''The Independent'' was a biweekly

newspaper A newspaper is a Periodical literature, periodical publication containing written News, information about current events and is often typed in black ink with a white or gray background. Newspapers can cover a wide variety of fields such as p ...

published in Banjul,

the Gambia The Gambia,, ff, Gammbi, ar, غامبيا officially the Republic of The Gambia, is a country in West Africa. It is the smallest country within mainland AfricaHoare, Ben. (2002) ''The Kingfisher A-Z Encyclopedia'', Kingfisher Publicatio ...

. The paper was started in July 1999 with 25 staffers and freelance reporters, but after multiple raids, acts of

arbitrary arrest and detention Arbitrary arrest and arbitrary detention are the arrest or detention of an individual in a case in which there is no likelihood or evidence that they committed a crime against legal statute, or in which there has been no proper due process of l ...

, and unsolved acts of arson, ''The Independent'' ceased publication in March 2006.

History of government harassment

Less than a month after the newspaper was founded, Gambia's National Intelligence Agency (NIA) raided its offices, arresting and detaining multiple journalists; the paper wasn't published for two weeks. In July 2000, Alagi Yorro Jallow, the managing editor and co-founder of the newspaper, was arrested and detained by the NIA after ''The Independent'' published an article about a

hunger strike A hunger strike is a method of non-violent resistance in which participants fast as an act of political protest, or to provoke a feeling of guilt in others, usually with the objective to achieve a specific goal, such as a policy change. Most ...

at Gambia's Central Prison. Jallow was arrested and harassed on multiple following occasions, and then in October 2003, the newspaper's offices were set on fire, partially destroying the newsroom. The paper lost its printing press in an unsolved arson in April 2004, and was later forced to stop publishing after an informal arrangement with the pro-government newspaper ''

The Daily Observer ''The Daily Observer'' is a newspaper published in Bakau in Banjul, the Gambia. The paper, Gambia's first daily newspaper,Gabriel I. H. Williams, ''Liberia: the heart of darkness'', Trafford Publishing, 2002, p.333 was founded by Mae Gene and Ke ...

'' was terminated without explanation. Its editor Musa Saidykhan was notified by telephone on May 4, 2005 that the arrangement had ended, effective after its May 6 edition. According to the

Committee to Protect Journalists The Committee to Protect Journalists (CPJ) is an American independent non-profit, non-governmental organization, based in New York City, New York, with correspondents around the world. CPJ promotes press freedom and defends the rights of journ ...

, ''The Daily Observer'' Managing Editor Momodou Sanyang "made the decision after learning of problems with his paper's printing facilities, including the need for spare parts and extra capacity." After two months, The Independent resumed as an

underground Underground most commonly refers to: * Subterranea (geography), the regions beneath the surface of the Earth Underground may also refer to: Places * The Underground (Boston), a music club in the Allston neighborhood of Boston * The Underground ...

publication using a "skeleton staff working in Gambia and a few determined reporters and editors elsewhere," After Saidykhan attended the African Editor’s Forum conference in Johannesburg, South Africa in October 2005, Saidykhan was arrested and detained by the NIA. According to Saidykhan, "the government was angered about a petition I had submitted to the former South African President

Thabo Mbeki Thabo Mvuyelwa Mbeki KStJ (; born 18 June 1942) is a South African politician who was the second president of South Africa from 14 June 1999 to 24 September 2008, when he resigned at the request of his party, the African National Congress (ANC ...

, inviting him to pressure a reluctant Gambian government expedite investigations into the gruesome murder of a leading local newspaper journalist,

Deyda Hydara Deyda Hydara (June 9, 1946 – December 16, 2004) was a co-founder and primary editor of '' The Point'', a major independent Gambian newspaper. He was also a correspondent for both AFP News Agency and Reporters Without Borders for more than 30 ...

." Saidykhan has alleged he was tortured by the NIA in 2006. After plainclothes police officers stormed the newspaper's offices in March 2006 and arrested the newspaper's local staff, the newspaper ceased publication.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Independent, The (Gambia) 1999 establishments in the Gambia 2006 disestablishments in the Gambia Biweekly newspapers Buildings and structures destroyed by arson English-language newspapers published in Africa Defunct newspapers published in the Gambia Publications established in 1999 Publications disestablished in 2006 Newspapers published in the Gambia Underground press