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Missionaries arrested for sedition in Gambia
by Scott Gilbreath ~ December 5th, 2008
David and Fiona Fulton (at right), a British missionary couple who have lived in Gambia for 12 years, were arrested last weekend and have been charged with sedition. They were paraded on state television late Wednesday, charged on Thursday, and are being held at separate locations while they try to raise bail money of £125,000. They have pled not guilty to the charges. Their two-year-old adopted daughter is in custody with Mrs Fulton.
There were fears for the health of 60-year-old Mr Fulton, who is being held separately from his 46-year-old wife in a notorious high-security prison outside the capital Banjul. Friends say he is in poor heath and refusing food.
A Foreign Office spokesman said they had been in daily contact with the couple since their arrest on Saturday. Gambia, a tiny West African state with a majority Muslim population, has been ruled by President Yahya Jammeh since he seized power in a 1994 coup. His record on human rights and civil freedoms has been questioned after a crackdown on anyone who has criticised the government.
A friend of the couple said they feared the missionaries had fallen victim to local power battles.
The Fultons are associated with Westhoughton Pentecostal Church, Bolton, which has more information online.
The Gambia, a former British colony, is the smallest country in Africa. The population of over 1 million is 97 percent Muslim, although Gambia’s government is officially secular.
In its 2005 annual report on Gambia, Reporters Without Borders accused President Jammeh of gagging the press and noted that his government had failed to identify or punish those responsible for murders and death threats against journalists. Many believe the president’s supporters are involved in these and other human rights abuses.
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