I saw what purported to be parts of the closing arguments of the defense counsel in the Ebrima Barry case. I must say that the arguments made by the lawyer for the fire-men just went to confirm my worst fears. To refresh people's memory, this case was one of the main catalysts for the students' demonstrations on the fateful days of April 10 and 11, 2000. The late Ebrima Barry was apparently sent by school authorities to the accused fire-men, as a means of punishment for conduct that took place at the school. The officers under whose custody Barry was placed, tortured Barry and subjected him to some inhumane treatment I do not want to get into right now. In any case, Barry lost his life as a result of the ill-advised decision to send him to the fire-men and the punishment he received from the fire-men. When the students realized that, as usual, our illegal government was going to cover this case up, the students started seeking ways of ensuring justice for Barry and his family and all the children that are tortured both physically and mentally by this government on a daily basis. Because we do not have a government that is led by people with ideas and good hearts, the government decided to meet the students' peaceful moves with brutal force. The callous attitude of our government towards children that were simply asking for justice for their colleagues, led to the death of more than a dozen children and wounding of many others. Going back to Ebrima Barry, months ago when the incompetent AG chambers appointed a 'private' prosecutor to look into this matter and the man would not show up in court, we cried foul. When the prosecutor eventually came to court and among other things, called witnesses (such as Dr. Sam) that ended up undermining their case, we cried foul. The defense filed a 'no case' submission, but thank God the judge did not grant the lawyer's prayers. When the 'no case' submission was made, we tried preempting a ridiculous ruling from the court by making it abundantly clear to everyone that the defense clearly had a case to answer; albeit the prosecutor did a lousy job presenting the people's case. Well, we shall again endeavor to embark on the task of trying to ensure that Barry and his family get justice at the end of the day. It was not surprising to learn yet again that when it was the time of the AG chambers to make their closing arguments, they asked for an adjournment. I hope the prosecutor will use that time wisely to ensure that these criminals are convicted. If these people are freed and there is another demonstration, Cheyassin Secka and his prosecutors should be held responsible. What was also not surprising, was the fact that according to the reports, the defense counsel depended entirely on the case presented by the prosecutor through the likes of Dr. Sam and other doctors called by the state. I repeat that if things were the way they were supposed to be, that prosecutor would be disbarred. How on earth can a prosecutor call witnesses that end up testifying solely for the benefit of the defense? I do not want to reargue this case here. But suffice for me to say that the prosecution's case is still salvageable. Those corrupt doctors and an inept prosecutor might have thought that they handed the defense a victory. But it is not that simple. Wrong can never be right. For these fire-men to be acquitted, it is not sufficient for the doctors to come in and fabricate a preexisting disease for Ebrima Barry. The law says that the criminal should take his victim as he finds him. So even if Barry had a liver problem, that does not mean that the officers should be absolved of liability. It is trite law that even if the blows that fire-men inflicted on Barry will not necessarily kill a healthy human being, but the blows killed Barry, the fire-men will be guilty of the crime. In other words, testimony that Barry had preexisting ailments, is irrelevant to guilt or innocence if it could be proved that the fire-men tortured Barry in one form or another. The doctors tried their best and even testified that they did not find bruises on Barry's corpse. This also does not mean that Barry was not tortured. So even though the prosecutor and the doctors tried their darn best to sabotage this case (for reasons beyond my comprehension), these fire-men should and could be convicted. Barry was a normal kid before he went to the fire-men. He was strong enough for the school authorities to feel intimidated by him or else they will not take him to the fire-men. For some doctors to come here and tell us that Barry was suffering from a terminal illness at the same time that school authorities were afraid of him, is ridiculous to say the least. The bottom-line is, Barry went to the fire-men apparently healthy and came back with injuries he never recovered from. This is strong circumstantial evidence against the fire-men. Couple this evidence with testimony from his parents and friends saying that Barry said that he was tortured. It is also odd that none of his family members suspected that he was suffering from liver problems. This should have been an open and shut case for the prosecution. But something really bad stinks here. I hope the AG gets his act together and ensure that these criminals and menace to society are put in jail where they belong. We shall never forget the despicable job done by the doctors in this case and when the day of reckoning comes, they shall account for their actions. My heart goes out to Ebrima Barry's family. KB _________________________________________________________________ Get your FREE download of MSN Explorer at http://explorer.msn.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 You may also send subscription requests to [log in to unmask] if you have problems accessing the web interface and remember to write your full name and e-mail address. ----------------------------------------------------------------------------