This is Gambia National Army reaction to an article that appeared in the Independent some days ago. I hope it help us understand what our young boys and girls in uniform are up against! Malanding Jaiteh Those who live by the sword die by the sword This is in response to Ex-Sergeant Ibrima Faati's statement in your Monday edition of 3rd July 2000 under the caption 'Why was I detained?' The Gambia Armed Forces is baffled by Faati's proclaimed naivety on his arrest. The protection of the security and integrity of the nation is our mandate and we would leave no stone unturned in the execution of this mandate. So if Faati or anyone else is suspected of involvement in any form of activity which is a threat to the security of the country, the individual will be arrested and wherever found would be interrogated. After the interrogation, the person is released if he is found innocent and brought to justice if found otherwise. So the Army has no regrets over Faati's arrest, who was disgracefully chucked out of the Army for reasons best known to him and this Headquarters. And at the end of our investigations, we would not hesitate to pick him up again if he is found wanting. However, we want to clarify that his arrest has nothing to do with his escort mission to Basse with the foreign diplomats. Faati claimed that he visited the barracks to seek assistance in connection with some personal dispute he has with someone. What business has Faati got to report a civil matter to the military barracks? Why not the police stations? If Faati feels that his image is tarnished then let him take the matter to the courts rather than running to the press. ________________________________________________________________________ Get Your Private, Free E-mail from MSN Hotmail at http://www.hotmail.com ---------------------------------------------------------------------------- To unsubscribe/subscribe or view archives of postings, go to the Gambia-L Web interface at: http://maelstrom.stjohns.edu/archives/gambia-l.html ----------------------------------------------------------------------------