The Gambia
Concerns about Gambian media bill

afrol News, 2 May - The Gambian Parliament will discuss a new press bill tomorrow, one day before the international World Press Freedom Day. Observers fear the new bill will "seriously threaten press freedom" in a country which is gradually sliding away from the democratic principles it traditionally has observed. 

The French media watchdog Reporters sans Frontières (RSF) yesterday called today on the speaker of the Gambian parliament, Sheriff Mustapha Dibba, to do everything he could to block passage of a new press bill that it said would seriously endanger press freedom. 

- This bill aims to create a National Media Commission that will be a full-scale press court, RSF Secretary-General Robert Ménard said in a letter to Dibba. "In no circumstances must a press monitoring body replace regular courts. The extent of the Commission's powers, with a chairman appointed by the head of state, is a serious threat to press freedom. The bill also violates the Gambian constitution, which guarantees such freedom," Ménard added.

Also Article 19, an organisation protecting free expression, is gravely concerned about the Gambian media bill "which, if enacted, would seriously restrict freedom of expression of the press" in the country. The group especially is concerned about "the registration requirement for 'media practitioners', the lack of independence of the Commission envisaged by the bill and the fact that the mechanisms introduced to enforce the Code of Conduct are excessively heavy-handed." Article 19 holds that the bill constitutes "an unwarranted interference with the right to freedom of expression."

The Gambian Parliament is due tomorrow to urgently consider the bill setting up the Commission, whose main job will be to rule on complaints against journalists and the media. It will be able to summon journalists to reply to accusations and order them to reveal their sources, according to information gathered by RSF. 

The Commission will also draw up a code of conduct for the media and accredit journalists and press organisations. No media outlet will be allowed to operate without an annually renewable licence, which the Commission can suspend or cancel. It can also close down media and impose fines of at least 10,000 dalasis (euro 610). Gambian media are already known to observe a form of self-censorship after several earlier attacks on press freedom. 

Not only press freedom is under attack in The Gambia. Since President Yayah Jammeh came to power in a military coup (the country's first) in 1994, The Gambia slowly has moved away from the democratic principles it once was proud of. Although initially promising democratisation, President Jammeh systematically has worked towards gaining full control of political life and civil society. 

Observers claim The Gambia under Jammeh's control is heading towards a one-party-state, an outspoken desire of the President. President Jammeh won last October's presidential elections through intimidation and fraud, according to the opposition. The principal opposition parties therefore boycotted the legislative elections held in January. Analysts warn of the trends observed in The Gambia, where the un-educated youthful President, apparently ridden by complexes, stakes out a more paranoid policy of gathering total control. Frightening examples of this have earlier been seen in Uganda and the "Central African Empire". 

Sources: Based on RSF and afrol archives

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