Investigators urged Gambia’s government to pursue criminal charges against those responsible for crimes committed under ex-dictator Yahya Jammeh, in a long-awaited reported handed to the president on Thursday.
Rights groups have long pushed for prosecutions for the litany of alleged abuses such as the use of death squads committed during Jammeh’s 22-year rule which ended in 2017.
The final report of the Truth, Reconciliation and Reparations Commission (TRRC) was originally scheduled for release in July but has been delayed several times.
Publishing the report is politically sensitive in the West African country, where Jammeh has significant support.
Many supporters are pushing for his return from exile. His influence has been a key issue in the run-up to a presidential election on December 4 — the first since the ex-dictator’s departure.
Jammeh addressed a campaign rally remotely this month, arguing that Barrow had “rigged” the 2016 elections. Barrow, for his part, sought an alliance with Jammeh’s APRC party in September — a move viewed by some as an electoral ploy.
Rights activists denounced the alliance, which also stirred fears that it could lead to Jammeh’s return. But Jammeh subsequently disavowed the electoral pact, which he said was taken without his knowledge, and his supporters have formed a rival party.
Source: Reuters
In other news – Maskandi artist Bonginkosi Mfanawepiki escapes death by a whisker
Maskand artist Bonginkosi “Bobo Mfanawepiki” Mhlongo narrowly escaped death on Sunday night, 21 November.
He was driving home from an event in Jeppestown, Joburg, when a speeding BMW crashed into his BMW in Tembisa, Ekurhuleni. Learn more
