From the pages of The Gambia Journal.
UN Envoy Makes Excuses for Gambian Strongman, Whitewashing Fraud- and
Threat-Filled Election By Inner City Press at the UN
Oct 9, 2006, 10:35
Matthew Russell Lee of Inner City Press at the UN
UNITED NATIONS, October 7 -- In the Gambian election last month,
thousands of non-Gambians from Senegal were brought in to vote by
President Yahya Jammeh, it was admitted Friday by Kofi Annan's envoy to the
election, former Nigerian General Abdulsalami Abubakar.
Gen. Abubakar acknowledged the criticism by Gambian
opposition groups and the Commonwealth observers of security personnel
voting while in uniform, but stated that this is permitted by the Gambian
Constitution. Jammeh recently said, "If I want to ban any newspaper, I will."
Asked by Inner City Press about Yahya Jammeh's changes to the
constitution, Gen. Abubakar said that people are entitled to their own
opinions. Democracy, he said, is in the development world a "sensitive
matter" that must be "done with caution." He state that the elections
had gone "very well... I was there on election day and from what I saw
it was peaceful."
Interviewed by Inner City Press on the 35th floor of the UN
Headquarters on Friday, just after he briefed Kofi Annan, Gen. Abubakar was
dismissive of reports of Jammeh's crackdown on the press, including his
reported involvement in the killing of the editor of The Point newspaper. Jammeh's
denial in that case was that "I don't believe in killing people, I believe in
locking you up for the rest of your life."
Asked by Inner City Press about these and other Jammeh
quotes, Gen. Abubaker was dismissive. "Jammeh can say he'll rule for
the next thirty or forty years, but he could be voted out," Gen. Abubaker
said.
Yahya Jammeh took power in 1998 in The Gambia, a country of
1.5 million people surrounded on three sides by Senegal. Industries
include peanut farming and some tourism. In an interview with Inner
City Press on September 21, 2006, U.S. Assistant Secretary of State
Frazer said that the Jammeh regime is reaching out for help to China,
Iran and Venezuela. Friday Inner City Press asked UN Envoy Gen.
Abubaker about this. Gen. Abubaker responded by quoting Jammeh, if you
don't have to be my friend, you can't stop me from having other friends.
Asked by Inner City Press what his recommendations are, and
what the UN will do, Gen. Abubaker first listed the need for better
training of journalists. Perhaps a stop to the killing of journalists
and editors would help. One wonders why Kofi Annan selected this
Nigerian general, who ruled after Sani Abacha, as the UN envoy to the
preordained re-election of Yahya Jammeh.
After changing the constitution to allow himself to run for a third term,
and after
threatening districts that voted against him with losing development
aid, he won garnered 67% of votes, to Oussainou Darboe's 27%, with
voter turnout below 60%. This includes the votes of non-Gambians
brought in from Senegal's still-troubled Casamance region, an influx
that Gen. Abubaker put at "only" four thousand.
When asked if there was outside influence on the Gambian
election, Gen. Abubaker said no, despite his statement about thousands
of non-Gambians voting. "It wouldn't have changed the result," Gen.
Abubaker said. Apparently, nothing would have.
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