South -South Cooperation starts with Cooperation between neighbouring African Countries and then Sub-regional Cooperation, Continental Cooperation and beyond. It is astonishing that Daily Observer would publish a letter purportedly written by Kukoi at a time when President Ahmadinejad of Iran was visiting the Gambia.

It conveys the impression that Iranian-Gambian Government relation was being strengthened while Senegalese-Gambian Government relation is being eroded. Daily Observer did call on the ECOWAS, AU and the UN to denounce what it referred to as "President Wade's continuous harbouring and abetting of Gambian dissidents in Senegal against the peace loving Government and people of the Gambia."

This very message gives the indication that there is hostility between the Government of Senegal and the Government of the Gambia. This is of course the position of the editors of a newspaper which is in support of the party in Government. We have tried to contact the Permanent Secretary Ministry of Foreign Affairs to find out the official position of the Government on this matter and to get the Communique issued after the visit of the Iranian President but was informed that he is out of the Country.

The Office of the President should know that people are asking whether conflict between the Government of the Gambia and that of Senegal is brewing and whether there are moves to support dissidents to invade the Gambia. The recent arrests and detention without any press release to explain the reasons behind them are contributing to the uncertainty.

In the past if a newspaper reports on statements from third sources which are defamatory and insulting to the President, charges of sedition and libel are proffered even if the intention was to enable an aggrieved person have an outlet to express his or her grievances for the attention of those who govern.

However words purportedly used by Kukoie went as far as to label the President a criminal and the letter is published verbatim. If the publication of all those derogatory remarks by Daily Observer does not offend President Jammeh then there is no need to criminalize sedition or libel. We hope that the Government will gather from this that freedom of expression does not need to be criminalized. It should be left within the real of civil disputes which should be actionable through civil suits for damages.

President Ahmadinejad arrived in the Gambia on Sunday and left on Monday morning. The two heads of state issued a Communiqué and held a Press Conference. The five page communiqué stated among other things the need to consolidate the bond of friendship and cooperation between the two nations. The issue of Peace was put to the fore and collaboration to reform the Security Council was highlighted. We are yet to receive the Communiqué. Hence Foroyaa would reserve its analysis until the communiqué is published in full.

What is important to mention is that South -South Cooperation cannot be built on the principle of isolation of the South from the North. The economies of the South are individually too dependent on the consumption of their goods by the North to preach isolationism. What is necessary is to build up the democratic credentials of the South so that they could contribute to the universal values of human kind and thus demand an equal status with all countries of the world irrespective of size.

We will examine Gambian-Iranian relation in Greater detail once the Communiqué becomes accessible to the Non Governmental Media.