The second anniversary of the murder of Deyda Hydara, the Managing Editor and Co-proprietor of The Point newspaper, is slated to take place on Saturday, 16th December 2006.

In a press release dated 12th December, 2006, the Gambia Press Union recalled that on 16th December 2004, Deyda Hydara was murdered in cold blood by enemies of the press.

“Deyda’s murder therefore is a brutal attack on freedom of expression in general and in particular, a fundamental pillar of democracy. We at the press union are therefore compelled to focus on the issue of freedom of expression,” the release stated.

The release added that two years since the murder of Deyda no report has yet been released on any progress made in the investigations of the crime. “We urge the president for the sake of transparency to heed our previous calls to set up a commission of enquiry or appoint an independent expatriate to investigate the matter,” the release added.

The GPU also called on the government to repeal the Newspaper (amendment) Act 2004, the Criminal Code (Amendment) Act 2004 and the Criminal Code (Amendment) Act 2005.
“These enactments are not press friendly as they undermine freedom of the press and expression,” the release noted.

With regards to the arrest of journalists suspected of committing an offence, the GPU reiterated its belief that there is need to acknowledge and pursue the due process of law up to the stage of trial. Arresting and detaining journalists or any citizen for more than 72 hours does not only infringe the constitution and the liberty of those arrested; they constitute intimidation of media practitioners and therefore a threat to freedom of expression.

“The Gambia Press Union would urge government to provide a friendly atmosphere for citizens to freely express themselves within the ambit of the law,” the release concludes.