She pays school fees once she gets paid for her work. The rest of the money is spent on food. The stones are being used by Liberia’s booming post-war construction industry, but little of that growth trickles down. Liberia is expected to have a growth rate of 8.9 percent this year, according to the African Economic Outlook, boosted by a rise in commodity prices, particularly rubber, palm oil and minerals, at a time when many European economies are stagnating or even in recession.
This article has been curated from Liberia: Crushing Rocks to Make a Living in Liberia
The government of the Gambia has given an indication of its readiness to fully implement the recently-passed draconian legislation which is meant to restrict online freedom. Head of Civil Service and Minister of Presidential Affairs, Momodou Sabally, served notice of the government’s intentions to crackdown on online freedom at a meeting held on August 8, 2013, with religious leaders and cabinet members at the official seat of government, the State House. The Minister, consequently warned Gambians, particularly the youth against participating in online campaigns against the government. “If you cannot say anything good about the country, then you should keep quiet,” he exclaimed. The comments by Sabally comes at a time when various free expression organisations including the MFWA, have condemned the recently-passed law which prescribes stiffer punishment for persons found guilty of publishing “false news” online. The law imposes a jail term of 15 years and/or a fine of three million dalasis (about US$90,000) on persons who criticize government officials, caricature or instigate violence against the government through the internet. What is more worrying is that, the religious leaders at the said meeting reportedly indicated their support for the government’s plans to repress online freedom. Alieu Mboge, a spokesperson of the group is reported to have assured the cabinet that “we would do everything within our power to stop the youth both in and outside the country from any online criticism of the government.” In a country where human rights advocacy by religious leaders is not tolerated, it is feared that the government may use this latest pronouncements by the religious leaders to legitimize its new policy of massively repressing internet freedom. We call on the religious leaders to recognize the importance of the internet, which remains the only platform for freedom of expression and participation in public discourse among Gambians, as traditional media outlets are already cowed from airing programmes which are critical of the government.
This article has been curated from Gambia: Govt to Restrict Internet Freedom
After The Bubbly 