Breaking News: Gambia: Tortured Sierra Leonean Journalist Runs For His Life!!
The Gambia ALERT:  Tortured Sierra Leonean journalist flees persecution   

Muhamed Oury Bah, freelance Sierra Leonean journalist and former reporter of
banned Banjul-based The Independent newspaper has fled The Gambia in the
face of persecution by agents of the notoriously feared National
Intelligence Agency (NIA).   

Media Foundation for West Africa (MFWA) sources reported that Bah and his
family fled The Gambia on January 20, 2008 following repeated physical
attacks, and threats against his life.

The journalist who until he fled, was  a refugee working as freelancer told
MFWA sources that the last straw that broke the camel's back was on October
17, 2007 when he was physically attacked by people he suspected to be agents
of the NIA at Serrekunda, The Gambia's largest city.

Bah said his assailants told him: "You are responsible for your own
problem.because you are a stupid journalist who writes stupid things about
The Gambia."

He was one of the journalists of The Independent who were arrested and
briefly detained by the Gambian police, immediately after the newspaper was
illegally closed down on March 28, 2006.

Again, on June 3, 2006 Bah was arrested and detained at the NIA headquarters
on his return to the country, following an interview he granted a newspaper
in Guinea about the deteriorating press freedom situation in The Gambia.

Bah said one of the agents told him: "we have warned you several times to
stop popping your nose into our affairs, but you remained adamant". As a
result of torture meted out to him, Bah lost one of his teeth.

Previously, Bah had been arbitrarily detained and tortured in home country,
Sierra Leone. He was a victim of the military regime of Johnny Paul Koroma
that overthrew former President Ahmed Tejan Kabbah's administration in 1997.

Since 1994, the Gambian government has systematically attacked members of
the media. Frequent raids, harassment and deportation of foreign journalists
have created a timid working environment in most media houses. In addition,
violence, arson, detention and long hours of interrogations by the NIA have
forced journalists to flee the country.

Prof. Kwame Karikari

Executive Director

MFWA

Tel: 233 21 242470

Fax: 233 21 221084

Email :  <mailto:mfwa@africaonline.com.gh> mfwa@africaonline.com.gh

Website :  <http://www.mediafound.org> www.mediafound.org

Posted on Thursday, February 14, 2008 (Archive on Saturday, March 29, 2008)
Posted by PNMBAI  Contributed by PNMBAI
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