British couple gets 1 year with hard labour

A British missionary couple who have been arrested in The Gambia, were sentenced yesterday to a one-year jail term with hard labour.

Early in December David Fulton and wife Rachel Fiona were charged with jointly printing, distributing, and reproducing seditious publications with intent to bring hatred or contempt, to incite disaffection against the President and the Government of The Gambia.

Their sentence came after they have made a U-turn during the proceeding  hearing in which they changed their initial plea from not guilty to guilty.  In handing down his judgment, magistrate Edrissa Mbai of the Banjul Magistrates Court said the accused persons have shown no respect for the country, the government and the president. “In this country, there is a law that one has to obey whether Gambian or non-Gambian, or else you leave the country,” he remarked.

The presiding magistrate sentenced the pair to a one-year mandatory jail term. In addition, the court also fined each of them D250, 000 in default to serve another 1 year six months. He also said that the couple has the right to lodge an appeal within 28 days. The principal magistrate did not hesitate to recommend that the British pair  be deported after serving their 1 year jail term.

The Fultons, who are part of the Westhoughton Pentecostal Church near Bolton (United Kingdom), first visited the Gambia as tourists, according to the church's website. They have been living in The Gambia since 1999.