From http://www.observer.gm

Opinion
Immortal Satang Jobarteh
By Yunisa S. Saliu
Feb 26, 2004, 13:29


The Late Satang Jobarteh
It is a pity that the soil eats and consumes a lot. A lot of what? Will be
the question many will ask. It seems just like yesterday, but, it is a year
since one of the female gender activists, Satang Jobarteh passed away.
Immortal Satang, a woman of substance as she would love to be remembered.

Very early on Monday, February 24, 2003 one of the busiest highways in the
Greater Banjul Area, Bundung, the location of her training centre, Simma
Vocational Training Institute an area with a great sense of neighbourhood
and community lost Satang. I saw the impromptu crowd at Satang’s School.
The crowd, a cross section of those who live in the Greater Banjul Area
extended halfway to the centre, at the RVTH mortuary and at Tallinding, in
her uncle’s compound. People walked crying and passed each other. Everyone
wore a mourning face while some were in a fierce mood. If I am to make non-
accounting guess I would say that all tribes in The Gambia were over-
represented in the crowd. Different languages were spoken.

Condolence messages from different groups both national and international
most especially from Mamacash of Netherlands, AWDF Ghana, Akina Mama wa
Afrika, Uganda to mention but a few of them. To be frank, many passed their
tributes through newspapers, radio and television reviews. Plenty of the
training schools and NGO’s attended her burial and sympathised with the
family, students and staff of Simma. For almost a term the SIMMA vocational
training centre was in mourning. Different comments and much tributes were
written by sympathisers .

It is quite true that the modern media latched onto her death. It is quite
true that the modern media latched onto the death of a gender activist with
a vision and zeal. Though some might claim that journalists write or say
too much about the late Satang, yes, she’s worth it. I can confirm that
because she created and left behind a big vacuum to be filled by gender
activists and women in general. It can be filled but can it be done the
same way she did. Satang achievements as an activist are visible and
transparent. Voluntarily she established the SIMMA Vocational Training
Institute. The centre has graduated many youths to the field of employment
and many are serving the country in various capacities. She researched and
documented women legacies in a booklet and staged an exhibition to show and
express the excellence of Gambian women. She engaged in many seminars and
participated in many fora as a resource person and panelist to raise gender
awareness. Satang who is not partisan trekked most parts of the country
sensitising and advocating for female participation in national
development, female inclusion in politics and decision-making position. Her
excellent and popular articles under the the Daily Observer’s Women-in-
Development column was applauded and commended by many readers because it
was informative and contained vital information.

A woman of her calibre is worth remembering. How do people forget so soon?
The so-called woman of substance is a jewel to the nation. She left behind
two precious things that she so cherished, they are Fanta Manneh, her
daughter and a training centre, SIMMA. After her death, many made different
pledges and vowed to support the centre both in kind and cash. But do
people live by their words? In developed countries, activists are always
held in high esteem and recognised. It is a pity that she came from Africa,
The Gambia for that matter. Had it been one of the Western countries, even
among some of the developing countries in Africa, she should have been
immortalised and her name written in history books like Queen Mary Slessor,
Princess Diana, Funmilayo Ransome-Kuti or Mirable Sisters amongst others.

The centre she left behind in support of the government’s call to create
better access to skills training could have been turned round to a better
centre that will suit her vision. If students from some western
universities like Easton University, London and UWIC UK can come to the
centre to study and know more about gender education, capacity building,
African women participation in nation building because of the relationship
Satang built and legacies she laid down, I do not see the reason why the
centre cannot be encouraged more if the usefulness of Satang is to be
recognised.

Through her efforts in advocacy, counselling and enlightening girls and
young women on how not to be dependants and liabilities to their families
and the nation, she brought changes to many homes in crisis by fighting
against arranged and early marriages, the role of women in building the
society, awareness of politics, teenage pregnancy, baby dumping and
violence against women. To recognise her prowess, the management, staff and
students of Simma Vocational Training Institute have organised memorial
lectures for the late Satang Jobarteh on February 23 and 24 respectively.

Time can fly like a bird, but I know her death is still fresh in our
memories. I know if there are activists in heaven she will take a front row
and continue where she stopped on earth.

To see an elephant one must be in the forest...
For us to see a lion, you must be in the reserve ...
A bird like an Ostrich is scarce and could be found in thick ...
To see Satang, a woman of substance would be in the hereafter.
May her gentle soul rest in perfect peace. Amen

© Copyright 2003 by Observer Company

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
To Search in the Gambia-L archives, go to: http://maelstrom.stjohns.edu/CGI/wa.exe?S1=gambia-l
To contact the List Management, please send an e-mail to:
[log in to unmask]

To unsubscribe/subscribe or view archives of postings, go to the Gambia-L Web interface
at: http://maelstrom.stjohns.edu/archives/gambia-l.html

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~