CEPRASS: MOST GAMBIANS PREFER RECONCILIATION OVER PROSECUTING JAMMEH-ERA CRIMES
A majority of Gambians say the country should prioritise reconciliation over criminal prosecutions for crimes committed during Yahya Jammeh’s 22-year rule, according to a new nationwide survey by the Centre for Policy, Research and Strategic Studies (CepRass).
The finding published last week, reveals a deep split between public sentiment, international legal obligations, and the demands of victims’ associations, and it sets up a political test for the Barrow administration as it decides how to implement the Truth, Reconciliation and Reparations Commission (TRRC) recommendations.
CepRass asked respondents which approach the government should take toward Jammeh-era crimes: criminal prosecution of perpetrators, a reconciliation process focused on truth and reparations, or a mix of both.
A majority chose reconciliation as the primary path. Prosecution-only was the preference of a minority. A smaller group supported a mixed approach with prosecutions for “the most serious cases” and reconciliation for others.
The preference for reconciliation was strongest among respondents.
According to the poll, nationally, 44% of respondents favour reconciliation, 16% support prosecution, and 40% prefer a combination of both approaches.
When it comes to gender differences, both men and women showed similar distributions. Regionally, however, preferences vary. Kuntaur shows the strongest preference for reconciliation (63%), while
Banjul and Kanifing show higher support for a combined approach (60% and 51% respectively).
Reacting to the poll, a Swiss based Gambian social commentator Lamin Sanneh said reconciliation and prosecution are not alternatives.
“You reconcile after justice, not instead of it,” Sanneh said. “Asking victims to choose is cruel. The state has a duty to prosecute. The victims have a right to reparations. Both must happen.”
The TRRC submitted its final report in November 2021 with over 260 recommendations. It named 69 individuals as bearing the greatest responsibility for human rights violations and recommended prosecution. It also recommended a reparations program, institutional reforms, and memorialisation.
The government issued a White Paper in May 2022 accepting most recommendations in principle. Since then, a Special Prosecutor’s Office and a Special Criminal Division of the High Court have been established on paper. In practice, no high-level Jammeh-era trial has started in The Gambia. Jammeh remains in exile in Equatorial Guinea. A few “Junglers” have been convicted abroad under universal jurisdiction.
Source: The Standard
