Sulayman, thank you very much for your rendition of the events of April 10
and 11 and your astute observations about the workings of that toothless
commission of inquiry. It is refreshing to hear these facts directly from
someone that does not fear for his life like some people are back home. We
have been following some of the revelations from participants in the
coroner's inquest and the commission. I hope you will be able to provide us
with more information about who actually pulled a trigger. The trend I seem
to detect from most accounts is that people always talk about victims they
saw AFTER the victims have been shot. To your knowledge is there anyone that
is prepared to testify that he/she recognized a particular trigger-man? I
might have missed such testimony in the commission. So please, any
information in this regard will be highly appreciated. Can you also tell us
about meetings that went on within the student community regarding the
demonstration before it took place? We want to establish once and for all
that the students acted on their own volition when they came out to
demonstrate against the brutal regime that sanctioned the murder and the
rape of their colleagues. Did you know what transpired between the students
and the authorities when the former were trying to get a permit for the
demonstration? Did I read your piece properly when you said that children
had already died even before the police station in Serrekunda was attacked?
If so, it takes care of the preposterous idea that criminal elements were
released from Serrekunda Police station by the students to go kill the
students. We await your response to some of these issues. Identifying a
trigger-man is very essential. That is a good starting point that will
eventually lead us to Yaya, who undoubtedly ordered the shooting. We have to
help in our own little ways to show the whole world how brutal this regime
is. They have the callousness to gun down unarmed and innocent children in
broad daylight, yet have the cowardice to deny it. My brother, welcome to
the G-L.
KB
Ps: on a lighter note. This University Yaya and his cronies boast about,
what does it entail? Did they amalgamate already existing institutions like
MDI, GTTI and Yundum College or did they build a brand new gigantic campus?
>From: sulayman jobarteh <[log in to unmask]>
>Reply-To: The Gambia and related-issues mailing list
><[log in to unmask]>
>To: [log in to unmask]
>Subject: ON APRIL 10 and 11
>Date: Tue, 11 Jul 2000 12:27:04 PDT
>
>Hello Ebrima
>
>I use this opportunity to extend to you and through you to the rest of the
>members on the list fraternal greetings from The Gambia.
>
>I larrived in the US from the Gambia on June 15th. I am now in Seattle, WA.
>I was an eye witness to the events of April 10. Then I was taking my final
>course in the university extension program. On that day, I left my home,
>Bundung, around 8.15am to attend classes at MDI. I knew before hand that
>there would be a student demo that day. On arriving at the Aisamarie
>Cinema,
>I found a big crowd gathered on the way. Then a millitary vehicle came from
>the direction of the market at break neck speed. They fired into the
>crowd(then it was blanks) and everyone ran for safety. I then decided to
>return home. After about an hour, I decided to return to the streets to see
>what was happening. But I was not the least prepared for what I saw. At the
>police station in Srrekunda, arrested students from Bakoteh end were been
>brought and physically manhandled. Even some primary pupils were not
>spared.
>The Paramilitary were beating people with truncheons, gun butts, hose
>pipes,
>etc. School girls were been stripped naked and humuliated. I could not
>stand
>this. I then took the dippa kunda road to Kairaba Avenue and walked my way
>to West field junction. The paramilitary were at it there also. Firing
>indiscriminately into the crowd. Tey were kicking, beating students like
>animals, saying that they would kill all students that day. I proceeded to
>serrekunda via the health center. At the health center, I saw the first
>casualties of the day. Two dead bodies were loaded intro the ambulance
>headed for Banjul. One of the victims was shot jus below the left ear and
>that part of the head was totally crushed. After a few moments, another
>body
>was brought. That one was shot just below the right arm pit and he was
>bleeding profusely. You would mistaken his white T shirt for a red one.
>Near
>the serrekunda mosque, a parakilitary stabbed one student on the chest when
>he was over powered. I later learnt that about 7 students including a red
>cross volunteer (Omar Barrow) were shot in and around the premises of the
>red cross and the mobile traffice unit, in the presence of the army chief
>of
>staff. Others who were detained at the later place were made to crawl on
>their bellies, told to lie face up and look at the sun, etc. Is that not
>torture? Because of the anger of the students at these evevts, the paras
>were helpless and they later withdrew from the streets to safe their lives.
>Around 12 pm that day, the only peple I saw on the vicinity of serekunda
>were soldiers. When i returned to serrekunda police, it was on fire. The
>students got extra angry when news reached them that there colleagues were
>being killed.
>
>I also regularly attended the sittings of the commission of inquiry before
>I
>left. But I do not have nuch faith in it, not because the commissioners are
>not up to the job, but because most peolple who appeared before it did not
>tell the truth, including the SOS for interior who is thw worst liar I ever
>saw. Can you imagine a paramilitary inspector saying he does not know an AK
>47 or that he could not identify a live bullet from a blank? he Interior
>SOS
>was shameless enough to say that no live bulles were used even in the face
>of medical evidence.
>
>I have a lot to write but this piece is already long enough. I am sorry
>that
>you have to take some time to read this.
>
>Lastly, I am a bit disappointed with some of the pieces I have read. With
>all due respect to all the contributors, I think it will be more helpful if
>we direct the discussions to issues back home than on personal attacks. I
>am
>sorry if I hurt anybody's feelings but thats how I see it.
>
>Thanks for the time
>
>
>Your Gambian Brother
>Sulayman Jobarteh
>________________________________________________________________________
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>
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