CSAG confirms execution of nine death row inmates
Press Release
August
24, 2012
The Civil Society Associations
Gambia (CSAG) can confirm that nine (9) death row inmates at the Mile Two
Central Prisons were executed between the night of August 23 and the morning of
August 24, 2012.
The nine, including two Senegalese
nationals are:
1.
Lamin
B. Darboe
2.
Alieu Bah
3.
Lamin Jarju
4.
Dawda Bojang
6.
Abdoulie Sonko
7.
Lamin F Jammeh
8.
Gibril
Bah (Senegalese)
9.
Tabara
Samba (Senegalese, female)
It is still unclear exactly which location
the executions took place in and what method of execution was used. What is however clear is that inmates were
rounded up at 9.30 pm Thursday August 23 and that by the morning of August 24,
the bodies were actually lying in the Mile Two Prison yard. It is also confirmed that the
families of the Death Row Inmates are yet to be contacted.
Many family members are contacting
rights groups to intervene for fear that their husbands will be part of the
group to be executed tonight or that they have actually already been executed.
CSAG views the secret executions as
inhumane and cruel, and demands that President Yahya Jammeh and his brutal
regime put an immediate stop to this wanton disregard for human life.
It can be recalled that last Sunday,
August 20, President Yahya Jammeh threatened to execute death row inmates in
Mile Two Central Prison. His remarks prompted an international uproar and CSAG
in collaboration with Amnesty International, RADDHO and other rights
organizations around the world demanded that Yahya Jammeh rescind his threats.
Since and despite statements from the
African Union, ECOWAS, the French government, Nigeria’s President Jonathan
Goodluck, and rights groups, expressing dismay at his announcement, President Yahya
Jammeh has started the unthinkable by actually executing nine (9) death row
inmates.
CSAG is once again calling on the
Senegalese, Malian, Nigerian and Guinea Bissau authorities to stand by their
nationals and do what is right by them. All the necessary arrangements must be
made to save the lives of these individuals.
We also call on the Senegalese
authorities to do whatever it takes to ensure that The Gambia Government throws
light on the executions of its two nationals Tabara Samba and Gibril Bah.
We call on all Gambians in
particular the families of the death row inmates, religious and political
leaders, human rights groups, journalists and the legal fraternity to stand up
together and say “ENOUGH is ENOUGH”.
All Gambians must do something in
our little way to ensure that the necessary actions are taken to ensure that
our blood thirsty dictator does not get away with MURDER.
May the souls of the unfairly
executed rest in perfect peace, Amen.
CSAG
Executive
[i] Abubacarr YARBO did not feature in the CSAG release (list) of
August 22 as our prison source only found him (actually sick and abandoned)
late yesterday afternoon.
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