Sections
DONATE
SUPPORT WWW.JOLLOFNEWS.COM
Account Login
Gambian journalist among 2010 Press Freedom Award nominees
Friday, 02 July 2010 10:10
Gambian journalist, Sam Sarr, is among ten journalists from around the world nominated for the 2010 Canadian Journalists’
Press Freedom Award.Scheduled for November 25, 2010, the Canadian Journalists for Free Expression Gala will bring together Canada's media, business and professional communities “to Honor Fearless Reporting.”
The organizers say the award is “in support of journalists who have put their lives on the line to defend freedom of expression.”
The editor of the Banjul based Foroyaa newspaper has been nominated alongside other prominent journalists from countries with similar environment as the restrictive Gambian media environment – Eritrea, Peru, Vietnam, Mexico, Afghanistan, Cameroon, Pakistan, and Serbia.
Sam Sarr began his journalism career in 1987, as a court reporter for Foroyaa. He became the paper's managing editor in 2001.
Presently, he is one of the experienced old hands in the Gambian media and he serves as an adviser to the Gambia Press Union (GPU).
“Sarr's dedication to the principles of press freedom and human rights has been evident throughout his career,” a biographical accounts of the
journalist on the site of the Canadian Journalists for Free Expression Gala 2010 states.It noted that “in a country where freedom of expression is extremely restricted, Sarr's convictions have been a heavy burden to bear. In 1983, he was arrested and detained for seven months on charges of sedition. He was arrested again in 2009, for sedition and criminal defamation. During his trial Sarr made a number of impassioned arguments for freedom of the press and vowed to continue publishing divergent and dissenting views in his paper. He was sentenced to two years in jail, but received a presidential pardon after public pressure forced the government to reverse the conviction. His conduct during the trial and his subsequent release is said to have emboldened a number of media outlets to begin reporting on more controversial and politically sensitive issues.”
Jollofnews Poll
Who do you think should be the next President of The Gambia?
Follow us on Twitter
-
Doctor Who star runs with torchDoctor Who star Matt Smith, former Wales rugby captain Matthew Rees and world hurdles champion...
-
Lesotho holds tense electionMASERU (Reuters) - Voters in the highland African kingdom of Lesotho went to the polls...
-
Bristol Rovers Speed Merchant Could Be Racing To Posh(GamSports) – Peterborough United are thought to be one of a number of Championship sides...
Comments
Never lose hope..The Gambia needs to honour their real hero's.
I could not have said it better. He is indeed a saint.
He is very very hard working: Back in the days when i will attend his free maths class, my respect for him went beyond imagination. I remember the class will be filled with students.
Sam walks in with nothing in his hands then he start going around solving problems for students doing physics, maths n chemistry. Then he goes home n gets busy publishing Foroyaa paper, then he was also working on his law diploma.
He is amazing! Cus he is not doing these stuff for money, but for the betterment of others.
{English proverb.}
Sam Sarr is a saint.
Mike
RSS feed for comments to this post.