By Siray Touray (At Protest Ground In London)
26 January 2015
The day of Action Against the Unlawful Detention of relatives of alleged December 30th coup plotters
Following on the footsteps of Gambian activists in England, I attended the protest today, the 26 of January 2015 to voice out the displeasure at the arrest and unlawful detention of many Gambians in the aftermath of the 30th December foiled coup plot.
The Gambian government hasn’t still made any public declaration about the faith of the 30 plus civilians detained beyond the 72 hours constitutional limit. I have written in the past, calling on the Gambian dictator to resign and give peaceful change of power and transition possible for the 1.8 million law abiding and peace loving citizens.
The Jammeh administration is hell-bent on furthering the repressive style of government. Mr. Jammeh is not willing to learn bitter lessons on the loss of lives of four Gambians last year.
The political situation in the Gambia is constrained and the people are trapped in a situation where no other voice matters. Gambians resorted to affirmative action on December 30th, and it proved fatal for the brothers. Many people who have desperately been yearning for change call them ‘Heroes and Freedom Fighters who sacrificed their lives for our freedom’. As a people, we all know 20 years of one man rule has taken its toll on our conviction on seeing a regular change of government. As conscientious citizens of the Gambia, we have been forced to resort to voicing out our opinion in safe countries, so that the international community, and in particular the British law makers, can hear us loud and clear.
Our choice to protest at the West Minster parliament is to reiterate to the British authorities and MPs that the Gambia is still bleeding. The rule of law does not exist like it does in civilised countries. President Jammeh can decide to hold Gambians for months without fear of public outrage, yet the European Union and the United States maintain regular and normal diplomatic ties with the Gambia. This is our frustration and determination to protest at the parliament square in London.
We know that the Gambian embassy in London sends spies to look out for activists, however, people cannot be afraid in the Gambia, and be scared to voice out their opinion here in U.K. We call on the British MPs to look into the plight of Gambians and support activists and opposition parties in bringing the needed change Gambians are struggling to achieve all these years. Evidently, we cannot keep on protesting continuously if all goes well at home.
I am delighted to participate in the demonstration and voice out my opinion against the unlawful detention of the Gambian civilians and military officers, and also the continuous repressive human rights abuses in the Gambia.
I call on the Jammeh government to change its ways and dissolve the government, initiate an all-inclusive transitional government, which will surely heal the Gambia of the 20 years of pain and dictatorship. Our people have suffered far too long, unimaginable in a country known for being the bastion of everything good during the Jawara days.
Ends
Well done Maa Sister. Wonderful.