HASSAN JALLOW LAUNCHES HIS BOOK: JOURNEY FOR JUSTICE IN ATLANTA, GEORGIA LABOR DAY WEEKEND.
As the old adage goes, where there is no justice, there will never be peace. Since the Gambia got its Independence from the British in 1965, under a questionable future – dubbed as the improbable nation, its viability was a concern to the international community, including the British. Justice or the “Journey for Justice” has been a critical component to the socio-political-economical evolution for this newly independent nation. Hassan Jallow, hailed from a religious family in the small village of Bansang was the Minister of Justice and Attorney General during a critical period of the Jawara government. There are lots of questions that most Gambians have as to the evolution of rule of law and justice in the Gambia, and in his book, Hassan Jallow has shed light to lots of issues and questions:
- In the eighties and early nineties, at the height of the political jockeying within the PPP players, Hassan Jallow was rumored to be prepared to replace Sir Dawda. Was this just a rumor?
- What happen in July 1994 when young soldiers high jacked the constitution, and forever changed the political landscape of the Gambia? How did it happen, and what role or lack thereof has the Minister of justice played. There were rumors that the Minister of Justice was offered to continue as the Justice Minister, was this true or just a rumor?
- There have been finger pointing that the PPP Government is responsible for the creation of the Jammeh/APRC rise to power. Is this a fair characterization of the PPP government?
- There has also been accusation that the PPP government not only over stayed, but the rule of law and justice, especially during the 1981 abortive coup of Kukoi Samba Sanyang was at its lowest, and undermined the touted reputation of the Jawara government as a government committed to the rule of law and justice. Is this a fair categorization?
- What actually happen at the meeting in Mansakonko when president Jawara made his announcement to step down as the leader of the PPP?
- What is the real story behind the Senegambia Confederation?
- Finally, what does the future holds as to the Gambia’s journey for justice?
Hassan Jallow, Minister of Justice under the Jawara government from 1984 to 1994, currently is the Chief Prosecutor of the UN International Criminal Tribunal for Rwanda (UNICTR), and Chief Prosecutor of the UN International Residual Mechanism for Criminal Tribunals (UNMICT), will be in Atlanta, Georgia, this labor day weekend to launch his book and have a conversation with Gambians in the Diaspora. As we continue to seek and aspire for change in the Gambia, it is important to have these conversations with people who were there, and together we will find the pathway for peace, prosperity and justice in the Gambia. Labor Day in Atlanta this year will be a memorable one indeed.
Date: September 1, 2013, Time: 7PM To 8:30PM
Venue: Bukun Events Center, 320 Six Flags Drive – Suite 125, Austell, GA 30168
Contacts: Banka Manneh: 678-457-8777, Musa Jeng: 404-824-0219, Sigga Jagne: 502-319-3767