A journalist with the state-owned Gambia Radio and Television Service (GRTS) has been arrested and detained by the National Intelligence Agency.
Colleagues and family sources confirmed the arrest on November 9, of Bakary Fatty, the Anchorman of the Famous Agricultural Show on state owned TV. No official announcement has been made about the incident.
Fatty, a senior Journalist with over a decade’s experience, is the latest casualty of President Jammeh’s crackdown on the media ahead of the crucial December Presidential elections. Fatty’s arrest came a day after the arrest and detention of the Director General of the GRTS, Momodou Sabally, also without any official reason. Both journalists are still in detention without being formally charged.
The media in The Gambia have expressed serious concern about the arrests and have called on the authorities to provide explanation for the action.
The MFWA also calls on the authorities to stop the arbitrary detentions and to release the journalists in the absence of, or pending a formal charge with an offense recognised under the laws of The Gambia.
