FOLKS,
The Daily Observer editorial on "Freedom" seems to be
interesting. The paper applauded president Bush's call
for freedom and the end to tyranny. The paper went
as far as urging the US leader to intervene in countries
whose democratic records are appalling. Three countries
were named, Togo the Equatorial Guinea and Sudan.
However, the paper failed to name The Gambia, which is
worst than the countries named above in terms of human
records. In my own opinion The Gambia, should
have been the first country to be named.
Under dictator Yahya, we have witnessed killings,
arson attacks, abductions, unlawful arrest of citizens who
had dissenting opinions with his corrupt administration.
We have also witnessed the passage of draconian laws, such
as the newly enacted Newspaper Act bill and the indemnity
Act. These are important issues to write about.
As the saying goes" You don't throw stone, when you are in
a glass house" We also have our own problem, which
requires the intervention of president Bush. Gambia's case
should be put to the attention of the international
community, in view of the recent deteriorating human
rights situation.
when i heard about president Bush's master piece
speech, i had The Gambia in mind. This is a
country, where a lot of improvement on human
rights and the rule of law is needed. Freedom and
Free speech is threatened in The Gambia. People are
not free to express their opinions on the current
state of Affairs. We have seen people arrested for merely
criticising Jammeh's ill-conceived policies.
Agreed, that the countries named by the Observer, had
bad human rights records, but to do justice to the
editorial, The Gambia should not have been spared. To me,
it seems as you have a "sickness' and you trying to
conceal it. The best way to cure a disease is to
disclose it to your neighbours, family and your
doctor. Through this, you will be cured. We
have serious problem at home and should not be down played.
Charity begins at home. No matter whose ass is
gutted the truth should be reported. That what
journalism is all about. The editorial was good, but
The absence of The Gambia's name rendered it biased.
Just my mind speaking.
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Let the bells of freedom ring
By
Jan 25, 2005, 09:55
Email this article
Printer friendly page
The inauguration speech of George Bush delivered at the Capitol last week is
an enthralling call for arms against the monsters of tyranny, oppression and
marginalisation all over the world.
The speech advocates for liberty, freedom and justice for all humanity. If
the speech became the policy for Mr Bush’s second term, then all peoples
living under the yoke of tyranny should be ready to see light at the dark
tunnel of their oppressions.
Mr Bush was absolutely right when he stated that freedoms such as
expression, right to life, movement, association and to elect leaders of
choice based on universal adult suffrage were universal and transcended all
other narrow boundaries such as race or religion.
The Bush administration has the rare chance to restore freedoms to all
peoples who are yearning for it in Arabia especially, and in some dark
corners of Africa and Asia. The totalitarian regimes in these parts of the
world should no longer be allowed to oppress their peoples in the name of
religion or because someone's long dead grandfather had been smart enough to
conquer a territory and call it his by divine right.
Africa is still not wholly free from the clutches of tyrants. In many parts
of the continent, the masses do not possess the freedom to elect their
leaders, they live under monarchies which are busy patronising their huge
families and not looking after their peoples.
Or even in countries where elections take place, they are nothing more than
window dressing, meant to appease the donors and be in the good books of the
rest of the international community. The second Bush administration should
focus its attention on such African countries and make them live by the
rules of democracy.
Countries like Togo, Equatorial Guinea, Sudan come to mind, but are by no
means the only culprits, as being among the remaining bastions of
intolerance and abuse on the continent. Yet it should be the focus of the
incoming administration to also reward countries that live by the letter of
democracy and good governance. Genuine democracy should be rewarded and sham
democracy punished because at the end of the day, every human being has the
inalienable right to live in a free and just society.
We applaud Mr Bush’s historic speech and urge him to live by his words so
that tyrants like Saddam continue to find the world more and more
unfriendly.
© Copyright 2003 by Observer Company
Top of Page
Editorial
Latest Headlines
Iraq: who won?
Africa’s dilemma
The MDI success story
Taiwan’s new envoy
How African students suffer and die
Urban transport system needed urgently
Let the bells of freedom ring
The way forward
Tolerance and obedience
Sheepscape
_________________________________________________________________
Express yourself instantly with MSN Messenger! Download today it's FREE!
http://messenger.msn.click-url.com/go/onm00200471ave/direct/01/
¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤
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 Search in the Gambia-L archives, go to: http://maelstrom.stjohns.edu/CGI/wa.exe?S1=gambia-l
To contact the List Management, please send an e-mail to:
[log in to unmask]
¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤
|
