her statement follows a National Assembly declaration on Monday by the Attorney General and SOS for Justice, Mary Saine Firdaus of the government’s stance that Chief Ebrima Manneh is not in state custody. It was in response to a question on the issue, posed by Minority Leader, Momodou Sanneh.

Sosseh also expressed surprise that a legal person of the AG’s statue could make such public assertions, and directed her to Articles 9 and 10 of the supplementary protocol A/SP.1/01/05 of the ECOWAS Community Court which cover the human rights jurisdiction of the Court and access to the Court respectively.

“The above provisions clearly indicate that there is no requirement for exhaustion of local remedies. I think it is irrelevant and unnecessary to make claims which would actually cause doubt as to one’s abilities to handle certain positions of trust and influence.”

“I would expect that such senior legal person would be au fait with all international legal instruments and protocols that this Government is signatory to and not only that but interpret them to the Gambian public with utmost competence and in good faith,” she stated.

Sosseh added that these instruments are not “here for us to bend and weave to suit a particular position or issue” on the contrary in line with ECOWAS’ vision to move from a Community of Heads of States to a Community of peoples, these instruments are meant to safeguard the position and interests of the people of the ECOWAS.

She said that the fact that the government is aggrieved by the Court’s ruling is something else and there are ways of remedying the situation as she is sure they are aware.

“However, I’m also sure our able Attorney General would also know that the same Court has given the Gambia government ample time and notice, in the process, subpoenaing named Gambian security personnel. How come these people, were not then afforded the opportunity to clear the name of the authorities and The Gambia in this most competent Court of Law?”

She added that “the beauty and uniqueness of the ECOWAS Court decision is that decision of the Court is final” and as at now, there is no superior court to reverse the decision.

“We must also be mindful of the fact that the focus here is not only on the ECOWAS Court ruling re suit No: ECW/CCJ/APP/04/07 but also on the circumstances leading to the disappearance of Chief Ebrima Manneh. I wish more time and resources would be spent by the relevant authorities in investigating claims of disappearances and in protecting the lives and properties of all Gambians irrespective of ideological, political, religious, tribal and other orientation.”

“I also sincerely hope that now that the state has made its stance clear, the relevant authorities will take it upon themselves to commence investigations into the much talked about disappearance of Chief Ebrima Manneh.”

This reporter has also learnt from a senior official of the ECOWAS Community Court that “the only provision for the court to re-examine its decision is where there are very vital new facts unknown to the litigants at the time of hearing and which may influence the decision.”

Also reacting to the Attorney General’s statement that local remedies were not exhausted, a member of staff of the Media Foundation for West Africa who spearheaded and financed the Chief Manneh case said the “complainant does not have to exhaust local remedies. Why would the Court hear the matter if there is a proviso that domestic remedy must be exhausted?”

Meanwhile, members of the GPU Executive body on Wednesday paid a visit to the Manneh family in Lamin village where they handed over at least 5000 letters of support from concerned individuals all over the world following a joint GPU/Amnesty International campaign to globally highlight the issue of Chief Ebrima Manneh’s disappearance.

Speaking to the family members, Sosseh expressed the Union and other international institutions concern and continued determination to trace Chief Ebrima Manneh.

Sosseh also pledged the continued support to the family and said that other activities aside, Chief Manneh is always remembered in their prayers. She prayed that they remain steadfast in their belief that one day, hopefully in the not too distant future; the truth shall come to light.

PRODUCE CHIEF EBRIMA MANNEH NOW!! GPU-USA Petition

The US Chapter of the Gambia Press Union have submitted a petition to the Gambian people and the International Community demanding that President Yahya Jammeh and the Government of the Gambia immediately produce Journalist Chief Ebrima Manneh to assure his family and the general public that he is alive.

According to the association's secretary general, Baba Galleh Jallow,"The petition is prompted by a statement by Attorney General Marie Saine-Firdaus on April 6, 2009 that Chief Manneh is not in the custody of the Gambian state. Manneh was picked up around July 7, 2006 by agents of Gambia's secret police, the National Intelligence Agency (NIA), who are driectly answerable to Jammeh."

Please take a moment to read and sign this petition in support of Chief Manneh's case, for the cause of humanity, and against impunity.

http://www.petitiononline.com/gpuusa02/

Stop making a fool of yourself

Gambia’s Justice Secretary has made a fool of herself when she told members of the National Assembly that the Jammeh regime is not responsible for disappearance of my colleague, Chief Ebrima Manneh.

When Marie Saine-Firdaus was called to the bar some years ago, I felt glad. Her beaming face on that day was full of hunger, hunger to serve a country we all love and call home.

Today, as I punch my computer keyboard, every respect I had for her has gone out of the window.

Forget about Pap Cheyassin Secka and Joseph Joof. Ms Saine is the worst Justice Secretary the country has seen. Since her appointment, Ms Saine as government adviser on legal matters has turned blind eye on gross human rights violations being meted out on poor Gambians by Jammeh and his thugs.

Jammeh is also using the Justice Ministry office to draft draconian laws that are giving more and more powers to the president through state instruments instead of the people.

Ms Saine has forgotten that the Ecowas Court of Justice passed its judgment in favour of Chief Manneh based on the evidence of eye witnesses who were present at the time of his arrest. The evidences of these witnesses were never contested by the Jammeh regime despite numerous requests by the regional community court.

If the Gambia government is indeed innocent of the charges, then why did it refuse to cooperate with the ECOWAS court?

Former Daily Observer MD, Saja Taal, admitted that he reported Chief Manneh to the authorities after he tried to publish a story authored by BBC's Elizabeth Blunt on the AU Banjul meeting that was critical of Jammeh.

Ms Saine needs to know that Gambians are not small children to be fooled around. So instead of making a fool of yourself, politely ask Jammeh to re-unite Chief Manneh with his aging father- that is, if he is still alive. The old man is crying himself to sleep everyday and waiting for the return of his son.

Charges against Pap Saine dropped

Source(AFP) — A Gambian court on Tuesday agreed to drop charges of giving false information against independent newspaper editor Pap Saine after a request from the prosecutor.

"I want to put an application to the court that all charges against Pap Saine relative to false publication and false broadcasting be dropped," prosecutor Kebba Sadire told the court, without offering any reason for the sudden demand. The court granted the application.

The veteran journalist and co-owner of Gambia's last independent daily The Point was due to go on trial for giving false information in a story about diplomats working for the Gambian embassy in the United States being recalled.

Saine, who is also a correspondent for the Thomson-Reuters news agency, still faces charges of obtaining Gambian identity documents under false pretences in a separate case. But observers expect those charges will be dropped as well in the coming days.
In a separate development, the Gambian justice minister assured parliament late Monday that a journalist missing since July 2006 is not in state custody, as charged by human rights organisations.

In a first public reaction to an Economic Community Of West African States court ruling in June last year ordering Banjul to release Chief Ebrima Manneh, Attorney-General and Justice Minister Marie Saine Firdaus said she had no knowledge of the journalist's whereabouts.

"The position of the government of the Gambia has been made clear ever since this issue was raised with my office and the ministry of interior and to the best of our knowledge, information and belief, Chief Ebrima is not in our custody," she said in reply to an opposition lawmaker's question.

Manneh, who worked for the pro-government newspaper the Daily Observer, disappeared after being picked up in the newspaper building by men who said they were with the Gambian intelligence service NIA.

In June of last year, after the case was taken to the regional grouping by a west African media watchdog, ECOWAS ruled that Gambia had illegally arrested and detained Manneh, and ordered his release.

Banjul is preparing an appeal to have the case dismissed on the grounds that the state can only release a person from custody if he or she is in fact in the custody of the state, the minister told the parliament.

Gambia, a former British colony, surrounded by Senegal on three sides, is often criticized for its poor human rights record and heavy-handed restrictions on the media.

God help the Gambia

Though I am not a Christian but could not stop myself from shouting Halleluiah when I read remarks by Gambian president Yahya Jammeh that Gambians are not suffering from food crisis.

Jammeh’s remarks show how least in touch he is with Gambian people over 50 per cent of who are living on less than one US dollar a day as a result of his misrule. The flamboyant dictator does not know hardship and suffering Gambians are going through because he gets too rich. He is surrounded by a bunch of sycophants and selfish people, who tell him ear-pleasing things that everything is alright with Gambian people.

Gambia’s cost of living is sky rocketing left right and centre far beyond the reach of average families. Many today cannot provide decent meals for their families forcing countless male youth to risk deadly sea voyages in search of greener pastures overseas and young girls compelled into prostitution.

Just take a stroll at night to Westfield junction, Kairaba Avenue, Afra FM or Tourism Development Area and you will see what I mean.

Take for instance, if Fatou Kurubally is to cook a decent benachin; 1 kilo of meat and bone is D75.00; 6 cups of rice is D21.00; 3 cups of oil is D21.00, pepper D10.00; tomato, D10.00; tomato paste D10.00; cabbage, D10.00; bitter tomato, D5.00; garden egg, D5.00; yate, D5.00, firewood, D10.00 costing her D189.00. This is just for lunch.

Now if Fatou wants to make breakfast for her family of six, 6 small loafs of tapa lapa bread cost D18.00, 1 egg for each bread gives a total cost of D30.00, oil to fry the eggs costs D7.00 per cup, onion costs D2.00 and pepper D2.00 giving a total cost of D65. Hence breakfast plus lunch would cost her a sum of D254.00. This represents only 2 meals a day.

The above market prices of basic commodities shows that poor Gambians earning a monthly salary of less than D5,000 will have to spend D7,620 a month in order to put decent food on the table. That excludes electric and water bills, house rent, transportation and children's school and book fees.

The much talked about salary increment as part of the civil service reform programme is put on hold indefinitely due to unexpected revenue shortfalls in 2008 and uncertain revenue prospects for this year.

In fact, Gambian economy was recently facing the danger of collapse and Government having to be bailed out by the International Monetary Fund (IMF).

The country is still heavily relying on foreign assistance and its tourism industry is being badly hit by global financial crisis. Many people working in the tourism industry are being laid off. A large majority of these people are bread winners of their families and you don’t need to be any rocket scientist to know what their families must be going through at the moment.

Gambia remains at high risk of debt distress, even after receiving HIPC and MDRI debt relief, due to high levels of debt in relation to exports and vulnerability to external shocks.

Gambia's Secretary of State for Finance and Economic Affairs, Bala Gaye recently admitted that in the past year, the current account deficit (including official transfers) increased by about 4 percentage points of the Gross Domestic Product (mainly due to the impact of higher international prices of commodities in earlier part of the year. This is by effects of the global financial crisis and associated economic slowdowns in Europe and the US.

Tourism receipts, remittances and re-export trade have all slowed down, and official transfers have been much lower than expected. Gross official reserves of the Central Bank of the Gambia (CBG) dropped to under four months of imports at December end 2008 compared to 5.5 months of imports at end-December 2007.

Jammeh is never honest with Gambian people when it comes to the economy. He always wants us to believe that all is booming when things are not.

The Jammeh regime has to start investing money in the production base of the economy. This will help generate much needed revenues for the country as well as provide employment opportunities to thousands of unemployed Gambians.

Who owns the money?
This week, almost all newspapers in the Gambia have published stories of Yahya Jammeh giving out 29 million, six hundred and ten thousand Dalasi to the Gambian Under 17 team and officials that attended the junior continental championship in Algeria.

You may not care how much was given to the team by President Jammeh but the big question that needs to be answered is who owns the money? Does it belong to Jammeh or the state?


As far as I am aware, the total recurrent budget of the Department of State for Youth and Sports in 2009 is D 21 million. The development budget is equivalent to D6 million. D5 million of the recurrent budget is reserved for sports and sporting activities and D1 million is supposed to be utilised to support the national football team.

Recurrent budget of the Department of Youth and Sports shows that the amount donated was never set aside for the U-17 and must have been diverted elsewhere if it indeed belongs to the state.

If it indeed belongs to the state, then Jammeh should be honest enough to tell us that the money belongs to the state and not him.

On the other hand, if the donation was from Jammeh’s own coffer, then Gambians would need know how he has acquired it in the name of transparency and accountability and transparency.

Jammeh’s earnings as president for the past 14 years cannot give him such monetary wealth. If he is really serious about eradicating corruption in the civil service then he has to take lead in being transparent and accountable to the people.

Gambia's own Guantanamo Bay

Source: Foroyaa Newspaper, Banjul
The detention of people without trial is still continuing, as we enter the year 200. As we are now in the fourth month into the year, none of those detained since last year has been released.

Foroyaa has contacted some of the families of the persons listed below, who were known to be detained, to enquire about their fate. These families lamented their frustration over the long detention of their loved ones who they said, were neither charged nor tried by the courts. Some of the families expressed frustration and anguish for being unable to see their loved ones or to even establish there whereabouts. Some of them also expressed grieved over the incommunicado of their family members. They told Foroyaa that their loved ones were picked up in their presence by State security agents who they know and can recognise.

Journalist Chief Ebrima B. Manneh of the Daily Observer Newspaper was arrested by security agents at his office in Bakau since 7th July, 2006. His family said they moved both heaven and earth but still could not see him or establish his whereabouts. The Media Foundation for West Africa (MFWA) had sued the government of The Gambia at the ECOWAS Court of Justice in Abuja to release Chief Manneh. The court delivered judgment in favour of the plaintiff and ordered the government to release him, but they are yet to comply with the order of the regional court.

Mr. Kanyiba Kanyi, an employee of the Christian Children Fund (CCF), was arrested by State securities agents in the presence of his family from his house at Bonto Village in Kombo East, since 18 September, 2006. His family said they could not see him since then or know his whereabouts. In late 2006, the family of Kanyiba took a lawyer and went to the High Court to secure his release. Even though the Court ordered for the unconditional release of Kanyiba, the case is still being battled out in the court due to the State’s denial of having him in their custody. The case is supposed to continue today, 6 April.

Mr. Jasaja Kujabi, a former bigwig of the ruling APRC and close associate of president Jammeh, was arrested since in the summer of 2005 at his farm at Dobong Village in Foni Kansala district. The family said he was escorted to his house to change his clothes before been taken away by two State agents whom they know. They said they are yet to know his place of detention.

Corporal Alfusainey Jammeh, a prison warden and a native of Kanilai who was stationed at the residence of the prison boss at Kanilai, went missing since 2006. The family said he was called to report to the Police Headquarters in Banjul and had never returned home. They said he is being detained at Mile 2 Prison but that the family members do not have access to him.

Mr. Haruna Jammeh and Madam Marcie Jammeh, both natives of Kanilai, also went missing together since in the summer of 2005. Their families said since then they could not establish their whereabouts.

A Former Chief of Foni Kansala, Mr. Momodou Lamin Nyassi, Buba Sanyang and Ndongo Mboob, all natives of Bwiam and former bigwigs of the APRC party within the Fonis, were said to have been arrested on the same day in April 2006. Their families said they do not know their places of detention.

Mr. Alieu Lowe and Abdoulie Njie were both arrested in connection with the 21st March, 2006, coup plot against the APRC government. Their families said they are languishing at Mile 2 Prison without any charges preferred against them. Mr. Lowe’s family said they have access to him frequently.

Mr. Samsideen Jammeh from Foni Sutisinjang Village was arrested since 14 January, 2007. He has been in detention at the Police Headquarters in Banjul for almost two years. His family said he is recently moved to Mile 2 Prison without any charges levelled against him.

Mr. Bakary Gassama, the former financial Director of NIA, was arrested on the 13th May, 2008. He was detained for four months before being arraigned in court in late September 2008 and was charged with official abuse and misconduct. His trial could not proceed until on December 3rd when the court discharged him for want of diligent prosecution. He was re-arrested by the Police at the court premises and taken back to detention again. His family said he is detained at Mile 2 Prison.

Mr. Kebba Seckan, a senior NIA Operative, was in detention since 14th May 2007, without any charges preferred against him. His family said he is detained at Mile 2 Prison. They said they are yet to have access to him since his arrest.

Mr. Ebou Jarju, formerly a steward at State House, was arrested on 20th March, 2008. He was said to be first detained at Police Headquarters in Banjul up to 11th January 2009, when he was released unconditionally but only to be re-called on 26th January, and put under detention again. The family said he is currently detained at Mile 2 Prison.

Mr. Modou Manga, from Foni Bwiam, who was a storekeeper at the Kanilai Family Farm Store at Kanifing, went missing since 2006; is believed to be detained at Mile 2 Prison.

Sergeant Sam Kambai, of the Gambia Armed Forces is also being detained at Mile 2 Prison since 2006 without trial.

Alexandra Gibba, the spokes person of the MFDC rebel faction, is said to be detained at Mile 2 Prison. He was last seen amidst MFDC rebels, who were on trial, walking with the help of crutches.

Osseh Abdoulie Corr, Alassan Mbowe and Baboucarr Njie, all arrested on the 9 September, 2008, arraigned in court on 17 October and charged with three criminal counts, were remanded by the court until on the 25 March, 2009, when they were acquitted and discharged by the trial magistrate Edrisa F. Mbai for lack of evidence against them. They were re-arrested within the court premises in the presence of a looking crowd and taken into custody. Their families said they are currently being detained at the Mile 2 Prison.

Remembering our fallen brothers

This Friday, we will be commemorating the brutal massacre of over a dozen school children on April 10 and 11, 2000 by the Gambian police and soldiers.

Our hearts continue to bleed and our eyes continue to shed tears anytime we think of the brutal manner in which their souls departed this world. These young men were not criminals, rebels. They were not political opponents of President Jammeh either.

They were decent Gambians like you and me, who were only protesting against crimes committed against their colleagues; Ebrima Barry and a Brikamaba school girl.

The demands on the basis of which the students went out to demonstrate nine years ago, merely constituted a request for justice.

April 10 and 11, 2000 were indeed days during which Gambian students took to the streets to protest against rape and murder, with a clear call for justice to be done. Rape and murder are not only repugnant in the eyes of all faiths, but laws in all civilised jurisdictions prescribe stringent punitive measures against them.

Similarly, all our national cultures in the Gambia denounce them in the strongest possible terms. As a result, one should easily understand the reasoning which led to the decision to peacefully demonstrate against these heinous crimes against the two students.

Any mature political leadership would be ashamed of the manner in which the security officers reacted to the demonstration. It was an act of brutality that has no place in any civilise society. Murder was foreign to the Gambia, a country where people almost know each other.

Several security officers including Ousman Badjie, former secretary of state for the Interior, were indicted for the gruesome murder of our brothers little brothers and despite recommendation of the commission of inquiry that was set up to look into the disturbances, the government of Yahya Jammeh is still refusing to prosecute them.

In an apparent insult to the families of slain youths, the government has indemnified all the murderers from any criminal prosecution for their role in the killing of these children. Some of those blamed for the murder have since been rewarded with high government positions.

In other words, the Jammeh regime is saying that all these children who never had the chance to say good bye to their parents deserved to die in that brutal manner.
It is prudent, perhaps, to remind ourselves that the use of live ammunition and overwhelming force on children can never be justified nor simply swept under the carpet. By failing to prosecute those responsible, the government woefully failed to uphold the rights and freedoms of the Gambian people.

As Gambians, it is time we continue to put pressure on the Jammeh regime to prosecute all those who were indicted by the commission of inquiry. Our land has been defiled with the blood of young innocent children and it is our responsibility to ensure these children and their families get the justice they deserve. It is still not too late.
As we commemorate nine years since they departed this world, we pray to Almighty Allah to blessed their souls in His heavenly kingdom.

Rest in peace our heroes, you will always be in our hearts:

Calisco Preira
Burama Badjie
Karamo Barrow
Reginald Carrol
Omar Barrow
Wuyeh Massally
Momodou Chune
Lamin .A. Bojang
Ouman Sabally
Bamba Jobarteh
Abdoulie Sajaw
Bakary Njie
Unidentified victim
Sainey Nyabally
Ousman Sembene

Sidia Jatta criticises government for unexplained dismissals

Gambian opposition parliamentarian Sedia Jatta has criticised the government for unexplained dismissals in the civil service and called for a stop to the practice.

However, the government has defended its actions saying civil servants have to be productive and failure to do their **work will lead to their dismissal.

Jatta, MP of the opposition National Alliance for Democracy and Development (NADD) for Wuli West, told the National Assembly on Friday that there was “an institutional crisis” in the country because of these ceaseless unexplained hiring and firing.

“There is an institution whose responsibility is to hire and fire, discipline where there is indiscipline, but as far as I am concerned I am not seeing that institution functioning,” he said.

Jatta said there was something wrong and blamed it on political interference, adding that was the reason why the civil service was not stable.

He said civil servants must not be under any political control adding that there must be an institution that should be responsible for discipline to ensure effective productivity.

The Minority Leader Momodou Sanneh said there was no job security in the entire civil service especially at senior level.

Vice President Isatou Njie-Saidy said: “I find it very unpleasant to dismiss people. But this syndrome of covering people in the Gambia has to be addressed.”

She said the Public Services Commission had been ineffective over the years and the ongoing revamping should not only to be seen in the negative light of hiring and firing but to ensure effective service delivery.

Other MPs blamed the “disloyalty” of civil servants for their predicament saying they should know that they were hired to work and failure to do so would lead to dismissal.
Pana

Gambia frees witch-hunt detainees

BANJUL (AFP) — More than 300 people held in a government-backed witchhunt in Gambia have been released without charge after several detainees fell seriously ill, a senior police source said Monday.

Amnesty International and anonymous police sources said as many as 1,000 people have been snatched by "witch hunters" backed by armed men carrying out orders from the Gambian authorities.

They are forced to drink hallucinogen concoctions which caused some detainees to develop intestinal and kidney problems. Police sources say at least two people have died after drinking the potions.

"A total number of 312 people who were abducted by the so-called witch doctors early last month have been released in the early hours of Sunday morning without any charges levied against them," a senior police source, who preferred not to be named, told AFP Monday.

Their release came after five victims were admitted at various health facilities in Gambia suffering from kidney and stomach problems.

"Five out of those abducted are currently in hospital while others are seriously ill, and this prompted the authorities to release the remaining abductees before the situation worsens", the police source said.

Those released are mainly men and women aged 40 to 60. They were all arrested in early March.

Gambia, the smallest nation in Africa, has been ruled by President Yahya Jammeh who took power in a bloodless coup in 1994.

In recent years it has increasingly come under fire over its human rights record. Despite an international and domestic outcry over the witch hunts, the government has not responded to the allegations.

Observers say Jammeh invited Guinean witch hunters into Gambia after suspecting witchcraft in the death of an aunt earlier this year.

Poor countries demand US$2 billion from rich

Press release:

Nearly 50 of the world’s least developed countries have called on rich nations to meet an eight-year old promise and pay US$2 billion to help them adapt to climate change.

The demand was made at the UN climate change negotiations that are currently underway in Bonn , Germany .

Rich countries promised the Least Developed Countries (LDCs) support for "immediate and urgent" actions on adaptation to climate change eight years ago at the seventh conference of parties to the UN Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC) in Marrakech , Morocco in 2001.

The UNFCCC then created the LDC Fund with voluntary contributions from the rich countries and gave each LDC US$200,000 to carry out a National Adaptation Programme of Action (NAPA) to identify the most urgent adaptation actions needed.

So far 39 of the NAPAs have been completed. The costs of implementing all the urgent and immediate adaptation actions identified in them would exceed US$1.6 billion, but the LDC Fund has less than US$200 million and only a handful of the identified projects have been funded.

“The LDCs are demanding that the rich countries pledge up to US$2 billion over the next five years in order to fulfil the promise they made eight years ago,” says Saleemul Huq, senior fellow in the Climate Change Group at the International Institute for Environment and Development.

“The poorest and most vulnerable countries have contributed least to climate change and will suffer most from its impacts,” says Huq. “The rich countries can and must live up to their words and massively increase their funding to compensate the least developed countries.”

Gambian Coup Suspect Reveals NIA Brutality

Says he was beaten and kicked

Foroyaa Newspaper, Banjul: Marabout Hamadi Sowe, who is standing trial for “concealment of treason,” in connection with the 21st March, 2006, coup plot against President Jammeh, on Monday 30 March opened his defence in the “Voire dive” (trial within trial), after spending 3 years in detention due to a protracted legal wrangling concerning his case. Mr. Sowe alleged that he was severely tortured by the soldiers that arrested him.

Testifying before Justice Joseph Wowo of the Banjul High Court, Sowe said he was arrested at his home at Ebo Town on the night of 29 March, 2006 at around 10:30pm. Sowe stated that 6 soldiers came into his house armed with guns, sticks and whips and asked for the owner of the compound, Cherno Barry.

He said he told them that he is in Senegal. He said he was handcuffed and they started to beat him with sticks and whips. He added that he was taken straight to mile 2 prisons. He indicated that he was later taken to the NIA office at around 12 midnight.

He noted that at the NIA, he was dropped in the midst of soldiers who started to beat him indiscriminately. He said those that beat him were armed with sticks, whips, guns and knives. He noted that the beating was done in the court yard (large area) with so many soldiers present.

Marabout Sowe pointed out that at around 3 am, he was taken upstairs in a big sitting room together with other people. He asserted that he was subjected to questioning and he denied knowing any thing about the matter. He posited that one Captain Musa Jammeh told him that he knew something about the matter because of the fact that the owner of the compound, Marabout Cherno Barry, knew something about the matter that he (Sowe) should also knew about it. He added that he told them that he was only taking care of the compound for Cherno Barry with his family.

“One Demba Sowe and Hydara started questioning me. I told them to call all the people that they have arrested and see if any knew me. Captain Musa Jammeh told me you are lying. He pulled out a pistol and stuck it in my mouth thereby breaking my teeth. He told me you are lying and your Marabout cannot do any thing about it. I will lock you up. Musa Jammeh told me if they could not get the Marabout, but gets me, means they got him (Cherno Barry). Musa asked me whether I knew Alieu Jobe and I told him he used to come to the Marabout but I do not know what was between them,” added Sowe.

Going further, Sowe indicated that he was taken from one small office to another and was ordered to thumb print on an empty piece of paper without any writings on it.
Sowe said, “At Mile 2, I was questioned again on whether I have accepted what they accused me of and I replied in the negative. Musa Jammeh told me, remember what we did to you yesterday. If you do not comply, we will kill you. I then accepted and thumb print on the paper because I was afraid that they will take me back and beat me up,” said Sowe.

Marabout Sowe indicated that when he was making his voluntary statement, there was no independent witness and that he does not know any Babou Loum. He said he knew Sainey Ndure at the NIA as the one who obtained a statement from him and even went to the point of telling them to release him as he did not know any thing about the mater; that the Marabout who knew about it is at large in Senegal. Neneh Cham Chongan, his counsel, reminded him that the independent witness Babou Loum told the court that he (Sowe) was happy when he was signing the statement that the two of them were chatting together. Sowe asked, “How can they accused me of partaking in a coup d’etat and I laughed about that. “I was never in a laughing mood,” said Sowe. He added that if it was not for the severe beatings, he would not have signed the statement.

It could be recalled that Marabout Hamadi Sowe, was standing trial alongside Alieu Jobe and others for “treason and concealment of treason”. His trial was separated and was later tried alone. In late 2006, the State Counsel Mrs. Marley Wood informed the court about the state’s intention to discontinue with the case. In another sitting, Mrs. Wood told the court that they were unable to file in the motion for the discontinuation of the case. Since then, Sowe is incarcerated by the authorities, and it was in June 2008, when the trial re-commenced before Justice M.M (Yamoa) Ageyemang of the High Court

Plea for reforms after migrant tragedy

UN aid agencies are suggesting wealthy industrialised nations should perhaps rethink their policies on immigration and asylum in the wake of the latest tragedy in the Mediterranean, writes the BBC's Imogen Foulkes in Geneva.

Reacting to the news that at least 200 migrants were feared dead off the coast of Libya, after the smugglers' boat which was supposed to take them to Italy capsized, the head of the UN refugee agency, Antonio Guterres, said the barriers to legal migration had become too high.

"This is a tragedy that is multiplying itself, in the Mediterranean, in the Gulf of Aden, in south-east Asia. More and more people are trying desperately to move," Mr Guterres told the BBC.

While the trend towards globalisation was encouraging free trade, there were still lethal barriers to people, he added.

"I think it's important to recognise that in today's world where as we have seen, money moves so freely, and goods tend to move also more and more freely, there are still tremendous obstacles for people."

"People need to move because they can no longer live in their countries of origin because of war, because of environmental degradation, because of poverty, there are many reasons that force people to move."

'Total disprespect'

The UN refugee agency estimates that more than 67,000 people undertook the dangerous voyage to Europe in smugglers' boats in 2008.

More than 1,700 are known to have died, but that figure could be far higher, because no-one really knows exactly how many people the smugglers cram onto their vessels.


What is clear, however, is that anyone choosing to try to get Europe on an illegal vessel is risking his or her life.

"Unfortunately it is something we see over and over again," said Jean-Philippe Chauzy of the International Organisation for Migration. "The total disrespect for the safety and dignity of those people."

"They are crammed below deck, the boats are filled three or four times above their capacity, they have no navigation equipment, no safety equipment.

"So, when the boats capsize there are obviously no lifejackets, no dinghies, because everything has been stripped from the boats to get as many people on board as possible."

UN aid agencies believe the strict asylum and immigration policies of many western industrialised countries are forcing migrants to turn to smugglers.

The UN refugee agency points out that of those who crossed illegally from Africa to Europe last year, a majority applied for asylum, and more than half of those were found to be in need of protection.

This proves, the agency says, that a significant number had legitimate reasons to come to Europe and should not have been forced to take the illegal smuggling route.

Growing fears

At the same time, the International Labour Organisation (ILO) says that despite the current global financial crisis, falling birth rates across western Europe will cause a labour shortage over the next few years

It says Europe should think about making it easier for people from the developing world to come in and work.

"You have a strong demand for labour particularly in industrialised countries," explained Patrick Taran, a migrant labour specialist with the ILO.

"They need people to fill the low skilled jobs in agriculture and construction, manufacturing, domestic work, in health care, and you have a lot of people, including with skills, who need those jobs and are willing to come for them."

"Those people will take risks if the doors aren't open. They'll go in by the back window if the front door isn't open."

"When there's no job at all at home, when you have a family to feed, you will take risks to make sure that you and your family have food on the table."

So, as G20 countries, the world's richest nations, work on plans to rescue their own economies, the fear among aid agencies is that the solutions they come up with may close the door to legal migrants and refugees even more firmly.

And if that happens, the agencies warn, more people will turn to smugglers, and more will die as a result.

Dutchman arrested in Gambia for insulting Jammeh

BANJUL – Police in Gambia said Wednesday that a man arrested for allegedly insulting President Yahya Jammeh had lied about his nationality and is actually Dutch not British.

According to the charges the man, identified as Rene Beulen, complained on Saturday at a police post that Jammeh had increased taxi fares for white people and accused the Gambian leader of being "too greedy and corrupt".

Beulen pleaded not guilty to the charges on Tuesday but could not make bail and was detained, according to police sources at Banjul's notorious Mile Two prison, pending his trial date of 9 April.

Under Gambian law, sedition or the incitement of resistance to lawful authority is punishable by up to one year in prison and a fine.

Police said Beulen had been questioned again on Wednesday following inquiries from British diplomats.

"He confessed that he was a Dutch national and not British. He also told the panel of investigators, including the British officials, that he stayed in Britain for the past 10 years but that he is not from that country," a senior police source told AFP on condition of anonymity.

The Dutch foreign ministry confirmed to AFP that a Dutch national had been arrested in the Gambia but declined to give a name or any information regarding the charges.

In December 2008, a British missionary couple became the first foreigners to be slapped with a jail sentence for sedition in the west African nation.

They were ordered to serve 12 months in prison with hard labour after pleading guilty to criticising the president.

Gambia, a tiny country inside Senegal, has one of the worst human rights records in west Africa. Jammeh, an outspoken military officer and former wrestler, has ruled the former British colony since seizing power in a bloodless coup in 1994.

The country is a popular tourist destination with some 100,000 tourists visiting the Gambia each year.

AFP / Expatica

Inter duel with Tottenham for young Gambian star

According to the Daily Mirror, Tottenham are trying to beat Inter in the race for one of the stars of the Under 17 team in Gambia, Ebrima Bojang.

According to its report Bojang has already received a bid from Inter for a test, but is expected by Tottenham later this month,as soon as he is able to get a visa".

The young striker, who plays in Real de Banjul,is currently busy with the Under 17 national team for the African League category.

Bojang, 16, has scored the only goal by Gambia in the victorious match against Guinea, first in the competition. And in the third challenge of the group he scored the second goal in the 2-0 in Algeria.

After closing first in group A, the ‘Baby Scorpions’ have eliminated Malawi (4-0, a goal by Bojang) in the semifinal and he scored twice in Gambia's 3-1 win over Algeria in the final.

Gambia's consumer inflation remains unchange

The Gambia Bureau of Statistics has released the Consumer Price Inflation (CPI) for the month of February 09 at an unchanged rate of 7 per cent (y/y).

The price pointer was quoted at 7 per cent at the end of January 09. Could the stability in the index indicate a probable downward trend in the coming months given the 2009 Budget’s headline Inflationary target of 5 per cent?

The International Monetary Fund (IMF) projects Inflation for the sub-region to slow to a lesser 3.5 per cent at the end of 2009 from a higher 5.4 per cent at the end of 2008 as the Continent’s index is also estimated to be reversed downwards to 3.4 per cent at the end of 2008 from 5.2 per cent at the end of 2009.

Food prices inched up from 8.81 per cent at the end of Jan 09 to 8.89 per cent at the end of Feb 09 on a y/y basis. This still compares unfavourably with a marginal decline from 8.38 per cent in Jan 08 to 8.33 per cent at the end of Feb 08. On a month-on-month basis, food prices eased down from 0.24 per cent at the end of Jan 09 to 0.13 per cent in Feb 09. The non-food component of the basket also grew by 8.77 per cent at the end of Feb 09 from 8.70 per cent in Jan 09 (y/y).

This was in a sharp contrast with a decline of 1.20 per cent in Feb from 1.32 per cent a year ago. Month-on-month non-food prices shrank from 0.24 per cent in Jan 09 to 0.12 per cent at the end of Feb 09 weighing positively against an inch of 0.50 per cent at the end of Feb 2008. Electricity and housing led the charge in the increase in the non-food component of the national price basket; swelling by 6.8 per cent and 6.4 per cent respectively.

Analysis:
The pulse of the consumer price barometer continues to be dictated by food prices. Though downside risks to the global economic outlook remain unchanged, we expect upside risks to domestic inflationary pressures to subside in the coming months of 2009.

This is on the back of anticipated falling domestic export demand and financing, declining commodity prices and much tighter external financing constrains; especially considering a current budget deficit (D1.3bn) at the end 2008.

Essentially, these factors should result in declines in food prices as re-export trades slow down and imports contract due to falling demand on the local
market. Slowing demand should see drops in the food component
of the consumer price basket. Moreover, contractions in external
(donor) financing should see a surge in domestic borrowings and
reduce money supply. Consequently, the Dalasi’s steady
performance against its major trading counterparts should provide
signification insulation against import costs. In the light of these
factors, we forecast the CPI for the month of March 09 to decline
from its current 7 per cent recorded at the end of January 2009.

Analyst: Richmond Dela Cabral
Email: richmond.cabral@databankgroup.com

Gambia beat Algeria to lift CAF U-17 title

The Baby Scorpions claimed their second CAF U-17 title courtesy a 3-1 victory over hosts Algeria in the final match at the 8th CAF U-17 Championship on Thursday in Dar El Beida.

At a packed stadium, the Gambians defied the huge home crowd for the hosts to cling unto victory.

A brace from top marksman Ebrima Bojang and a goal from Alasana Camara powered the Gambia’s to the continental title since winning it on home soil four years ago.

Algerian striker Bendahmane Nadir scored for the hosts but it was not enough to change the tide in his side's favour.

The result saw the Gambians confirm their superiority over the hosts after beating them 2-0 in their earlier meeting at the group phase.

On 7 minutes, Ebrima broke the deadlock by heading home from close range before Alasana doubled the lead on 22 minutes.

Two minutes to half time, Bendahmane reduced the deficit for his side from the spot after Bezzaz Abdelhakim was fouled by Gambian goalie Musa Camara in the penalty area.

The goal restored the confidence of the hosts who launched consistent raids into the half of the Gambians in their quest to draw even.

Five minutes from time, Ebrima sealed victory for his side with his second of the day by slamming into the yawning net after rounding Algerian goalie Abdennour Merzouki.
CAFonline

Dalasi and Butut:Dalasi Posts Declines

The local currency posted declines against its major trading counterparts on both the interbank and the parallel markets this week. The Dalasi depreciated by 37 bututs against the dollar to close at D26.25 and lost D1.25 against the pound to close at D38 on the interbank market.

The Dalasi also depreciated by D1.99 against the Euro to D35.62 and was fixed at D257.50 against the CFA Francs. On the parallel market, the Dalasi lost 53 bututs against the Dollar and was quoted at D26.78 and depreciated by D1.25 against the pound and was quoted at D38. Against the Euro and the CFA Francs, the Dalasi shaved off D1.50 and D6.50 to close at D35.38 and D260 respectively.

On the international currency market, the Dollar marked gains against the Pound and the Euro but lost to the Japanese Yen. The greenback was upbeat against the Pound by 0.69 per cent to $1.44 and was up by 0.74 per cent against the Euro to $1.35 but posted a decline of 3.40 per cent against the Yen to close at $98.13. The dollar’s strength was influenced by a surge in currency transactions as a result of a lackluster in the equities market.

Yields Register Gains
Trading on the floor of the money market of the Central Bank of the Gambia saw gains in all traded instruments except the 91-Day Sukuk- Salam Bill which remains pegged at 11.26 per cent following the end of this week’s auction. The 91-Day Bill inched up by three basis points from 11.48 per cent and is currently quoted at 11.51 per cent.

The 182- Day Bill was up by 17 basis points and was quoted at 12.79 per cent. The Bill was previously quoted at 12.62 per cent. The longer-dated arm of the market witnessed a 7-basis point appreciation in the level of the 1-Year Note. The 1-Year Note is currently quoted at 14.42 per cent but was
quoted at a lower rate of 14.35 per cent last week.

Dalasi Inter-Bank Mid Exchange Rates

USD 26.25
UKP 38.00
Euro 35.62
CFA 257.50

Dalasi Forex Bureau Mid Exchange Rates

USD 26.78
UKP 38.00
Euro 35.38 -
CFA 260.00

TIC Now in Farafeni
Takaful Insurance Company has opened a new shop in Farafenni. Takaful Insurance has been committed to the promotion of Islamic financing following the successful establishment of Islamic Banking in The Gambia.

Open letter to Gambian Journalists

Dear friends,

Over the past few days, we have had a heated debate over the legitimacy of the Gambia Press Union and the extent to which it is representative of Gambian media and journalists in the United States. The debate has, naturally, led to some angry exchanges from both those who feel that the GPU-USA is okay as is, and those who feel that they are not fully represented. Indeed, each side is making claims to being in the right. Such is the nature of any conflict situation. Wars are fought because each party feels that they are in the right. And sometimes, it is the fact that both parties have legitimate reasons to take up arms against the other. Where compromise solutions that accomodate the parties to a conflict are worked out, a ceasefire ensues. Where compromise solutions are not found and each party sticks to its own version of right, the conflict drags interminably on, leading to severe losses on all sides. I pray that we should find a compromise solution and move on.

That said, I also thought to myself yesterday that Yahya Jammeh must be laughing happily in his sofa, tapping his belly, gleefully munching his dark cheeks, and saying loudly to his crooning cronies: 'You just wait and see what happens to them. They are calling for my destruction but now they will all be destroyed because I am not their equal. etc. etc.' He would be thinking that his marabouts or his demons have succeeded in smashing us all so hard that we are now madly knocking our heads together, exchanging angry words, and tearing each other's throats. He must be gloating over us. Our current discussion reminds me of some lines in a song by Ifang Bondi which says: Allah kanang faa njaw la lunnah. Ning Allah yeng faa njaw la lunnah njaw saa foleh nhang na wulo faa. The artist begs God not to kill him on his enemy's day. If God kills him on his enemy's day his enemy will say 'I have killed my dog.'

True, we do have some issues to iron out. And it is great that we are trying to iron them out. But in doing so, I beg you all not to lose sight of the bigger and more important picture. We all have a common enemy, a common task, a common goal whose achivement is a strong enough motive to help us all swallow our individual and collective grievances and pool our resources in the interests of our dear motherland. I therefore humbly appeal to all Gambian journalists to please let by-gones be by-gones, forgive each others trespasses, and forge a solid common front in the interest of our dear motherland.

To those of you who have felt that they were sidelined, please rest assured that whenever the GPU-USA acted, it acted in all good faith and in furtherance of the goals we all share. There has never been any calculated attempt to keep anyone out. We may have differing opinions, but I pray that we learn to agree to disagree. After all, that is all what the democratic culture we advocate is for.

Please let us pool our resources together, let our voices be heard in a civil manner, and let us set our sights firmly on ending the tyranny that is oppressing us and our innocent nation back home. We are all fighting the same war against impunity, against the violations of our God-given rights, against despotism. We are all in the trenches together, each doing their very best wherever they are, at every moment of day to help bring peace and freedom to our country. We are all fellow journalists, fellow victims of a despotic regime we will not let consficate our liberties. We are all Gambian brothers and sisters. And we are all practising Muslims and Christians. For all these reasons I appeal to us all: Please cease fire. Let us unite and move on, respecting our differences but keeping the prize squarely in our sights. God bless you all.

I thank you all.

Baba

Baba Galleh Jallow steps down

The secretary general of the Gambia Press Union USA Chapter last Sunday announced his immediate resignation from the union.

Baba Galleh a former editor -in-chief of the Daily Observer and CEO of The Independent Newspaper, said his decision to step down was in response to Mathew Jallow's proposal that the current (GPU) executive should step down in order to make room for a restructuring of the union.

Announcing his resignation, Mr Jallow wrote: " Earlier this week, Mathew Jallow sent out an email to me, a couple of other members of the GPU-USA executive, and to the editors of the online Gambian media houses - freedom, the echo, senegambianews, allgambian and gainako. Among other things, Mathew wrote that:

"After many discussions with a variety of journalists both active and inactive, the time has come for us to put heads together and recreate the Gambia Press Union (USA) into a more representative and active organ for the development of the Gambia media. I therefore call on the current executive to respond this calling in the interest of unity and progress of our media."

In subsequent emails to the same addressees, Mathew proposed that the current executive should step down in order to make room for a restructuring of the GPU-USA. He pointed out that some editors of the Gambian online media and other Gambian journalists he had spoken to are not happy about the constitution of the past and current executives. During the last executive elections, only about seven people responded to the call to vote, even though there are at least 15-20 names on the GPU-USA mailing list. Calls by the GPU-USA executive, both past and present, for Gambian journalists in the USA to actively participate in the union's activities have been unsuccessful and we have had to work with the very few active members to keep the body alive.

It is against the background of this scenario that I have decided to step down as Secretary General of the GPU-USA in order to allow the process of restructuring Mathew suggests, and that has received the support of some of the editors of the Gambian online media, to go smoothly ahead. In that regard, I wish to inform the Gambian online community that I have voluntarily resigned from my position as GPU-USA secretary general with immediate effect. I am hoping that Mathew Jallow and those who initiated this dialogue on restructuring the GPU-USA will continue to guide our efforts in this important direction. Below is a copy of the resignation letter I sent to editors of all online Gambian media, to the GPU-USA mailing list, and to Mathew himself. I am sending this to the Gambia Post and the Gambia-L to make sure that the online Gambian community knows exactly what is going on with the GPU-USA.

Upon careful reflection and in order to help move this union forward, I am happy to announce that I am stepping down from my position as Secretary General of GPU-USA with immediate effect. While it has been tough to have folks participate, it has been my pleasure to serve in this capacity and to work with those of you who have been active. I hope and pray that the current dialogue goes smoothly forward and that our union emerges from it all stronger and better organized.

I hope too, that those who have initiated this process of restructuring will continue to coordinate our efforts in that direction. Thank you all and God bless you all."

Halifa writes to Jammeh

The desire to walk the extra mile in pursuit of the truth, as dictated by justice, wisdom, good faith and the public interest has compelled me to address this memorandum to you so as to seek further clarification regarding the content and ramification of the presumed “Government policy on the screening of witches”.

Attached under the copy of this memorandum is a copy of the charges proffered against me for your perusal. The thread which runs through all the counts is the presumption that there is a “Lawful Government policy on the screening of witches”.

It stands to reason that if I had any prior knowledge and reliable evidence that the abduction of elderly men and women in particular and other persons of different age groups from their homes and their transportation and imprisonment in residents away from their homes is a by product of the execution of an official government policy, there would not have been any need for me to waste time, energy and resources in calling state representatives to try to find out the role of the government in the perpetuation of the exercise. My task to identify who was behind the screening exercise and facilitate redress would have been less cumbersome and much lighter.

In short, instead of visiting the victims to ascertain or validate reports of atrocities perpetrated against them with the view to convey my findings to you to find out the position of your government and call upon your government to grant them protection, I would have enlightened the victims of their Constitutional right to petition the Executive for the redress of grievances and to resort to the Courts for the protection of their rights as engraved in section 25 subsection 1(f) of the Constitution.

Furthermore I have the right to move freely throughout the Gambia and receive and give information. In accordance with section 25 subsection 1 (a) and subsection 2 of the Constitution. As an opposition Leader I could have politicised the issue by opening up a nationwide debate on the policy with the view to promote an alternative policy which could win public approval and thus try to win voters to my side of the political spectrum.

This is perfectly in line with section 103 of the Elections Laws of the country which states that “Political parties may be established to participate in the shaping of the political will of the people, to disseminate information of political ideas and/or political, economic and social programmes of a national character and to sponsor candidates for public elections.”

It is therefore abundantly clear that I have every right and duty to formulate and disseminate alternative policies and to conduct a campaign to convince the masses to elect me to implement the alternative policies. As a seasoned political figure who has been the minority leader in the national assembly from 2002-2007 and a founding member of the Pan African Parliament, I know very well how to criticise existing government policies and formulate alternative policies.

In short, debate on public policy is not an exclusive domain for the executive or political representatives alone. It is a domain for each sovereign Gambian. The Constitution states that “Every citizen of the Gambia of full age and capacity shall have the right, without unreasonable restrictions -“(a) to take part in the conduct of public affairs, directly or through freely chosen representatives.”

Suffice it to say, Government policy is a public matter and everyone has the right to comment on its merits or shortcomings and call for its implementation or abrogation. A policy may be consistent with or averse to public decency, public morality, public interest or the public good. This is why freedom of expression should not be hindered to facilitate dialogue to establish what is good and bad policy.

One may now wonder what motivated me to meet the victims of abduction. In my view, the cornerstone of our rights to self determination and Independence is the sovereignty of the people. To attain and conserve the sovereignty of our people is the fundamental objectives of our struggle against colonial domination. This is why the Republican Constitution asserts that sovereignty resides in the people.

Throughout my life as a public servant and private citizen I have worked to ensure that each Gambian, African and Human being is conscious of what it means to be a sovereign person. It is incontrovertible that the sovereignty of the individual person is inviolable. Once this sovereignty is negated one becomes a beast of burden or slave without any rights.

A person whose sovereignty has been negated cannot safeguard the privacy of his or her home from interference. Such a person may be abducted, transported and detained against his/her will without the protection of law. A person whose sovereignty has been abrogated would be at the mercy of his/her abductors and could be forced to eat, drink and sleep as the abductors wish and may be subjected to inhuman and degrading treatment after being deprived of family, community and legal protection. Such a person may be branded, stigmatized and maimed with impunity.

Hence, it has become abundantly clear to me that the sovereignty of the person is indefensible without safeguarding the equality of all persons before the law and ensuring equal protection of all persons under the law.

Hence, when it came to my notice that Jonyi Sonko of Essau had been abducted against her will and transported from Essau to Kololi and was detained in a place commonly referred to as Baba Jobe’s compound, I had to call the Vice President to convey the reports regarding the abduction of men and women from Essau and requested for the information to be transmitted to the President I had expected that the executive will investigate the matter and put all violation of rights to a stop.

When the problem persisted I decided to see many religious leaders of all faiths to inform them of the violations of the rights of very vulnerable victims. As the report persisted I saw the need to come into direct contact with the victims so that I could be doubly sure that the information I intended to transmit to the authorities was the truth, the whole truth and nothing but the truth.

I had to validate the reports because of my disbelief that the life of a sovereign Gambian in the 21st century could be more insecure than the life of a ruminant. In short, when a person enters a compound and tries to take a cock or goat, the owner could easily call on the support of the neighbours and police to effect arrest.

According to the information I received, abductors could majestically walk into any compound, enter any bed room, abduct any body’s grandfather or grandmother, mother or father, wife or husband, sister or brother and uncle or aunt and take him or her away without the power to appeal for the protection of family members, community and the law enforcement agents. Even a slave or animal has more rights than the person who is deprived of any protection of the privacy of his/her home or his/her freedom of movement and liberty. I placed myself in the position of the abductees and my conscience could not be free until I did something to end their plight.

This anguish of an elderly man and woman in captivity, being forced to drink hallucinogenic concoctions and is asked to undress to be washed by young people who could be his or her children or grand children and finally forced to sleep on the bare floor after suffering from a state of delirium, tormented my very being. To ignore the traumatic experiences would have made me a prisoner of my own conscience.

My primary task was to find out whether the actions were state sponsored since the acts were perpetrated under the gaze of security personnel. This is precisely why I deemed it necessary to gather concrete evidence for onward transmission to the highest office of the land as proof that the fundamental rights of our sovereign people are being negated.

It goes without saying that, I had the intention to convey to you that governance in a sovereign Republic is a contract between the public trustees and the public; that the terms of the contract are clearly stipulated in the supreme law of our land, the Constitution of the Republic.

I would have reminded you that section 61 of the Constitution states without any ambiguity or equivocation that “the President shall uphold and defend this Constitution as the supreme law of the Gambia”. It was my intention before my arrest to forward a memorandum to you to alert your mind to section 17(d) of the Constitution which states that:

“The fundamental human rights and freedom enshrined in this chapter shall be respected and upheld by all organs of the Executive and its agencies, the Legislature and, where applicable to them, by all natural and legal persons in The Gambia and shall be enforceable by the courts in accordance with this Constitution”.
I intended to convey to you that the people have the right to protection of their person liberty and security under section 19 of the Constitution.

I would have conveyed that even though section 19 states that no one should be subjected to arbitrary arrest or detention, elderly men and women; wives and husbands; brothers and sisters; sons and daughters; friends and loved ones were being abducted from their homes by strangers and taken to destinations unknown to them and detained for days against their will.

I would have pointed out that even though section 23 of the Constitution forbids anyone from interfering with the privacy of a person’s home strangers have gone into the bed rooms of sovereign citizens who have not violated any law and have forced them to go along with them into waiting buses. I would have added that freedom goes with the will power to do what is not against the law, public morality and decency. Hence any abduction of the person constitutes a negation of his or her free will and equates the person to a person held in slavery or servitude. This negates section 33 (1) of the Constitution which states that, “all persons shall be equal before the law.”

I would have questioned why one person in a home who has children and relatives is subjected to restrictions and castigations which others are not subjected to in a country whose Constitution says in section 33 that “No law shall make any provision which is discriminatory either of itself or in its effect” and that “no person shall be treated in a discriminatory manner by any person acting by virtue of any law or in performance of the functions of any public office or any public authority”

I would have pointed out that the physical and psychological torment the abductees went through after being put in a state of delirium and further subjected to detention without adequate food, the refusal for them to go to a toilet to urinate or defecate and their banishment to sleep on bare tiles on the floor of their detention centre amount to torture or inhuman or degrading punishment or treatment, which is forbidden by section 21 of the Constitution.

I can now say with utmost sincerity that this matter went beyond partisan, tribal, gender or other parochial considerations. It was a matter of social justice period. My objective for gathering concrete information was to draw the attention of the executive to what I considered to be an aberration which needed to be halted before it was too late. I had to play my role as a public figure who has the conviction that injustice anywhere should be the concern of the public every where.

This is why I said after my arrest that I prefer to be the prisoner of a state instead of becoming the prisoner of my own conscience, that if my suffering could lead to an end to the suffering of others I was fully prepared to be the sacrificial lamb. This is how matters stood.

At no time prior to my arrest did I harbour any intention to do what was not in line with truth, good faith, justice and the public interest. This is precisely the reason why I met many civic, religious and opinion leaders to explain all the actions which constituted an affront to public morality, public decency and justice and leave them to act in accordance with the dictates of their convictions and consciences.

To conclude I must reiterate again that I am not aware of any law on policy on the screening of witches in The Gambia. I was informed of actions which constituted gross violation of the rights of some of our sovereign people and I had to play my part to the best of my ability in accordance with the dictates of time and circumstances, to seek redress. Section 220 makes it obligatory for each sovereign Gambian to foster national unity and live harmoniously with others.

The actions were tearing our communities apart. Section 220 requires each sovereign Gambian to promote the prestige and good reputation of the country. The reports of people becoming internally displaced persons and refugees in peace time could only undermine the prestige and reputation of the country. Section 220 makes it a duty for each citizen to defend and uphold the Constitution.

We are not duty bound to uphold and defend a political party. It is the duty of each party whether in government or not, to build its own prestige and good reputation by defending the rights and promoting the prosperity and general welfare of the people. If any party in government fails to do so the people reserve the right to vote it out of office. This is why section 100 of the Constitution makes it an entrenched provision that “The National Assembly shall not pass a bill to establish a one party state”. A multi party system calls for a country where many policies contend for approval. No single voice will be allowed to dominate.

The Constitution buttressed our duty to defend the constitution in section 2 which states that “All citizens of the Gambia have the right and the duty at all times to defend this Constitution and in particular, to resist, to the extent reasonably justifiable in the circumstances, any person or group of persons seeking or attempting by any violent or unlawful means to suspend, overthrow or abrogate this Constitution or any part of it”.

Section (3) of the same section adds, “a person who resists the suspension, overthrow or abrogation of this constitution as provided in subsection (2) commits no offence”.
My mission was that of promoting social justice. It was designed to alert the minds of those who have sworn to uphold and defend the Constitution to govern by the dictates of their oath of office and save the sovereign citizens of the country from abduction, arbitrary detention and subjection to degrading treatment. I hope the abduction has come to an end I am still monitoring the situation.

I will now wait to receive a copy of the policy on the screening of witches so that it will be subjected to National debate if it does exist. History will record the debate and the actions perpetrated against some of our sovereign citizens. It will pass judgment on our conduct.

On my part, I have said that as a Pan Africanist who has heeded Lumumba’s call for my generation to uphold and defend the sovereignty of the African people, I would prefer to lie six feet deep in my grave or be incarcerated in a dungeon somewhere, for eternity, rather than to have it recorded in the history of the Gambia that while our people were being abducted and subjected to degrading treatment I just sat and watched and said or did nothing. I will never leave such a history behind for the future generation to read.

Yours in the Service of Humanity

……………………
Halifa Sallah

Cc: The Chief Justice
The Director of Public Prosecution
The Secretary Of State for Interior

Gambian gets life sentence in UK

A Gambian national was Thursday sentenced to life in prison by a British court after been found guilty of murder.

Juvinal Ferreira was found guilty by Norwich Crown Court for killing a British woman, Elaine Walpole in Dereham, Norfolk, last April.

Ms Walpole's body was found in a house in Dreibholz Court in Dereham. The post-mortem revealed three stab wounds to her head and neck and more fifty other injuries including a bite mark to her face.

Forensic examinations of samples taken from her body identified the defendant who was arrested in May in Hertfordshire.

At the time of his arrest on suspicion of murder, Mr Ferreira told police he was 16 years old. Police doubted his claim and embarked on a 10-month inquiry - using bone specialists and records found in Africa - to prove he was an adult.

Their research allowed the courts to treat Ferreira as an adult and not a juvenile.

In sentencing Mr Ferreira, the presiding judge handed down a life sentence, saying he should serve at least 22 years before being considered for parole. A juvenile would been handed a much shorter sentence.

Speaking to reporters after the judgement was delivered, a police spokesman, Detective Inspector Jes Fry said detectives were sure Ferreira was older than 16 as soon as they arrested him. He added that the police could not prove their suspicions because Mr Ferreira had no birth certificate, driving licence or other paperwork containing his date of birth.

"We were forced to trace Ferreira's history in Africa - and gather records available in Gambia - then compare that data to forensic tests on the age of his bones. He gave us his name and said he was from Gambia - which was true. He also said was 16 - which wasn't. We would have said he was in his early 20s. The problem was that he had none of the usual paperwork. So we made inquiries in Gambia through the Foreign Office and traced identification documents and school records.

"X-rays were then taken of his wrists, clavicles and lower jaw and these were examined by forensic odontologists and forensic anthropologists. When we compared the forensic evidence to the records we traced in Gambia we were able to show that he must be at least 20 and therefore an adult - and his lawyers accepted our findings.

"We don't know his exact age but that doesn't matter. We established that he was at least 20 and therefore the court could treat him as an adult. A juvenile would have had to have a much shorter sentence," the spokesman said.

Inspector Jes revealed that Mr Ferreira have shown no remorse for his actions.

Head of Protective Services, Detective Chief Superintendent Julian Blazeby said: “This was a challenging investigation, where the team of officers involved demonstrated professionalism in bringing a successful conclusion.

“This was a very unusual case that required the use of innovation and forensic specialists to prove the defendant's age and highlights the determination of our investigative team.”

More troubles for jailed David Fulton

The Point, Banjul: David Fulton, a British national who is currently serving a one year jail term for seditious publication, is convicted for another offence of forgery.

David Fulton Wednesday pleaded guilty to the charge of forgery before Magistrate Lamin George of the Banjul Magistrates’ Court, and was subsequently convicted and sentenced to three years mandatory jail term.

According to the first Count, some time in the year 2007 and 2008 in the city of Banjul and diverse places in The Gambia, David Fulton, forged a Technical Assistance number plate No: GSC 1TA which he affixed to his vehicle. Prosecuting Officer, Sgt Fatty, asserted that such number plates, red in colour, are normally issued for vehicles of persons under Technical Assistance in the Gambia. He said that there was no record at the Department of State for Foreign Affairs to show that Mr Fulton had been in The Gambia under some technical assistance programme. He stated also that records at the police licensing office indicate that the said vehicle was not registered as a Technical Assistance vehicle. He asserted that Mr Fulton made the number plate and the registration number on his own.

Sgt Fatty further informed the Court that upon the completion of investigations the Accused was subsequently collected from Mile 2, cautioned and charged with the offence committed. The Accused, Mr Fulton, having admitted the facts as narrated by the police prosecutor, was subsequently convicted and sentenced accordingly.

The case was adjourned to 7th April 2009 for consideration of the second Count.

Under Count two, the Accused, David Fulton, some time in the year 2007 and 2008 in the city of Banjul and diverse places in The Gambia, falsely represented himself as a military officer by wearing a military uniform and thereby committed an offence. He has denied the charge.

Praising Halifa Sallah

Halifa Sallah may have gone through some inconveniences and hardships while been remanded at the Mile Two Prisons, but the NADD flag bearer has again emerged victorious in his fight for the restoration of democracy and the rule of law in the country.

By PK Jarju

Mr Sallah was kept away from his loved ones and friends not because he committed a crime or posed a threat to the peace and stability of the Gambia, but because he chose to challenged the state sponsored witch hunting exercise, which was not only against the constitution and other laws of the Gambia, but a violation of the rights and freedoms of the Gambian people.

Halifa's duty to the public and his belief in morality of the essential rightness of the cause for which he stood for, has compelled him to offer himself as a 'sacrificial lamb to ensure the liberty and dignity of the Gambian people'.

As he stated in a recent interview with Foroyaa: "My arrest, detention and release is not about me. It is about the sovereignty and welfare of the people which is the cornerstone of our right to self determination and independence."

Halifa was as strong as ever when he was arrested. And instead of calling on his angry supporters to take to the street when he was unable to meet his bail conditions, he asked them to return home and not be despaired.

Halifa knew that he was not a criminal and remanding him at the Mile Two Prisons only exposed the Jammeh regime's desire to keep the Gambian people silence while it does anything it wants without giving a monkey to the laws of the country. The longer he remained banged up and denied access to visitors, the more respect he got from the Gambian people many of whom have previously supported Jammeh.

President Jammeh may try to fool the Gambian people yet again, by saying that the charges against Halifa were dropped in the interest of peace. We all know that the charges were only dropped as a damage limitation on Jammeh's battered imaged.

Since Halifa's arrest, newspapers in many countries both in Africa, UK, America, Asia, China and even far away Australia developed interest in the state sponsored witch hunting and have ran stories about the arrest and persecution of suspected witches and wizards in the Gambia.

Many Gambians and friends of the Gambia turned Jammeh into a subject of ridicule and have even expressed doubts whether he is mentally fit enough to continue running the affairs of the country.

Peace was the last thing on Jammeh's mind when he ordered the arrest of Halifa Sallah. If Jammeh was really interested in the peace and progress of the country, he would not have in the first place invited the Guinean witch hunters into the country to rudely disrupt the lives of our elderly parents.

And I am very certain that the Gambia would have been in flames today if the Gambian people had taken to the street to demand the immediate release of Halifa Sallah and an end to the activities of the witch hunters. Jammeh would have surely ordered his security officers to come down heavily on the protesters, like he did on April 10 and 11, 2000.

Lets not forget that Jammeh once said on national television that he would not hesitate to kill 99 per cent Gambians and go to sleep if it is in the interest of the Gambia.

To Jammeh, the witch hunting is in the best interest of the country and only God knows how many Gambians would have been killed during the protest.

The Gambia can only move forward if Jammeh as president orders the immediate stop to all witch hunting activities, issue a public apology to the people whose lives were torn apart by the witch hunters as well compensate them fully.

A full investigation should be conducted on the reported death five Gambians and the rape of a woman from Makumbaya by the witch hunters. Murder and rape are a serious crime under Gambian law and those responsible should be arrested and prosecuted.

Gambian men and women who have fled the country into neigbouring Senegal should be allow to return home to their families without any intimidation or harasment.

There cannot be peace and progress without justice.

Gambia top group at U-17 Champs

The Gambia claimed top spot of Group “A” at the ongoing 8th CAF U-17 Championship after a 2-0 victory over hosts Algeria on Wednesday in Zeralda.

The hosts were without some regular faces including first choice goalkeeper Abdennour Merzouki and midfielder Houssem Ferkous who were both suspended. Striker Nadir Bendhame who scored twice against Guinea and Cameroun was used as a substitute.

The Baby Scorpions registered the first goal in the 26th minute when a corner kick from Dawda Ceesay was deflected by an Algerian defender into his net.

The hosts responded positively but failed to tally the score despite the home support and creative football where it mattered most for them to score.

The second period saw both teams making tactical changes. Despite bringing on their top scorer Bendhame, Algeria found it impossible to score. To add to their worries, the Gambia added another goal in injury time from striker Ebrima Bojang.

At the post match conference, Gambia’s Coach Tariq Saigy commended his players whilst the team continues to build on their achievement.
His Algerian counterpart, Othmane Jbrir conceding defeat, while adding their focus is now on the semi-final, with their target on a place at the last two.

The group’s other match between Cameroon and Guinea in Dar El Beda ended barren. The result meant that both teams failed to score at the championship.
CAFOnline

Dalasi & Butut: Dalasi Loses to US Dollar

with Databank Securities Ltd
The Gambian local currency lost ground to the US Dollar on both the interbank and parallel markets this week. On the interbank market, the Dalasi depreciated by 13 bututs and was quoted at D25.88 but gained 50 bututs against the pound to close at D36.75.

The local currency strengthened by D1.37 against the Euro and was quoted at D33.63 but was down by D2.50 against the CFA Francs to close the week at D257.50. On the parallel market, the Dalasi depreciated by 2 bututs against the greenback to close at D26.25 and depreciated by 25 bututs against the Pound to close at D36.75. The Gambian currency also lost 38 bututs against the Euro and depreciated by D1 against the CFA Francs to close the week at D33.88 and D253.50 respectively.

The Dollar recorded losses against the Pound and the Euro but gained against the Yen on the international currency market this week. The US dollar moved south by 4.14 per cent against the pound to close at $1.45 and depreciated against the Euro by 5.15 per cent and was quoted at $1.36. Against the Yen, the dollar appreciated by 3.39 per cent to close this week at $94.79.


91-Day Bill Up
Treasury Instruments traded on the floor of the Central Bank of the Gambia posted mixed performances this week. The 91-Day Bill was quoted at 11.48 per cent following a 3-basis point gain from a previous rate of 11.45 per cent.

However, the 182-Day Bill lost 15 basis points andis currently quoted at 12.62 per cent but was quoted at a higher rate of 12.77 per cent a week ago. The 1-Year Note also dipped by 8 basis points from 14.43 per cent. The Note was quoted at 14.43 per cent last week. The 91-Day Sukuk-Salam Bill was unchanged at 11.26 per cent.

Dalasi Inter-Bank Mid Exchange Rates

USD 25.88
UKP 36.75
Euro 33.63
CFA 257.50

Dalasi Forex Bureau Mid Exchange Rates

USD 26.25
UKP 36.75
Euro 33.88
CFA 253.50

CPI Stays at 7 Per cent…
The Gambia Bureau of Statistics has released the Consumer Price Inflation (CPI) for the month of February 09 at an unchanged rate of 7per cent (y/y). The price pointer was fixed at a previous 7 per cent that was quoted at the end of January 09.