GLers
Most people in The Gambia including those higher up the political 
food-chain will off-script liken the situation in the Gambia to that of 
a bunch of grade schoolers whose bus is hijacked by a very unstable, 
baseball-wielding fellow. The question is what do you do, and by  who?. 
Would any kid dare jump on top of this fellow? Would the police try to 
force the bus to crash? Who would be responsible for the many innocent 
lives that may be harmed? or do you allow the jolly-ride to continue 
until the bus runs out of juice or the guy gets worn out? In my opinion, 
ordinary Gambians just like the grade schoolers should not be encouraged 
to jump on him as someone would hurt. At the same time the police, in 
their desire to get it over with force the bus to crash. The only viable 
way forward is to negotiate. But then, who are those to negotiate and 
for what? If Gambians in the diaspora are to be equated to those outside 
the bus, we must then ask for many the Gambia democratic project leaders 
to come together and consult those who have the knowledge as to how to 
get everyone on the bus including the baseball-wielding fellow safely 
off the bus.


Malanding Jaiteh




[log in to unmask] wrote:
> All Gambians must take to the streets to express their utter disdain 
> for sanctioned criminality. Haruna. Witches, Wizards, sorcerers, 
> witch-hunters, and witch-doctors are all criminals. They have no place 
> in Gambian society. Controlled research and treatment in herbal 
> medicine is valuable science and ought to be institutionalized and 
> encouraged by the Secretary of state for health.
>
> Courtesy: BBC News.
>
>
>   Gambians 'taken by witch doctors'
>
> Witch doctor in Mozambique (file pic)
> Traditional healers, often called witch doctors, use ancient treatments
>
> *Up to 1,000 Gambian villagers have been abducted by "witch doctors" 
> to secret detention centres and forced to drink potions, a human 
> rights group says.*
> Amnesty International said some forced to drink the concoctions 
> developed kidney problems, and two had died.
> Officials in the police, army and the president's personal protection 
> guard had accompanied the "witch doctors" in the bizarre roundup, said 
> witnesses.
> Gambia's government was unavailable to comment on the claims.
> The human rights group asserted that many of those abducted were elderly.
> The London-based rights group said the witch hunters, said to be from 
> neighbouring Guinea, were invited into Gambia after the death of the 
> president's aunt earlier this year was blamed on witchcraft.
> Kate Allen, Amnesty's UK director, said hundreds of Gambians have fled 
> to neighbouring Senegal for safety after seeing their villages attacked.
> "The Gambian government has to put a stop to this campaign, 
> investigate these attacks immediately and bring those responsible to 
> justice," she said.
> *'Diarrhoea and vomiting'*
> Amnesty spoke to villagers who said they had been held for up to five 
> days and forced to drink unknown substances, which they said caused 
> them to hallucinate and behave erratically.
> 	
> *The paramilitary police armed with guns and shovels surrounded our 
> village and threatened that anyone who tries to escape will be buried 
> six feet under*
> Eyewitness
>
> Many said they were then forced to confess to being witches. In some 
> cases, they were also allegedly severely beaten, almost to the point 
> of death.
> Eyewitnesses and victims told Amnesty the "witch doctors" were from 
> neighbouring Guinea.
> As well as police, army and national intelligence agents, they were 
> also reportedly joined by "green boys" - personal protection guards of 
> Gambian President Yahya Jammeh.
> Amnesty said the incidents took place in the Foni Kansala district, 
> near to the president's hometown in Kanilai.
> In the most recent incident, said to have taken place on 9 March, 
> hundreds of people from Sintet village were allegedly rounded up.
> One eyewitness told the rights group: "The paramilitary police armed 
> with guns and shovels surrounded our village and threatened the 
> villagers that anyone who tries to escape will be buried six feet under."
> Three hundred men and women were allegedly randomly identified and 
> forced at gunpoint into waiting buses, which ferried them to Kanilai.
> Once there, they were stripped and forced to drink dirty herbal water 
> and were bathed with herbs, the eyewitness said.
> Many of those who drank the concoctions developed instant diarrhoea 
> and vomiting, the eyewitness added.
>
>
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