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src="/Independent/CornerInnerBlueLeft.gif" border=0 id="Picture225" height=12 width=12></td> </tr> </table> </td> <td width="519" height="6250"> <table border=0 cellspacing=0 cellpadding=0 width="364" nof="LY" > <tr align=LEFT valign=TOP> <td height="2"></td> <td align=LEFT valign=TOP colspan="2" rowspan="2" width="12"> </td> <td colspan="3"></td> </tr> <tr align=LEFT valign=TOP> <td height="10"></td> <td></td> <td rowspan="2" width="336"><img src="independentBig.jpg" border=0 id="Picture2" height=64 width=296></td> <td></td> </tr> <tr align=LEFT valign=TOP> <td colspan="4" height="54"></td> <td></td> </tr> <tr align=LEFT valign=TOP> <td width="2" height="6"></td> <td width="8" height="6"></td> <td width="4" height="6"></td> <td width="6" height="6"></td> <td height="6"></td> <td width="8" height="6"></td> </tr> <tr align=LEFT valign=TOP> <td colspan="2" height="24"></td> <td colspan="4" width="354" height="24"><!-- #BeginDate format:fcAm1 -->Tuesday, December 12, 2000<!-- #EndDate --></td> </tr> </table> <table border=0 cellspacing=0 cellpadding=0 width="520" > <tr align=LEFT valign=TOP> <td height="54"> <table border=0 cellspacing=0 cellpadding=0 width="360" nof="LY" > <tr align=LEFT valign=TOP> <td width="3" height="4"></td> <td width="357"></td> </tr> <tr align=LEFT valign=TOP> <td></td> <td width="357"> <center> <p><b>I BLAME GOV'T FOR MY CONTINOUS EXILE, <i>Omar Joof declares</i></b> </p> </center> </td> </tr> </table> </td> <td height="54"> <table border=0 cellspacing=0 cellpadding=0 width="160" nof="LY" > <tr align=LEFT valign=TOP> <td width="160" height="4"></td> </tr> <tr align=LEFT valign=TOP> <td width="160"> <center> <b><u><font face="Times New Roman,Times,Times NewRoman"><font size=+1><a href="mailto:[log in to unmask]">Email</a></font></font></u></b> <br> <b><font face="Times New Roman,Times,Times NewRoman"><a href="mailto:[log in to unmask]">[log in to unmask]</a></font></b> </center> </td> </tr> </table> </td> </tr> </table> <table border=0 cellspacing=0 cellpadding=0 width="371" nof="LY" > <tr align=LEFT valign=TOP> <td width="4" height="9"></td> <td width="367"></td> </tr> <tr align=LEFT valign=TOP> <td height="7498" width="4"></td> <td width="367" height="7498" nowrap> <div align="left"> <p align="left">Omar Joof The Gambia Student Union's exiled leader has told The Independent that his continuous absence from the country is still being caused by lapses in the security arrangements by the government for his possible return. Calling from the headquarters of the African Front for the Defence of Human Rights (RHADO) office in Dakar last week.</p> <p align="left"> Mr. Joof who has been in exile there since April following the student unrest said since his personal safety cannot be assured by the government his return would not be possible in the foreseeable future. Asked what his political convictions were, Mr. Joof declared; 'I do not identify with any political party but I have good relations with people of many political convictions. I am a student activist not a student politician'. Mr. Joof who voiced concern about the dispensation of justice regarding 'the massacres' of April 10 and 11 said those who have been calling for his return have not done enough to improve the security situation, which he believed is central in any arrangement for his possible return. According to him although the National Intelligence Agency (NIA) has discussed matters relating to his personal security with the GAMSU leadership, little was being done by the government towards facilitating his peaceful return. </p> <p align="left">The student activist, who fled after the violent crack down on the student demonstrators of April 10 and 11, claimed that the government had deliberately shunned the student body particularly on issues concerning student activities. Sounding cautious but firm on his position that the government should handle the situation delicately, Mr. Joof said he was eager to return home, provided security and an impartial judicial process is expedited in the investigations and trial of those responsible for what many have come to regard as 'bloody Monday'.</p> <p align="left"> 'I have no relative in Senegal, I have a wife and a son in The Gambia who I have never seen since he was born in my absence. I have no other reason to stay away' he said in a voice suffused with emotion. 'If my security could be guaranteed I would join the next bus back to Banjul,' he added. </p> <p align="left">Omar Joof who still holds a government scholarship for a Bachelor's degree said he should have completed his course in October and lamented that his career as a student was being put on hold, as he continues to 'languish in exile'. He said students under GAMSU should be assured that his input as a member of the student leadership would be constant. He promised to continue pursuing the best interest of the student body. </p> <p align="left">When asked about his condition in exile Mr. Joof said 'people from The Gambia have visited me to know what I have been going through. I will not explain my ordeal out of respect for colleagues who died in the April tragedy. They died for the sake of justice, which the union was spearheading so if I should suffer in Dakar I would take it, selflessly'. But the problem Mr. Joof emphasised has been the state authorities reluctance to 'take the bull by the horn and address the issue once and for all'. 'If we are honest about reconciliation we should discuss the truth' he suggested, adding that reconciliation in the absence of truth would not last. </p> <p align="left">With a mother who developed hypertension and had to be hospitalised soon after he fled the country in fear for his life Mr. Joof said he was the worse hit by the tragedy apart from those who died or suffered injuries during confrontation with the country's security forces. Mr. Joof also warned members of the student body to desist from making statements 'to make themselves heard or famous' He blamed them for taking the student body on the path to reconciliation 'ill-prepared'. </p> <p align="left">He said the authorities took advantage of GAMSU's position to spread the impression that those who led the demonstrations used the student body. He said although the student body had responded enthusiastically to the call for reconciliation, state authorities did not respond accordingly. He said their snubbing of GAMSU had worsened to a point when it was not possible to celebrate International Students' Day on November 10. To confirm the absence of such cooperation Mr. Joof revealed that Alhaji Darboe 'my trusted vice president' was 'banished' to Badari in the Upper River Division to prevent him from mobilising students for school activities. He warned that if the atmosphere of distrust between the government and GAMSU should continue, reconciliation would be elusive and his condition as in exile would not change. </p> <p align="center"><b><font size="5">Cadi appeals court to be set up</font></b></p> <p align="left"> There are plans to set up a Cadi appeals court under section 137A of the 1997 constitution. This is contained in the recent notice jointly issued by the Attorney General and Secretary of State for Presidential Affairs to amend 38 provisions of the 1997 constitution. The proposal aims to set up a Cadi Appeals Panel which shall consist of a chairperson and not less than four members, which "shall have jurisdiction to hear and determine appeals from judgements of the Cadi court and from the district tribunals where Sharia law is involved." </p> <p align="left">The proposal is generally welcomed in the sense that such an appeal court has been absent in this country since he creation of Cadi courts. Hitherto all matters dealt with by the Cadi courts could not be appealed against and all that a litigant could do was to apply to the same court for a review of its judgement. "This is quite a significant improvement in the dispensation of justice in the Cadi courts in the sense that no justice system can be just without a right of appeal," said a lady divorcee. She therefore welcomed the introduction of Cadi appeals court which she said would go a long way in ensuring that justice was done.</p> <p align="left"> In the same notice, it is proposed to amend certain provisions of Chapter xii dealing with the appointments and control of the police force. For instance, both sections 180 and 181 dealing with the appointment of a police council and the qualifications and appointment of the inspector general and deputy inspector general and other ranks shall be deleted. </p> <p align="left">Section 180 - Police Council reads: (1) There shall be a Police Council which shall consist of - (a) the Secretary of State responsible for the Police who shall be Chairman; (b) the Attorney-General or his or her representative; (c) the Inspector-General of Police; (d) the administrative head of the Department responsible for the Police; and (e) one other member appointed by the President. </p> <p align="left">(2) The Police Council shall - (a) advise the President on all matters of policy relating to internal security, including the role of the Police Force, police budgeting and finance, administration, and any other matter which the Secretary of State may refer to the council; and (b) with the prior approval of the President, make regulations for the performance of its functions under this Constitution and any other law, and, subject to any Act of the National Assembly in that regard, for the effective and efficient administration of the Police Force.</p> <p align="left"> (3) Regulations made under subsection (2) shall include regulations in respect of - (a) the control and administration of the Police Force; (b) the ranks of the officers and men of each unit of the Police Force, the members in each rank and the use of uniforms by the members.; (c) the conditions of service, enrolment, pay, pensions, gratuities and other allowances of officers an men, and deductions therefrom; (d) the authority and powers of command of officers and men; and (e) the delegation to the Inspector-General and other officer of powers of discipline and the conditions subject to which such delegation may be made; </p> <p align="left">Section 181 - Appointments in Police Force reads: (1) The Inspector-General and the Deputy Inspector-General shall be appointed by the President after consultation with the National Security Council. (2) A person shall not be qualified to be appointed in accordance with subsection (1) if he or she is not a citizen of The Gambia or if he or she holds the citizenship or nationality of any other country. (3) The President may remove the Inspector-General and the Deputy Inspector General from office for good cause or in the public interest. </p> <p align="left">(4) Subject to this section, the power to appoint persons in the rank of Assistant Superintendent and above in the Police Force shall be vested in the President on the advice of the Inspector-General of Police through the Secretary of State. (5) The power to appoint persons to rank in the Police Force below that of Assistant Superintendent shall vest in the Inspector-General. </p> </div> <center> <div align="left"> <center> <div align="left"> <p align="center"><font size="2"><b><i><font size="5">Suspected of being Mane's secret agent</font></i> </b></font></p> <p align="center"><font size="5"><b>Gambian ''brutalised'' in Bissau </b></font></p> </div> </center> </div> </center> <center> <div align="left"></div> </center> <p><i><font size="2"> <font size="3">Abdoulrahman Baldeh a Gambian businessman has alleged being harassed and brutalised while he was on a business trip to Bissau on Wednesday November 29. Mr. Baldeh blamed the Guinea Bissau security forces for the ill-treatment allegedly meted out to him. The businessman said he recognised those who ''brutalised'' him as members of President Kumba Yala's loyalists soldiers as they suspected him of being a secret agent for Ansumana Mane, the dissident former Guinea Bissau chief of staff who was recently killed in a shoot out with security forces.</font></font></i> <p><i><font size="2"><font size="3">Recounting his experiences to The Independent shortly after his return from Guinea-Bissau Mr. Baldeh explained that on his way to the capital Bissau, he was intimidated at a police station as a search for the fugitive general was mounted. According to Mr. Baldeh who looked shell-shocked the Guinea Bissau security forces arrested and detained him for almost one and half-hours, accusing him of being a special secret agent of the late General Mane. According to him that country's security personnel had linked him with a network of secret agents working for General Mane and stationed in The Gambia. </font></font></i> <p><i><font size="2"><font size="3">He said his captors had held that he was ''specially'' based in The Gambia and that he was purposely in Bissau to find out his boss's whereabouts. According to Baldeh after he was ''threatened for quite a long time'', the officers decided to set him free but only after he was fined 170,000 CFA with a jail term hanging over his head if he defaulted. Mr. Baldeh said at the time he was left with only 15,000 CFA - an amount he had planned to use as ''spare'' money since he had already paid his fares back to The Gambia. </font></font></i> <p><i><font size="2"><font size="3">A plea to his captors did not stop them from roundly searching him, eventually seizing his money and his mobile phone.. Mr. Baldeh alleged that he was set free ''with all sorts of threats''. According to him he was not the only Gambian who went through such an ordeal. He said treatment of the same kind was unleashed on other Gambians by the Guinea-Bissau police. ''In Bissau these days, once you are a Gambian you are a target for inhuman harassment by the police'' he claimed. </font></font></i> <p><i><font size="2"><font size="3">The businessman said the Bissau police believe that since the killed renegade General Mane was a Gambian by birth, Gambians would be ready to carry out reprisal attacks against Bissau Guineans. He said there was ''muted'' fear in Bissau about how Gambians there and in The Gambia would react to Ansumana's death. "Gambians travelling to Bissau are witch hunted and harassed", Mr. Baldeh further disclosed. He urged The Gambia Government to find ways of resolving the situation, which he believed, could sour relations between The Gambia and Guinea-Bissau. </font></font></i> <p><i><font size="2"><font size="3">It was his view that the incident that led to the killing of the general could not ''in any way'' justify ''such gruesome actions'' by Guinea Bissau's security forces. He reminded the authorities that such moves are contradictory to the protocols observed by ECOWAS. Meanwhile unconfirmed reports reaching The Independent say few days after Ansumana Mane's death, people of his home town of Sukuta targeted ''papels'' from Guinea Bissau for possible reprisal attacks. </font></font></i> <p align="left"><i><b><font size="5">INDEPENDENT VIEW </font></b></i> <p align="left"> <b><font size="4">Why all these amendments? </font></b> <p align="left">In a clandestine effort to 'tidy up' the constitution the APRC government is only just about to make a complete mess of the state document. Trying to change 39 provisions of the constitution including some entrenched clauses is really making us wonder about the real motive of the government whose officials were the authors of the 1997 constitution in the first place. Gambians at this point would be right if they are suspicious about the reason to have the constitution changed at this point when the nation is about to be caught by election fever. <p align="left">What is the APRC government really up to? If no explanation is forthcoming, Gambians are likely to take it as just another attempt by the powers that be to entrench themselves in power before the people decide in the 2001 elections. The gazettes have revealed a lot about the proposed changes. Many as these provisions are we have not seen anything written about the term limit for the president. Gambians who voted in the referendum will never forget that this important suggestion was seriously overlooked. Thus Jawara's 'mistake' of overstaying in power is still the mistake that the APRC will almost happily live with as long as it serves those in power. What double standards! What an ugly contradiction! <p align="left">Gambians should see the examples of neighbours like Senegal, Guinea Bissau, Ghana, Tanzania and South Africa - African countries that have worked a very effective way out for leaders who are only there for themselves. But the situation as recent trends have shown is contagious and The Gambia could not possibly escape its grasp. The wind of change we all anticipated after PPP's demise did not come in full force. It took Gambians six years to realise the 'change' was no change at all. It merely occasioned a brief pause from the plunder and recklessness of our leaders. Thus our problem is still a question of governance. Who are our rightful leaders? <p align="left">There is general consensus as to the importance of constitutions, and respect for constitutional principles and the rule of law as the basis for democratic governance. But the emphasis is that the formulation or amendment of constitutions must also be through a democratic and participatory process if they are to fully reflect the aspirations of the majority of citizens. In this respect, the Government's recent plans to deny recognition to fundamental basic rights and recognition to other extra-constitutional provisions are inimical to rights of the person. <p align="left">Among other things, the fundamental importance of the judiciary was recognised in the constitutional provisions to be amended. However, there attention must also be given to strengthening the institutions that support democracy; an effective public service, capable local government structures, an independent and competent judiciary, and a representative legislature. However, democracy is not only about regular multiparty elections and formal institutions. Democratic principles and practices have to be embedded in a democratic political culture, which is essential if democracy is to be deepened and sustained. <p align="left">Without such a culture, there is a danger that the form, but not the substance of democracy, will prevail. Autocratic practices will continue under the guise of multi-part democracy. In The Gambia, the prevailing political culture is still conditioned by non-democratic norms and values. A democratic culture cannot be imposed, and the challenge facing the country is to develop a political culture that has resonance for all citizens, and that will give form and meaning to democracy as a system of governance. Gambians beware of the crackpot types. <p align="center"> <font size="5"><b>The Gambia soon to get a Braille newspaper </b></font> <p align="center"><font size="5"><b><i>GPU Chairman discloses</i> </b></font> <p align="left"><font size="2"> <font size="3">The chairman of the Gambia Press Union D.A.Jawo has disclosed plans by the GPU in collaboration with other stakeholders to introduce a Braille newspaper in The Gambia 'in order to cater for the growing number of educated blind people in the country who have no access to newspapers'. Speaking at the end of a week long course on newspaper design and sub-editing organised by the Gambia Press Union in collaboration with the Commonwealth Press Union of London at the Gamtel Multimedia Training Institute on Friday, he said the idea was proposed by the course facilitator Bob Howarth and which he said they found quite fascinating. </font></font> <p align="left"><font size="2"><font size="3">Mr. Jawo said the GPU was going to pursue it with the assistance and collaboration of donors and other stakeholders. In officially closing the course, the British High Commissioner to The Gambia John Perrot pledged his continued support for press freedom. He called on the participants to implement the new skills they have learnt in the course. In his turn, Bob Howarth said he enjoyed the course and that he was quite confident that the participants were going to make maximum use of the new technology they have been exposed to. He promised to continue the contact with all the participants through the internet to exchange ideas with them. </font></font> <p align="left"><font size="2"><font size="3">Giving the vote of thanks, one of the participants Jeggan Grey-Johnson expressed delight at being given the opportunity to take part in the course which he said was relevant. The course was attended by 15 newspaper designers and sub-editors from the print media. It concentrated mainly on the latest technology on the design and layout of newspapers and the use of the internet to help improve the outlook of newspapers At the end of the course, the participants were presented with certificates by High Commissioner Perrot. heard plans to introduce a Braille newspaper in The Gambia. </font></font> <p align="center"><font size="5"><b>''Teachers at Tujereng are victims of discrimination'' </b></font> <p align="left"> Gambian teachers at Tujereng Upper Basic school have complained of unfair and prejudicial treatment from their principal Jerreh Dampha. Report reaching The Independent had indicated that Gambians teachers at the school were being denied access to rooms at the teachers' quarters ''whilst foreign teachers are given priority to reside in campus at our own expense''. According to sources all the departments of school are headed by foreign teachers except the mathematics department, which is said to be under the responsibility of the vice-principal. They claimed that all senior positions in the school are being occupied by foreigners ''who are all that mattered at the school''. <p align="left">On the allocation of rooms at the teachers' quarters, they said that eleven foreign teachers are residing at the quarters, ''when only four Gambian teachers were given opportunities to stay in the quarters''. Teachers of the school who were interviewed vowed to abandon teaching if the situation was not amicably resolved by the responsible authorities. ''The situation is frustrating'' one of them lamented. On teaching shifts, they claimed that foreign teachers have more opportunities to teach in the afternoon shift and are paid ''double salary''. One of them said that they as Gambian teachers are ''completely alienated and neglected as juniors in the school''. Reacting to the allegations the principal Jerreh Dampha said the teaching force has always been dominated by foreigners. ''As a result they easily occupy senior positions and are considered on specific matters'' he explained. <p align="left"> <p align="left"><font size="4"><b><font size="5">Unionist attends Trade Union Conference</font></b></font> <p align="left">Following the adoption of the Constitutive Act of the African Union by the 36th Ordinary Session of the Assembly of Heads of State and Governments including The Gambia, the Gambia Labour Union was recently represented at the Trade Union Conference of African Unity held in Dakar. The Gambian representative Kebba M. Ceesay of the Gambia Labour Union told The Independent that the Conference was attended by trade union leaders from different parts of the sub-region. He added that at the end of the conference, the Dakar Declaration 2000 was adopted. Mr. Ceesay explained that the Dakar Declaration was made within the framework of the African Workers' Union Trade Unionist Movement back up and support to African unity, as initiated by the African leaders. <p align="left">The unending role of African trade unionist efficiency was also considered. This he added will be for the "achievement and implementation of its desire for freedom following decisions made by heads of state and governments at both the Sytre and Lome summits." Mr. Ceesay stressed that it was also discussed by leaders that despite the social and political difficulties, the conference was convinced that African unity was achievable. Mr. Ceesay noted that they also called for the mobilisation of the African working class and their unity and total integration into the building process of African unity. Organisations at the meeting also expressed optimism about the initiatives that were the first since the historic summit at Sytre under the presidency of the Libyan leader Mouamar El Ghaddafi. <p align="center"> </td> </tr> </table> <table border=0 cellspacing=0 cellpadding=0 width="223" nof="LY" > <tr align=LEFT valign=TOP> <td width="45" height="19"></td> <td width="178" height="19"></td> </tr> <tr align=LEFT valign=TOP> <td></td> <td width="178"> <center> <font size=-2>Copyright 2000 QuantumNET</font> </center> </td> </tr> </table> </td> </tr> </table> </body> </html> --------------6DB294ECDB8B580835282B14--