Friends:

As I post herewith Sir Dawda's condolence letter he had sent to the Gambian
press for publication, I want to state few words of my own in the light of
the tragic events of April 10, in our home land. Clearly, enough
condemnation of the massacre of school pupils by the security forces of the
Jammeh regime is appropriately been registered by others and, any attempt by
me to add on to that would be superfluous.

To the families of all the victims of this senseless tragedy, I AM SORRY. I
wish I were there to attend the funerals and convey my condolence in person,
but as R. W. Emerson put it "The chief mourner does not always attend the
funeral."  May Allah reward them Jannah.

Musa Bassadi Jawara.


Sir Dawda's message is as follows:

I would like to convey my deepest sympathy to the parents, relatives, and
friends of the school children killed by the security forces of the Jammeh
regime, a regime known for its murderous tendencies in the past. For the
armed forces to use live ammunition to mow down some 20 young Gambians
demonstrating peacefully their legitimate grievances is an act of abject
barbarity and is absolutely inexcusable. The President should bring the
killings immediately to a halt and allow parents and relatives of the
children killed to recover the bodies without hinderance, for decent burial.

May the souls of the dead rest in peace and may Allah the Almighty comfort
the bereaved and help them sustain their grievous, irreplaceable loss. My
sympathy also goes to the parents, relatives, and friends of Omar Barrow of
Sud FM who was reportedly shot dead inside the Red Cross Headquarters in
Kanifing while attending to the wounded. May his soul rest in peace.

To the scores of young people wounded in the carnage, I express my sympathy
and wish them all a speedy recovery.

Dawda Kairaba Jawara
Former President of The Gambia
04/13/2000
______________________________________________________
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