Gambia-L,
The unimaginable has happened in the Gambia, and Monday 10 April 2000 will,
without doubt, go down in the annals of Gambian history as a day to be
remembered - forever - for two reasons.
First, it was the day on which Gambian students, under the aegis of GAMSU,
woke up early in the morning and determined to do whatever it would take,
including giving their precious lives, to rid their country of tyranny and
repression.
Second – and more significantly – it was on this very day that the security
forces, under the instructions of their Commander-In-Chief, Yaya Jammeh, had
used live bullets on innocent students, to break up protesting students,
thus resulting in the killings of at least 14 people and more than 100
injured.
Just for the record, the students applied but were refused a permit for a
march organised to protest against the death of Ebrima Barry, a student who
was allegedly tortured by the Fire Service Personnel, and the reported rape
of a 13-year old by a Police officer.
Yes, Gambia-L, this was last straw: the ultimate crime had been committed by
the Jammeh regime on the 10 April 2000; and as the Commander-in-Chief of the
Security Forces, the buck rests upon Jammeh himself to answer to the deeds
and actions of the security forces.
The authorisation of the killing of defenceless students is the ultimate
crime to be perpetrated by the Jammeh regime and Jammeh himself must take
responsibility for what happened in the country last week.
The Jammeh regime already has a track record of extra judicial killings
with impunity, but I for one would never have thought that they would dare
slaughter innocent students daylight, or in the open. By the way, do you
want proofs that the Jammeh regime has a track record of extra judicial
killings?
Well, I'll refresh your minds with some facts: In November 1994, just four
months after the coup, several soldiers, including Lieutenants Barrow and
Saye etc, were killed by the regime for their alleged involvement in a coup
attempt.
What about Captain Sadibou Hydara who died in custody in June 1995, six
months after he was arrested together with Sana Sabally and accused of
attempting to kill Jammeh in order to seize power?
The Government had claimed that Captain Hydara's post mortem had concluded
that he had died as a result of a "long-standing high blood pressure" which
affected his kidney and lungs. But Hydara's family reacted by saying that as
far as they knew, Sadibou Hydara never had or even complained of high blood.
What about Ousman Koro Ceesay, the former Finance Minister who was found
dead in June 1995, in the burned-out wreckage of his Mercedes Benz?
Should we forget Yaya Drammeh, one of the alleged rebels who attacked the
Farafenni Military Camp in November 1996? Yaya Drammeh too died in custody
at the Mile 2 prisons in May 1997. Does the name Lt Almamo Manneh ring a
bell?
The Jammeh's thugs, it would be recalled, had executed Lt Manneh, in January
of this year, for his alleged involvement in a "foiled coup conspiracy". So
the list goes on and on!
And needless to say, all these extra judicial killings are contrary to the
Gambia’s obligation under the African Charter on Human and Peoples Rights
which the Gambia had ratified in June 1983. Article 4 of the African Charter
clearly states: "No one may be arbitrarily deprived of his right to life"...
In any case, from the cited cases, it is indeed fair to insist that the
Jammeh regime has/had a track record of extra judicial killings with
impunity and there is ample evidence to prove that Jammeh himself has been
sanctioning all these murders. If not, then why hasn't he taken action
against the culprits?
Extra-judicial killings, torture, imprisonment and harassment of critics and
opponents are therefore the hallmark of the Mr Jammeh's regime. Hence, it is
clear that the massacre of these young lives last week, had been an
extension to the culture of the violation of both civic and human rights
Gambians have been encountering since Mr Jammeh came to power.
In fact, the soldiers have been made to believe that any action designed to
appease Jammeh – no matter how foul it is – is legitimate. This is why, in
the wake of the student killings, Mr Jammeh, since he is the commander in
chief of the forces, owes us not just an explanation, but a resignation from
public office as well.
Since its inception to power in July 1994, the Jammeh regime has been
exposed for what it truly is – a tyranny. In a state of tyranny, however, a
people must rally not around principles, but behind a common and immediate
objective which – in effect – is the removal of the tyrant.
As we mourn the deaths of our brothers and sisters who gave their precious
lives in order to rid the country of oppression, we should now focus – both
at home and abroad – on how to strategize and develop a mechanism to uproot
this gory regime.
Certainly, a regime that unleashes its weapons upon its children without any
thought but bravado, denials and triumphalism, is a regime that does deserve
to be destroyed, or it else it shall continue to cause more destruction of
precious lives.
Our preservation as a society, therefore, rests upon our organisation and
desire to uproot such a tyranny. The Jammeh regime has been both corrupt and
brutal and it is fair to say that it lost its cliché as a regime "with a
difference" before it even celebrated 100 days in office!
Clearly, this is a regime that does not contemplate, but only sustains
itself as a sanguinary regime. My fellow Gambians, a despot has taken over
power in our motherland, and we must not yield to his cowardly and dastardly
threats. If Jammeh was the brave man he portrays himself to be, then why did
he sneak into Banjul early Sunday morning (4 am) from his visit to Cuba? Why
didn't they announce the time and date he was to return to Banjul?
We must be ready – as a people – to show solidarity to the militancy of the
students. We must show leadership and foresight to derail this regime. It
is, therefore, the duty of all opponents of this regime, particularly the
political forces, to try and forge a tactical alliance and oust this
nefarious and bloodthirsty regime.
Yes, it is not going to be easy to unseat Jammeh, knowingly fully well that
he is still determined to cling onto power, and will be out to destroy all
forces which seek to dislodge him from his position of privilege; but all
the same, it is not an insurmountable task. It is doable!
This regime must go! It is over allergic to the dictates of democracy and in
fact decided from the onset, that there will be no debate, or at best, a
one-sided debate with a pre-determined winner – the Government.
Anyway, the events of 10 and 11 April that we have witnessed, are new
phenomena. The defiance and the scale of it clearly suggest that a people at
the end of their tether are willing to sacrifice the most precious thing of
all, that is life itself (to end oppression).
Those youths who died or got wounded are martyrs and our heroes respectively
that we should be proud of! They have made a statement by their actions; and
the statement is clearly a political one – no more repression in the Gambia
was the statement they made judging by their actions.
Why do I say so? You may ask. Well, because their main targets of
vandalization or attack were military or police institutions, indicating
that they were challenging the oppressor and his instruments of control and
torture.
Their anger/rage was directed at the very heart of the oppressor. Now, the
responsibility rests upon all of us, particularly the politicians, to seize
upon the momentum generated to continually (and vigorously for that matter)
expose a chronology of events of the regime’s hypocrisy and tyranny.
History has therefore confronted us with this challenge and if we fail to
live up to it, it would be to our own detriment. This regime's lack of
civility and their arrogance are already manifested in the regime's
continued harassment and torturing of innocent civilians and now even the
students are not spared.
However, times have changed and the good thing is that the youths clearly
have become more enlightened and therefore would not accept oppression any
more. The political groupings – at home and abroad - must now organise
themselves more effectively to enhance the potential unleashed.
This regime is a discredited one, and based on their record, we shouldn't
wait for them to account for anything, because they are simply a Government
of denials and prevarication. All they do is LIE and LIE to the brink of
their teeth. And worst of all, the regime is also parasitic, unproductive,
pernicious and totally devoid of social commitment or vision!
We have already had enough of their lies and trumped-up stories, but their
true colour – as a regime engulfed in lies and garblings – exposed itself
more convincingly, in the wake of the demonstrations, having regard to the
conflicting accounts they were giving us of what happened on 10 April.
We should therefore continue to endeavour – without fear or funk - to get
rid of such an iniquitous regime that is necropolis, mean, niggardly and
brutal. We are now at a historical juncture when we should both preserve our
Nation and destroy the tyrant before our beautiful country slides into
mayhem. And let us remember that they say under a dictatorship, a nation
ceases to exist; all that remains is a fiefdom.
However, having said that, I hope all of us, especially Jammeh, would learn
from these events that oppression shall never silence an enlightened people.
The regime must therefore learn to accept basic fundamental rights in this
day and age since oppressors, in the final analysis, will always be the
losers.
Tyrants may kill and maim, but they shall never have the last word – the
people will! People power is a reality that frightens despots. The Gambian
people must now understand that power rests in their hands and as a result,
they are the ones who should decide the destiny of their nation. If we
choose complacency, we may be taken for granted, but if we choose to live in
dignity at a price, we can only be the winners.
These young heroes have shown us the way, and we must never back down or let
them down. They demonstrated a fact known for ages in Political Science:
that People Power is potent and irrepressible.
Wherever people are willing to die en masse in refusing to be oppressed,
tyrants have to give way.
It was a terrible thing that happened in our country last week, and a lot of
people will be wondering how we have come to this, especially given the fact
that Gambians have always wished for peace and at times even bent over
backwards just to avoid confrontation with the authorities.
But persistent and continuous injustice, corruption, and poverty over
decades have eroded their patience. And it is in fact encouraging observing
that the younger generation – in the face of tyranny and corruption – is the
least tolerant, thus indicating an evolving or a changing culture. This is a
healthy sign!
Meanwhile, even the optimists have finally given up hope of seeing a
prosperous Gambia under Jammeh. They know that the Jammeh regime, as I said
in a previous commentary, is a bubble about to bust and in fact Jammeh
himself knows this for a fact. He has only managed to maintain a grip on to
power, thanks to the Army, but if he thinks or believes that the army will
always be there for him, then he needs some lessons in History.
Right now, his message to the soldiers is very clear: "Kill to keep me
(Jammeh) in power and in turn you too will be safe." Anyway, let the
security forces continue to follow Mr Jammeh’s orders and keep
terrorising the people.
Because once it becomes clearer to the people that no one is safe to say or
do anything against Mr Jammeh or his interest, then the people will soon
realise that this is no way to live; that it is better to die a free man or
woman than to live a slavish hypocritical, existence, consigned to poverty
and lack of opportunity.
This government is unbearable and deserves to go, especially following the
terrible and despicable crimes its security forces had committed against
innocent students on Monday. Jammeh has clearly betrayed the Nation’s trust
and we must not tolerate him any more, because it will only get worse!
In short, Mr Jammeh's 5 years rule has only resulted in rampant corruption
and a lack of probity in public life; a psyche of militarism that has
developed; a loss of respect for the Rule of Law; and a loss of sense of
belonging, self respect and dignity.
As for Vice President Isatou Njie-Saidy, a sister I admired when she was at
the Women's Bureau, I would also join my colleagues at The Point Newspaper
in calling upon her to resign, in the wake of the events of 10 April. (Deyda
Hydara, I commend your editorial in which you asked both Ousman Badgie and
Mrs Njie-Saidy to resign).
I must remind everybody that the call to high public office is a challenging
assignment, which call for decisiveness, integrity, personal discipline,
honesty and selflessness.
It was the duty of Isatou Njie-Saidy to check and balance the actions of her
brothers in uniform, but in fact, she approved of the shootings even though
she is a mother and one of the kids could have been hers. So she has to go
as well! Mrs Njie-Saidy, no hard feeling; I am just speaking my mind.
Finally, Gambia-L, I ask this question: Am I the only one who has not seen
statements from the Gambia Bar Association, Teachers' Union, Supreme Islamic
Council, Christian Council (if there is one), Trade Unions CONDEMNING these
killings outright or in unequivocal terms?
Ebrima Ceesay
Birmingham, UK.
PS:
Gambia-L,
I did promise to do a comprehensive report on the events of 10 April. But
because some Institutions here also asked me to do a "detailed and reliable"
report for them on what happened, I thought I should take my time and gather
as much facts as possible.
Anyway, whenever I am ready with it, I'll send it to the L, even if it is
already stale.
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