Thank you for sharing Dr. Galleh. I share the Press Tv clip you allude to.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MMCFaaCC6IU
Haruna.
-----Original Message-----
From: Baba Galleh Jallow <[log in to unmask]>
To: GAMBIA-L <[log in to unmask]>
Sent: Mon, Oct 14, 2013 11:02 am
Subject: Gambia speaking truth, Mr. Jones?
Gambia speakingtruth, Mr. Jones?
By Baba Galleh Jallow
It is sometimes hard to avoid reacting to the words ofpeople who make statements not out of any particular knowledge beyond theirnarrow professional occupations, not out of reasonable familiarity with thesituations they address, but simply as a consequence of their ideologicalpositions and within their narrow political contexts. Moreover, the fightagainst injustice necessarily entails a corresponding fight against those who,wittingly or unwittingly, aid and abet injustice. The recent statement to theIran-based Press TV by Bill Jones of the UK-based Executive Intelligence Reviewthat Gambian dictator Yahya Jammeh spoke “truth to power” in accusing the UKand US of plotting to overthrow his government smacks of the age-oldcondescension that Western experts betray when talking about Africa and Africanissues. Is it not ironic that Mr. Jones uses the same “imperialistic” languagethat Jammeh habitually rants against to defend Jammeh? How does Mr. Jones knowthat Jammeh was speaking the “truth” in accusing the UK and the U.S. of tryingto overthrow his government? What evidence did Jammeh provide to convince Mr.Jones that he was not lying?
Does Mr. Jones know how Jammeh reacts to people speakingtruth to his power? Does Mr. Jones know whether Jammeh is in fact a believer inthe idea and legitimacy of speaking truth to power? Does Mr. Jones know howmany people Jammeh has jailed, killed, exiled, caused to disappear without thedue process of law? Is Mr. Jones suggesting that Jammeh has the legitimateright to be in power for twenty years? Would Mr. Jones support the practice ofindefinite one man rule or sit-tight dictatorship in his own country? Would Mr.Jones support the practice of arrest and indefinite detention of citizenswithout charge or trial in his own country? Clearly, Mr. Jones’ answers tothese questions have to be either “no” or “I don’t know.” Government practicesthat are unthinkable in countries like Mr. Jones’ are considered unproblematicin African countries. Does this not strongly suggest the kind of arrogantwestern exceptionalism that characterized the early colonial encounters andremains a key feature of Western perceptions of the other to this day? WeAfricans have serious issues with certain elements of Western society; but wedefy anyone to treat Africa as if it is inhabited by savage races that have noright to the kinds of rights and freedoms enjoyed by Western citizens. Wetotally and absolutely condemn as utterly ignorant and totally reject the bogusnotion that human rights, the rule of law and democracy are exclusive preservesof the West that cannot be “imposed” on the rest of us. Human beings are humanbeings to the extent that they recognize and respect the humanity of all otherhuman beings. Men and women who strutabout with presumptions of their superiority over others simply because oftheir skin color are at best ignorant, at worst, inhuman. If dictatorship isunacceptable in the west, it is equally acceptable in Africa. In which case Mr.Jones simply has no right to go about defending an African despot against otherpowers, however despotic those powers may be.
Jammeh accuses the UK and US of funding the November 11,1994 revolt by Lt. Basiru Barrow and his colleagues. What specific evidencedoes Jammeh produce to back up his allegations? He accuses the UK and US offunding the UDP? What specific evidence does he produce to back up hisallegations? He justifies these unsubstantiated allegations by claiming thatthese two Western countries are mad at him because they want to exploitGambia’s oil and mineral resources. What oil? What mineral resources? DoesJammeh think that Gambians in this day and age will just swallow his words andtake them for the truth? If he does, he must be kidding himself. Gambians will scrutinizeand analyze every single syllable that falls from his mouth, even accidentally.They will peer beneath the surface and reveal the deceptive and unspokenmotives for his words and his actions. And they will throw them right into theopen and expose them for what they are.
Conspiracy theories like the ones Mr. Jammeh utters about Westernplots to overthrow his government are manifestations of the political paranoiaafflicting all dictators rather than any depictions of reality. Mr. Jones isright that Jammeh should be concerned, especially in the light of America’sclearly unreasonable demands in the document that he had published in themedia. Why would the United States literally ask to have a totally free hand inoperating within Gambian territory? Well, because the United States reservesthe right to protect her national and security interests from those who wouldthreaten it. If indeed that document is authentic, it is safe to suggest thatthere might be some evidence that Jammeh is aiding and abetting what Americaconsiders “terrorist groups” who are out to hurt the United States. At the veryleast, there might be “terrorists” operating in The Gambia, whether Jammeh isaware of their presence or not. The presence of “terrorists” in The Gambia isnot an unlikely scenario given Jammeh’s unhidden hatred of the United Statesand his frequent but groundless protestations of Islamic piety. We have arguedover and over again that Jammeh is not a Muslim in the first place principallybecause the uncouth words he utters, the evil acts he perpetrates againstinnocent people and the occult activities he engages in are contrary to thespirit of Islam. But of course, evil people do not know that they are evil. Andsince God does not tell anyone that they are evil, wrong or deluded, peoplelike Jammeh could ceaselessly rant about being friends of Allah and even killin the name of Allah. Just like Jammeh reserves the right to protect what hesees as his personal interests, so does the United States and any other nationand person for that matter reserve the right to protect their own interests. Ifindeed the Americans have credible evidence that Jammeh is supporting peopleout to harm the United States, well then, all’s well that ends well.
Indeed, the UK and the US would be doing the hostage Gambiannation a great favor if they were to help end Jammeh’s reign of terror overinnocent Gambians. The Gambian nation is today held hostage by a tyrannicalregime headed by a psychopath who believes that the country is his personalproperty to do with as he likes. Hostage taking, even of an individual, is acrime that deserves to be punished. It is high time that the world re-evaluatesits concept of hostage taking to include holding entire nations hostage to the whimsand caprices of a dictator whose primary motivation is power for power’s sake. Andthe likes of Mr. Jones should do their homework before opening their big mouthsand compounding the problems of innocent millions suffering under the weight ofselfish dictatorships.
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