EBRIMA:

My humble brother and friend I must extend to you my heartfelt and sincere
gratitude for the resumption of your honest and active participation once
again. Frankly, brother, I do comprehend the we have only 24 hours in a day,
and a very busy guy like you who must joggle between ACADEMIC and FAMILY
LIFE, plus effectively contributing to the struggle, it does take a high
toll on you. But today you have fully responded to my public out cry in a
big way. Your letter to AMBASSADOR JACKSON is well detailed, organized,
simple, well thought out and very diplomatic; and more essentially, your
have avoided AMBIGUITY and OVER-KILL. The letter is just right from my own
point of view. May be some one might have a different take on it.

My concern now is, will this letter be a HARD COPY delivered or EMAIL
delivered? I am with the opinion that since the letter has contained
significant informations and directions, it should be Hard Copy Delivered,
rather than Email Delivered. My reason for this is that Hard Copies are
always Archived, whiles Email deliveries sometimes suffer from deletion
either accidentally or from technical error. To that end, Ebrima, I extend
to you very many thanks for such a magnificent efforts once again.

Ansumana.


>From: Ebrima Ceesay <[log in to unmask]>
>Reply-To: The Gambia and related-issues mailing list
><[log in to unmask]>
>To: [log in to unmask]
>Subject: Open Letter To New USA Ambassador To Gambia
>Date: Sat, 30 Jun 2001 12:13:02 -0000
>
>Gambia-L:
>
>Below you will find an open letter I have addressed to Ambassador Jackson,
>the new USA representative in The Gambia. By the way, whoever disagrees
>with
>my views/account can feel free to write his or her letter and then send it
>to the Ambassador.
>
>Ebrima Ceesay
>Birmingham, UK.
>
>________________________________________________________________________
>
>
>
>Dear Ambassador Jackson,
>
>I am a Gambian who is currently living in the United Kingdom.
>
>This letter is written on my behalf, and also on behalf of many Gambians
>throughout the world and in The Gambia whose greatest wish is to see their
>country return to multi-party politics and functioning democracy.
>Democracy
>itself is a contested concept, but in the post-Colonial period from 1965 to
>1994, The Gambia, if a minimalist definition of democracy is used, had
>stood
>as a beacon for the rest of the continent in terms of political stability
>and "democratic ideals".
>
>Following the military take over of The Gambia in 1994, we have witnessed
>seven years of economic, social, judicial, legislative and political
>decline
>to the extent that the current situation in The Gambia is both grievous and
>precarious.
>
>Indeed, it is at a critically acute stage.  Repression, poverty, tyranny,
>mismanagement of public money, arbitrary arrest and kidnapping and killing
>of opponents are the hallmarks of Yahya Jammeh and the APRC’s regime.
>
>The US State Department Country Reports for The Gambia from 1994 onwards,
>give a very clear indication of the deteriorating condition of the country.
>Reports from Amnesty International and other Human Rights groups throughout
>the world, testify to the debasement of The Gambia and its citizenry under
>the APRC and Jammeh.
>
>There have been countless decrees promulgated by Jammeh which enable the
>security forces (in particular the National Intelligence Agency – NIA) to
>tap telephone lines, fax lines, e mails and internet services; to arrest
>without warrant; to detain without trial; to muzzle the independent media;
>to interfere with the independence of the Judiciary.
>
>There is supposedly a new Constitution in place to guarantee the rights of
>Gambian citizens in their own land, but government is still by a number of
>Decrees which contradict the provisions of the Constitution.
>
>Under Jammeh, we now know that around 124 Gambians have been murdered.  On
>November 11th 1994, in an alleged counter coup attempt, almost 40 soldiers
>were killed on Jammeh’s orders because he believed them to be his enemies.
>Civilians are being killed:  on April 10/11th 2000, fourteen young people
>(the youngest a child of 3 years) were gunned down in cold-blood for
>demonstrating peacefully in support of a fellow student who had been
>tortured and killed.
>
>By virtue of his despotic and brutal rule, Jammeh has directly or
>indirectly
>sent into exile a conservative estimate of 5,000 Gambians.  The situation
>is
>now so desperate that many overseas Gambian students and citizens refuse to
>return home to The Gambia on completion of their study or work programmes.
>
>Jammeh has arbitrarily sacked or prematurely retired almost 100 senior
>Civil
>Servants, specifically because they do not toe his line.
>
>Right now, Lt Lalo Jaiteh, Ebrima Yarboe, Momodou Dumo Saho, Lt Omar
>Darboe,
>Momodou Marenah, Ebrima Barrow and others, have been detained and held
>incommunicado for months, in total violation of the Constitution.  Even
>when
>the Courts ruled that they should be granted bail, Jammeh refused to
>comply,
>and initially he even went so far as to say these people were in fact not
>in
>detention!
>
>The independent media (of which I was once a representative as an Editor of
>the Gambia Daily Observer) has been a particular target of Jammeh and the
>APRC since 1994. Journalists have been arrested, detained without just
>reason, taken to court, harassed and persecuted.  The Government for two
>whole years closed down Citizen FM Radio Station for no reason.
>
>Recently, Radio One FM offices were attacked in an arson attack
>orchestrated
>by the APRC, and its proprietor George Christensen suffered burns.  Over 60
>non-Gambians, mainly West African, (all of whom were involved in some way
>in
>the fields of journalism, teaching, health services or the judiciary) have
>been summarily deported from The Gambia.  Kenneth Best, one of West
>Africa’s
>most respected journalists, was deported to his war torn home country of
>Liberia.
>
>In one of the worst violations of human rights, in October 1995, Jammeh
>handed over a Sierra Leonean journalist, Cherno Ojuku Ceesay, to the
>military government in Sierra Leone:  this man had fled his country to seek
>sanctuary in The Gambia because the military in Sierra Leone wanted him.
>Knowing that Ceesay would face execution if returned to Sierra Leone,
>Jammeh
>did not hesitate to deport him to Sierra Leone.  Thanks to the intervention
>of the international community and international media pressure, Cherno
>escaped execution but he was incarcerated for a long time following his
>deportation from The Gambia.
>
>Jammeh acts without regard for the Law:  he has interfered with the
>independent judiciary.  Recently, he sacked two magistrates and the Master
>of the Supreme Court, warranting the Chief Justice to resign in protest.
>He
>also sacked Bishop Johnson, the Chairman of the Independent Electoral
>Commission, even though constitutionally he was not empowered to do this.
>This week, he has been quoted as saying that he will disband the
>Independent
>Electoral Commission following the forthcoming Presidential elections.
>
>Jammeh and the APRC masquerade under a guise of democratic governance:  the
>truth of the matter is diametrically opposite.  The Gambia is in the hands
>of a brutal and unprincipled tyrant, a man who has brought his country into
>disrepute throughout the world, and particularly in the eyes of the United
>Nations.
>
>Jammeh and his cohort in the APRC are implicated in the blood diamond trade
>out of Sierra Leone:  they are deemed to be allowing The Gambia to be a
>central clearing house for illegal drugs trafficking on a massive scale:
>they are involved in widespread internal corruption (for instance the Crude
>Oil scandal) and foreign policy blunders (not least the interfering in the
>domestic affairs of neighbouring Senegal by offering aid and abettance to
>insurrectionists in the Casamance region.)
>
>Wherever there is injustice or illegality on the African continent, Jammeh
>and his henchmen will be found to be either at the centre or on the
>periphery of these.
>
>Jammeh’s leadership of The Gambia is based on a climate of terror and fear.
>It is characterised by corruption, mismanagement of public money and
>resources, poor political judgement and insensitivity.  The nature of
>government in my country tends towards barbarism and brutality, even for
>ordinary citizens.
>
>The Gambia today is not a functioning democracy in any sense of the word.
>It
>does not even fit a minimalist definition of democracy.   The elections
>which were held in 1996 and 1997 (presidential and parliamentary
>respectively) were questionable:  the international community held them to
>be highly flawed, and neither free nor fair.  Because the APRC is in the
>majority in the Parliament, the Legislature in The Gambia has been
>manipulated with impunity.
>
>Where Judges and Magistrates disagree with Jammeh, they are subsequently
>sacked from office.  Free speech has been put at great risk, and people
>live
>in fear of arrest, arbitrary torture and detention (or worse).
>Preparations
>for the presidential elections slated for 2001 and for the parliamentary
>elections slated for 2002 are highly flawed and subject to governmental
>interference.
>
>Jammeh is interfering with the IEC, he is skewing the electoral
>registration
>programme by registering non-Gambian APRC supporters; he has a monopoly of
>the state media services.  There is no doubt that the APRC and Jammeh will
>manipulate the whole of the electoral process and the elections to ensure
>their success.
>
>The Gambia is in no way moving forward.  Infrastructural development has
>been piecemeal and designed for immediate cosmetic impact rather than
>long-term benefit.  Millions of dalasis from the public purse were wasted
>on
>a triumphal archway at the entrance to Banjul, which is now falling to
>bits.
>  The new airport building is creaking at the seams, and our roads are in a
>disastrous state.
>
>In this year of elections, Jammeh has embarked on a series of vote-catching
>infrastructural "improvements":  new roads are being built, but given the
>poor quality of their construction and the taking of the cheapest tender,
>their future is most definitely short term.
>
>Electricity is an unreliable commodity, and even though the Government has
>recently taken delivery of new generators, it is unlikely that the
>situation
>will improve for the great mass of the people for whom electricity is still
>a dream.
>
>Our global communications systems are deteriorating by the day:  a once
>vibrant sector of the economy, GAMTEL is now in the doldrums and racketeers
>like Tarik Musa and  Amadou Samba are unfairly dominating (with government
>assistance or conspiracy) the market for their own personal reward.
>
>Education to secondary level is increasingly expensive and many parents are
>now quite unable to pay for their children’s education.  Although new
>schools have been built, there has not been the public funding to staff or
>resource these buildings, and they are currently lying empty. The
>much-vaunted University of The Gambia is under-resourced, poorly equipped
>and inadequately staffed by qualified personnel.
>
>Our health services are verging on collapse, and despite grandiose plans
>for
>new hospitals such as the one planned for Serrekunda, it is not likely that
>these will reach fruition for many years to come.  A new health centre in
>Bwiam, due for opening last year, is still at mid-construction stage.
>Drugs
>are unavailable or in short supply; there is a dearth of qualified staff
>and
>mortality rates (particularly for infants) are spiralling out of control.
>
>Economically, The Gambia is in a state of near collapse.  We are now so
>much
>in debt that we have fallen into that category of countries described as
>"heavily indebted".  The national debt is over 500 million US dollars, and
>last year alone we spent 500 million Dalasis to service the debt.  This
>year, equally, the same amount and more will be spent just to service
>debts.
>
>Prices of commodities have spiralled:  taxi and other transport tariffs
>have
>escalated:  our farmers are still awaiting payment for their crops from
>last
>year AND the year before (for the third season, the government is giving
>our
>farmers promissory notes, and the situation in the countryside is dreadful:
>families have no cash and no access to credit:  they are truly in a
>hopeless
>state).
>
>In the latest Human Development Report, The Gambia is ranked 161st out of
>173 countries (only just ahead of war torn Liberia, Sierra Leone, Sudan
>etc.).  A recent International Labour Organisation study showed that in
>1998, 60% of Gambians were subsisting below the poverty line:  by 1999, the
>figure had risen dramatically to 69%.
>
>I urge you to read the Participatory Poverty Assessment Report published by
>The Gambian Government in 2000.  According to this study, in Upper River
>Division 99% of people are subsisting below the poverty line and there is
>no
>food security:  in Central River Division the figure is 94%; in Lower River
>Division the figure is 86%; in Banjul 89%; in Western Division 94%; in
>North
>Bank Division 90%.
>
>
>However, there is a huge business potential in The Gambia which could be
>tapped by the USA and other countries for that matter.  The Gambian soil is
>good, the sea is bountiful and if the US, as a leading member of the
>International Body of Nations, could help to ensure that there is good
>leadership and continued peace and stability in our country, then there
>could be benefits to both nations in terms of trade, business and
>investment.
>
>The Gambia has enjoyed a long and harmonious relationship with the USA
>(witness the link with NASA), and there is huge potential for both of us to
>build on this relationship to our joint interests.  The benefits are not
>just one way. Already, Gambians who have settled in the USA are making a
>huge contribution to US life and society.
>
>On a related note, Mr Ambassador, in this 21st century, the US should be
>taking Africa seriously, especially in Trade.  Africa could be an important
>player and partner on the international stage and has vast resources and
>potential to offer.
>
>If Africa continues to be ignored, the world economy could be set for
>crisis, since Africa represents a huge and important market. In fact,
>already the world economy is heading for crisis/recession, and many would
>argue that the West is largely responsible for this scenario. Why? The
>answer is simple.
>
>Over the years, international trade/business has been designed to work so
>advantageously for the West, and so disadvantageously against the Third
>World and Africa in particular, to the extent that most Third World
>countries (Africa included) can no longer afford to buy Western goods. Many
>of the "Tiger States" (in Asia) have also become "Paper Tigers".
>
>Now, since Third World countries, including an important market like
>Africa,
>can no longer afford to buy most of these Western goods, the end result
>therefore is that the lack of business activities has meant that many
>companies/factories in the West are now being inevitably forced either to
>close down or move into mergers.
>
>This explains why every other day, there is an announcement on the Radio or
>TV (to the effect that) companies/factories in West are either closing
>down,
>or forming mergers, although I have to add quickly that the official
>reasons
>given for these mergers are different from the arguments herein.
>
>Notwithstanding, for me, part of the reason why these mergers are taking
>place or companies/factories are being closed down altogether, is simple:
>Western factories are manufacturing the goods, but their one-time big
>markets (in Africa and other Third World countries) are rapidly reducing.
>
>Unless the world economy is restructured in such a way that international
>trade/business would be based on a more equable footing, world economic
>crises or recessions will be imminent.
>
>Foreign Ambassadors and the like, therefore have a duty not only to help
>African countries tap their own potential, but also to try and encourage
>their own governments to build an international trading system that  treats
>Africa fairly. In this way, international trade could be facilitated and
>mutually beneficial.
>
>In the short term, I urge you through your offices, to:-
>
>
>1. Ensure that the electoral process in The Gambia is above board and
>transparent as we approach the Presidential elections in October.
>
>2. Put pressure on Jammeh and his regime not to interfere with the role and
>activities of the Independent Electoral Commission.
>
>3. Insist that the national media treats all political parties equally in
>terms of access and reporting.
>
>4. Encourage your government and other western governments to send
>observers
>not only to monitor the actual elections, but also to observe and monitor
>the whole process, in particular the current period of voter registration
>(already shrouded with malpractice on the part of the APRC).
>
>5. Ensure that human rights protection becomes the norm in The Gambia.
>
>6. In particular, call on Jammeh and his regime to release forthwith
>Messrs.
>Momodou Dumo Saho, Ebrima Yarboe, Lt. Lalo Jaitteh, Lt. Omar Darboe,
>Momodou
>Mareneh, Abdoulie Sanyang and Ebrima Barrow.  These men have been detained
>illegally for over one year now, in total disregard of the Gambian
>Constitution.
>
>7. Put an end to the harassment of the independent media/press in The
>Gambia, arbitrary arrests and the wrongful dismissal of hardworking civil
>servants (including members of the Bench and the Judiciary).
>
>
>I hope that this message will be given the urgency it deserves:  The Gambia
>is at a crucial stage in its history and its future progress and
>development
>as a nation based on integrity, decency, fairness and prosperity will, to
>some extent, depend on the support and/or intervention of countries such as
>yours.
>
>
>Ebrima Ceesay,
>Birmingham, UK.
>
>
>_________________________________________________________________________
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