“If
there is any national institution that endured bitter suffering under Jammeh
for 22 years, it is the members of the media Press Union,” civil society leader
and director of the association of NGOs in The Gambia has said.
Mr
Lamin Yarboe said he is “a life witness to this” and that he is fully aware of
what the media was going through, which led to a lot of the practitioners
fleeing the country for their safety.
He
made these remarks at the end of a 16-day intensive training of trainers
programme on freedom of expression yesterday.
“Those
of the comrades who are outside of The Gambia for one reason or the other, you
have to facilitate their return to contribute your quota to this development
process. There is still room for improvement in the work you do; hence all
hands should be on deck,” Mr Yarboe advised the participants.
“There
are those who would challenge you in playing your role to give out credible
information, especially through the social media; do not relent. Do your duty
to disallow distorted information about your country; make sure people have
access to information in a timely manner so that we all move together in the
new Gambia,” he added.
The
16-day training brought journalists, civil society actors and communication
officers from government to undergo a four-week module.
Local
and international experts trained the participants with four modules who will
further train others from the state and non-state actors, security and
grassroots people on freedom of expression.
Namory
Trawally, training coordinator and vice president of the union, said the
training targeted 15 participants, with funding from the UN Democracy Fund
(UNDEF).
“Freedom
of Expression is one of the most important components of the democratic
dispensation of The Gambia. This is why the project is earmarked to run for two
years on freedom of expression in The Gambia,” he said.
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