IFEX- News from the international freedom of expression community
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ACTION ALERT UPDATE - THE GAMBIA

2 November 2001

IPI concerned that private radio station owner may be targeted

SOURCE: International Press Institute (IPI), Vienna

**Updates IFEX alert of 30 October 2001**

(IPI/IFEX) - In a 2 November 2001 letter to President Yahya A.J.J. Jammeh,
IPI
condemned the recent arrest of Baboucar Gaye and the closure of his radio
station, Citizen FM.

On the basis of information supplied to IPI, on 29 October, Citizen FM
interrupted its usual broadcasting schedule to announce that Gaye, the
proprietor of the radio station, had been arrested by the National
Intelligence
Agency (NIA). After his arrest, Gaye was taken to the headquarters of the
NIA,
where he made a phone call to the radio station asking staff to halt their
broadcasting.

Gaye was arrested for alleged tax arrears. According to the authorities, he
apparently owes tax arrears of US$ 9,000. However, the arrest may have been
due
to the announcement that the radio station would air the presidential
election
results as they were returned. This decision contravenes the Gambian law on
elections, which states that the electoral commission must be the first body
to
provide news of the election results. After being held for eight hours, Gaye
was
eventually released but Citizen FM remains closed.

In the past, both the radio station and Gaye have suffered from the close
attentions of the authorities. Gaye was arrested and Citizen FM closed in
February 1998. At that time, essential equipment was also taken from the
radio
station and Gaye was later convicted of operating a radio station without a
licence. He received a fine and was forced to forfeit the station's
equipment to
the government, thus preventing him from broadcasting. In 2000, after a
protracted court battle, the Gambian judiciary finally held in favour of
Gaye
and the radio station. A decision made by the court on 3 July quashed Gaye's
conviction and sentence, as well as the forfeiture of the radio equipment
(see
IFEX alerts of 11 and 6 July 2000, 13 August, 22 and 17 June 1999, 19 May,
20
April, 3 March, 19, 13 and 9 February 1998).

IPI firmly believes that the use of alleged tax evasion to close down a
radio
station is an abuse of the government's powers. Based on recent history, IPI
is
of the opinion that the authorities are pursuing a vendetta for the radio
station's past reporting.

RECOMMENDED ACTION:

Send appeals to the president:
- inviting the Gambian government to do everything in its power to ensure
that
Citizen FM is allowed to continue broadcasting
- noting that by doing so, he will be upholding the principle of
"everybody's
right to seek, receive and impart information," as enshrined in Article 19
of
the Universal Declaration of Human Rights

APPEALS TO:

H.E. President Yahya A.J.J. Jammeh
State House
Banjul, The Gambia
Fax: +220 227 034

Please copy appeals to the source if possible.

For further information, contact IPI at Spiegelgasse 2, A-1010 Vienna,
Austria,
tel: +43 1 512 90 11, fax: +43 1 512 90 14, e-mail: Michael Kudlak at
[email protected], Barbara Trionfi at [email protected], or David Dadge
at
[email protected], Internet site: www.freemedia.at

The information contained in this action alert update is the sole
responsibility
of IPI. In citing this material for broadcast or publication, please credit
IPI.
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