Commissioner Of Freedom of Expression Concern About Violations in Africa

Commissioner Faith Pansy Tiakula,The Special Rapporteur of the African commission on Freedom of Expression in Africa.

In her deliberations at a regional training workshop inGambiatold the journalists that one of her responsibilities is to monitor and analyze right violations on the continent. She said it is very worrying and disappointing that some member states adopt these declarations voluntarily and yet do not respect them. She told the journalists that she is very much aware of the media right violations in most of the countries on the continent and that did not exclude theGambia.

Tiakula made it known to the West African journalists that her office has written four letters to the president of The Gambia in relations to some media right violations and not a single response was received from him or his government. A similar letter was written toZimbabweandNigeriaduring Obassanjo’s time as well. However she said they will not give up and the fact that theAfrican Courtwill soon come into operations, thing will change for the better.

Gambiais one of the countries that have a problem of access to information. Access she said is a poor cousin to freedom of expression. She said in some countries private media are not allowed to operate. In some cases there are media outlets that are close for one reason or the other.

The rappporteur noted that in countries were there are repressive media laws, one finds a tendency of journalists become the mouth piece of the oppositions. She reiterated the issue of the transformation of the state broadcasters to public institutions, because most of them are mouth pieces of the state.

Twenty journalists from 14 West African countries were participating in a three day training workshop on human right reporting inBanjultheGambia12-14 February 2008. The training was organized by the African Commission on Human and People’s Right, and sponsored by Open Society Initiative for West Africa (OSIWA).The training is meant to enhance the capacity of the journalists within the ambit of human right journalism.

Dr. Feyi Ogunade and Chafi Bakari all of the legal department of the commission, took the journalists through what was the role of journalist in the promotion of human and people’s right within the African human rights system. The journalists were told that the commission is not a non governmental organization but one that is an inter governmental organization. However the media were told that when human right abuses are brought before the commission, the commission will be force to take those complains up with the government concerned.

The two were responding to questions relating to the numerous human right violations of the media in theGambia, a country that houses both the Commission and theHumanRightCenter. Most of the participating journalists were disappointed that such could happen under the nose of these two human right organizations and nothing is said or done about them.

Feyi said in the last meeting of the Commission inCongoit was brought to the attention of the government of theGambiathe concern of the commission about media right violations.

He said, yes they are aware of the killing of Deyda Hydara and other violations on the journalist but no formal complain was ever brought to the commission, either by family members or the Gambia Press Union. He said the Commission is guided by a Charter and they can only go by that, and nothing else. He gave the case ofMauritaniaas example where the Commission took a firm decision concerning some violations, but that action was based on complains brought before the commission by parties concern.