THE REPUBLIC OF THE GAMBIA’S COMBINED REPORT ON THE AFRICAN CHARTER ON HUMAN & PEOPLES’ RIGHTS & INITIAL REPORT ON THE PROTOCOL TO THE AFRICAN CHARTER ON THE RIGHTS OF WOMEN IN AFRICA or upon reasonable suspicion of them having committed, or being about to commit a criminal offence must be taken to court within seventy-two hours (72) as required by the Constitution. The Constitution also requires that a person brought before a court in execution of the order of a court shall not thereafter be further held in custody in connection with those proceedings or that offence save upon the order of a court. Persons arrested or detained who are not tried within a reasonable time must be released either unconditionally or upon certain conditions as are reasonably necessary to ensure that they appear at a later date for trial. Criminal cases are also to be dealt with within a reasonable time. The Constitution further provides that any person who is unlawfully arrested or detained by any other person shall be entitled to compensation from that other person or from any other person or authority on whose behalf that other person was acting. The Constitution also directs the Judiciary to take into consideration the time spent in prison before conviction when setting jail terms for convicted persons. Section 187 of the Constitution enjoins the armed forces to observe and respect human rights and freedoms in the performance of their functions. In spite of all the legislations stated supra, the enforcement of these rights has been a challenge during the reporting period. The former National Intelligence Agency (NIA) was notorious for arbitrary arrests and incommunicado detentions of both nationals and non- nationals. With the advent of the New Gambia, the Government is working on regulating detention practices in line with international standards. The police conduct continuous trainings in partnership with civil society organisations such as TANGO and IHRDA on procedures of arrest and detention to combat the old practice. The Gambia Police Force has improved its internal accountability mechanisms through the adoption of a Code of Conduct and the institution of a police complaint systems. The external accountability institutions include the Ombudsman, the Judiciary, the National Assembly, The Ministry of Justice, The National Agency for Legal Aid, Civil Society Organizations and the media. 35