By: Christian Conteh
The mood was sombre, the silence deafening a group of people who identified themselves as victims sat at one end of the Gambia International Conference Centre at Bijilo as a list of names was read out from the Truth, Reconciliation and Reparations Commission (TRRC) Report.
The names were of people who had been brutally murdered and their alleged murderers. Former President Yahya Jammeh’s name was mentioned on almost every list. The TRRC report holds him responsible for these killings either due to his actions and or inactions.
Sulayman Ndow, Mahawa Cham, Ceesay Bujiling, Mamut Ceesay, Ebou Jobe, Ndure Cham, Mustapha Colley, Tumani Jallow and Abdoulie. The list goes on and on.
“Yahya Jammeh, Gen. Sulayman Badjie and Bora Colley bear joint responsibility for the killing of Ello Jallow. Yahya Jammeh, Gen. Saul Badjie, Nuha Badjie, Mustapha Sanneh, Momodou Jarjue (Rambo), Nfansu Nyabally, Omar Jallow (Oya) and Sulayman Sambou were responsible for the murder of Mustapha Colley,” the report states.
At the back of the hall, a lady, probably in her mid-30’s sat alone, isolated from the rest of the attendees. I couldn’t help but notice her puffy eyes and tears rolling down her cheeks. She later identified herself as Fatima (not her real name). She accused the Jammeh regime of killing her husband.
“They killed my husband, Jammeh killed him, and I will not rest until justice is served,” she said.
When asked about the details of what happened Fatima declined, saying she was not psychologically prepared to share the horrifying story again.
Fatima is one of the several victims of Jammeh’s 22-year dictatorial rule in The Gambia who seek justice.
Several women who came out to publicly testify particularly about being sexually violated during the era under review were met with the major challenge of stigmatization prompting a statement from the TRRC in 2019 appealing to all members of the public to be more sensitive to the pain of these vulnerable women and to respect their privacy and integrity.
The TRRC was established to investigate crimes committed in The Gambia under the leadership of Jammeh from 1994 to 2017. The report resulted in a three-year-long investigation during which the commission heard testimonies from over 300 witnesses. In summary, the report has called for the prosecution of Yahya Jammeh and his cohorts.
