We are glad to learn that some lawyers have the integrity to stand up and
reject their appointments as prosecutors in the Ebrima Barry case. The
attorney general is trying to use the private bar to clean up his
government's mess. Don't get me wrong. We support the appointment of an
independent private prosecutor. But if that prosecutor is going to be a
Gambian national, he/she has to ensure that he/she gets total cooperation
from the authorities. He/she should not be intimidated in any form
(including threatening his family and friends). If this cooperation is
lacking (and it would almost certainly be lacking), then the prosecutor
would be fighting with his/her hands tied behind his/her back. The
prosecutor will not be able to get to the bottom of the matter and at the
same time Yaya and his cohorts will have bragging rights in the justice
arena. We urge each and every lawyer to assess the ethical concerns raised
by Mary and Amie and also consider whether they can trust Pap Cheyassin
Secka to cooperate with them and ensure that justice is done. The Lawyers
should get rid of Joseph Joof as their president and come together with
names of Human Rights lawyers from abroad who are willing to come to Gambia
and prosecute this case. They should ensure that the lawyer they choose, has
integrity and is committed to justice. They should assure such a person of
their total cooperation and work with that lawyer behind the scenes. This
will take care of NIA visits to friends and families of any Gambian lawyer
brave enough to embark on this noble course the right way. Remember that the
whole world is watching. So any lawyer who cannot do the job thoroughly,
should have the decency to come out and say so. If you know that you can be
manipulated or intimidated by Yaya and his cohorts, then this is not a job
you should accept. No prosecutor should lose this case or the case against
the perpetrators of the April 10 & 11 massacres. Even Christopher Darden
will have a field day with this one. The attorney general knows that his
office has to lose these cases or Yaya will get them. On the other hand, if
they lose the case in order to please Yaya, the Gambian population will get
them. So they are between a rock and a hard place. To wriggle out of the
situation, they want to appoint a lawyer to be the sacrificial lamb. We urge
the lawyers to also pass the buck. By appointing an independent prosecutor
(say from the U.S.), that will take care of the predicament one faces when
one wins the case.
>From: MOMODOU BUHARRY GASSAMA <[log in to unmask]>
>Reply-To: The Gambia and related-issues mailing list
><[log in to unmask]>
>To: [log in to unmask]
>Subject: 2 Lawyers Turn Down Appointments As Public Prosecutors - From
> The Point
>Date: Wed, 24 May 2000 20:26:39 +0200
>
> 2 Lawyers Turn Down Appointments As Public Prosecutors
>
>
> Two lawyers, Mary Samba-Christensen and Amie Joof, have jointly
>written to the Solicitor General copied to the president of the Bar
>Association turning down their appointments as Public Prosecutors in the
>Ebrima Barry case. In the letter, they recounted that they had both
>expressed their reasons for not accepting the positions when it was hinted
>to them. In another letter to the President of the Bar Association, they
>said: "We have both stated categorically that we cannot accept the
>positions and have given you our reasons. You must have had our letters,
>and it is in the interest of probity that you clear the air and stop the
>confusion that this obfuscation will create".
>
> It will be recalled that the Solicitor General, Raymond Sock, on May
>16th conveyed appointment letters as Public Prosecutors in the Ebrima Barry
>case to Mariam Denton, Mary Samba-Christensen, Abubakar Tambedou and Amie
>Joof.
>
> On the 18th of May both Mary Samba and Amie Joof wrote to the
>President of the Bar Association and the Solicitor General objecting to the
>appointments on the following grounds:
>
> -They had already represented some of the GAMSU students on a matter
>directly related to the case.
>
> -That they had already told the President of the Bar that they could
>not take up the offer on professional grounds.
>
> The two ladies however thanked the Solicitor General and the Bar for
>considering them, and expressed their willingness to be of assistance in
>the future should they be given the opportunity.
>
>
>
>
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