By: Alieu Ceesay
The Gambia Press Union (GPU), in collaboration with the National Endowment for Democracy, has kicked off a three-day capacity-building workshop for journalists focused on covering special tribunals and universal jurisdiction trials. The event, held at the Ocean Bay Hotel in Bakau, aims to prepare media professionals for the upcoming hybrid special tribunal to prosecute serious crimes from the Yahya Jammeh era.
The training equips participants with essential knowledge on the proceedings of international and hybrid criminal courts, skills for reporting on trials involving international crimes, and strategies for delivering independent, reliable coverage. It comes amid the Gambian government’s efforts to operationalize a Special Accountability Mechanism, following the Truth, Reconciliation and Reparations Commission’s (TRRC) recommendations to prosecute atrocities committed between 1994 and 2017, including extrajudicial killings, torture, enforced disappearances, and sexual violence.
In his welcoming remarks, GPU Vice President Sheriff Saidykhan underscored the workshop’s significance. “This training will significantly enhance journalists’ capacity to cover tribunal cases and universal jurisdiction trials, strengthening protections for fair trials, victim rights, and public awareness,” he said. He emphasized the media’s pivotal role in ensuring transparency, holding perpetrators accountable, and simplifying complex legal processes for the public. “Covering these trials demands a higher degree of professionalism to provide historical records of human rights violations,” Saidykhan added.
The initiative responds directly to the planned establishment of a hybrid tribunal, approved by ECOWAS in December 2024, to try crimes against humanity and other grave offenses from Jammeh’s regime. With ongoing universal jurisdiction cases abroad – including convictions in Switzerland and Germany, and an upcoming trial in the United States – journalists are anticipated to play a key role in informing Gambians about global accountability efforts.
Ida Persson, Special Adviser on Transitional Justice at the Ministry of Justice and head of the post-TRRC unit, highlighted the nation’s critical juncture in pursuing justice. “The Gambia is at a pivotal moment in implementing post-TRRC accountability measures amid national and global challenges,” she stated. Persson stressed the need for ethical, accurate reporting on sensitive judicial processes, noting that impunity threatens peace, stability, and victims’ dignity.
“Your work shines a light on proceedings, exposes abuses, and amplifies victims’ voices,” Persson told journalists. “Journalists act as first responders in accountability, documenting evidence, challenging misinformation, and fostering public trust in legal processes.”
The workshop builds on broader efforts to bolster media capacity to report on human rights issues from the Jammeh era. As the Special Prosecutor’s Office and tribunal preparations advance, participants are urged to prioritize sensitivity, fairness, and depth in their coverage.
With funding challenges delaying the tribunal’s full launch, this training signals a proactive step toward informed public discourse on transitional justice. Journalists emerged motivated to help end impunity and support victims’ redress.
