Gambian leader has once again been humiliated and holed up in his hotel in Washington D.C. for more than 18 hours by protesting activists who denied him the opportunity to participate in the first US-Africa Summit hosted by President Barack Obama. None of President Yahya Jammeh’s delegates, including the Secretary General Dr. Kalilu Bayo, dare left the hotel.
Activists, who blame their country’s dictator for continuously denying Gambians their constitutional rights and freedoms as well as persecute them, started converging on Washington, D.C. at 6:30 in the morning.
Determined activists have been blocking Mr. Jammeh’s hotel, chanting slogans “Yahya is a murderer, Yahya is a rapist, Yahya must go, USA must not reward tyranny in the Gambia with military aid .” Numerous attempts by Metropolitan police to relocate the crowd of protesters were met with resistance. Activists stood their grounds, saying “that will be a victory for the dictator.” The man who claims personal ownership of the Gambia fears to come out of hiding because he fears being “booed and yelled at.”
Alkali Conteh, who led an eleven-man delegation from Raleigh, North Carolina, described the protest against Yahya Jammeh a “huge success.” Mr. Conteh hopes this will teach the Gambian dictator an “unforgettable lesson.”
Ends
I was a bit shocked to hear some very notable and prominent activists shouting profanities at Jammeh’s delegation, but I guess their behaviour could be forgiven, given the circumstances and impact the demonstration had…
It is good that Yaya Jammeh is given another taste of Democratic Ingredient at work:Freedom of Assembly and (of) Speech….
Jammeh’s delegation cannot say that they didn’t expect a hostile reception from Gambian dissidents, after the UN experience in New York, which makes it all the more baffling why his officials would convince him to visit America,without laying the ground for suspension of dissidents’ activities prior to a meeting with them…
Is it incompetence, (Jammeh’s) stubbornness or amateurism in diplomacy…Either way,Jammeh must realise that his hard line and so called “uncompromising” approach can only “work” in.The Gambia…Outside of The Gambia, especially in the West/US, he has to adopt a different approach or he will continue to be humiliated by his fellow citizens wherever he appears. ..
I.hope the lessons have been.learnt…
It is interesting you pointed out that Jammeh felt it necessary to go to US this time regardless of the earlier hostile reception he received from the Gambian community. However governments sometime know what the rest of us do not. It must be that Jammeh smelled money from this trip which made it too enticing for the greedy fool to ignore. Now that it has been revealed that the US has on offer as much as $33 billion for African leaders, Jammeh must have thought that only going to the Washington would enable him obtain a decent share of this cake.
Also worth noting is the news of the half hearted attempt by his so called supporters,to stage a counter demonstration in his support…
The fact that they abandoned their “great leader”,even before the going gets tough,should get Jammeh’s “alarm bells” ringing instantly….
He should realise that these so called supporters, who sing his praises and shower him with endless adorations wherever they meet him, thus “pushing” him to believe in this false sense of invincibility about himself, are not genuine and will abandon him the moment the tide turns against him…
How many times has he been reminded of the fates of those crowd pullers before him…Like Mobutu, Amin, Saddam, Gaddafi, etc.?
Unless he changes direction, a similar fate may await him and it would.have been his own making…Because the signs are all.too evident for anyone with sense. ..
Let the ungodly evil hypocrites pro dictator Jammeh supporters come out of the closet and then try to organize their protest. They will be exposed by Gambians and humiliated with very shameful counter anti dictator jammeh protesters. This is America, a land of rule of laws for all. Gambia is currently hijack by brutual monster dictator jammeh with zero rule of laws, illegal arrest, tortures, disappearances, raping, and etc. Enough is enough, we are sick and tired of monster dictator jammeh. Please convey this message to Fatou Camara that let her pursue legal action against monster’s bodyguard SARJO JARJU and any financial issue that will bar her from pursuing it.I will solely be responsible for it upon request.
Jammeh is used to threatening and using profanities against our people. In fact he never calls people by name in his leisure times, he always uses words like “DOMIHARAM or JANGKADING.
jammeh’s goal is clear to all and sundry; stay in power, amass money and hide it in offshore accounts; eliminate all opposition, freedom of press, domestic protesters. Also paint giant of his face in public squares and arenas and erect statues of himself with his arm raised all over Gambia.
Though small these protest do humiliate him because he is not used to being questioned, I bet these protest do humble him and makes him realize that the nonsense he peddles will only be tolerated in small Gambia.
Bravo
Bax, these guys were hired to counter demonstration for Jammeh. They found out the other side was doing it simply for the love The Gambia and it’s people. They were standing looking like lost animals ready to slaughter. There were only 7 people in the group and they all disappeared after 2 hours. I was so proud that Gambians are not afraid anymore of Yaya Jammeh and are ready to take him down. Next time we will cut him into pieces.
my question is , apart from the humiliation jammeh encountered, what were the goals of the demonstration and were they achieved. I personally and I believe many Gambians totally disagree with violence and instigators of violence. these demos will certainly not remove jammeh. in my humble opinion he will grip on to power more and that is a catastrophe for the gambia. I am very worried about the gambia. it seems we are heading for a civil war. I hope that never happen because it will be very bloody.
I think Gambians in the diaspora should be mobilized and support one political party to remove jammeh in 2016. he is a lame dock now and lets take advantage of it in 2016.
I think Fatou Camara has no case against the culprit. she was clearly the instigator. she should not have entered the hotel for provocation especially when it was clearly expressed in the media her intentions. have anyone had of the self defence rule.
What election Village Dummy? Yaya will always steal the elections because he controls the media, registration, counting of the votes and nominates the board that supervise the elections. What is left? In a free and fair elections, Yaya Jammeh as no change in winning an elections in the Gambia. During election time, Yaya will arrest, torture, prison and exile many Gambians use money to buy votes and register many non Gambians who are not eligible to vote. He will use the Alkalos, Seyfolu, village elders, and Governors to suppress voters who are likely to vote for the oppositions. There is no need for elections in the Gambia until Yaya is remove from power anybody who thinks that Yaya will conduct a free and fair elections is dreaming. If he is really sincere about having a free and fair election in the Gambia let him invite the UN and the ECOWAS to conduct the election. Allow all parties to campaign for 4 weeks before the elections then I will call that free and fair elections. Village boy you need to sit down and think because Yaya did not come through election and will not be remove through election. He even said it in his speeches. What is left now is to go after him period.