Gambian president withdraws defamation lawsuit against The Voice, editor 

Durban, November 4, 2024—The Committee to Protect Journalists welcomes Gambian President Adama Barrow’s decision to withdraw a civil defamation lawsuit against The Voice newspaper and its editor-in-chief and urges Attorney General Dawda A. Jallow to drop related false news charges against the editor and a colleague.

“We are relieved that President Barrow responded to appeals from local media representatives, the National Human Rights Commission, and CPJ by retracting the lawsuit against The Voice and its editor Musa Sekour Sheriff,” said Angela Quintal, head of CPJ’s Africa program. “We trust that the false news charges will also be dropped by the time Sheriff and his colleague, Momodou Justice Darboe, next appear in criminal court.”

Information Minister Ismaila Ceesay, Gambian Press Union President Muhammed S. Bah, and the Newspaper Publishers’ Association told CPJ by messaging app that representatives of the local groups and the Media Council were informed that the president would withdraw the lawsuit unconditionally when they met him at the State House in the capital of Banjul on Monday. According to Bah and Sheriff, the false news charges are expected to be dropped before Sheriff and Darboe’s criminal trial resumes on December 10. 

Sheriff and Darboe were arrested on September 26 in Banjul when they arrived for police questioning a day after receiving a letter from the president’s lawyer threatening a civil defamation lawsuit over an article alleging that Barrow was preparing an exit plan and had chosen a successor for the 2026 presidential election. The journalists were then charged with false publication and broadcasting.

CPJ urged Barrow in a September 27 letter that the charges be dropped. On October 7, CPJ wrote to Gambia’s National Human Rights Commission chairperson, Emmanuel Joof, seeking mediation. Joof and Commissioner Imam Baba Leigh met Barrow on October 23 at the president’s holiday retreat to raise the issue, and also met Sheriff five days later, Joof and Sheriff told CPJ.

(Editor’s note: The third paragraph of this report has been updated to clarify the names of those who told CPJ that false news charges were expected to be dropped and the fifth paragraph has been updated to correct the spelling of the names of Imam Baba Leigh and Emmanuel Joof.)