Ebrima Manneh (journalist)

Ebrima B. Manneh (* 1970 in Lamin ; called: "Chief" Ebrima Manneh ) is a journalist in the West African state of Gambia . While his whereabouts have been unclear since July 2006, it is speculated that he died in prison in 2008. According to official government information, however, she knows nothing about his whereabouts.

Life

Work as a journalist

Manneh had worked as a journalist for The Daily Observer since 1998 . The daily newspaper is classified as pro-government. There he was a reporter and columnist on crime .

arrest

The organization Reporters Without Borders expressed on 20 July 2006 first concern about the disappearance of two journalists, including Manneh. According to a report, he has been missing since July 7, and his family has suggested that Manneh escaped after being arrested by the National Intelligence Agency (NIA) and has been in hiding ever since. July 11th was also mentioned as the kidnapping date. According to the Media Foundation for West Africa (MFWA), Manneh was arrested by two plainclothes officers in the editorial offices of the Daily Observer in Bakau of the NIA on July 11th and detained in Mile 2 prison without charge or contact with the outside world. According to the MFWA, Manneh was charged with providing "harmful" information to foreign journalists at the African Union summit in Banjul in July , a week before his arrest. The NIA denied Manneh's detention, according to the MFWA.

Signs of life in Fatoto

The Gambia Echo reported on January 13, 2007 that Manneh had been in the Fatoto Police Station in December 2006 . He is said to have been detained in the country's various police stations in the five months prior to that - the last three of them in Fatoto. Human rights organizations, including Reporters Without Borders, had meanwhile drawn up a petition to the Gambian President Jammeh in order to obtain Manneh's release. Over the past few months, the government had continued to deny knowing anything about Manneh's whereabouts. At the end of February 2007, a police spokesman spoke publicly about the Manneh case for the first time. However, this should never have been held in the named police stations. The police said they had received relevant statements from the population about Manneh's whereabouts.

When a reporter was researching in April 2007, Manneh was no longer in Fatoto; he is said to have been relocated to an unknown destination in February. While police said they knew nothing about him, it was believed that he had been transferred to Kombo at the time.

Prosecution at the ECOWAS Court

The Media Foundation for West Africa had brought an action against the Gambian government at the ECOWAS court in Abuja in order to force Manneh's release. The hearing took place on July 16, 2007 and the charges were represented by Nigerian lawyer Femi Falana. The charge is based on violation of the law under Articles 4, 5 and 7 of the African Charter on Human and Peoples' Rights . It also violates Article 6 of the African Charter on Human and Peoples' Rights, which guarantees its right to personal freedom. A representative from the Gambian government did not appear at the first hearing, so the case was adjourned to September 26, 2007.

Signs of life in Banjul

In July 2007 it was also suspected that the managing director of the Daily Observer and confidante of Jammeh, Saja Taal , was the mastermind behind the arrest of Manneh. At the time, according to the President of the Gambia Press Union Madi Ceesay , Manneh was also the journalist who had been imprisoned for the longest time in the Gambia. In late July 2007, Manneh was reportedly seen at the Royal Victoria Teaching Hospital (RVTH) in Banjul, allegedly for treatment for his high blood pressure. He was later transferred to a nearby military clinic.

No government representative appeared at the hearing in September, but the verdict was to be passed in November of the same year. At the end of September, the International Federation of Journalists expressed fears that Manneh had been killed in prison and demanded evidence to the contrary from the Gambian government. They relied on what they believed to be a credible statement from an employee at Mile 2 prison. Manneh is said to have been brought there after his stay at the RVTH and was told that he would not see the next day again.

On the day of hearing in November at the ECOWAS Court, three witnesses for the prosecution were questioned. A verdict should not be announced until the end of January. In January, the court adjourned to March 13, 2008 to hear testimony from the two NIA officers who allegedly arrested Manneh.

Shortly before the trial in March, it was announced that five witnesses had now been invited to Abuja - three military security forces and two high-ranking police officers. Since they did not appear on the date, unlike a government representative, the verdict was postponed to June 5, 2008. On March 10, the NIA attempted to kidnap one of the former witnesses, journalist Yahya Dampha, while he was in exile in Senegal. Dampha, who was able to escape, said that she had received threatening phone calls beforehand. He also told the press that his neighbors had been questioned about him.

Judgment by the ECOWAS Court of Justice

With a landmark decision, the ECOWAS Court of Justice pronounced the judgment on June 5, 2007. The verdict made Chief Ebrima Manneh's arrest illegal and ordered his immediate release. The court also awarded him US $ 100,000 in damages. As usual, the Gambian government remained silent on the Manneh case.

Second anniversary of imprisonment

On the second anniversary of Manneh's imprisonment, Momodou LK Sanneh , minority leader in parliament, called in July 2008 on the government to recognize the judgment of the court and to release Manneh immediately.

On April 6, 2009, the Attorney General and Minister of Justice, Marie Saine-Firdaus , denied that she had any further knowledge in Parliament about Manneh's whereabouts. Foreign politicians sent a petition in April 2009.

At the Amnesty International Media Awards 2009, Chief Ebrima Manneh received the Special Award For Journalism in absentia . Yayah Jammeh spoke about the Manneh case for the first time in an interview in July 2009, his statement was: "How can we release somebody who is not arrested by us" ("How can we release someone who has not been arrested by us?").

Edward Gomez , attorney general and attorney general, continued to deny in October that the state knew anything about Manneh's whereabouts. The The African Editors Forum (TAEF) honored Manneh in the same month with the Hero of African Journalism Award .

Fifth anniversary of imprisonment

On March 16, 2011, Jammeh is said to have made a statement to press representatives. At that time, he assured that the government had nothing to do with the death of Chief Manneh ("Let me make it very clear that the government has nothing to do with the death of Chief Manneh."). Rumors of the death were spread as early as June 2009.

Press reports on death

In March 2019, The Point newspaper reported that Manneh died in mid-2008 when he was being rushed from a police station to Diabugu Batapa hospital. He is said to have been buried behind the local police station.