Lawyers the world over are considered officers of the court  and for good
reason too. They are expected to ply their trade within the framework of law
as prescribed by the societies they live in. They are expected to help us
navigate the sometimes intricate rules that guides society from slipping into
anarchy by upholding critical rights such as liberty, equal protection under
the law and the overall jurisprudence that binds modern day nations.That is
why in almost every nation be it a mature democracy like the US or troubled
nations like Indonesia, lawyers and professional associations affliated with
them are at the forefront of battles to ensure basic rights of their  people
are not trampled, threatened or outrightly violated. To be sure it is usually
not a glamorous undertaking in that challenging authority particularly a
ruthless tyranny entails an element of risk sometimes to the very well being
of the complainant. I believe what drives crusading lawyers apart from their
acute sense of what is right is the specter  of having to live in nation with
a wretched legal system that strives on repression and violates the rights of
the very people to whom the country belongs. Afterall if the people with the
greatest knowledge of the law choose to feed off an odious legal atmosphere
rather than seek to correct it, then the rest of the population with far less
knowledge or clout are essentially doomed to living under the whims and
mechanisations of whatever passes itself as their leaders.
That is why with a few exceptions I think Gambian lawyers either individually
or as a professional organisation  ought to bury their faces in utter
disgrace for choosing to play by a flawed legal system  rather than standing
up what is right if not for the helpless people of Gambia , at least live by
their own professional ethics. Unconstitutional decrees, arbitrary arrests,
torture, judicial interference by the executive, murder  none of these seem
sufficient to raise the ire  of either the bar as an organisation or private
lawyers. Not even a non binding resolution expressing concern!  You would
think their would be  a special  panel within the bar looking into human
rights and expressing public outrage in instances they determine egregious
violations. Newspapers who have endured significant repression try to do
their best to stand true to their profession by not only reporting events but
staking positions in cases where it is warranted. Even professional business
and medical associations make made their positions known in cases where the
government is advancing one kooky idea or another that affects them . They
may not be able to stop the government on it's determined path to ruin the
nation, but by God the rest  of us know and will always remember they have
tried. After all list members, what is an education, experience  or an
ossociation worth if it is not garnered to make a difference. What is the
real purpose of the bar ? I think working for the preeminence of the rule of
law would be a good start. After all we are now experiencing  a real macabre
circumstance in which Yahya Jammeh's Attorney General is presiding over a
seminar on Human Rights! A lady who is routinely signing off on illegal
prosecutions of innocent people and covering up government wrongdoing .
Individual lawyers and the Bar association must wean themselves from their
unhealthy tolerance of Yahya Jammeh and his governments abrogation of the
rights of the Gambian people. If the US government can put together a 15 page
document detailing what is rotten with this government , you the good sons
and daugthers of Gambia who by dint of your profession have chosen to be
officers have to stand up for what is right. You owe it to yourselves, your
profession and most of all  the country you live in and one you hope to
bequeath to future generations. Your tack so far has enabled a third rate
tyrant like Yahya Jammeh to literally enslave a good and proud people.

Karamba

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