Sections
DONATE
SUPPORT WWW.JOLLOFNEWS.COM
Account Login
Forget About Press Freedom
Thursday, 23 June 2011 00:36
When President Yahya Jammeh came to power in a bloodless coup in July 1994, he promised to be a servant of the Gambian people.
He acted as a puritan, a man who was not interested in politics and had even asked local journalists to criticise him and his regime anytime they go wrong.When local journalists began criticising him and his regime, Mr Jammeh turned hostile by ordering the arbitrary arrest and torture of journalists. Many foreign journalists working in the Gambia were arrested and booted out of the country. And despite the return of the country to ‘civilian’ rule in 1996, the atmosphere in which local journalists operate has become more dangerous than ever.
Although Section 25 (a) of the 1997 Constitution of the Gambia states that: Every person shall have the right to freedom of speech and expression, which shall include the freedom of the press and other media, the Gambia government is yet to repeal some of the military degrees enacted prior to the return of the country to 'civilian’ rule. Among them is Decree No. 70 and 71, which increased the bond to be executed by a newspaper from D1, 000 to Dl00, 000 before it commences operation.
The government is also yet to repeal Decree No. 45, which abrogates constitutional safeguards against arbitrary search and permits search and seizure of property without due process. The National Intelligence Agency (NIA) is using these laws to arbitrarily arrest and detain journalists as well as tap phone lines of opponents and critics of the regime without warrant.
Gambian journalists are often accused as being unpatriotic, stooges of the West who are only interested in tarnishing the image of the country or creating political instability to gain political asylum abroad. In one instance, while addressing a group of religious leaders at State House, President Yahya Jammeh likened the private press to toilet saying: “You don’t need to go to the toilet to know that it stinks.” He went further to called on people to stop buying local newspapers. According to him, boycotting local papers is one of the most instrumental ways of making them bankrupt and driving them out of business.
The NIA, which is responsible for protecting state security, collecting intelligence, and conducting covert investigations, centres its works on journalists and opponents of the regime. It arrest, detain and torture journalists and opposition figures who write or say things that are deemed critical of the president and his regime.
Although torture and arbitrary arrest without charge are illegal under Gambian laws, local journalists who dare write anything critical of the regime are arrested, tortured and detained for weeks and months by the NIA without being charge or told the reasons of their arrest.
And in its drive to keep the Gambian people in passive subjugation and perpetual state of darkness, the Gambia government on 13 December, 2004, used the National Assembly (the country’s parliament) which is dominated by members of the ruling party to pass an amendment to the Newspaper Act. The amendment increased the registration bond for independent newspaper publishers and broadcasters from 100,000 Dalasis (approximately £2,000) to 500,000 Dalasi (approximately £10,000).
Given the low level of income in the Gambia, the increase is seen by many as a tool to prevent many prospective independent publishers and broadcasters from setting up news outlets.
Also on 14 December, 2004, the country’s National Assembly again pass amendments to the Criminal Code which broadened the definition of libel and imposed mandatory prison sentences of six months to three years for offenders without the option of a fine.
In 2005, realising that the amendment to the Criminal Code Act 2004 has not produced the desired negative effect on the independent press, the government further amended Section 52 of the Criminal Code Chap 10 Vol. III Laws of the Gambia 1990.
The amendment seeks to make the offence of 'Seditious Publication' even more stringent by making any written or verbal statements, which is critical of the government, an offence. It has stiff penalties in the form of fines and imprisonment even for first time offenders and in some cases, there is not even an option of a fine.
Section 51 (1) of the Criminal Code creates the offence of Sedition. The offence criminalises a wide range of behaviour, including the following: 51. (1) a "seditious intention" is an intention-
(a) to bring into hatred or contempt or to excite disaffection against the person of the President, or the Government of the Gambia as by law established; to excite the inhabitants of the Gambia to attempt to procure the alteration, otherwise than by lawful means, of any matter in the Gambia as by law established;
(a) to bring into hatred or contempt or to excite disaffection against the administration of justice in the Gambia;
(b) to raise discontent or disaffection amongst the inhabitants of
the Gambia; or
(c) To promote feelings of ill will and hostility between different classes of the population of the Gambia.
Section 52 of the 2004 Criminal Code also states
(1) any person who -
(a) does or attempts to do, or makes any preparation to do, or conspires with any person to do, any act with a seditious intention;
(b) utters any seditious words;
(c) prints, publishes, sells, offers for sale, distributes or reproduces any seditious publication; imports any seditious publication, unless he has no reason to believe that it is seditious; shall be guilty of an offence and liable for a first offence to a fine not exceeding fifty thousand Dalasis or to imprisonment for a term not exceeding two years or to both such fine and imprisonment and for a subsequent offence to imprisonment for a term not exceeding three years; and any seditious publication shall be forfeited to the State.
(2) Any person who, without lawful excuse, has in his possessions any seditious publication shall be guilty of an offence and liable for a first offence to a fine not exceeding five hundred Dalasis or to imprisonment for a term not exceeding one year or to both such fine and imprisonment and for a subsequent offence to imprisonment for a term not exceeding two years; and such publication shall be forfeited to the State.
Sedition laws of this nature have in the past been held to breach the guarantee of freedom of expression and have been repealed in most Common Law jurisdictions. The offence is defined in extremely vague terms, which contravene the requirement that restrictions on fundamental rights be provided by law'. The provisions appear to be aimed at protecting the government of the day than public order, a legitimate aim. Although they may claim to protect public order, they are excessively broad on any interpretation.
Another section of the Criminal Code is Section 41, which creates the offence of publishing false news with intent to cause fear or alarm to the public'. The main problem with such a provision is the difficulty of distinguishing between fact and opinion, the chilling effect such provisions have upon freedom of expression and the fact that they not serve any legitimate purpose for restricting freedom of expression. The offence is also too vague as it fails to define the terms 'causing fear and alarm', which are subjective.
Another draconian law that seriously hampers freedom of expression in the Gambia is the Official Secrets Act. This Act contains provisions which are in conflict with the right of the media to report freely. Under section 3 of Official Secrets Act, it is an offence for anyone to make a "sketch, plan, model or note" or to publish or communicate "any secret official code, word, sketch, plan, article, note or other document", which may be useful to an enemy. Journalists reporting on security issues run the risk of contravening the Official Secrets Act without any criminal intention on their part.
The Gambian Public Order Act empowers the Secretary of State for the Interior to make regulations providing for the prohibition of any publication or dissemination of any publication he regards as inimical to public security. It defines public security to include the securing of the safety of persons and property, the maintenance of supplies and services essential to the life of the community, the prevention and suppression of mutiny and rebellion and concerted defiance of and disobedience to a lawfully constituted authority and the laws of the Gambia.
Since the introduction of these draconian legislations, at least nine local journalists were arrested and convicted on various sedition charges.
A renowned newspaper proprietor and critic of the regime, Deyda Hydara, was gunned down on 16 December, 2004 by unidentified men. Mr. Hydara's killer's are yet to be arrested despite investigations by the police. Another local journalist Ebrima Chief Manneh is missing since he was arrested at his newspaper premises by NIA officials in 2006. The Gambia government have denied his arrest despite several eyewitnesses’ reports.
Today in the Gambia, all local journalists and newspapers are practising self-censorship to avoid being sent to jail or closed down. Many issues of public interest are general ignored by the media as reporting them makes them target for arrest or torture by the authorities. The general motto of the regime to journalists is: write anything critical and we will make life difficult for you.
re step their feet in the country.
Until the time of writing this article, the Gambia government has not shown any interest in repealing any of this draconian laws as it always insist that there is press freedom in the country as guaranteed by the constitution.
Written by PK Jarju, Birmingham, UK
Jollofnews Poll
Who do you think should be the next President of The Gambia?
Follow us on Twitter
-
Man killed after shooting in pubA man is shot dead and three others are injured in a shooting in a...
-
Muslim Brotherhood seeks unity ahead of Egypt runoffCAIRO (Reuters) - The Muslim Brotherhood is reaching out to rivals including politicians knocked out...
-
Bristol Rovers Speed Merchant Could Be Racing To Posh(GamSports) – Peterborough United are thought to be one of a number of Championship sides...