It's good to have this reminder,

I do a lot of reading from the list and have observed that there is a
tendancy to paint The Gambia as a place that no one would want to visit
because of the politics there.

That is not the feedback that I get from GTS members who visit - of course
they don't go for the politics they go because The Gambia is a beautiful
country with a rich cultural heritage and a manificent diversity of tribal
traditions and the unfailing warmth and friendship of the people.  More and
more of our members now go out into the local community and gain experiences
of West Africa that they never dreamed of and will never forget.

I know the list's contributors love their country passionately and so feel
they have the right to say what they like about it & of course they do - but
what they say puts some visitors off, so if this is what's intended then the
list is being successful.

I live in the hope that one day those same people may feel that they can
trumpet all the virtues of their country irrespective of their political
feelings about it.

Francis
GTS UK
----- Original Message -----
From: "Momodou Camara" <[log in to unmask]>
To: <[log in to unmask]>
Sent: Sunday, February 11, 2001 8:06 PM
Subject: Message from Gambia-l List managers


> Dear List members,
>
> On behalf of the List Managers, I would like to welcome all new members to
> Gambia-L.
>
> As you may be already aware, Gambia-L is a mailing list where Gambians and
> friends of The Gambia meet, on a daily basis, to discuss Gambia related
issues.
> The list is a free forum for discussion, debate and the sharing of
information
> on and about The Gambia.
>
> GAMBIA-L is aimed providing Gambians and those interested in Gambia and
related
> issues, a means to communicate with each other, and exchange ideas and
> information of common interest.  In the process, it is hoped that a spirit
of
> cooperation, of exchange of ideas, of healthy debate and dialogue for the
> National good will be cultivated. True, ours might not be one of the
biggest
> lists, but we certainly can make it one of the very best in cyberspace.
>
> Subscribers are expected to maintain a mature and responsible tone in the
> contributions they send to the list.  It is hoped that our individual
sense of
> responsibility, fairness, and decency, coupled with the community policing
of
> the list will help prevent, and contain outbreaks of poor taste in our
debates.
>
>
> The usefulness of Gambia-L depends on the individual and collective
efforts of
> its subscribers.  Toward this end, a set of rules were developed to ensure
the
> existence of a healthy atmosphere for the exchange of ideas, and dialogue
on
> Gambia-L.  The rules will also provide a basis for enforcing acceptable
> standards of behaviour on the list.  Subscribers violating any of the
Gambia-L
> rules risk being expelled from the list.
>
> Although there are some very enlightening discussions and information once
a
> while, we have observed that abusive language is also becoming a trend. We
> cannot correct the wrongs happening at the moment in Gambia or build our
very
> dear motherland with hatred. Therefore, we should make good use of this
great
> "Cyber Bantaba" and agree to disagree; enlighten each other; and share
> information. One should not feel that you would be respected by sending
> insults.
>
> Searching through the archives of Gambia-L, one would notice that there
used to
> be diverse discussions on Gambia affairs (Gambian History, Female Genital
> Mutilation -- FGM, The African Rainessance, The Gambianet Observer Online
> Project, GESO, Book Drives, The issue of Mbindaans, The Role of Women in
> Gambian Society, etc., etc.). We would like to see that diversity return
to our
> forum.
> As we've said many times earlier, this forum is not an Anti-Jammeh forum,
but a
> place where all Gambians and friends of our nation can gather, to discuss
> topics of interest (both political and non-political).  I hope we give
> ourselves the opportunity to enjoy those privileges.
>
> Thank you for your time, and we wish everyone the best.
>
> Regards,
>
> Momodou Camara
>
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------
--
>
> 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
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