Culled from The Observer Thursday, September 27, 2001 Police set campaign code of conduct As political parties hit the campaign trail in the run up to the October 18 Presidential election, The Gambia Police Force yesterday invited journalists at its headquarters for " a consultative meeting with the media," to outline the police campaign code of conduct . Speaking at the meeting, the deputy inspector general of the Gambia Police Force, Jai Sowe said the police wanted to use the media to caution against misconduct by party militants which may endanger peace. He said these included the spreading of false information with the intention of instilling fear and anxiety among the population and the use of abusive and derogatory remarks at political platforms. Mr Sowe noted, "we are also saying that aggrieved parties during the campaign process must seek redress through the legal process rather than taking the law into their own hands." Mr Sowe used the occasion to allay fears about the so-called "Camp 100." He said the police did mount an investigation into the allegation that certain youths were being trained with the intention of disrupting the October 18 Presidential election but concluded that the allegations were baseless. He however said the police would still welcome any information that would help them in further investigations. Mr Sowe said the police would solicit co-operation from the media in its effort to maintain security. "You spread information to the population to educate and enlighten them but some of these information may impact on the security of the country. Giving out sensitive and wrong information can cause fear and anxiety which are not in the interest of anybody." He promised that the police would expedite the process of relaying information to the media houses. "Our doors are open to the press," he said. Questioned why APRC banners and flags were hoisted at some police station premises, Mr Sowe said instructions had been given for such to be removed. He however never hesitated to add that "the families of the police officers residing at the premises of the police have a right to show out their support for any political party." Demba Jawo, president Gambia Press Union assured the police of the co-operation of the media to ensure a smooth election. He urged the police to always open their doors to the media. The consultative meeting was attended by the assistant inspector general of police, Muniru Darboe, Abdou Njie, the crime management co-ordinator, ASP Mbye Jobe, Sarjo Keita, the police PRO as well as other senior police officers. . _________________________________________________________________ Get your FREE download of MSN Explorer at http://explorer.msn.com/intl.asp ---------------------------------------------------------------------------- To unsubscribe/subscribe or view archives of postings, go to the Gambia-L Web interface at: http://maelstrom.stjohns.edu/archives/gambia-l.html You may also send subscription requests to [log in to unmask] if you have problems accessing the web interface and remember to write your full name and e-mail address. ----------------------------------------------------------------------------