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Re: Midnight Curfew ??????

As I said, at the moment it is just a rumour started on other Gambia banter bars. But if it is true, what a selfish attitude you have RS. It is your personnel choice if you wish to go out late or not, but if it is imposed the many poor innocent Gambians could well loose part of there lively hood ,that they can not afford to do. Suggest RS that you look at the bigger picture before being so small minded.

Re: Midnight Curfew ?????? Yellow card

YELLOW CARD
Nice as it is to have entertaining gossip at the Banta Bar - don't let have personal comments RS is anything but small minded - so if you want to 'rumour make' for fun that's fine BUT accept the comments Ian without being RUDE - some people would welcome it some criticise it - as i doubt it will happen lets keep it cool.

Re: Midnight Curfew ?????? Early bath???

Hi Francis. Felt I had to reply to you.
As I do not know RS, I do not know if He/She is small minded or not. I am willing to accept from what you have written that He/ She is not however, I stand by my comment that His/ Her posting read that way.
As for the yellow card, I will be asking the stewards to look into the matter at the end of the ‘game’. Unless that is, you send me off for an early bath before then!!!!
Seriously though, as we are all well aware, The Gambia people have taken many knocks lately, some from internal sources, and some from outside Gambia e.g. the world wide recession that they have no control over. Any thing that could have an adverse effect on tourism, can only have negative implications.
Just to set the record straight, the article I read regarding the curfew was in the Gambia Echo. link;-
http://www.thegambiaecho.com/
I did not want to say so at first, as I was hoping others my find collaborating information, without being influenced by me.

Re: Midnight Curfew ?????? Early bath???

Thank you Ian

The Gambian Echo is an ultra anti government publication, that ambitiously claims to represent the ordinary citizens in Gambia.

What a shame that it generally doesn't and a shame it prints gutter press sort of articles and not genuine policy opposition.

Gossip tends to have a scattergun effect - damaging far more than the target aimed at. BUT this is the aim - damage tourism and claim its a political problem, even the Presidents personal fault, when actually the gossip causes the problem.

Such opposition seldom wants to improve the conditions of the ordinary people they want to replace those in power, so they have the power.

Gambia is a mainly Islamic culture built on traditional tribal values - exactly what tourism do you imagine goes on after 12 at night, that the Gambian people would wish to encourage.

As RS says legitimate businesses would simply adjust their opening times and locals and visitors would attend during the opening hours and be ready at 7 am in the morning for another sunny day in paradise.

Love your calling in the stewards, generally players here abide by the rules - just asking you to do the same in a light hearted way, thank for being sporty about it.

Re: Midnight Curfew ?????? Early bath???

Francis


Such opposition seldom wants to improve the conditions of the ordinary people they want to replace those in power, so they have the power.


But this doesn't apply to all opposition in The Gambia. Since my first visit in 1992 I have known PDOIS and some of its people. I aways found they had very constructive and genuine ideas how to develop tourism. And I'm strongly convinced that they are working for the people, not for themselves.

Re: Midnight Curfew ?????? Early bath???

Point well taken and I totally agree, I was referrinbg to the web news and sites that peddle rumour as fact & use slurs, insults & lies, rather than sound argument.

I am not saying that there are not situations where a peoples rights are so diminished by oppression that action has to be taken - the British around the world have regularly put subjugated or colonoised people in this position - but peaceful non co-operation is a more powerful weapon than bombs and guns.

Thanks for making that comment just in case people misunderstood my comment

Re: Midnight Curfew ?????? Early bath???

Goodness gracious me, we haven't had such a long thread in a little while. Makes quite a nice change and thank you to Francis for springing to my aid.
On the 13th February this year I went to the Senegambia Hotel for the Gala Dinner and Youssou N'Dour concert. It all was to start around 8 pm but, of course, we all know about GMT. Dinner was eventually served just after 11 pm and the great man himself did not appear until nearly 2 am by which time most of the tourists were totally fed up and had gone to bed!

Re: Midnight Curfew - Gala Dinner at Senegambia Feb 2009

I so wish I'd known you were there, Filly and I went, as well as my cousin and her family - we arrived at the ticket time and just thought it crazy - my own fault - Adam had said the dinner wouldn't start till about 12 midnight and he was right !!

BUT what a fantastic concert - they would have to start earlier if the curfew ever got started - it would mess up Gambia Maybe Time good and proper.

Re: Midnight Curfew ??????

Excerpt from Foraaya

http://allafrica.com/stories/200910160765.html

Re: Midnight Curfew ??????

I think that helps to establish what I am saying.

The Forayaa article is a proper article putting a reasoned case, read it and then see the story in the online Gambian Echo - there is no comparison and I think it is a shame because just as I would never believe anything in the Daily Sport or News of the World, both papers occasionally do print news breaking stories ahead of the rest - but like the boy who calls wolf are just not believed.

Don't believe everything you read anywhere and if it is 'gossip' make sure if you repeat it you give it a health warning.

Re: Midnight Curfew ??????

Oh!! I was there for that concert too! In the end I was so hungry and fed up I just went home. My taxi driver said - oh but you could have sold the ticket - but I was just too fed up and wanted to get home.There were also a lot of tourists there with small children who had been promised a buffet from 8 pm.

Re: Midnight Curfew ??????

thanks Francis, In knw why I posted this.

And in Europe as well as in The Gambia I know how to be critical. I don't need you to teach me on that! I'm not a small child!

Re: Midnight Curfew ??????

No Q about it and no intention to teach you anything or imply U R a small child, the final comment was to all reading the thread not to you personally.

ASnd before I get other complaints that's not to say any of you are small children.

If you provided an email address 'Me' I would have sent you a direct email thanking you for your very valuable contribution of the Forayaa link and many other contributions you have made to this site.

Please accept my apology

Re: Midnight Curfew ??????

ok, peace, Francis ;-)

Still next time (whenever that might be) I will still be in GTS, my place since a long time. Maybe this time I will look for you for a little chat (problem, my English is not as good as I would like it)

Re: Midnight Curfew ??????

I will look forward to that

Francis

Re: Midnight Curfew ??????

Thanks to you all, for your responses to my original posting.

In it I clearly said that there were rumours about a curfew and asked if any one had heard the same. At no time have I said it was true. In my opinion regardless of how, where or why a rumour is started the best way to deal with it is to bring it out in the open for a proper ‘debate’ so if not true it can be squashed before it has what Fran called a scatter gun affect.

I must also reply to Frans question to me, when he asks ‘exactly what tourism do you imagine goes on after 12 at night, that the Gambian people would wish to encourage‘.
In reply I must point out that I have had many drinks at the GTS bar after midnight. Surly Fran, you consider GTS to be tourism that goes on after 12 at night, that the Gambian people would wish to encourage??????????. You may have just scored a home goal, but if you a willing to recede my yellow card we can agree that the ball was close but just outside the post. Up to you!!!!! As they say the ball is in your court.

Re: Midnight Curfew ??????

If you look at the Forayaa article it is clear that this is aimed at Gambians without legitimate business and is carried out now without an official curfew - our staff have legitimate reason to be around and are very seldom even stopped to show their papers maybe when new security staff are on duty. tourists are also on legitimate business.

I think this is aimed at the sex traders both men and women as well as the bumsters and petty conmen.

Nice try at an appeal Ian - and nice to have you as a contributor.

Debate is the healthy way on these topics, but the ultimate decision on how to control a local situation has to be down to the local government.

We think of having freedom in the UK, but my mother was arrested at Greenham Common and choose to go to prison because she was strongly opposed to foreign nuclear weapons being based in the UK and felt she had the right to protest.

The young people loitering around the tourist resorts are a problem, AIDS is a problem, Drugs are a problem, bumstering has an annual adverse affect on tourism, some people feel tourism itself is a/the problem, but if it is to remain a financial resource for the country, the less desirable aspects of it have to be controlled.

Businesses must now have liscences to play music after a certain time and if they abuse the conditions they can be stopped, smoking is illegal in closed public spaces. Driving woithout seat belts or using a mobile phone while driving. Not complying with the law is every individuals right, but they face the consequences, those consequences in Gambia are known locally to be harsher than you would expect in the UK, but there are many who feel the old way was more effective in schools and for young hooligans on our UK streets.

Individual human rights are fine but so are societies rights.

In Gambia the unfettered age of individual freedom has not dawned and there are many who pray that it won't - those observers looking at the west and comparing their society with ours are generally staggered at how Africans are so happy and contented with so little, so patient and so full of time for other people - we shouldn't be too quick trying to impose our views on others.