In July 2005, over 50 West African immigrants, dominated by 44 Ghanaians, were murdered in cold blood by a paramilitary squad constituted by the exiled Gambian president Yahya Jammeh.

The story of how these immigrants, who, according to credible reports, were just transiting through The Gambia to Europe via the sea, reached Europe remains one of the most heartbreaking stories in African history.

Listening to the tales of how they were arrested in Rambo style, tortured, killed, and packed like sardines in a mass grave will bring one to tears.

When the Yayha Jammeh government was ousted in 2017 and replaced with the democratically elected Adama Barrow administration, one of the biggest calls he made was to set up the Truth, Reconciliation and Reparations Commission.

The task of the commission was to probe the various human rights abuses that occurred during the 21-year reign of Yahya Jammeh. The commission officially began holding sittings on October 15, 2018.

Key among the issues were the killings of the 50 West African immigrants who were murdered on suspicion that they were mercenaries transported to the country to oust Jammeh.

The sittings of the commission were made public, and one of the soldiers involved, called Jungler Corporal Omar A. Jallow, gave chilling and heartbreaking details about how one Ghanaian was murdered.

“From when we picked them, I started engaging with him. I asked him if they were mercenaries and he said no and that they were Ghanaians immigrants going to Europe. Before he reached the ditch where he was going to be killed, he was having a 100 euro note.

“He told me that it’s not necessary for me to die with this. You’ve been nice to me since we took off from Banjul and you are going to live so take this. When we got to the ditch, he asked me to give him time to pray but I was ordered to finish him. By the time he knelt down to say his prayers, the shot had already been fired. I ate the 100 euros. It did bother me but I spent it.”

On the eve of Christmas 2019, the commission published its final report, in which it recommended dozens of prosecutions, including that of exiled Yahya Jammeh.



KPE