By:-Abdoukarim Sanneh,UK
Yaya
Jammeh has criminalized all sectors of Gambian society. The regime has
induced a state of fear into our people. There is massive erosion of
human rights in our country since the unfortunate events of July 1994
and most of the crimes are with impunity. The daily life of our people
is on the edge. Gambia will continue to be a sad story among the
wretched countries in Black Africa as long as we have a butcher
dragging our people into the time of butcher bird, such as the illegal
arrests and detentions without trials, torture, murder etc. The
criminal regime has destroyed the independence of the judiciary with
army of his mercenary judges and lawyers who have no professional
ethics.
The
closer of Independent media outlets, and the illegal arrests,
detentions and killing of journalists have effected press freedom in
our country. Recently many human rights crimes inflicted on our
citizens are not reported in the media because the independent press is
none functioning. As days pass-by, the families of Ndongo Mboob, Buba
Sanyang and Momodou Lamin Nyassi wanted to know whether their love ones
are alive or death. Equally questions remain unanswered as to the
whereabouts of his own family members and trusted friends and this
include Haruna Jammeh, Jalamang Jammeh, Gishacha Kujabi and Marcelli
Badjie. All these men hail from Foni Kansalla district. Who were his
strong supporters, picked from their homes since on the 11th April 2006
around late midnight by men believed to be members of National
intelligence Agent. With repression, Gambia continues to be a police
state and the masses of our people are daily living under fear. Every
Gambian feels that their movements and daily activities, including
e-mail messages and telephones are monitored by the secret police just
like what happened during the communist era in the former Eastern
European countries.
The
evolution of parliamentary government and rule of law becomes none
functional under Yaya Jammeh's rule. The APRC Government continue to
have no regard for court orders. I cannot imagine how good academic
teachings on constitutional and administrative laws have evaporated in
the cranium of my good brother Honourable Sheikh Tijan Hydara who
claims that there is a rule of law in the Gambia, at a time when a
human rights lawyer Mariam Denton is languishing in jail without charge
or trial for days unending. The Secretary of State for Justice claims
about rule of law in our country is nothing order than academic
dishonesty and a mockery to the legal meaning of the term RULE OF LAW.
The writ of habeas corpus is an essential fundamental of rule of law
and it protects citizens under English law against unlawful invasion of
personal liberty. The coming of Yaya Jammeh has nullified the regard
for the civil liberties of our people.
There
are well documented evidences that the regime of Yaya Jammeh have blood
in their hands. All the crimes which are committed under the name of
so-called national security will one day be clear to Gambian people
like sunrise and sunset on the sky. The regime has yet to explain the
circumstances in the mysterious death of, Ousman Koro Ceesay, Deyda
Hydara, Lt Saye, Lt Sadibou Hydara, Foday Makalo, Daba Marena, Lt
Ebrima Ceesay, Lt Dot Faal, Lt Almamo Manneh, Corporal Dumbuya etc.
Many who know Yaya Jammeh postulate of his very brutal, arrogant,
paranoid and stressful characteristics, one wanders whether he is
mentally stable. According to my source who is a member of Jammeh's
family, it is that paranoia that he murdered many decent Gambians and
has now resorted to his close relatives and members of his own family.
The
extra judiciary execution of Lt Basirou Barrow and many soldiers of
Gambia National Army on November 11, and the investigative report of
BBC Focus on Africa programme drew a logical conclusion of the events
as a coup that never happened: and the cross fires that the regime
peddled on Radio Gambia, to justify their actions between the sections
of so-called coup plotters and so-called loyal soldiers was untrue
because there was no structural damage to the buildings and other
facilities in Fajara and Yundum barracks. The event was nothing order
than a plan murder of some senior army officials and personnel who were
a threat to the regime because of their tribal and other social
backgrounds. It was those revelations that the treason trials of Lt
Lamin Jarju, Lt Lamin Jammeh and private Bah were held in camera to
deny the public consumption of the facts about the events of November
11, all in the name of national security matters.
The
brutal killings of Gambian students in April 2000 and indemnity given
to the killers further justify the involvement of the regime to such
inhumane acts. The lies peddled by the propaganda mercenaries of the
regime including Former Secretaries of State Sarjo Jallow and Therese
Jatta etc which most Gambian did not buy was that some elements of the
students were armed with guns that were used to gun down others. The
blame factors was also extended to the element of the opposition
parties by dishonest elites who collaborated with the criminal regime
in the act; many of whom left public office in disgrace and they will
remain isolated on issues of our national politics for their unethical
and immoral stand to defend the devil for such a crimes. To foster
their selfish interest in the name of classical case of intellectual
prostitution they began to frame decent Gambians who are not even a
party to the killings. What Gambians want to know is who ordered the
killings of innocent students? Why did the regime indemnify those
elements of the security forces who were involved in the crimes?
In
the run up to the election in September, with the unpopularity of the
regime all over the country, we can smell the rat, that the private
militia group of the regime under the command of Modou Pika Jallow and
the notorious Police Intervention Unit will be active in suppressing
the holding of opposition political rallies and arresting activists.
The issuing of the permit order for holding political rallies is unfair
and outdated. It vested the powers of issuing permits by Inspector
General of Police who recently we have seen being politicised to the
core and being his tribes man. These have serious implications to the
impartiality of these institutions such as Prison Services, Ministry of
Interior, Chief of Defence Staff of the Army etc. In the last days of
2001 Presidential elections, it was reported that the militia group of
the regime were involved in the barbaric crimes and the gruesome and
brutal murder of Lamin Ceesay at United Democratic Party rally in
Tallinding and up till now no justice was done for those involved in
the crime. Yaya Jammeh has unpopular support in the country and because
of that; APRC is heading for an electoral violence as we have seen in
the bye election in Kombo East. It is already a strategy in place to
further enhance the state of fear, as indications have shown the
Independent Electoral Commission is under pressure by the executive
without due consultations with other stakeholders.
One
wanders how the PPPs good records of observing human rights and
participatory democracy in our country ended up in a dustbin at a time
when our continent was re-awakening from sunder? It was those good
records of the folding of our Government that our country had the
opportunity to be the head quarters of the African Commission on Human
rights. It is those inheritance values of Gambian life that Yaya Jammeh
and his group of second generation Gambians in uniform have destroyed
because of their immoral agenda of envy and get rich quickly. Gambians
have seen these demonstrated and illustrated by their quest to dominate
all facets of Gambian life, ranging from social justice, good
governance and participatory democracy. For Gambia gone are days of
Mandingo saying nimang kukay kutaylaa (
Meaning rule of law and also the relevance of the statutory significant
of Magna Carta in the English legal history to personal liberty).
It
is clear to all Gambians that the cold blooded killers in Banjul framed
their horrendous crimes in any form because of their control of the
mass media and all its apparatus. It is only in the matter of truth and
reconciliation that truth will be exposed in restored democratic values. At that moment it is for those who have ears to hear!!