Mr. Jow, thanks for forwarding this mail. I must confess that I do not
belong to a PDOIS mailing list and therefore was unaware of their reaction
to the outrageous decision of Yaya and Secka not to prosecute anyone for the
heinous massacre of our children on April 10 and 11. I hope other opposition
parties will follow in PDOIS' footsteps and publicly denounce this outrage.

I must however point out that although I applaud PDOIS for stating their
disagreement to this report from Cheyassin Secka, I have to say for the
record that I do not agree with PDOIS that the job done by the coroner and
the commission was satisfactory. I also vehemently oppose the notion of a
truth and reconciliation commission where killers will admit liability, seek
forgiveness from the parents and the government pay compensation to the
victims.

I think it is a sign of good leadership to admit mistakes and seek better
solutions. I believe PDOIS and everyone that was trying to convince us that
the commission was a good idea should admit their miscalculations or at
least leave the matter alone for now. Clearly, the commission of inquiry was
a failure. We all know that the bottom-line here is for a prosecutor to show
the whole world that Yaya ordered his security forces to open fire on our
children. It is ridiculous to say that we can only get that proof from a
commission of inquiry and a coroner's inquest. There are murders being tried
in courts everyday. Prosecutors do not need commissions of inquiry to gather
evidence. Why did we not tell Secka from day one that we need this case to
go to court and not waste time with a bogus commission of inquiry?

Few days after Ousman Jammeh was appointed coroner, I spelled out the powers
that was granted to him. If Jammeh was honest and competent and was prepared
to perform his duties to the best of his abilities without fear or favor, he
would have come up with names of individuals that were to be indicted for
this heinous crime. It was part of Jammeh's job to recommend that the
murderers be indicted. When Jammeh started pretending that he did not
understand his powers, I came here and unmasked his lies. Secka could have
told Jammeh at that stage that he (Jammeh) was not doing his job properly.
But because Secka is not interested in the truth, he waited until it is too
late and then decided to use Jammeh's stupidity and cowardice in order to
reject the report.

Apart from Secka, the Chief Justice that also reviewed Jammeh's report
should have known that Jammeh did not do a good job. They all decided to
look the other way. So let no one try to sell us the idea that the coroner
and the commission did a good job. It is courts that punish criminals. This
case belonged in a court of law and not before a coroner that does not
understand his powers and not before a bogus commission of inquiry that
would allow government officials to come before it and tell blatant lies.
This was my argument from the onset and at the end of the day, we should all
admit that nothing came out from these two bodies. We were just wasting our
time.

I agree that the commission and the inquest gave us a forum to turn rumor
into legal testimony. But what use is that testimony if it cannot convict
criminals? Does it not make more sense to have that testimony in a court
where at the end of the day a judge can convict and punish criminal?

I think it is principled on PDOIS' side to try and find a way out of this
mess without having a confrontation with the government. I understand their
calls (as pacifists) for a truth and reconciliation commission. However, I
have to register again my surprise about the naivete manifested here. Does
Yaya look like someone that is ready to reconcile with the people of The
Gambia? This massacre is not a political crime committed by reasonable men
(that even though you do not agree with their reasons, you at least
understand their reason for acting the way they did). This is a cold-blooded
and heinous atrocity committed by a callous regime that puts Yaya ahead of
every Gambian.

It is time to call a spade a spade and confront Yaya and force him to do
what is right. Vermin like Yaya cannot be held up to standards of reasonable
men we can deal with. I would understand if PDOIS wants to lead the people
and people are reluctant to take Yaya on. What I cannot understand, is
leaders staking out positions that are non-starters in my book. Opposition
parties should at least give their people the option to stand up against the
tyranny Yaya visits on them. I do not believe Gambians are such losers that
when called upon to demonstrate against this outrage, they will refuse. It
is a non-starter to just denounce this outrage and then give Yaya a
life-line by indicating that it might be acceptable to people if the
murderers just admit liability and seek forgiveness. These murderers should
be punished; starting from Yaya himself. We do not need any compensation
from them. If their hearts were in the right place, Yaya and his cohorts
would have paid all medical expenses for people like Yusupha Mbye that are
still suffering from gunshot wounds. No amount of compensation can bring
back the children (as young as three) that were massacred on April 10 and
11, 2000. All we want is for the criminals that were responsible for the
massacre be brought before a court of law and tried like a common criminal.
This is an opportunity for all leaders (political, religious etc.) to come
together and demonstrate against Yaya and his callous regime.
KB



>From: Pasamba Jow <[log in to unmask]>
>Reply-To: The Gambia and related-issues mailing list
><[log in to unmask]>
>To: [log in to unmask]
>Subject: Fwd: PDOIS' REACTION TO GOVERNMENT'S STATEMENT ON THE REPORTS ON
>            APRIL 10 AND 11 INCIDENTS
>Date: Tue, 30 Jan 2001 15:46:22 -0000
>
>HI,
>The article below is from PDOIS.As a member of the FOROYAA/PDOIS mailing
>list,i find it fit to share this reaction with the 'L' following this
>development, and the call for reactions from the opposition.
>I would also suggest that people could write to Foroyaa to become part of
>their mailing list.I have through foroyaa received some very viable
>informations about the party and the country.
>PASAMBA JOW
>
>>From: "foroyaa" <[log in to unmask]>
>,
>>Subject: PDOIS' REACTION TO GOVERNMENT'S  STATEMENT ON THE REPORTS ON
>>APRIL
>>10 AND 11 INCIDENTS
>>Date: Mon, 29 Jan 2001 14:13:18 -0000
>>
>>
>>Mr. President, the integrity of the nation and that of a government are
>>inseparably connected. In the same vein the integrity of a nation and the
>>integrity of a people are irretrievably linked. A people with integrity
>>must
>>always yearn and strive to be led by a government, which has integrity.
>>This
>>is the only way to safeguard their sense of dignity and human worth and
>>thus
>>enlarge and consolidate their national integrity. This is a collective
>>responsibility. Hence when the integrity of a nation is put into question,
>>it is the duty of the sovereign people to make their voices heard. To fail
>>to do so is to slay conscience and when conscience lies before the altar
>>of
>>death a beast is born and unbridled violence becomes a way of life.
>>
>>Mr. President, history will never forgive us if we fail to put on record
>>our
>>response to the statement issued by the government on the reports on the
>>April 10 and 11 incidents. This is abundantly essential because degenerate
>>times are threatening to roll back the very moral fabric of this nation
>>and
>>put into question our national integrity as a people imbued with
>>conscience
>>and who should act to defend each other's dignity and self worth.
>>
>>On the 10 and 11th April 2000 the nation woke up to violence that put
>>everything to a stand still. Reactions set in all spheres of life. The
>>wounds were so deep that everyone knew that it would be exceedingly
>>difficult to heal them. Two choices lay before the nation, to deepen the
>>violence and confront national disintegration or contain  the violence and
>>establish a mechanism to determine causes, consequences and identify
>>perpetrators with the view to ensure that justice is done and is seen to
>>be
>>done. The nation needed to draw lessons from happenings in order to
>>repulse
>>the onslaught of tyranny.
>>
>>Accusing fingers were pointed at the government for failing to handle the
>>minor factor which developed quantitatively to give rise to a major
>>catastrophe. Furthermore, the government was accused of murdering innocent
>>school children. This left the government with the option of accepting
>>guilt
>>or pleading innocence.
>>  You declared one week of mourning during which all flags in the country
>>were to be flown half mast in memory and respect for the dead. Just voices
>>called for the employment of internationally acceptable standards to look
>>into the events with a  view to establishing the facts which should inform
>>national policy.
>>A coroner's inquestwas  instituted to determine causes of death because of
>>the divergence  of opinions  between the mass of the people and the
>>government. A commission of inquiry was also established to look into the
>>causes of the breakdown of public order, determine the extent to which
>>individuals or groups contributed to it, assess the losses and make
>>recommendations to prevent any recurrence.The Chief Justice who is the
>>occupier of the highest judicial seat in the land became chairperson of
>>the
>>commission.
>>The master of the supreme court sat as coroner. Many people questioned
>>whether  the coroner and the commissioners would actually come up with
>>anything tangible.
>>
>>Putting their integrity above everything else the coroner and the members
>>of
>>the commission conducted their inquiries before the public eye. The radio
>>stations gave summaries of proceedings, thus leading the public to have
>>some
>>confidence in such experiences even though they were still sceptical of
>>the
>>final findings of the commission.
>>
>>We are yet to receive the report of the coroner and commission of inquiry.
>>The statement of the government did reveal the verdict of the coroner and
>>the recommendation of the commission of inquiry. After strenuous work, the
>>coroner stated in no uncertain terms that Baboucarr Badjie, Wuyeh Fode
>>Mansally, Momodou Lamin Njie, Calisco Prera, Karamo Barrow, Reginald
>>Carrol,
>>Omar Barrow, Momodou Lamin Chune, Lamin Bojang, Ousman Sabally and an
>>unknown male teenager died of gun shot wounds. The coroner put special
>>emphasis on his conviction that all the deaths attributed to gun shot
>>wounds
>>were caused by live bullets. This clear cut conclusion provided answers to
>>the most insistent demands for the causes of death of the students to be
>>ascertained. It is therefore extremely ironical that the government would
>>conclude that the coroner did not state any opinion as to the commission
>>or
>>non commission of a crime or crimes by any persons known or unknown. It is
>>equally incomprehensible to note that the government does not agree with
>>all
>>the recommendations of the commission of inquiry and the coroner's report.
>>It does not need high grade sincerity to acknowledge that death by live
>>bullets confirms that crimes have been committed. To disregard this fact
>>constitutes a merciless disregard of objectivity.
>>
>>Suffice it to say, the report of the government did refer to the
>>recommendations of the commission of inquiry, which call for the
>>authorities
>>on the ground at Kanifing on the 10th April, 2000 to accept responsibility
>>of what happened and the personnel deployed on the 10th April between GTTI
>>and West Field Junction to assume responsibility for the deaths and
>>injuries
>>that occurred as a result of gun shots. Those who fired guns at the
>>direction of the students at Saint Augustine Senior School or forcefully
>>entered into the school were also to accept responsibility
>>
>>The commission, is reported to have identified the persons to be held
>>responsible for the deaths and injuries suffered by victims at Brikama Ba
>>on
>>the 11 April, 2000. It  indicated those responsible for the inhumane
>>treatment of some citizens at Brikama Ba. The government, however, did not
>>only reject the conclusions or the recommendations of the commission but
>>went further to abandon facts and embrace fiction by questioning the very
>>integrity of the commission of inquiry by asserting that ''the fundamental
>>point is that the commission did not inquire into the causes of break down
>>of public  order on 10 and 11 April 2000.
>>
>>The government went further to invent its own notion by disregarding the
>>invaluable treasury of evidence accumulated by the commission and tried to
>>give the impression that the causes of the breakdown of public order was
>>as
>>a result of ''a well planned and well executed operation.'' In few words,
>>the government has invented a conspiracy theory without exposing the
>>conspirators. In short, it wants the public to disregard the facts
>>established by the commission and embraced its unsubstantiated inventions.
>>This constitutes an insult to the intelligencce of the people.
>>
>>We totally reject the insinuation of the government that the commission of
>>inquiry has not done its work properly and that the government is more
>>competent to explain the causes of the break down of public order. We
>>consider the dismissing of the argument of the commission by the
>>government
>>as an arrogant display of monarchical inclination. This is borne out by
>>the
>>fact that the government has shown through its statement that it is the
>>prosecutor and judge at the same time.
>>
>>What is absolutely clear to us is that the commission gave details based
>>on
>>the evidence presented to it. The government officials had all the
>>latitude
>>to appear before the commission to present any evidence that is now being
>>concocted in the report without going through the rigorous process of an
>>inquiry. We must say without any fear of exaggeration that by making
>>attempts to juxta pose its own unsubstantiated allegation of a ''well
>>planned and well executed'' conspiracy with the substantiated report of
>>the
>>commission, it has simply indicted itself of having the motive to escape
>>responsibility by twisting the interpretation of facts derived from a
>>commission of inquiry. Instead of putting the integrity of the coroner and
>>the members of the commission of inquiry into question, the government has
>>put its own integrity into question. The question now arises: How should
>>we
>>interpret the attitude of the government? Should we say that the holding
>>of
>>a coroner's inquest and commission of inquiry were futile? That would be
>>anaive conclusion. The purpose of the inquiry has been achieved. The
>>inquiries have given what would have constituted as hear say evidence or
>>speculations legal content. No one has any doubt that the students who
>>died
>>of gun shots were killed by live bullets. That is an established fact. All
>>the circumstantial evidence surrounding their deaths have been
>>established.
>>Without a coroner's inquest or a commission of inquiry, such evidences
>>would
>>not have been established. The inquiries and inquest therefore have done
>>what is reasonable and justifiable in a democratic society. The Gambian
>>people wanted to know how the deaths occurred and they know how they
>>occurred. This is the first fundamental point. History shall therefore
>>absolve the coroner and the members of the commission for performing their
>>duty to the best of their ability without fear or favour, affection or ill
>>will. This is how standards are built in a country.
>>
>>On the other hand, it is the responsibility of the president to review the
>>recommendations of the commission. Government authorities are responsible
>>for the security measures that created the blunders  In that respect the
>>government must accept full responsibility for the deaths and injuries  of
>>the unarmed students. When the incident occurred, it is the same
>>government
>>which indicated that full inquiries would be made to get to the truth of
>>the
>>matter. It is in fact timely to publish the letter addressed to FOROYAA
>>from
>>the Secretary General's Office of the President in a reply to our letter
>>of
>>11 April 2000 calling on the government to stop making allegations and
>>conduct investigations, so that the Gambian people would know the causes
>>of
>>the deaths. Their  letter  reads:
>>
>>''I am directed to acknowledge receipt of your letter of 11th April 2000,
>>sent to His Excellency, The president of the Republic of The Gambia, which
>>he received with much interest and appreciation.
>>
>>His Excellency has asked me to convey his gratitude to FOROYAA through you
>>for the sincere concern about the unfortunate incident of the 10th April
>>2000.
>>
>>It is of interest to note that the whole episode is regrettable to say the
>>least. However, it requires objective and balanced analysis, since nobody
>>except those involved could tell the true story.
>>President Jammeh however, has the singular desire to reassure you that a
>>full investigation is underway after which a course or action would be
>>charted.
>>
>>While further expressing His Excellency's sincere commitment and desire to
>>find out the truth, and work hard for peace, stability and development,
>>for
>>the Gambia and Africa as a whole, please accept Mr. Sallah, the assurance
>>of
>>my highest consideration.''
>>
>>It now constitutes an irony that a government which claimed that it did
>>not
>>know the whole story and gave assurance that it would conduct an
>>investigation to get to the truth would now make such pretentious remarks
>>as
>>to give the impression that it knows more than what the commission knew.
>>This is absurd. However, it is left to the government to deal with its own
>>contradictory posture. The Gambian people have the authority to determine
>>the future of any government. By the action of every government, it shall
>>be
>>judged. The butchery of innocent students with impunity is not a record
>>that
>>any government could be proud of. History will indict any government with
>>such a record.
>>
>>Suffice it to say, many people are developing the opinion that the
>>disregarding of the recommendations of the commission amounts to granting
>>soldiers licence to be trigger happy. They recalled two shootings which
>>resulted in deaths at border check point near Omorto. It is therefore
>>important to deal with such fears. It is important to caution the members
>>of
>>the security forces to realise that soldiers are fed and armed by the tax
>>money of the people. No army can perform its duty to protect a country and
>>her people by becoming oppressors and killers of those same people.
>>Soldiers
>>need the people for their own survival and protection. Armies opposed by
>>their people disintegrate like chaff in wind. Where are the strong armies
>>established by Menghistu and Mobutu? They have all disintegrated and
>>replaced by new armies. No National Army can be kept together when a
>>country
>>disintegrates. Strong, patriotic and lasting armies are those committed to
>>the service of the people. Soldiers who are one with the people become
>>protected by them. Sankara has always called on soldiers not to be
>>oppressors and killers of their people. We dare say that a soldier without
>>respect and love for the people becomes a hired mercenaries who kills just
>>for money or to maintain a position. Gambian soldiers must not allow
>>themselves to become mercenaries in their own country, among their own
>>people. They must be able to distinguish lawful order from an unlawful
>>order.
>>It is necessary for Gambian soldiers to realise that the world has changed
>>and International criminal courts are developing which lead to external
>>prosecution for crimes against humanity such as mass murders against
>>unarmed
>>civilians.
>>
>>To conclude, let us emphasise that the Gambian people should not feel
>>helpless. They must kept in mind that Governments come and go; that they
>>the
>>people are the final judges as to which government is to stay or go.
>>Governments therefore disregard what is reasonable and justifiable in a
>>democratic society at their own peril. Those who have no regard for the
>>type
>>of history they leave behind cannot be absolved by history. The government
>>has put itself in real trouble with the Human Rights Community. A truth
>>and
>>reconciliation approach where killers would confess and ask for
>>forgiveness
>>from parents plus compensation was one way forward. Disregarding the
>>commission's recommendations only keeps alive national and international
>>outcry. This is the verdict of history and it is irrevocable.
>>
>>
>>Your Faithfully,
>>
>>
>>.............................
>>For the Central Committee.
>>
>
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