Journalists released after 19 days in detention

After 19 days of prison detention, Managing Editor and Editor of the Independent Observer newspaper Messers, Jonathan Leigh and Bai Bai Sesay were granted bail on November 4, 2013 by a Freetown-Based High Court.

The granting of bail to the journalists followed a series of joint protests and appeals by the MFWA and Sierra Leone Journalists Association (SLAJ) that the two be granted bail and their rights respected.

The two journalists were admitted to bail bonds valued at 500 million Leone (about US$114,000) each. As part of the bail conditions, they were also required to have two sureties one of whom must own a house in the upper class suburb called the Western Area. Additionally, the house owner must also deposit the property title with the Registrar of the court. The two journalists have also been asked to surrender their travelling documents to the authorities.

'I have realised that my voice is my power'

Amie Bojang-Sissoho Amie Bojang-Sissoho, an anti-FGM activist hassaid she has realised that her voice is herpower. "I just found myself getting more involved without fear or regrets" she told The Daily New's Binta A Bah in an exclusive interview.

'I'm A Free Woman Now' Says Isatou

 

In patriarch Gambia where women are traditionally viewed as an inferior sex always domestic violence perpetrator go free because of the dispaly of their socalled good manners in public.

Binta A Bah looks back at the story of Isatou who was 19 when she submitted to a forced marriage and how she manage to divorced from that husband. Daily News is not using the really name of the victim as requested and therefore is here using Isatou instead.

Back in January last year, Daily New's women's weekly column “Musulutaa”ran a story title 'from prison Isatou enters a battlefield' in that publication Isatou describe her story as 'tragic' because it's very common for young abused women to tolerate and keep quite over such abuses.

GAMCOTRAP: AN END TO A LONG JOURNEY FOR JUSTICE!

L-R: Dr. Isatou Touray and Amie Bojang-Sissoho

We give thanks and appreciation to Almighty Allah Subhanahu watalla, our families, friends, partners and well wishers for being with us all through this tribulation that Allah has bestowed upon us. We give glory to the highest, the king of Kings, Giver and Reckoner of who does what. The Lord Almighty has redeemed us from all darkness and brought the light to the public that we are not guilty of the false allegation.

We were requested by the National Drug Enforcement Agency/National Intelligence Agency to report to the Police Headquarters in Banjul. After a long wait without any explanation, we were led into a cage at the police station where we spent the night on a mattress infested with lice and bugs.

Dr Touray, Amie Bojang-Sissoho Freed

Banjul Magistrate has found two prominent women’s rights defenders not guilty of stealing €30, 000.00 as alleged by the state.
Dr. Isatou Touray, Executive Director and Amie Bojang   Sissoho, Programme coordinator, of The Gambia committee for Traditional Practices (GAMCOTRAP) have been on trial for almost two years.