Africa-Press – Gambia. Kerr Fatou Media has learned that Police Intervention Unit (PIU) officers had reportedly seized the phone of journalist Khadijah Bokum while she was broadcasting on Facebook Live, preventing her from continuing her coverage of altercations between youths and PIU officers in her community of Jabang and the repercussions that have on her family. Efforts to reach Bokum by phone following the incident were unsuccessful.
Bokum’s elder sister, Isatou Bokum, confirmed the seizure on Facebook, stating that her sister—a journalist with GRTS Radio, the state media—was targeted despite her role in informing the public.”Reports reaching me confirm that PIU officers have seized Kadijah Bokum’s phone. She is a journalist working with GRTS RADIO, the state media. Every citizen has the right to record, let alone a journalist whose duty is to inform the public about what is happening,” she said.
Isatou also reported that their cousin and brother were physically attacked and detained by PIU officers without explanation. “They also attacked my cousin and brother and took them away without cause,” she said.
In a stern warning, Isatou held the police responsible for the safety of her family: “If anything happens to my sister or my family, the Gambia’s police force is responsible.”
Efforts to reach the police PRO were unsuccessful at the time of going to press.
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