Incarcerated Gambian opposition leader, Ousainou Darboe, has lashed out at the Gambian authorities for political repression and deplorable conditions in the country’s prisons saying inmates were even denied access to the Koran and “homemade food” during the Muslim holy month of Ramadan.
In a letter from prison to mark the Eid al-Fitr on Thursday, Darboe, who is the leader of the United Democratic Party (UDP), wrote: “First we were denied access to the Holy Koran, the reading of which in the just concluded Holy month bestows great reward. Then our captors up-scaled the toughened prison regime by denying us access to the mosque making it impossible to take part in congressional prayers.”
He said in the later part of Ramadan, “we were also denied homemade food contrary to prison rules and regulations”.
Darboe and several opposition leaders were arrested on April 16, 2016 and charged with unlawful assembly, rioting, incitement of violence, riotously interfering with vehicles, holding a procession without a permit and disobeying an order to disperse from an unlawful and conspiracy.
Their arrest came two days after the arrest of Ebrima Solo Sandeng, organising secretary of the UDP, with others after he organized a peaceful a protest at Westfield Junction, Serekunda. The protesters were demanding electoral reforms ahead of December 1, 2016 presidential election in the West African nation. It was later confirmed that Sandeng died in detention.
Darboe noted in the letter that he had over the years sent out messages during the Muslim festival from his home, but this year, “for circumstances beyond me but for which I have no regrets, I am conditioned to send you Eid greetings from the dungeons of my prison cell”.
The letter said the past 30 days of the Holy month of Ramadan were an immense source of divine fulfillment for him and the rest of his compatriots who endured tests and challenges as they went through an important commandment of the Muslim faith.
However, he said, notwithstanding all these injustices he and his compatriots had endured as well as the rest of their youth supporters who had been incarcerated they remained resolute and committed in their firm resolve that The Gambia as a country deserved better.
“The past three months have offered me in particular, a profound opportunity to live and come to terms with the tragedy of state sanctioned lawlessness where many young people are still languishing in jail. Some have spent years in remand on trumped-up charges.
“Others continue to spend more than necessary of their precocious youthful years under an offensive, exploitative prison system not knowing when their cases will be heard.”
Human rights groups have criticized the authorities in the Gambia for the arrest of opposition members and demanded their release.
Photo credit: Freedom Newspaper
