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Gambia News : Defence Counsel Fails to Show Up in Court for the Second Time

The protracted sedition trial against Fatou Jaw Manneh, a US-based Gambian journalist, was on April 24, 2008, adjourned to April 30 by Magistrate Buba Jawo of the Kanifing Magistrates Court.

Media Foundation for West Africa (MFWA) sources in The Gambia reported that the adjournment was due to the absence of defence counsel, Lamin Jobarteh, who was said to be engaged in another case at the Brikama Magistrate Court.

The Principal Magistrate Buba Jawo told the court that if Jobarteh failed to appear before the court at the next hearing, Fatou Jaw Manneh would have to resort to other means of defence.

Jawo's harsh reaction is likely to be connected to the fact that Jobarteh also failed to appear before the court on April 14, 2008, allegedly due to illness.

Manneh, who was arrested upon her arrival from the USA on March 28, 2007, has been charged with three counts of sedition, following a series of online articles she wrote criticising the regime of President Yahya Jammeh.

Since the trial started more than a year ago, there has not been any significant progress. The recent adjournment is just the latest of a long list of events that have prolonged the case far beyond a reasonable timeframe.

The journalist remains stranded in The Gambia, even though she had been living in the US for a decade prior to her arrest.

Src: MFWA