State House, Banjul, 23rd, July 2024: On Tuesday morning, the National Human Rights Commission (NHRC) paid a courtesy visit to His Excellency President Adama Barrow at the State House in Banjul.
During its annual Reporting Meeting with the Head of State, President Adama Barrow emphasised that despite the accompanying challenges “Respecting Human Rights is important for our democracy, thus Government is an important partner to your institution [NHRC].” He told the Chairperson of the Commissioner Mr. Emmanuel Joof, and reassured them of his Government’s belief in the principles of Human Rights and its political will to promote and protect Human Rights, departing from the history of state institutionalised violence against its citizens
Other pertinent Human Rights issues such as Sexual and Gender Based Violence (SGBV), use of illicit drugs and the rise of hate speech on social media were discussed. However, Commissioner Joof praised the Barrow administration for achieving significant strides in the promotion and protection of Human Rights.
He further encouraged the Government to continue striving to strengthen the promotion and protection of economic, social and cultural rights.
The President further inform the NHRC that his Government is tolerant and is focusing on addressing the citizens’ right to development and the economic challenges they face. In addition, President Barrow noted the important role of the media to sell the country for the right reasons, citing the progressive scorecards of the Government in different areas of Governance and Press Freedom. He observed that the media influences perceptions and called for the National Council for Civic Education to intensify its civic education programmes in raising awareness on citizens’ rights and responsibilities to resolve problems.
NHRC has been in existence for five years focusing on promoting and protecting Human Rights in The Gambia. President Barrow thanked the Commission for its achievements and urge them to continue to be impartial in the execution of its duties.
