By Sulayman Shyngle Nyassi
I wish never-ever to remember this day but hence we as humans are blessed with the ability to store data of memories in our brains, Gambians and the rest of the world will never forgot what transpired on the 10th-11th of April, 2000 and nor shall we rest until justice is seen to take it’s course for that matter.
It is 14 years today, when our unarmed and defenseless future leaders were brutally gunned down by the notorious “trigger happy” Military and police of the Gambian State. The Security officers fired indiscriminately on us as we protest against the killing of our colleague ” Ebrima Barry” and the sexual attack on another student by one of “PIU” personnel who was on duties at the Stadium during an inter-school competition.
Although it is still fresh in our minds and is indeed heartbreaking to reflect back on that horrific event that shook every human being with conscience, we as a nation will stop at nothing in seeking for justice for all those who lost their young lives to the “day-light murderers” who pulled the trigger on us,in defense of their barbarity.
The story is nothing new and over the years, many have constantly been expressing their grieve and frustration with the fact that, up to date, their killers are still roaming the streets of “Banjul” freely and many are still serving the same Government that should have ensured that they are all held accountable for their crimes thus make me believe that, there is more to the story and those who gave the orders for the security personnel’s to shoot and kill us are in fact equally responsible and as a result, the victims and their respective families are yet to be served with justice as expected in any minor case but more so of a serious case of this magnitude.
It can be recalled that the Jammeh administration conducted an inquiry into the day-light killing of our brothers, sisters, sons, and daughters in uniform and they came conceded in their report which was delivered by the commission of inquiry that, the “security personals” were in fact, fully responsible for all the killings and yet, none were brought to book and none of the victim’s families are yet to be compensated by the regime and to make matters even worst than it is, we are not allowed to morn let alone to pay our respects to our colleagues who lost their precious lives on that day.
Thinking of it all, one cannot help but to ask the following questions as to why is the APRC Government still reluctant to bring those responsible of committing such heinous crimes against innocent children to book? Doesn’t it mean that the order may have actually came from the top as revealed by those who spill the beans years down the lane? Why the silence on the issue which still traumatizes us and caused a lot of heart ache to an entire nation? Why are the families of the victims not allowed to mourn for their lost? Why are they not been compensated 14 years on?
As a living witness, I am very much convinced of the revelations made by the then Minister of Foreign Affair “Dr. Lamin Sedat Jobe”, who once revealed that, he was in Cuba at the time with the president when we took onto the streets and he vividly remembered the exact words he uttered in a phone conversation he had with his men on the ground, who informed him that the student were out on the streets and threatening to bring down his government.
He went on to repeat his exact words which I rather not repeat out of pain and misery. Dr Jobe asserted that, the order to kill us came from the President himself and given the sequences of events that followed up-to- date, I happen to be convinced of his revelations because otherwise, Justice would have prevailed time ago and we as a nation would’ve long started the healing process but as the saying goes,”Justice delayed-Is justice denied”.
Therefore, our traumatic experience and memories of sadness will forever be fresh in our minds until such time that their killers are brought before a competent court of law to be prosecuted and the families of all the victims be compensated by the State.
It is an obligation, a moral duty and our responsibility as nation to ensure that, the lives of our unsung heroes will not, should not and cannot go in vain nor shall we rest while their killers are working scout-free in our streets. Many, including myself suggested that, a monument should and must be erected in honor of the memories of our unsung heroes and that, their names be carved in golden platinum at west-field roundabout.
In conclusion, I will seize this opportunity to call on the Jammeh administration to revisit the report of the commission and ensure that those found wanting are held responsible and all the families of the victims be compensated as expected of any decent government of this 21st century but failure to do so will only go against them forever, until such time that justice will finally prevail in this matter.
As people of one nation, on a day like today, we stand in solidarity with all the families of the victims of 10th-11th April 2000, in seeking for justice and we shall continue to demand for justice until their killers are brought to book, sooner or later, by the grace of the Almighty.
Oh Allah “SWT” do please grant the souls of our fallen heroes and that of all the dead an eternal peace and let them all be in one of the highest of places in Jannatul Firdaws. Ameeen Ya Rabbi..
Your Humble Servant
Sulayman Shyngle Nyassi/UK