Mori Kebba,
We thank you for agreeing that there is need for some form national response
to what happened in Basse. However, I cannot understand what you mean when
you asserted that "....calls for dialogue will never be answered if the
current trend continues on the ground i.e. selected attacks on one
political party whilst there are more than one in the country.That issue
must be addressed first. If the other political parties believe that they
are being attacked because they are more hard on the government then calls
for national reconciliation and conferences will never take off the ground."
I am not aware that this is the position of any political party in this
country. If you know more than we do, would you please indicate which party
holds the view that it is being attacked because it is harder on the
government than others.
Frankly speaking, Mori Kebba, statements like this do not help in promoting
an atmosphere for dialogue. If you are not a member of the UDP executive,
you should not make insinuations that appear like comments emerging from
them.
Since the incident occurred, we believe PDOIS has given all the solidarity
that could be given by a political party in this country. We do more than we
publish, and we hope that we will be allowed to continue to do what we are
capable of doing in the way we think it should be done in good faith and in
the public interest.
Secondly, you ask whether I was questioning the credibility of the UDP when
I mentioned that they claimed that they were ambushed. It has been said, in
no uncertain terms, that this matter is in the courts. Even the UDP members
are holding their breathe on the facts in preparation for their defence. I
hope you will respect the language we utilise in order not to prejudice the
case.
Lastly, you talked about swift condemnations of the high-handedness of the
security forces during the April 10 and 11 incident. I hope you would have
realised by now that we are not talking about security forces using
high-handedness against opposition forces and killing one of them in Basse.
This is a totally different scenario.
Mori Kebba, it is claimed that Alieu Njie's body was seriously mutilated.
What condemnation do you expect from me that would accord with a sense of
respect for human life irrespective of political differences? The country is
undergoing very difficult circumstances, and we are not at all relying on
partisan sentiments to handle all the antagonistic contradictions. Moreover,
we have not created these contradictions. We simply find ourselves having to
deal with them in the best way we know how.
The only way that it could have been proven that we are being favoured is
for the State to be handed over to us on a silver platter. I do not think
any sane person exists who believes that that is the objective of the APRC
Government. Different parties have their different methods of politics. What
all honest Gambians should do is to respect each party's style of politics
and still call on all to create an environment where each will pursue the
support of the people according to their own style and design.
It will be most helpful if I am not dragged into divisive issues at this
stage. I have opened up for you to ask any question to avoid any
misunderstanding. I hope you will exploit that opportunity before making any
insinuations.
Greetings.
Halifa Sallah
----- Original Message -----
From: Mori Kebba Jammeh <[log in to unmask]>
To: <[log in to unmask]>
Sent: Friday, June 30, 2000 12:33 AM
Subject: Re: THE UDP LEADER AND 24 OTHERS
> Halifa Sallah,
> Thank you very much indeed in responding to my inquires about your party's
> position on the recent events in the Gambia.
>
> First of all, I can't agree more with you on the need for national
political
> conference in the Gambia especially in light of the forthcoming local,
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