Yet again, the Independent lands into a fracas with the APRC government.
This time, President Yahya Jammeh is suing the Independent for libel
concerning a story about the President marrying a third wife. It is
imperative that the story be true and substantiatable. At the end of the
day, the Independent will come out, with honour and integrity in tact, more
case-hardened to the dangers afflicting any press that wants to be free,
outspoken and vibrant in The Gambia. The knives have always been out for the
Independent. So it will be rash for the paper to publish such a story
without the facts first, knowing fully well that the slightest error will
spell doom and gloom for them.

The Independent must draw its strength of defence in court from its sources
that tipped them off the information about Jammeh's 'third wife.' Here, it
must be made very clear that in the absence of a free flow of information
from government to people, people to government, reporters and editors have
no other choice but to rely on 'sources'. Sources are the most frequent
source of information for a journalist. But they must be believable,
unimpeachable, before they can be rendered publishable. Editors must use
their editorial wisdom and experience to help in ascertaining the
authenticity of their sources. Alongside, they must do their own
investigation into the integrities of their sources and the information
supplied by these sources. Note: not all sources are trustworthy. So an
editor needs to be wary of tipsters.

Should it become necessary to protect the identities of his sources in court
for safety reasons, an editor then must rely on his acquaintance with his
sources'information enhanced by his own investigation into the matter. He
must go to court fully prepared to defend his information to the public.

But is the Independent's article true or false or libellous? Well, if the
courts prove the story to be true, more honour to the Independent. But if
the story is discovered to be false, then a huge set-back for the paper.
However, I find it incomprehensible how the Independent can be sued for
libel in this matter. Just for being wrong about Jammeh marrying a third
wife if proved out later? I am not a lawyer, but my understanding of libel
has to do with publishing information harming somebody's reputation. It is
beyond my comprehension how Jammeh's reputation would be harmed here.
Further, to win a case of libel, in my understanding, there has to be an
"intent" to discredit, harm domebody's reputation. It is not easy proving
that anymore than finding a needle in a haystack.

But then I may be wrong. Nonetheless, in the event that the story is found
to be untrue, it could be described as "misinformation" rather than
libellous. In my opinion.

True, it is always good for journalists to get their facts right before
going to press. But accomplishing this feat has been made more difficult for
Gambian journalists by the unblushing reluctance on the part of government
to provide information to the press. In The Gambia, civil servants are
barred from speaking to the press, a tradition Jammeh inherited from the PPP
regime. In this case, journalists find it hard to obtain information from
the other side. And with a piece of information vital to the national
psyche, journalists would rather not throw that into the ash-can; but rather
develop a news story out of it, hoping for immediate responses from the
other side of the story.

The Independent had tried seeking confirmation or otherwise, of its
information from a number of officials, some close to the president. But
they all were tight-lipped, refusing to utter even a faint murmur. If they
had revealed some vital information, most definitely, Independent's article
would have been slanted differently. Alas, such unmitigated reticence by
Gambia government officials on information vital to the national good, keeps
frustrating journalists' efforts to dish out unimpeachable information to
the public. Add the clampdown that comes later. It continues being difficult
working as a journalist in The Gambia.

So here is to the Independent's ordeal, and the impending frustration over
the rigmarole of court proceedings. Let justice be dispensed. Until then,I
stand by my comrades-in-arms.

Cherno Baba Jallow
Detroit, MI



>From: saul khan <[log in to unmask]>
>Reply-To: The Gambia and related-issues mailing list
><[log in to unmask]>
>To: [log in to unmask]
>Subject: Pres. Jammeh V. The Independent Newspaper
>Date: Thu, 30 Dec 1999 11:56:44 GMT
>
>All,
>
>Here is a small story regarding the four Independent Newspaper journalists
>currently being harrassed at the DIRECT orders of His Excellency, Rtd. Lt.
>Col, Dr., Alhagi, Yaya Jemus Junkung Jammeh. What the Observer piece does
>not state is that, the three journalists located so far, were picked up by
>TEN police officers of the SERIOUS CRIMES UNIT, and hauled off to a police
>station. What "serious crime" have they committed? They've revealled a
>marriage that is public knowledge among a large segment of the Gambian
>population. According to first-hand accounts, the unit investigating their
>"serious crime" is at a loss as to how to proceed with the case. For that
>reason, the CO has to travel to Kanilai to ask the Boss what to do every
>step of the way. Libel, by the way, is not an arrestable offence. So, why
>the heavy handedness?
>
>The Gambian press generally has been at the receiving end of the repression
>that characterizes the APRC regime. The Independent, in particular, has
>been
>the subject of constant harrassment. From the petty -constantly switching
>off their energy/water supply, to the outrageous - stripping them naked,
>and
>throwing them into mosquito-infested cells for not having the "proper"
>legal
>papers, the govt. has been sticking it to them. And the reason is clear:
>the
>Independent team rebelled against the manipulative tactics that the govt.
>employed towards the Observer newspaper, for which all the Independent
>reporters worked. In my judgment, they're the most independent, and upfront
>newspaper in the Gambia today. They make no apologies when it comes to
>telling it like it is. And they hit all sides with equal force. So the
>govt.
>is doing all it can to put them out of business.
>
>Because of it's age, and the ridiculous legal bottlenecks that the govt.
>throws at them all the time, the Independent is not yet on sound financial
>footing from what I've gathered. For that reason, they need all the help
>they can get to fend off this frifolous law suit. These very gallant
>fighters: Babagalleh Jallow, Yorro Jallow, Mr. Daffeh, Mr. J. Wally, and
>the
>country's best reporter (my opinion) Demba Jawo, deserve our help.[Jawo was
>the gentlemant whose blunt representation of Gambian reality irked the
>president so much that he bought out the Observer through a proxy. Is it
>any
>wonder then that Mr. Jawo was the first to be shamelessly fired? Out of
>integrity, the rest of the Independent team followed Jawo.] So, for those
>of
>us who are always making noise about "sacrifice" back home, this is one
>group that exemplifies that sacrifice. They deserve our support!
>
>I intend to send the group some money to help with their legal defence by
>Saturday (1/1/2000.) Those willing and able to donate ANY amount at this
>time, can send me a private note, so we can set something up. Or you can
>send the money to the Independent directly through Tel: 494262. Anything in
>the next few weeks will be highly appreciated. Let's not fail these
>brothers
>in their stand against tyranny.
>
>Saul.
>
>Here is the article from the Observer:
>
>Managing editor Alagie Yorro Jallow, editor-in-chief Baba Galleh
>Jallow and reporters NB Daffeh and Jalali Wally of the Independent
>newspaper, were yesterday morning, charged with "libel against the
>president" under the criminal code of the Laws of The Gambia.
>
>
>
>The three (Jalali Wally was at large) were released on bail in the sum of
>10,000 dalasis
>each with Gambian sureties.
>
>Speaking to our reporter following their release,  Yorro Jallow explained
>that they have
>been asked to report to the police daily until they are taken before a
>court.  He said they
>will put up a strong defence to the charge.
>
>The president, Yahya Jammeh, was yet to file his statement to the police.
>It is not yet
>clear how much damages the president is going to claim from the Independent
>newspaper for the report regarding  his marital affairs.
>
>Meanwhile, the Gambia Press Union, after an emergency meeting yesterday,
>expressed
>its disappointment at the trend of relations between the press and the
>government.  The
>union said  the Independent  newspaper, in  this case, was simply carrying
>out its
>legitimate duty of reporting on the activities of public figures.
>
>"The case is not unique as this was exactly the situation with Jammeh's
>second wife.
>There were rumours, then denials only to be confirmed later. This is one
>reason why the
>union in particular and the press in general are calling for transparency
>and unfettered
>access to information.  To punish the press for providing information which
>is of
>legitimate public interest, such as the activities of the president of the
>republic, is unfair,
>unjust and totally unjustifiable," the GPU message concluded..
>
>
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