Former President Yahya Jammeh used his greed and ambition to wicked ends, the TRRC has said in a report.
In the report released on Wednesday, the investigation used testimonies it received to back its claim.
The report titled ‘TRRC Interim Report 2018-2019’ said: “The gross violations and abuses of human rights during the dictatorship and authoritarian rule of the former President Yahya Jammeh ( July 1994 to January 2017) shocked the conscience of Gambians in particular and humanity at large. The violations and abuses committed were massive, horrifying and varied.
“They ranged, inter alia, from torture, unlawful killings, gender-based violence, including rape, enforced disappearances, arbitrary arrests and detention to blatant denial of fundamental freedoms enshrined in the Laws of The Gambia and in international law and international humanitarian law. The violations and abuses constituted the gravest crimes which the TRRC is mandated to create an impartial record of during the period under review.
“The revelations by both victims and perpetrators of these crimes before the Commission shocked and even traumatized Gambians as they never imagined such atrocities could be committed in their country and culture whose people are known for their gentility and tolerance. It is hard not to conclude from the testimonies so far heard from witnesses that the dictator and authoritarian ruler during twenty-two years instilled in the people tremendous fear and insecurity and used his greed and ambition to wicked ends.”
