Gambia revokes Al-Jazeera permits to cover human interest stories

The Gambia’s Ministry of Information and Communication have revoked the permits issued to some Al-Jazeera journalists to report human interest stories in the country, official sources at the ministry, said. “The team of Al-Jazeera journalists were in Banjul to film and report on human interest stories but were later turned down by the authorities. “They were asked to stop filming or risk being arrested after the government annulled their credentials,” the sources said. Gambia’s Ministry of Information, which issued the permits to the journalists, said the team could not film until further authorisation was given from the West African country’s President Yahya Jammeh. Jammeh was, however, on vacation in his hometown, Kanilai, at the time. Al-Jazeera correspondent Catherine Wambuo-Soi was going to interview Jammeh on the topic of migration of Gambian youths and other human interest issues for his HIV treatment programme. “We have got approval from the government to travel to Banjul to do some human interest stories. “Unfortunately, a day after our arrival, we were told by our fixer that the government through the ministry of information has asked us not to film anything or else risk being arrested,”  she said. Gambia’s government did not give any particular reason for the revocation of the permits. The team has left Banjul via Dakar and is now in Nairobi, Kenya. NAN