(JollofNews) – Barely three weeks after an international campaign was launched in
Banjul to bring ex-Gambian dictator and his acolytes to justice, pressure continues to mount on Gambian authorities to act against perpetratrors of human rights abuses during the 22-year rule by the former regime.
“We must do something for the victims. What we are doing should be in line with the interests of the victims,” Gambia’s Vice-President Fatoumata Tambajang told a group of victims on Wednesday in an attempt to renew Gambia government support in their quest for justice.
The Gambia Center for Victims of Human Rights Abuses is pushing forward on all fronts to make sure that justice will prevail on the heinous crimes committed by Yahya Jammeh and his clique.The Kotu-based
non-profit organisation is providing advocacy of human rights violations as the country is emerging from a long night of arbitrary arrests, enforced disappearances and extra-judicial killings. Justice seems to be the leitmotiv for the campaigners led by Dr. Amadou Scattred Janneh, a former prisoner of conscience.
VP Tambajang said we are all victims, and made it clear that Gambians are still confronted with a psychological trauma. She then added that the victims need counselling to overcome their trauma.
“We shall survived by God grace. Those who have witnessed atrocities must come forward and tell their stories. The center is a catalyst,” she added.
Speaking to Jollofnews shortly after addressing victims, Fatoumata Tambajang said government is coping with the rising demands for justice and the push for reconciliation.
“The task is enormous. It requires a lot of resources, and we did not find anything in State coffers,” she said.
As the country is enjoying a new democratic dispensation, Tambajang reiterated the new regime commitment to pursue the reforms that have been initiated in various areas, including security, social justice, judiciary.
“We are going to pursue these reforms to the last, in a very democratic way.”
Concerning the campaign to bring to book Yahya Jammeh and his accomplices, the country’s second in command said government cannot make any pronouncement as the National Assembly is the only legal system mandated to do so. But she was quick to add: “We support the
cause to bring to justice Jammeh and all his associates. We are estblishing very soon a Truth, Reconciliation and Reparation Commission (TRRC).
Speaking earlier, Baboucarr Njie, an adviser to the center for victims, disclosed the broader efforts being put up by the center to
address victims needs including medical assistance.
Victims from fferent walks of life narrated their ordeal, plunging the audience into the abyss of Yahya Jammeh’s tyranny. They all called for ex-dictator Jammeh to face the heat of justice.
