By Nelson Manneh
The National Human Rights Commission (NHRC) has called on the Attorney General and Minister for Justice, Dawda A. Jallow, to withdraw all charges against individuals prosecuted for unlawful assembly under the Public Order Act. This recommendation is featured prominently in the NHRC’s 2024 State of Human Rights Report, released this week.
The NHRC’s appeal follows the arrest and detention of 19 young people who had gathered peacefully in Banjul to petition the Public Utilities Regulatory Authority (PURA). The group was protesting a recent decision by PURA to increase the floor prices for mobile data. According to the NHRC, police responded with “heavy-handedness” and “indiscriminate firing of tear gas” to disperse the demonstrators—actions the commission condemned as violations of the fundamental freedoms of assembly and association, as enshrined in The Gambia’s 1997 Constitution.
The commission further urged the government to urgently amend Section 5 of the Public Order Act, which currently requires citizens to obtain a permit to hold public demonstrations. The NHRC has long criticized this law as a tool used to restrict freedom of assembly, and in its latest report, it recommends transitioning from a permit requirement to a simple notification system.
“The Ministry of Interior and Ministry of Justice [should] amend Section 5 of the Public Order Act to provide for notification instead of the requirement for a permit and place it before the National Assembly for enactment,” the commission recommended.
While the NHRC noted that there have been no reported restrictions on the right to register or belong to associations, it reported multiple instances in which freedom of assembly was curtailed over the past year. The commission highlighted that several permit requests for peaceful protests were denied by the Inspector General of Police (IGP) under the Public Order Act.
One notable example occurred in April 2024, when the IGP refused a permit for a protest about ferry service disruptions and alleged corruption at the Gambia Ports Authority (GPA), citing security concerns and the impending OIC Summit. Despite the refusal, Marr Nyang, leader of the anticorruption group Gambia Participates, and seven other advocates held a peaceful sit-down protest at Arch 22 in Banjul, only to be arrested and detained for seven hours.
Similarly, in June 2024, the police denied a protest permit to a group of cement importers who wished to demonstrate against alleged import monopolies and surging prices. In contrast, the Coalition of Progressive Gambians was granted a permit in November 2024 to protest in support of the 2020 Draft Constitution, albeit after delays in the permitting process.
The report also recounts a December 2024 incident in which police forcefully dispersed university students peacefully assembling on the University of The Gambia campus. Tear gas was deployed, resulting in several students being hospitalized, despite no evidence of violence or threats by the protestors.
“Enjoying the right to freedom of assembly continues to be a challenge in the country,” the NHRC stated. The commission stressed that while reasonable restrictions are allowed under the law, they must be exercised with fairness, equality, and non-discrimination.
The NHRC’s recommendations to align the Public Order Act with the 1997 Constitution and international human rights obligations remain unimplemented. The commission continues to urge the government to move from a permit-based system to a notification regime in order to better protect the rights of Gambian citizens to peacefully assemble.
