Wednesday, December 16, 2009.

Wanted: Justice for Deyda Hydara

Exactly five years ago today, Deyda Hydara, then Managing Editor and co-publisher of The Point, was gunned down as he drove from work. His gruesome murder shocked the Gambian public including the media fraternity of which Mr. Hydara was a doyen member. We, members of the Gambian press, sensed a huge void in our comity following the tragic passing of one of our heroes.

We still mourn him. This is more so because five years since his gem of life was taken away from him, Deyda's killers are still at large. They live within us, trying hard at the normalcy of mental fortitude but deep within their souls, struggling, without success, to come to terms with the heinousness of their crime. Their act is both despicable and unGambian. We call for their voluntary surrender to the integrity of the Gambian people.

But more importantly, we remind the Gambian people that Deyda's killers are still within their vicinity, shielded from the law by their own government. It is a government that has long ago stopped pretending on accountability and respect for the institutions of the land.

It has now perfected open defiance against the will of the people. Notwithstanding, we call on the Gambian government to bring Deyda's killers to book. We remain unconvinced of the seriousness of the "investigation" into Deyda's death begun some years ago. We believed it was a sham, a deflection in the hope of minimizing public outrage.

No, the embers of our outrage are still hot, burning with the desire for justice for one of our own, a true son of the soil. We call on the government to abandon their stalling tactics and do a serious inquiry into Deyda's death. We call on the international media fraternity and the world community as a whole, to put more pressure on the Gambian government to produce Deyda's killers, account for Chief Manneh, repeal its punitive anti-press laws and stop the harassment of the Gambian press.

Throughout the last five years, the Gambian government, through its proxies, has tried, without success, to sully the good name of Deyda Hydara. We know they have not been successful because Deyda's body of work has been his best adjudicator, a shield against malice and slander. Deyda was a beautiful man, who was beholden to family values and the serious urgency of community development. He led a precious life of community service on behalf of the people. We remain grateful for his gallantry in the field of advocacy journalism and in the service of Gambian press freedom.

It is gratifying to note that we have not been alone in the call for restitution for Deyda, and more generally, for a climate conducive to free speech in The Gambia. We wish to acknowledge the relentless efforts of a number of like-minded pressure groups, namely, the Committee to Protect Journalists, Reporters Without Borders, the Coalition for Human Rights in The Gambia and the Gambia Press Union, UK.

It goes without saying that by working in tandem, and on the same agenda, we will be able to bring to global attention a fuller understanding of the difficult issues of press freedom and governance in The Gambia.

It is to be hoped that our constant drumbeats will be loud enough for the international community to not only hear about the plight of the Gambian press but also to do something about it.

Signed on behalf of the Gambia Press Union, USA.

Demba Baldeh, Secretary General

Cherno Baba Jallow, Public Relations Officer