As the whole world join in a unanimous condemnation of the brutal slaying of Deyda and calls for an speedy investigation into his murder, I hope that we Gambians who are at the receiving end of this seemingly endless nightmare will do some thorough soul searching reappraise our condition both individually and collectively.

Hopefully, those among us who still have some feeling of decency and sense of self worth will see that the only way to redeem The Gambia is a CONSISTENT CALL for a One For All And All For One battle cry.

The vast majority of Gambians anywhere will either tell you that they are 'not interested in politics,' or mostly, and especially, those in the West will tell you that they have no reason to bother about what's obtaining back home because they have a good life in their respective countries of abode. The 'Haraan' mentality has taken such a hold in our psyche that even whiles we 'haraan' in others peoples' countries we disown responsibility for our own.

Had the peoples of these countries where we suffer all and any kind of discriminations had our attitude, we would not be there to 'haraan' in the first place. The most significant lesson to learn in any Western country is their One For All And All For One mentality.

What are Gambians, especially those in the West going to do about the continuing atrocities from the state that are taking ever more brutal forms? Is there going to be a staid and lasting call for justice not only when murder has been committed but whenever the rights of one among has been violated? Are we going to hold the Seedi Sannehs of this world as equally accountable to what is happening today as we do Yaya Jammeh or is it going to be hypocrisy and 'maasla' as usual after some days have gone by?

Just a few days have elapsed since we read the report about the continuing decay in the moral fabric in The Gambia. Teenagers continue to join the growing legion of prostitutes whiles their parents helplessly look the other way. We don't have to look far the reasons behind this swift and far-reaching decay in the moral fabric of a country that just a decade ago used to pride itself in the institution of the family and its role as moral adjudicator.

The economic brutality from the regime's policies has emasculated the men in our society; men who used to find pride in providing for their families. Begging has become the order of the day for many men as gainful employment is hard to come by. Those who are lucky enough to have something they can call a job find out at the end of each month that the real revalue of their take-home earnings continue to drop by the day.

This has led to a situation where by in many families there is a permanent state of conflict. Mothers condone, and even encourage their daughters into open prostitution. Young men continue to find it hard to find willing brides as economic gain by any means necessary has become the norm. Mothers push their daughters into relationship with returning 'Haranees' in the hope that they too can find a way into 'Haraanland' not for the purposes of marriage but for what they can repatriate in money and kind. Meanwhile the fathers swallow their pride and look the other way too as soon as the money starts rolling in!

The gang style gunning down of vocal Gambians who refuse to be bought is just another tactic in Yaya's all out campaign against Gambians and should be seen as such. Deyda's murder should serve as a lesson to all and I hope it will not go down as unsolved eventhough there is little to indicate that it will. Colleagues and loved one of the Martyr should look into the possibilities of setting up a fund or a prize for journalism in his name. A deserving way of showing our appreciation for what he's done for us and in making sure that we and generations yet unborn will remember him in appreciation for having watered the plants of Gambian freedom with his very blood.

So who has time for 'politics'? Most people who see it worth their while to engage in 'politics,' not for any personal gain, but because they have seen the connection between Yaya Jammeh and the decay in the moral and economic fabric of our society, those exemplary characters like Joe Sambou, who has both been consistent and steadfast in his call to join the struggle to rid our society despite attacks on his person from many quarters are what it will take, not to or three-day cries of foul!



Journalist shot dead in Gambia
17/12/2004 14:18  - (SA)

http://www.news24.com/News24/Africa/News/0,,2-11-1447_1637385,00.html

Dakar - The AFP correspondent in the Gambian capital Banjul, Deida Hydara, was shot and killed overnight on Friday, his colleagues and family told AFP by telephone.
Hydara, 58, was shot and died instantly shortly after midnight as he was dropping off colleagues from the newspaper The Point, of which he was co-editor with Pape Saine.
"He was shot in the head, three bullets. I was not there," an audibly shaken Saine told AFP by telephone.
Two of Hydara's female colleagues were wounded, he added, but the seriousness of their injuries was not known.
Hydara's family had earlier told AFP about the killing, saying the veteran journalist had died on the spot after being shot just after midnight, but adding that they did not know the precise circumstances surrounding his death.
The Banjul-based director of private Senegalese radio network Sud FM, Pape Diomaye Thiare, told AFP that Hydara's body had been taken to the Royal Victoria Hospital, where it was being attended by friends and colleagues including Demba Ali Diao, the head of the Gambia Press Union.
'No idea who did this'
"We have no idea who did this, there are no identified suspects," said Thiare. "We are all shocked and dismayed - I was with him yesterday, to interview him."
Union boss Diao told AFP that a funeral was planned for 17:00 on Friday, in accordance with Muslim tradition, but that a memorial service would take place next week to give Hydara's wife and children time enough to return from their homes in Britain.
"Everybody is so surprised, why would anyone want to kill Deida? He had such a pleasant character and was a veteran journalist in this country," Diao said.
"He has been very critical of the government and very vocal in opposition to these repressive laws but that does not mean that he, of all people, should have been the target of an assassin's bullet."
Hydara had worked for AFP since 1974, beginning his career with the agency as a translator.
In 1994 he became a correspondent for the Paris-based media watchdog Reporters Sans Frontieres in the former colony, which earlier this week passed two laws that stiffened penalties for journalists accused of libel.
Leonard Vincent, the head of RSF's Africa service, said that he and RSF director Robert Menard would travel in the coming days to the tiny west African country for a memorial service and to ensure that an investigation into Hydara's death is opened without delay.
Edited by Tori Foxcroft



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