The Commonwealth Human Rights Initiative (CHRI) and Amnesty International (AI)have appealed to the United Nations to demand improvement in Gambia's human rights record.
The NGOs have requested the United Nations' Universal Periodic Review (UPR) scheduled for February 10,to question the Gambian Government on its human rights record and institute measures to address violations.
The appeal was made in a joint statement signed by Mr. Lawrence Amusu, Director of Amnesty
International and copied to Ghana News Agency in Accra on Thursday.
It quoted Nana Oye Lithur, Director of CHRI, as saying that Ghana had a key role to play in strengthening human rights institutions in Gambia.
"Since 1994, about 29 journalists have left the country, more than half of them in the last two years and at least 10 of them granted asylum elsewhere," the statement said.
It said in August 2009, six journalists were sentenced to two years imprisonment and fined 10,000 dollars because they allegedly criticized a statement by the Gambian President
Yahaya Jammeh about the unresolved murder of a prominent journalist Deydra Hydara.
They were released under a presidential pardon on September 3, 2009. The statement called on the Gambian Government to use the review to
demonstrate real commitment to human rights obligations.