Six senators call for Ebrima Manneh’s immediate release
Sen. Richard Durbin (D-Ill.) leads a group of six senators to call for the immediate release of the former state Daily Observer newspaper, “Chief” Ebrima Manneh today. Colleagues at the newspaper say they witnessed two plainclothes Gambian National Intelligence Agency officers whisk Manneh, right, away in July 2006. He has not been seen since despite repeated calls…
Petition seeks a ‘soft law’ ruling in Manneh disappearance
Eyewitnesses saw him being led away. “We were in our Banjul newsroom on July 7, 2006, working on the next issue of the Daily Observer, when two plainclothes officers with the Gambian National Intelligence Agency approached Chief,” wrote Observer editor and correspondent Ousman Darboe. “I knew one of the officers as a Corporal Sey. They…
Keep digging into disappearance of Gambia’s Manneh
The whereabouts of “Chief” Ebrima Manneh, right, the Gambian journalist who has been missing since his arrest by state security agents in July 2006, has become an urgent issue again in the country’s media houses, homes, and human rights offices. The question needs to be studied carefully, and no one should draw quick conclusions.
Gambia must account for missing journalist Ebrima Manneh
New York, April 14, 2009–Gambian authorities must authoritatively account for the whereabouts, health, and legal status of journalist “Chief” Ebrima Manneh, who was taken into government custody by security agents in July 2006, the Committee to Protect Journalists said today. Authorities, who have held Manneh in secret locations since the arrest, have provided conflicting and…
West African journalists fight back
This week marks a significant change in the press freedom climate for journalists in West Africa: Journalists, media organizations, and activists in the region fought back against attacks and censorship against the press, in contrast to a decade ago, when the media was too oppressed and scared to speak out. In Sierra Leone, Guinea, and…
Press freedom in the news 8/29/08
Philippine blog The Mindanao Examiner has an open letter to President Gloria Arroyo that is critical of her approach to press freedom in the country, one of the most deadly for journalists. The Sun Star has an update on their blog Arroyo Watch that examines her comments critical of the media. CPJ’s Global Campaign Against…
UPDATED: In Manneh case, Gambia silent as questions mount
Considerable international press coverage arose from U.S. Sen. Richard Durbin’s statements on the Senate floor last week, calling on the Gambian government to release imprisoned journalist Chief Ebrima Manneh. But Durbin’s request has not drawn a response from the Gambian Embassy in Washington. Ambassador Abdul R. Cole told CPJ today that his government would not…