Sierra Leonean arrested and detained

Commissioner Seedy Touray of Gambia Immigration Department, who is also responsible for refugees matters in The Gambia have order the arrest and detention of   Ibrahim M. Kamara, Chairman of Sierra Leonean Refugees in The Gambia.

Kamara is held at the Kairaba Police Station, a reliable source told The Voice Newspaper.

According to the source, Mr. Kamara was arrested by four immigration officers at the campus of the Latrikunda Upper Basic School along Kairaba Avenue on January 16, 2011. Kamara’s arrest came at a time when Sierra Leonean refugees were meeting at the campus to discuss issues pertaining to their status and protection.

Prolonged Breastfeeding ‘May Harm Babies’ Health’

http://nayank80.blogspot.com/2011/01/prolonged-breastfeeding-may-harm-babies.html#more

A breastfeeding mother. Pix by REX

BREASTFEEDING EXCLUSIVELY for six months may put babies off some foods and increase their risk of allergies, obesity and iron deficiency, an expert report reveals today.

The highly controversial study, published in the British Medical Journal, raises serious questions about the Government’s advice to hold off giving babies any solid food until they are six months old.

The authors – who include Professor Alan Lucas, director of the largest child and nutrition research centre in Europe, and Professor Ian Booth, an expert in paediatrics and child health at Edinburgh University – are now calling for a review of the guidance.

Gambia settles for death in ‘do or die’ clash

Gambia U17 - Image (Gambiasports)

The Gambia U17 team was at the receiving end of a ruthless Ivory Coast side which defeated them by 4-1 in what many described as a ‘do or die’ clash in the Rwandan capital, Kigali on Saturday.

The Baby Scorpions of The Gambia were hoping for progress to the semi-finals of the Confederation of African Football (CAF) 9th Edition of the African U17 Championship in Rwanda, but a heavy defeat to a better prepared Ivory Coast has dashes all hopes and the team got sent packing.

Hopes and Fears: Sudan Referendum Draws Nearer

As the deadline for South Sudan’s referendum to determine self-governance is winding down, with just three days to go, The Voice Newspaper’s Modou S. Joof looks at the hopes and fears that engulfed the run up to the referendum and the aftermath of the votes.
In May 2010, the Executive Director of the Africa Centre for Justice and Peace Studies (ACJPS), Osman Hummaida, told The Voice Newspaper that the April 11 to 15, 2010 Elections that were held in Sudan as part of the Comprehensive Peace Agreement (CPA), was a mechanism to addressing key causes of conflict in Sudan.

Flashback of NaYCONF 2008

The national youth conference and festival as it happened two years ago (Part 4)

In our fourth and final series of a flashback of the 2008 National Youth Conference and Festival (NaYCONF 2008), we look at the sports and cultural fanfare of the event.
The 2010 event, hosted by the Kanifing Municipality (KM) ended on December 23, though there were cultural activities, the sport side of it is virtually dead and buried; it was not a component of this year’s NaYCONF. The event, held every two years, is aimed at discussing pertinent issues affecting the lives of youths in The Gambia.

Gambia Government Says It's Not A Party To ECOWAS Proposed Military Intervention On Ivory Coast

Dr Njogu L. Bah

Defends Wikileaks Julian Assange
The Gambia government in a statement on Friday, stated clearly that it opposes the use of force to oust Laurant Gbabo, a position the Regional Block, ECOWAS is weighing options on.
The statement read by Dr. Njogou L. Bah, secretary general and head of the Civil Service, who is appearing to be the Spokesperson of the Gambia Government, defended Wikileaks Julian Assange: saying "This has proven our belief and conviction that the West are only interested in the protection of Freedom of the Press and expression only where it concerns their criminal agents bent on causing instability in Africa and the Third World but disguised as journalists and human rights campaigners and not a genuine protection of the Freedom of the Press worldwide." 

Journalist Harassed for Taking Death-Row Inmates’ Picture

Fabakary Ceesay

Security officers recently harassed Foroyaa newspaper senior reporter Fabakary B. Ceesay for attempting to take the pictures of treason convicts, Lang Tombong and Co. Former defense chief Lang Tombong Tamba and co appeared in Appeal Court in Banjul challenging death sentenced slapped on them by the High Court. 
Using abusive words, a group of security officers from different security apparatus confronted Mr Ceesay for attempting to take pictures while the journalists from the state-owned media were not only taking pictures, but videoing at the court premises.