Broadcast journalist held without charge in Gambia

Fatou Camara

Abuja, Nigeria, October 3, 2013--Gambian authorities should immediately release Fatou Camara, a journalist who has been held incommunicado since September 17, the Committee to Protect Journalists said today. The government has not disclosed Camara's whereabouts or any charges against her, according to news reports.
Camara, a broadcast journalist and TV host of the popular "Fatou Show," a weekly current affairs show that airs on the state-owned Gambia Radio and Television Services, was arrested by agents from the National Intelligence Agency on September 15 and released on September 17, according to news reports. She was re-arrested hours later in front of her children and has not been heard from since, local journalists told CPJ.
Camara's detention runs counter to the Gambian constitution, which allows only a detention period of 72 hours without charge.
"Fatou Camara's continued illegal detention without charge for over two weeks now violates the constitution President Yahya Jammeh swore to uphold," said Peter Nkanga, CPJ's West Africa consultant. "The authorities must explain why they are holding her, or she must be released immediately."