Sections
DONATE
SUPPORT WWW.JOLLOFNEWS.COM
Account Login
GPU-USA on Freedom, Amadou Samba and The Gambia
Thursday, 09 September 2010 08:19
Press releaseWe, at the Gambia Press Union, USA, have also taken note of the defamation lawsuit brought against the editor of the Freedom newspaper Mr. Pa Nderry M'bai by the Gambian businessman Mr. Amadou Samba. The suit was triggered by a recent Freedom article which alleged that Mr. Samba had been "investigated" by the Gambia authorities "on possible ties with the arrested foreign nationals currently detained on allegations of cocaine trafficking in the region." But when faced with some fresh information "invalidating" his
reporting, Mr. M'bai recanted his story and apologized for not getting it right. Mr. Samba has denied being investigated by the authorities about the cocaine smuggling. Hence his lawsuit.Our standpoint on this matter is premised on the following: Mr. M'bai has the right to publish anything he deems publishable and to be in the national interest. Surely any groundbreaking story, especially one involving $1 billion worth of cocaine and which shipped out into The Gambia, of all places, is bound to command a lot of reportorial real estate. People have the right to know. The information must flow. Conversely, Mr. Samba, like any other person, also has the right to sue any newspaper if he feels something written about him has been untrue and damaging to his person. The recourse to justice is as good for an embattled editor as it is for a maligned businessman.
We are somewhat relieved that Mr. Samba has sought to pursue justice in an American court. There is no better place. With a constitution firmly supportive of an independent press and protective of individual rights and liberties, both Messrs. Samba and M'bai are sure to gain from the corrective benefits of American jurisprudence. The facts will bear one or the other out. While it is not within our purview to comment on the merits or lack thereof of Mr. Samba's suit, we are, notwithstanding, prompted to hazard that at the end of the day, justice will be served. We have confidence in the judiciousness of the American legal system.
We are, however, troubled by Mr. Samba's demand for the Freedom editor to identify the sources for his article. That's a dangerous request. Mr. M'bai should refuse it. It is unethical for journalists to bare out their sources and leave them hanging. The confidentiality agreement between the reporter and his source(s) is indispensable to the effective functioning of any press. It is vital for news-gathering and for the free flow of information. Mr. M'bai should be comforted by the fact that most states, including his own, in the United States, have in place strong measures aimed at protecting a reporter against forcefully revealing his sources. Mr. Samba's demand for editor M'bai to reveal his sources "within 30 days" has a bullying tinge to it. It is wrong.
On a broader canvass, the Gambian political climate, as inhospitable to the press as it has been, and from which Mr. Samba is operating, should make any editor pause before revealing his sources. It will be a recipe for disaster for those outed individuals who would be left to the mercilessness of a Gambian judiciary working under the weight of a chief executive who continues to be hostile to the workings of a free press. The Gambian press has experienced incalculable damage at the hands of President Yahya Jammeh. He holds a terrible scorecard in press freedom: the multiple arrests and detentions of journalists. The burning down of the Independent and its subsequent closing. The disappearance of Chief Ebrima Manneh. The mysterious killing of Deyda Hydara. The list is endless.We recognize that because the prevailing political climate in The Gambia has not been amenable to freedom of speech, it has gotten harder and harder to gather information. A lot of news goes under-reported or not reported at all. And it has gotten harder still to subject the little information filtering through to verification and cross-check. Journalists are caught in a bind: to report or not to report.
We advance that it is always better to err on the side of caution. Skepticism should trump haste. Facts should be the crucible upon which a storyline ought to reach out to its audience. This is important because a lot is at stake: Integrity is on the line. Careers are on the line. Marriages are on the line. Yet, it is so easy, given the scant information coming from The Gambia and without the advantage of confirmation or denial, for reporters to risk into the incorrect and the misleading. But it still behooves custodians of information to weigh the public's right to know against the feasibility of providing factual material to their audiences. It is a thin line to walk. Thus, diligent calibration is required. This has become all the more important because we are now living in the Viral age.
It is commendable on Mr. M'bai's part to acknowledge getting his story wrong. Admitting errors and setting the record straight is a hallmark of responsible journalism. Mr. M'bai, and any other newspaper editor for that matter, can only be encouraged to continue doing more of that.
To the extent Mr. Samba's lawsuit has any potential to stifle M'bai's journalism and frighten off his bona fide sources, we stand by him and his newspaper. We do so as an institution working in the furtherance of a free and independent press in The Gambia.
Signed on behalf of GPU-USA:
Cherno Baba Jallow, PRO
Demba Baldeh, Secretary General
Jollofnews Poll
Who do you think should be the next President of The Gambia?
Follow us on Twitter
-
Anti-cuts protest at Clegg's homeUp to 100 anti-cuts protesters gather outside Deputy Prime Minister Nick Clegg's home in south-west...
-
Islamist and ex-PM vie for mantle of Egypt's revoltCAIRO (Reuters) - The Muslim Brotherhood and a military man identified with the police state...
-
Bristol Rovers Speed Merchant Could Be Racing To Posh(GamSports) – Peterborough United are thought to be one of a number of Championship sides...
Comments
Shame on you, AMadou Samba for seeking justice in democratic US while helping a dictator in your own country deny others the same!
RSS feed for comments to this post.