G-L Community:

Beran Jeng:  Thanks for these and other good postings!

The Independent must be commended along with The Point for their
balanced and courageous coverage of events at home and abroad.  The
media's growing access to public officials though long overdue, is a
welcome development in State, Media relations.  While some modest steps
have been taken, so much more remains to be done to restore democracy
and the rule of law in The Gambia.

*  We must continue to insist on free, fair and all inclusive elections;

*  Unbanning of all political parties and politicians;

*  Insist on International Monitors for the forthcoming
Presidential       Elections in 2001;

*  Provide financial support for a Unified Opposition Party, or
parties,    and

*  Extend the vote to Gambians abroad.

I suggest that we begin immediately, the campaigns to Enfranchise
Gambians Abroad, and for International (Elections) Monitors.

In so doing, I suggest that a petition-letter be sent to the Chairman of
the Electoral Commission in order to facilitate the process for Gambians
abroad to vote.

We must also continue our letter-writing campaign urging Jammeh,
Presidents Wade and Obasanjo, the OAU, and Commonwealth etc., not only
to insist on free, fair and all inclusive elections, but also on sending
monitors.

They Must also insist on the announced date for the Elections.
Otherwise, delays and postponements would be used as they were in 1996,
to rig the presidential election.

We must raise funds for the opposition so as to give them a fighting
chance against Jammeh's ill-gotten financial resources.

We need drafts of these letters.  Any volunteers? Remember to keep it
short and to the point.

Any ideas for fundraising for the opposition?  Could the D.C., and
Atlanta organizers of ALD and July 4 events, respectively, commit part
of their profits to the opposition party or parties?  Just a thought.

Put your money where your mouth is, and if you talk the talk, walk the
walk!  Thanks.

Abdoulaye
No justice, no peace!
Jammeh Must Go!




"Jeng, Beran" wrote:
>
> FWD
>
> Positive Signs (Editorial)
> The Independent <http://www.qanet.gm/Independent/independent.html>  (Banjul)
> June 12, 2000
> Banjul - Two years ago it was virtually impossible for a journalist of the free
> press to interview certain public officials. The general reception accorded
> journalists seeking to get through to very senior officials was one of ridicule
> and uncompromising blockage.
> As a result, a wide rift had developed between the press and public institutions
> which made it impossible to make objective reports and left the press with no
> option but to quote sources close to this office or the other.
> Well, in recent days, either by accident or design, public officials seem to be
> opening up to the press. The police department had taken the lead in this
> direction during the days of IGP Jagne. Now it seems, the Armed Forces are
> following suit. On two recent occasions, The Independent has been able to talk
> to the Army Chief of Staff without any serious difficulty. As a result, we have
> been able to throw light on confusing rumours bordering on the security of our
> nation.
> The police department's prompt and frank explanation of circumstances
> surrounding the alleged murder by a police officer of 15- year-old student Lamin
> Jatta was commendable. So is the promise that regular police press briefings are
> to be held. We hope this promise is fulfilled.
> We wish to remind the general public that the press is here to serve. We are
> ready and willing partners in the drive for national wellbeing. We are willing
> partners in the fight for national security, the fight against crime in all its
> forms. We are willing partners in the fight against injustice, the fight for
> justice, fair-play and good governance. In short, we, like all well meaning
> civic institutions, are willing partners in the quest for the common good. And
> we offer our services free.
> At another level, it is clear that the Gambian public is undergoing a positive
> transformation. Over the past two years, the so-called culture of silence is
> fast dying out, replaced by a dynamic vocal culture expressed principally
> through the radio, the newspaper, the public forum and the Internet. No longer,
> for instance are Gambians abroad indifferent to developments in The Gambia.
> The Gambia's political culture is fast being transformed from the parochial
> (ignorant) and the subject (passive) to the participant (informed and active),
> in which every one displays active interest in what is going on. Perhaps the
> most dramatic expression of the slide from the passive to the participant
> culture is Dr. Lenrie Peters' dramatic poetic outburst in the wake of the April
> 10 carnage. Like Dr. Peters, many formerly reserved Gambians both at home and
> abroad are now going out of their way to show that they really care about what
> happens to The Gambia.
> Not only that, Gambians are now actively questioning the limits of social or
> public authority. Government has ceased to be seen as an all-powerful bully that
> thrives on intimidation and the use of brute force. Gambians now realise that
> government, however powerful it pretends to be, cannot be more powerful than the
> people it represents.
> The terms of the social contract by which a group of people is entrusted with
> public office by the people and empowered to make decisions on behalf of the
> people are getting better defined, and Gambians are increasingly demanding
> respect, accountability and fair play.
> So, generally speaking while many may be upset about the political situation in
> the country, there certainly is a lot to be hopeful for. While on one hand some
> public institutions are growing more receptive to the press, Gambians are on the
> other hand, speaking up for their rights. These indeed, are very positive signs.
>
> To those public officials who still ask their secretaries to say to journalists
> that they are not in, we say: none can escape accountability.
>
> ----------------------------------------------------------------------------
>
> To unsubscribe/subscribe or view archives of postings, go to the Gambia-L
> Web interface at: http://maelstrom.stjohns.edu/archives/gambia-l.html
>
> ----------------------------------------------------------------------------

----------------------------------------------------------------------------

To unsubscribe/subscribe or view archives of postings, go to the Gambia-L
Web interface at: http://maelstrom.stjohns.edu/archives/gambia-l.html

----------------------------------------------------------------------------