Mariam Jack-Denton (born 29 December 1955), also known as Ajaratou Mariam Denton,
is a Gambian lawyer and politician who served as
Speaker of the National Assembly of the Gambia from April 2017 to April 2022.
Early life and legal career
Jack-Denton was born in 1955, the daughter of Sir
Alieu Sulayman Jack, who was a Gambian politician and the Speaker of the
House of Representatives
House of Representatives is the name of legislative bodies in many countries and sub-national entities. In many countries, the House of Representatives is the lower house of a bicameral legislature, with the corresponding upper house often ...
from 1962 to 1972. Her brother,
Sulayman Bun Jack
Sulayman (Arabic: سُلِيمَان ''sulaymān'') is an Arabic name of the Biblical king and Islamic prophet Solomon meaning 'man of peace', derived from the Hebrew name Shlomo.
The name Sulayman is a diminutive of the name Salman (سَلْما� ...
, was a permanent secretary at the Department of Defence in Sir
Dawda Jawara
Sir Dawda Kairaba Jawara (16 May 1924 – 27 August 2019) was a Gambian politician who served as prime minister from 1962 to 1970, and then as the first President of The Gambia from 1970 to 1994, when he was overthrown by Yahya Jammeh.
Jawa ...
's government and is currently a
British citizen
The primary law governing nationality in the United Kingdom is the British Nationality Act 1981, which came into force on 1 January 1983. Regulations apply to the British Islands, which include the UK itself (England, Wales, Scotland, and Nor ...
.
Jack-Denton trained as a barrister and became the first female
Gambian to be called to the bar in the early 1980s.
She worked as a state counsel and senior state counsel before becoming a legal advisor to the
Governor of the Central Bank of The Gambia
A governor is an administrative leader and head of a polity or political region, in some cases, such as governors-general, as the head of a state's official representative. Depending on the type of political region or polity, a ''governor'' may ...
. She lost her job following the
1994 coup d'état and began an independent practice.
Her barrister's chambers are based at
Serign Modou Sillah Street,
Banjul
Banjul (, (US) and ), officially the City of Banjul, is the capital city of The Gambia. It is the centre of the eponymous administrative division which is home to an estimated 400,000 residents, making it The Gambia's largest and most densely ...
. She also worked as a legal advisor to the United Democratic Party, the main opposition party during the
Yahya Jammeh
Yahya Abdul-Aziz Jemus Junkung Jammeh (born 25 May 1965) is a Gambian politician and former soldier, who served as President of the Gambia from 1996 to 2017. He was the Chairman of the Armed Forces Provisional Ruling Council (AFPRC) from 1994 ...
government.
She was arrested in March 2006 and detained for three months following an attempted coup plot by a group of soldiers and civilians. However, she was later granted bail by the
High Court of the Gambia
High may refer to:
Science and technology
* Height
* High (atmospheric), a high-pressure area
* High (computability), a quality of a Turing degree, in computability theory
* High (tectonics), in geology an area where relative tectonic uplift to ...
in the 2006 court case ''
''.
The government's case against her was dropped.
Political career
Jack-Denton was nominated as one of five nominated members of the National Assembly by President
Adama Barrow
Adama Barrow (, born 15 February 1965) is a The Gambia, Gambian politician and real estate developer who has served as President of The Gambia since 2017.
Born in Mankamang Kunda, a village in Jimara district, he attended Crab Island Secondary ...
on 11 April 2017. Later that day, she was confirmed as the
Speaker of the National Assembly and sworn in by the
Chief Justice,
Hassan Bubacar Jallow
Hassan Bubacar Jallow (born 14 August 1951) is a Gambian judge who has served as Chief Justice of the Gambia since February 2017. He was the Prosecutor of the International Criminal Tribunal for Rwanda (ICTR) from 2003 to 2016, and the Prosecut ...
.
Following her appointment, Musa Saidykhan commented in ''Kairo News'' that "a solid background in law coupled with the spirit of a fighter,
eansmany Gambians think Mariam Denton deserves to be a Speaker in a free and democratic Gambia."
On 17 April 2022, she stepped down as
Fabakary Jatta
Fabakary Tombong Jatta (born 16 November 1952) is a Gambian politician who has served as Speaker of the National Assembly since 2022 and the leader of the Alliance for Patriotic Reorientation and Construction (APRC) since 2017.
Early life and ...
became the Speaker of the National Assembly.
Personal life
She is the widow of the former Accountant-General, Abou Denton.
See also
*
First women lawyers around the world
This is a list of the first women lawyer(s) and judge(s) in each country. It includes the year in which the women were admitted to practice law (in parentheses). Also included are the first women in their country to achieve a certain distinction su ...
References
{{DEFAULTSORT:Jack-Denton, Mariam
1955 births
Living people
21st-century Gambian women politicians
21st-century Gambian politicians
Gambian women lawyers
Speakers of the National Assembly of the Gambia
Women legislative speakers
20th-century women lawyers
21st-century women lawyers
20th-century Gambian lawyers
21st-century Gambian lawyers