Gambian police fire on student protest; 9 dead

April 10, 2000
Web posted at: 7:03 PM EDT (2303 GMT)


BANJUL, Gambia (AP) -- Police opened fire on a student demonstration Monday,
killing at least nine people, including a journalist.

The Gambia Students Union was denied a permit for the march organized in
protest against the recent death of a high school student, who was allegedly
tortured by security force members, and the reported rape of a 13-year-old
girl by a police officer.

When students gathered at the gate of the Gambia Technical Training
Institute to march to the city center, police ordered them to disperse, then
opened fire with tear gas and rubber bullets. The students scattered, but
later regrouped, setting up barricades with burning tires and throwing
stones at the police. Government buildings were attacked, a police station
set on fire and stores looted as unemployed youths joined in the fray.

Police apparently used live ammunition to restore order, killing at least
eight students, morgue officials said. Many more were injured, though
hospital staff did not have exact figures.

Omar Barrow, an International Committee of the Red Cross volunteer and
journalist with the private Sud FM radio station, was hit by a stray bullet
while trying to help injured students at Red Cross headquarters, witnesses
said.

"This is a criminal act, which should not go unpunished," said human rights
activist Ebrima Jallow.

The government blamed student leaders for the rioting in a statement issued
Monday afternoon, and ordered the immediate closure of all schools until
further notice. Dozens of students were arrested.

Calm prevailed Monday night, as police and soldiers maintained a heavy
presence in the city's largely deserted streets.

President Yahya Jammeh's government regularly harasses and arrests
opponents, including journalists and politicians. Jammeh seized power in
July 1994 and was elected to office two years later in voting that was
widely questioned by international observers and opposition groups.

Gambia, a sliver of a nation that follows along a river of the same name, is
surrounded by Senegal on Africa's western edge.

Copyright 2000 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may
not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.

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