Shame on the Gambia government.  The US government should not just stop at
slaming them down, they need to stop supporting these criminals.  Please
read on.


US Slams Govt's Human Rights Record

The Independent (Banjul)

April 14, 2003
Posted to the web April 14, 2003

PK Jarju
Banjul

Despite being in America's good books, the Gambia government's human rights
record, which was described as poor last year, is once again the target of a
damning report from the United States, which says it remains unsatisfactory.

The US Department of State's 2002 report on human rights practices in The
Gambia released recently points to what it calls largely unresolved
questions of human rights.

The report lists a number of human rights violations, which its says have
been unchecked for the past year, which witnessed a hostile political
environment that denied democratic freedoms, victimised opposition
politicians and journalists of private media organisations.

An indicting blow to the government's claim of restoring democracy to the
nation in the wake of the transition, the report states that "members of the
security forces committed serious human rights abuses" which in most cases
were not prosecuted nor were their perpetrators punished.

It also lists a number of unexplained deaths and what it says is the failure
of the government to pursue investigations into these matters.

This included the January 2000 killings of Bakary Ceesay, the two military
personnel Lieutenant Almamo Manneh and Corporal Modou Dumbuya or the October
killings of Hussein Wasni and Ousman Ceesay. It adds that no punitive
actions were also still taken against members of the security forces who
beat or otherwise abused persons in 2001 like John Senese, teacher, Biran
Secka a 17-year-old Sukuta Secondary student, and three athletes of Kanifing
after a volleyball match. It also chronicles the arrest and torture of UDP
activist Dodou Kassa Jatta, Musa Fatty a UDP militant, Alhagie Nybally,
former vice president of Gamsu, Dr.

Momodou Lamin Manneh an opposition supporter, Citizen FM Radio proprietor
Babucarr Gaye, and Muhammed Lamin Sillah of The Gambia chapter of Amnesty
International as well as those responsible for election violence in 2001.

According to the report no actions were also taken against the responsible
members of the security forces who beat or otherwise abused persons in the
following 2000 cases: the January mistreatment of Ousman Ceesay or the May
beating of Muhammad Mboyo a journalist from the Democratic Republic of
Congo. It adds that there were no developments in the 2000 detention of
Ebrima Yarboe, Ebrima Barrow, Momodou Marenah, Dumo Saho, Lalo Jaiteh, and
Omar Darboe on suspicion of attempting to violate state security.

The report further states that although the 1997 constitution includes
provisions to safeguard against arbitrary arrest and detention, police and
security forces arbitrarily arrested and detained citizens and on a few
occasions for a few hours to two weeks while some detainees in certain
instance were held incommunicado. It indicates that although the law
requires authorities to obtain a warrant before arresting an individual,
persons were arrested without such warrants and detainees were not always
allowed prompt access to family members or a lawyer.

It says that the slow pace of the justice system resulted in remand
prisoners waiting long periods in pre-trial detention and that approximately
40 of Mile Two's 230 inmates were in detention without trial. It adds that
most of the detainees have been in the remand wings of the Mile 2 and
Janjanbureh prisons for more than four years without trial. It says that the
psychological conditions of the prisons were "hard" in that maximum security
prisoners were confined to small, individual cells for 21 hours a day and
were allowed few family visits.

According to the report the jail former AFPRC Vice chairman Sanna Sabally
was not allowed access to domestic and international human rights
organisations. It says there were credible reports of malnutrition and
beatings of detainees while local jails continue to experience overcrowding.
"Inmates, including detainees awaiting charges and those who were charged
and awaiting trial occasionally had to sleep on mats and blankets provided
to them and police were reluctant to terminate fistfights between prisoners
until the dispute was settled, and many of the prisoners were injured" it
explains.

The report further noted that the Jammeh regime has still not formally
revoked military decrees enacted prior to the 1997 Constitution that give
the NIA and the Secretary of State for the Interior broad powers to detain
individuals indefinitely without charge "in the interest of national
security" despite its inconsistency with the constitution.

Government has not repealed Decree 45, which abrogates constitutional
safeguards against arbitrary search and permits search and seizure of
property without due process it posits. The report further notes that
observers believed that the government monitored citizens engaged in
activities that it deemed objectionable and restricted the right to transfer
funds and in previous years, confiscated the assets of most senior officials
of the former Jawara government.

It also added that although the constitution provides for the freedom of
speech and the press, in practice the government limited the full exercise
of these freedoms by using intimidation and restrictive media legislation.
The government also employed arrest, detention and interrogations to
intimidate journalists and newspapers that publish articles that it
considered inaccurate or sensitive it says, adding that in an effort to
further regulate and restrict freedom of speech and of the press the
National Assembly during the year passed the National Media Commission Bill.
The report said Decrees 70 and 71 enacted by the AFPRC Junta requiring all
newspapers to post a $4, 500 (100,000 dalasi) bond or cease publication
continued to inhibit free reporting. It observes that although the bond was
required to ensure payment of any penalties imposed by a court for the
publication of blasphemous or seditious articles or other libel yet
State-owned publications, which served, as "propaganda instruments for the
Government and its supporters" were not subjected to these decrees.

According to it journalists practice self-censorship while Citizen FM
remains closed on tax related offences despite claims by the proprietor that
he has paid all fees due. It also says persons who publicly criticise or
publish embarrassing or inaccurate stories about the government are
sometimes arrested and detained without trial by security officers while the
government at times restrict freedom of assembly and association especially
on political opponents and also at times enforced restrictions on freedom of
movement.




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