Dear Gambia-L:

Attached is a letter that was sent to all the
newspapers in the Gambia. A copy is now being posted
in this forum for possible discussion.



3659 Buford Highway
Apartment G-10
Atlanta, Georgia 30329

June 15, 2000

Dear Fellow Gambians:

In April of this year, students engaged in the
peaceful petition of their government for redress of
certain grievances were laid to waste by soldiers of a
regime increasingly raging out of control. In
response, a range of reactions spanning the full
spectrum of emotions has been exhibited by all
Gambians both in support and in opposition.  We have
agreed and disagreed, and were outraged and sobered.
We are learning as a people.  We the Ceesay boys are
proud and encouraged that we (Gambians) have held
together as a people in these trying times.  We
believe this unity to be a good omen for the fate of
our country and perhaps even our continent.

Only history will judge Yahya a butcher or saint.
However, to complete and preserve the record for that
fateful day when history renders its judgment on Yayha
and his regime, the memory of those cut down must be
protected from all corruption.  We cannot and must not
forget.

That is why we the Ceesay boys hereby propose a
monument to those fallen in April of 2000.  Though we
may be individually beholden to divergent views of
these events, we are sure we all agree that the fates
of these students must be remembered so that any
opinions offered in the future will be truly informed.


We hereby pledge to bear all reasonable costs
associated with project of building a monument to
these fallen heroes.  In assuming the cost of the
project, we in no way intend to exclude other Gambians
from this process.  All persons who wish to
financially contribute to this project may do so.  Our
hope is that in assuming the cost of this project,
reactions and discussions will be centered on three
issues:

(1) The propriety  of a monument,
(2) The location of the monument, and
(3) The nature of the monument.

We concede the Jammeh regime will be opposed to this
idea.  That said, we hope that discussions will center
on the merits of the project rather than its cost or
the Jammeh regime’s reaction.

We are also aware that there are a number of worthy
Gambians organizations grappling with the events of
April 2000.  We welcome and applaud their efforts and
invite any or a combination of them to assume
leadership roles in driving this project to a
successful conclusion.

Please direct inquiries to Momodou Ceesay
([log in to unmask]).

Respectfully,

_____________________
Momodou Ceesay
Karamba Ceesay
Morro Ceesay

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