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Subject:
From:
Hamjatta Kanteh <[log in to unmask]>
Reply To:
The Gambia and related-issues mailing list <[log in to unmask]>
Date:
Thu, 9 Aug 2001 04:47:32 EDT
Content-Type:
text/plain
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Mr Manjang,

Whilst i agree in principle that attempts to lower the political temperature
of the country is vital for a conducive election milieu, i doubt very much if
it will ever reach fruition if it remains decoupled from emphatically stating
the underlying fundamental factors that make the country's political
temperature to reach all-time highs. Any attempts to lower the current
political temperature of the body politic ought to factor fundamentally the
extent to which the heigthening of current political tensions are as a direct
result of an ever belligerent bully of a gov't that intolerantly pursues an
Opposition that lacks the wherewithal to respond in kind. In lieu of the
aforesaid, organisers of talk shops aimed at lowering political temperatures
should be bold enough to tell the bullies that those they are bullying have
the right to existence and that right, amongst others, includes political,
social and economic social liberties which CANNOT be arbitrarily infringed
upon by the absurd whims and caprices of the APRC.

 Herein, organisers of such talk shops must highlight the fact that
imprisoning the likes of Mr Dumo Sarho illegally doesn't augur well for any
gov't that parrots unity incessantly whilst bullying its citizenry.
Organisers of such talk shops should bluntly condemn gross violations of
Human Rights like that of Dumo's. They should never let themselves be
hoodwinked by APRC's attendance of such talk shops on time as signs that that
party is interested in political moderation and by extension the existence of
inviolable and non-negotiable liberties that CANNOT be arbitrarily infringed
upon by anyone's whims and caprices. The APRC has shown that it only cares
about political moderation insofar as it strengthens the hands of the devil
that created that party. As was evinced in your last correspondence, once the
APRC realises that political moderation means death to them, they will refuse
to be willing participants in such moderation. Political moderation as a tool
for narrowing down political differennces and create an environment conducive
enough for social, political and economic cooperation, was never meant to
sweep under the carpet the abuses of belligerent political bullies or try to
intellectually rationalise them. Political moderation means we highlight
abuses that has the propensity create animosities that make social, political
and economic cooperation impossible. Political moderation was never meant to
short-cut such abuses by rationalising such flagrant abuses in a manner which
unwittingly serves or attempts to strike fear in the hearts of those who are
at the brunt of the flagrant abuses and decided to have no more of it.

Therein, there is no middle ground: social, political and economic
cooperation is impossible where freedoms are exclusively the property of one
individual to give and take at his own discretion. For the efforts of the
organisers to bear fruition they must firmly state the fundamental underlying
factors that has precipitated the current political violences and the
likelyhood of total breakdown of the system as a whole. It is, therefore,
incumbent upon the organisers to always make the case that things have
degenerated to this level and have the propensity to degenerate further if
the powers that be do not understand the inviolability and non-negotiable
nature of the freedoms they continue to flagrantly abuse.

All the best,

Hamjatta Kanteh

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