Gambian daily newspapers ordered to shut down

"We are very concerned at another apparent effort to censor the Gambian media," said IPI Press Freedom manager, Barbara Trionfi. "We hope that this issue is swiftly resolved so that The Daily News and The Standard newspapers can resume publication."

On Friday, 14 September, three plainclothes officers from the National Intelligence Agency (NIA) visited the offices of The Daily News and The Standard and told them to immediately cease operations, an order that the agents said had come from the office of Gambian president Yahya Jammeh, journalists told IPI by phone today.

Saikou Jammeh, chief editor of The Daily News, and Sheriff Bojang, chief editor of The Standard, told IPI that their papers have temporarily ceased publication until they learn more about the apparent order.

...Jammeh told IPI that, as far as he knows, there are only two legal ways to shut down a newspaper in The Gambia - either with a court order, or on specific police instructions, for example if the newspaper's office was the scene of a crime that is under investigation.

Bojang was similarly unclear about the nature of the order to close his paper. "It was on Friday; we were having some training course at our offices in Bakau, which is about 10 kilometres from Banjul," he told IPI. "Three gentlemen came and said they were from the office of the President and said we should cease with immediate effect." Bojang said he asked the men why they should stop, and for how long they should stop, but was told to "find out from the office of the president."

The newspapers are currently trying to find out more information about the order.

Continue reading the full story on www.ifex.org.