A Living Mirror: The Life Of Deyda Hydara will be launched on World Press Freedom Day - Saturday, May 3 2008 at the Alliance Franco Gambienne at 10 am.

It is part of the activities that the Gambia Press Union (GPU) has earmarked for the celebration of this year's World Press Freedom Day whose theme is Freedom of Expression: Access  and Empowerment. The other activities include the inaugural lecture in the Deyda Hydara Lecture Series (The Journalist as an Endangered Species), which will be delivered by Gabriel Baglo, Director, International Federation of Journalists (IFJ), Africa Office, Dakar, Senegal.

According to a statement issued by the GPU, the GPU newsletter will also be unveiled on that day. The statement added that the Editors' Guild will also be inaugurated at the occasion. 

Written by both Aloa Ahmed Alota and Demba Ali Jawo, A Living Mirror: The Life Of Deyda Hydara has been described by Baba Galleh Jallow, former managing editor of The Independent newspaper, as "a national treasure that must be preserved for future generations of Gambians and fair-minded journalists".

He adds: "In a very real sense, Deyda Hydara continues to live on in the pages of this book. Indeed, the book's title, A Living Mirror , is real in a sense that cannot be described by words, but that can be felt only by reading the book itself."

The authors disclosed that they would be donating the proceeds from the book to the Deyda Hydara Trust(DHT) in furtherance of its mission to foster press freedom, good governance and sustainable economic development across Africa.

By Mrs Maria Hydara

You were not only a husband but also a friend, brother and dad to all of us. We believe in Allah and that we will all die at a time He says. But to have someone like you and lose him the way you were brutally taken away from us is unbearable.

It is a year now since you left us, and it all seems like yesterday to us. The aftermath of your death is a real horror. Your killers know not what they did; they have not only deprived us , but have also left us paralysed with such shock and sorrow that we find it extremely hard to comprehend WHY! What crime could you have committed to warrant such a brutal, inhumanand barbaric killing that you met on that fateful day?

Even though we are trying to cope, this is something we find hard to bear; we just try to eat and be there for each other. You were a man who would do anything for his family, put them first no matter what. BogaJobot – a man who cares deeply for his family. For these reasons, it sometimes seems you are still with us when we pray, eat, laugh and cry.

The fact that your work has been recognized worldwide, as shown in the endless tributes received, the award given posthumously, and the support from the Gambian and the Senegalese people, friends and family, keep us going.

You dedicated your life to the paper, The Point. No wonder you got killed on the paper’s anniversary.

We are proud of you. Though you knew you were being followed usually and knew you would be killed as you would say, this never made you quit and you always reminded us: “I am a journalist and will keep the people informed at all costs, unless I die. A bittersweet memory, that is what you left behind, but no shame or regrets.

If we have to choose all over again, we will still choose you, for you were a good friend, brother, uncle, grand-dad and above all else the best husband anyone could have asked for.

May the blessing of Allah and the kindness of your heart to other people help give you eternal peace. Amen.

(The Point, Friday, 9 December 2005)

(Reprinted with kind permission)

Suma is a Wollof word meaning my.

Karara is a praise name for a member of the Hydara clan.

By Marie Pierre Hydara-John

My Dearest Pa

While it’s one year ago that yet unknown cowardly assassins forcibly snatched you away from us, you still continue to live in my heart that I feel I can still talk directly to you.

Not only were you a father but also a very special friend, an adviser, a teacher, a physician, a lawyer, and most of all the best man in my life.

A year has gone by and I still think of it as a dream and that whenever I am awake, you would still be there for me. What a cruel thing for anyone for whatever reason to have broken such a cordial bond that had existed between the two of us! What insensitive barbarism could have been responsible for such a deed – killing our dearest dad on a special day as our mum’s birthday? I now dread wishing her a happy birthday because it falls on a day of your brutal murder. While this is supposed to be one of the happiest days of her life, it has now turned out to be the worst day in the lives of all of us. We however believe in the Almighty Allah and we know that He would not only place you in a comfortable position by His side, but He also has the capacity to see us through this terrible nightmare.

You were a dad who would do anything and everything for his family.

You would fight my battles, kiss my tears away, calm my fears and make it easy for me to even tackle a lion without any fear.

If I had known that 16 March 2004 was going to be the last birthday I would spend with you, I would have celebrated it differently. Although it seems as if you knew it was going to be the last, as you made it the best birthday of my life.

If I had known that 18 March 2004 at the Heathrow Airport in London was going to be the last time I would see the sympathetic look in your eyes, I would have looked into them much longer.

If I had known that warm hug and goodbye you gave me on that day were going to be the last, I would have clung onto you much harder.

If I had known that the warm kiss you gave me was going to be the last I would get from you, I would have prolonged it.

If I had known that 16 December 2004 ( one hour before your murder) was going to be the last time I would hear your comforting voice, I would have reminded you of how I loved you and appreciated you and all that you stood for.

However, despite our loss of a dear father and a mentor, the entire family thank Almighty Allah for having blessed us with such a jewel. That was what you were and still are to us.

I wish to assure you however that you have become even more of an icon than when you were alive and the entire world is talking about you. Those responsible for your killing are no doubt drowned in shame today because they have succeeded in creating an icon and a martyr, whose spirit will live forever. We’re really proud of you, dad.

(The Point, Monday, 19 December 2005)

Reprinted with kind permission

This is my tribute to the most respectful human being I have ever known, Deyda Hydara, my beloved father and my role model. I am honoured to say that the amount of love my father devoted to his family and the public is rare and will never be forgotten.

Since his early days, he had always been ambitious and willing to achieve the maximum out of life and use it to help people by informing them of what is truly happening in their society. He never resorted to force and was always a voice for the people, facing problems and seeking help. He was ready to make the greatest sacrifice for the cause of the poor, showing them the way and encouraging them to make the most of the freedom to express themselves, so that they could become worthy members of society.

What I have learned from my father is that a good journalist should be devoted to his or her job. That means that he or she should do everything to report a story as it is – truthfully, impartially and honestly.

The press is a sine qua non for a country’s development. That means that a country cannot progress without people being informed of events happening on a daily basis. It seems that in the Gambia, the government is doing everything possible to weaken the press from doing their job freely. My father fought against the newly passed bills, which threaten freedom of expression in the Gambia.

We are the descendants of a highly religious family called Hydara Shariff – meaning bravery. As a result, I did not expect my father to surrender to any threats from whomever. When I heard the news, I was devastated and have not yet recovered from the trauma, nor has any member of our family (my mum, my two sisters and brothers and my niece Amy – the youngest member).

May the people responsible for this big plot realize what they are about to face in this world and the Day of Judgement. They killed an innocent man whose only crime was being honest and truthful. They used a gun as their weapon against a person who used a pen as his. I want all those people who have my dad’s blood in their hands to know that everyone has their day and God is watching.

The Point, Monday, 31 January 2005

(Reprinted with kind permission)

By Adelaide Sosseh

While we cannot wind back the clock, we can insist that we maintain values and norms of a past Gambia. This is the Gambia where gates and front doors of houses were left open even at night to ease entry of guests and strangers; the Gambia that did not have real fences but ‘portes’ to facilitate movement from one compound to the other; the Gambia that motivated families to cook the extra cup of rice for the unexpected stranger. This was a Gambia that promoted faith, love, charity and hope; when a complete stranger was housed, clothed and fed until he or she found their bearings; then other people had jurisdiction over other people’s children.

(The Point, Monday, 24 January 2005)

Reprinted with kind permission.

By Lenrie Peters

As thousands of Gambians - both Christians and non-Christians - prepare to celebrate the Feast of Christmas, let us not forget the life of Deyda Hydara. Some are nailed to a Cross and hidden in a Tomb, while others are gunned down and precipitately shovelled into cold-earth. Yet the fire, which flayed after them is sometimes disproportionate to their simple existence.

Deyda Hydara has decreed through his life and death, and through the shattering experience of his family, that Gambians must wake up from their slumber and reassess the realities of their situation; that their consciences shall demand ‘no crimes with impunity’ until this spreading epidemic of violence and savagery is flayed from our midst. We recall how the incidents, which began as raving happenings, eventually turned into the holocausts in Sierra Leone, Liberia and the Ivory Coast, and shudder at the self same road map of creeping violence. Gambians must never allow this monstrous anarchy of evil to bestride the landscape. Deyda said to me only a few days before his death that the heinous laws being propagated against journalists now, were designed to silence the opposition when election campaigning starts. Let the killing and night arrests stop now!

Should not the AU or Nepad start asking questions? Would it not be a brotherly gesture and an aid to good
governance? Should the international community wait in the hope that there would not be another incident? Is anti-terrorism the only yardstick of friendship in the international community? They made the same mistake during the cold war with people like Mobutu, and are still burning their fingers in that cauldron. They should have learnt by now that prevention is better than woeful failures.

The cruel irony of the muddle is that now that we are sending our brave young men out to protect Liberians and the people of Darfur, Gambians cannot walk their own streets in safety. The Romans used to say that those whom the gods would destroy they first make mad. But there is always a chance for healing, of drawing back to saner way; and bring back from the brink; transformation to be devoutly pursued.

(The Point, Friday, 14 January 2005)
(Reprinted with permission)

By Kenneth Best

Ihave learned with profound shock and sadness the murder of our esteemed and great colleague, Deyda Hydara of The Point newspaper. I am extremely disappointed at this latest attack on press freedom. I call on the international community, including the world’s media organisations, to bring pressure to bear on the Gambia government to find and prosecute the perpetrators of this terrible act. Mae Gene and our entire family join me in extending our deepest condolences to the bereaved family, to all our media colleagues and to the entire Gambian people as a whole for this tragic loss. Deyda was a true patriot who loved his country so much that he was, like most journalists, prepared to make the supreme sacrifice for truth, justice, fair play, human development and progress in his beloved country.
 
May God have mercy on his soul and grant him eternal rest. May the Gambian people continue to put their faith and trust in God. May He reassure them that out of this latest assassination He will empower them with courage to persevere, holding fast to all that is good, until the day of reckoning comes, as surely come it will.

(The Point, Friday, 14 January 2005)
(Reprinted with permission)

By Rev Norman Grigg

The Methodist Church in the Gambia joins its voice with all those who are appalled, shocked and saddened by the murder of Deyda Hydara. In extending our sympathy and assuring our prayers for the family, his friends and his colleagues we pledge our support for all those in the media and in public life, who will do everything in their power to defend the freedom of speech.

We pray that this atrocious act will deter no one from standing firm for the truth, which was the hallmark of Mr Hydara’s life and journalistic expertise, but that it will rather ensure that a passionate pursuit for truth will be encouraged.

We urge those in our society who hold positions of influence and authority to stand in solidarity with those who condemn the acts of violence and aggression against those who express their views freely and without favour. The Methodist Church, since the days of its founder John Wesley, has always been an advocate of social justice and reform and has never been ashamed to proclaim its beliefs in the face of criticism, unpopularity or even persecution. We are therefore determined to continue that tradition in this present time and in this distressing circumstance and stand in firm support of those who are the genuine seekers of truth in a world where violence and corruption so often appear to reign.

May God bless those who are mourning at this time and inspire those who are determined to hold fast to the principles for which Deyda lived and died.

( The Point , Monday, 10 January 2005)
( Reprinted with permission )

Mr President, the situation befalling the press in this country is to say the least alarming. The unprecedented situation has been creeping in slowly but surely into the fabric of Gambian society to the dismay of many observers who blame the regime for this new trend of things hitherto unknown during the First Republic. Citizen FM was the first casualty of this policy of physically disabling media houses. Then came the turn of Radio One, which was almost totally gutted by fire, wounding the owner George Christensen. Alieu Bah of the same station was also subjected to a deadly arson attack. Then The Independent offices were torched before their printing press was totally destroyed by arsonists.

In the meantime, draconian laws to cripple the independent media have been devised; they are Decrees 70/71 and the Media Commission. There were also verbal (anonymous phone calls) and written threats against many of us as publicised in our papers just like the ones that reached The Independent , the BBC and some days later Demba Jawo for expressing his opinions in his column with The Independent . He did not even write news per se but expressed his opinions on matters of national importance. Just as you Mr President do when criticising the UK and the US under the cloak of your right to freedom of expression. If you, a President, can use such a right we wonder what journalists would be waiting for, as it is our trade.

The danger is that some people somewhere cannot respect the opinions published in newspapers including the column conspicuously titled Independent Critique when you did ask journalists 'to please criticise your government when you go wrong'. From the word go, your regime wrongly identified the independent media as its opponent which led you as early as 1994 to describe media people and human rights activists as 'illegitimate sons [sic] of Africa'. The discourse was clearly saying that press freedom and human rights were alien to Africa, thus throwing our rights to the Greek calendars. From then on, government supporters began antagonising the media in all spheres of life as we predicted in this newspaper when you made that dangerous statement.

The problem is that Mr President, you and your supporters antagonising the press failed to understand one thing; that journalists do not invent news, they forward it as they gather it. We are the messengers of both government and the other actors of our national life.

The government and its supporters must also know that we take very seriously our role as translators of the people's aspirations.

We said when one wants acara one must be prepared to bear the pepper. Put simply, that means that if someone takes public office, he or she must be ready to be scrutinised. People who do not want to be in the news must not take up public offices; for all in the public domain must be exposed for the people to pass judgement. Government and supporters must also know that some of us have as published in 1992 and 1994 offered our lives in our social responsibility role. Maybe we are crazy but some of us would be proud to be gunned down or simply be killed for doing just that.

Government and supporters must understand that media people in normal circumstances must check the regime’s stewardship, more so when Section 207 of the Constitution asks us to specifically make government accountable to the people. Government's stewardship must be examined and reported on for the benefit of the governed and no amount of threat or danger will deter us from carrying out such a responsibility. Mr President, these attacks are unacceptable.

Acara is a deep-fried round brownish cake made from ground beans, water, and salt. And it is eaten with pepper sauce. It is delicious, but you have to endure the pepper to enjoy it. It is Deyda's own metaphorical way of saying that if you want anything big out of life, you have to be prepared for certain pains.

( The Point , Tuesday, 17 August 2004)
(Reprinted with permission)

 We thank all those who sympathised with us as the obnoxious laws were enacted with a view to muzzling the independent media in this country.

Unanimity as we always say kills and we are proud that we belong to those who speak for the voiceless as provided for by the constitution of this country. Ours is our social responsibility role all the way without compromise and no amount of cajoling, intimidation or threats can change such a stance.

We want the country to progress and that can only become a reality if people are empowered by way of informing them truthfully, impartially and independently. We do not believe in disinformation, but we do not also believe in freedom of information over the counter. We want a journalism based on the principles that people like Pulitzer invented when they were establishing modern journalism."

We see that Amadou Janneh has not heeded our advice to call it quits in the face of total disregard of his efforts by Cabinet. It is sad that he didn't do as the German minister and David Blunket did. People in positions resign when they falter or have been disowned by the group they work with, for an idea or action in the course of their performance.

Talking about resignation, another guy that should have done so is Kofi Annan whose son Kodjo took UN contract money knowing fully well that his dad is the boss of the UN which belongs to the world and not their family. Kofi also knew very well that his son worked for the programme under his leadership and yet did not caution him to protect the integrity of their name.

Coming back to the amendments, readers will understand that we will not divulge our line of defence as we did for the commission. Suffice it to say that we have mastered the dossier and are going to challenge these revised laws as soon as they are assented to. We have given notice for that to the hearing of the world at large.

ASPA Reacts

It took ASPA a very long time to react but they did in the end. As the Wollof say here is the mosque, whosoever can call out for prayers let him call for us to see whether people would respond. This is as simple as that. One thing that government can insist on to safeguard farmers' interests is that it must make clear that it will harshly punish whosoever fails to honour their commitments to the farmers.

Deyda Hydara completed this article about 9.30 pm on Thursday, 16 December 2004 and was shot dead about two hours later. It was published in The Point’s Monday, 10 January 2005 issue.

(Reprinted with permission)