By Kaddy Jawo
Lamin Cham, Former Journalist at the defunct Daily Observer who is currently the Editor-in Chief of the Standard Newspaper, was the star witness, on Monday, at the hearing of the Truth, Reconciliation and Reparations Commission (TRRC). He recounted his ordeals under the former government when he was arrested and detained in 2006. He told the commissioners that upon his arrest, he was first taken to the Police Station in Banjul and then later transferred to the National Intelligence Agency (NIA)—now referred to as the State Intelligence Services (SIS). He recounted that he was beaten mercilessly by NIA agents who left him to bleed profusely for more than thirty minutes without providing him any medical care.
“I was criminalized, I was made the enemy of the state, I lost my self-dignity and I’m still a broken man to this day,” Cham told the Commissioners.
A night after he was beaten, according to Cham, he was taken to a room within the NIA premises where he found some journalists who were also in detention. Among the detainees, he said, were Lamin Fatty and Cherno Mboob who told him “to bear because we have been through worst in the hands of the NIA for five months now.”
“They accused me and Ebrima Sillah, now Information Minister, as secret principal agents sending sensitive information out of the country,” Cham told the Commissioners.
Cham said when the notorious NIA agents came back for him for the second time, they beat him with whips and chains which left him sustained injuries all over his body. He added that he feared he was going to die in the hands of his torturers. The trauma, he stated, left a permanent physiological effect on him.
Cham told the Commission he started his career in journalism at the Daily Observer in 1992. After the short honeymoon of the public with the military junta was over in 1994, the paper became critical of the AFPRC regime. That led to Jammeh and his government to shut down the Daily Observer.
He told the Commission that, in October 1994, Kenneth Best was arrested and taken to a secret location in Kiang. Few days later, according to him, they were informed that the Daily Observer was sold to Amadou Samba, who was perceived to be a close confidant of Yahya Jammeh.
Kenneth Best who was the founder of Daily Observer came to The Gambia in 1992 as a refugee from Liberia. Shortly after his arrival, he established the only independent Daily Newspaper which became the biggest-selling newspaper in the country. Some credited the paper for raising political awareness and exposing official corruption which led to the military takeover in July 1994.
According to Cham, Baba Galleh Jallow, the Executive Secretary of the Truth, Reconciliation and Reparations Commission resigned from the Daily Observer as News Editor because the paper’s independence was eroding under political pressure and interference. He added that Demba Ali Jawo was the first to be sacked by the proprietor of the paper because he was a critical columnist.
He said Mr. Best was later released and deported back to Liberia, and his colleague Mr. Sieh was also deported to London. It was thereafter that the late Buba Baldeh was appointed to run the Daily Observer.
“I knew things will really get bad in days to come because all the finest journalists were leaving and the paper was beginning to lose its independence; and the AFPRC were using it for their personal interest.” Cham said.
Cham recalled when Jammeh exempted the independent media from covering his rallies and press conferences. He used to call journalists names such as they were the “the Illegitimate sons of Africa.” Cham is 72nd witness who appeared before the TRRC since it began hearings early this year.
This week the TRRC will hold its first institutional hearings starting with the media. Throughout the week, individual witnesses and representatives of The Gambia Press Union will appear before the Commission. They are expected to testify on the scope and extent of the suppression of the media and the freedom of the expression including violations of the human rights and freedoms of individual journalists. More hearings on certain public institutions are part of the Commission’s work plan for 2019.