WORLD NEWS
MISSIONARY COUPLE HELD IN GAMBIA
A British couple have been arrested for alleged sedition in Gambia
A British couple are enduring a seventh day in custody after being arrested for sedition while working as Christian missionaries in the Muslim state of Gambia.
David and Fiona Fulton were arrested last Saturday in the West African country and have been separated and held in custody since, according to a friend of the couple.
Mr Fulton, 60, a former British Army Major, originally from Troon, Scotland, is being held in a cell at Mile Two prison, a high security jail outside the capital Banjul, described as a "tough" former colonial jail built during the days of the British Empire.
Mrs Fulton, 46, originally from Torquay, is being held with their two-year-old adopted daughter Elizabeth, at a police station in the capital.
She has been treated well by police officers who have run errands to buy nappies - but there were fears for her husband's safety.
A friend, who did not want to be named said: "Fiona has been treated well.
"We are not sure about David. We don't think he's fared quite as well. He's not eating."
The Fultons, who moved to Gambia 12 years ago to work as missionaries, have two other children, Iona, 20, and Luke, 17, who live near Exeter with other family.
They were first arrested last Saturday after police arrived at their house in the village of Kerr Sering, an hour's drive out in the African bush from the capital.
They appeared in court in Banjul on Thursday charged with sedition - undermining the authority of the government. They were offered bail - on condition four Gambian property owners would vouch for them - which they have not yet managed to find.
