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Momodou
Denmark
11525 Posts |
 Posted - 26 Sep 2019 : 14:16:25
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Soldier admits shooting students to death and injuring others with live bullets in Brikamaba CRR South, on the 11th April 2000.
One Lance Corporal Abdou Njie who was at the time a soldier from Farafenni Barraks testified today at the TRRC and admitted the killing of two students Ousman Sabally and Sainey Nyabaly and injuring others in Brikamaba. He also admitted the turture of students and civilians.
Related Topic: Remember April 10 and 11, 2000 masacre
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A clear conscience fears no accusation - proverb from Sierra Leone |
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Momodou
Denmark
11525 Posts |
Posted - 27 Sep 2019 : 08:49:05
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Soldier Admits Killing Two, Injuring Several Others in Students’ Demonstration
Foroyaa: September 26, 2019
By Yankuba Jallow
https://foroyaa.gm/soldier-admits-killing-two-injuring-several-in-students-demonstration/
An erstwhile Lance Corporal of the Gambia Armed Forces (GAF) has admitted killing two and injuring several in Brikamaba during the April 2000 mass students’ demonstration.
Abdou Njie alias Giri appeared before the Truth, Reconciliation and Reparations Commission (TRRC) in connection to his participation in the killings, arrests and torture of several students during the students’ demonstration. The students demonstrated was precipitated by the Government’s failure to investigate into the death of one Ebrima Barry allegedly caused by torture by fire service officers and the alleged rape of Binta Manneh. Both Barry and Manneh were students.
The 49 – year – old said on the 10th April 2000, he was on duties at the Quick Reaction Force (QRF) at the Farafenni Barracks. He said they were assembled at a point and addressed by Captain Keita who briefed them about an ongoing strike in McCarthy (now Janjanbureh) and said they should go and quell the demonstration. He said Captain Keita issued them with two magazines of blank bullets amounting to 60 bullets. He said these blank bullets do not kill people.
“I had four magazines. If you put them together, I was having 120 bullets,” he said.
He said it was a standard procedure in the army that anyone on duties at the QRF would be issued 4 magazines amounting to 120 bullets. He said after completion of duties, the magazines were returned and the person signed.
“Every bullet is accounted for at the end of that soldier’s duty,” the witness said, adding that if a bullet is missing the soldier would have a problem.
He said those who were not at the QRF were issued both live ammunition and blanks.
He said at the time they were leaving, their commander ordered them to stop the students from destroying properties as it had happened in Serrekunda.
“We were told to protect the students and to prevent them from destroying properties,” the witness said.
He said when they arrived at Brikamaba, the station officer of the police station stopped their vehicle and five of them were asked to alight from the vehicle while the others proceeded with their Captain to McCarthy. He said the station officer told them that the students said they were going to kill the school principal and burn both GAMTEL and the police station. He said Corporal Lamin Camara was the leader and he was the second in command adding that they arrived in Brikamaba in the evening.
He said they went to the alkali of the village and informed him about their mission. He said they were going round the village and telling people about their mission.
“We were telling them that our mission was for peace,” he said.
He said early in the morning of the 11th April, the five of them went to the school with the intention of reaching the students. He said when the students saw them, some of them began running, but they called them back telling them that ‘we were here for you.’
He said a while later, two tractors carrying students came demanding for the release of their head boy and head girl. He added that the students were throwing stones at them.
“Our Corporal asked us to leave the school and while we were running to the police station, the students crowd became large and our Corporal ordered us to fire at them,” the witness said.
He said this was the time when he started shooting the students with the blank bullets.
“When I checked my blank and I realized that they are finished then I connected the live rounds. I was firing in the air and I later heard two people died,” he said.
“It was then I realized that I have killed people. I cannot remove myself from those who killed them, but I am telling you (the Commission) that I fired in the air. I did not shoot directly at the people; I was shooting into the air,” the witness said.
The witness said he was the one who killed Sainey Nyabally and Ousman Sabally and leaving seven injured.
“I agreed that I pointed the gun at them,” the witness admitted, after several questions by the Commission’s Lead Counsel told the witness that a bullet pointed into the air cannot kill people standing on the ground and injure 7 people.
He said the firing happened around the GAMTEL. He said the crowd of students was about five hundred (500) people. He said the students burnt tyres.
“The students were were stoning for a long time. They would have overcome us and that was why we used our weapons because we did not have options,” he said.
The witness told the Commission that no stone touched him.
“My blank was exhausted. Alieu Kambi’s blanks were exhausted and all of us there have our blanks were exhausted,” he said.
“I fired at the students on my own discretion,” he told the Commission after several follow up questions by Counsel Faal.
He said later in the day, there was reinforcement from Basse Barracks and they were conducting the arrest of students. He said they took them to McCarthy. He added that some of the arrested students were taken to the Brikamba Police Station. He denied having participated in the arrest of the students.
“I participated in the beating of the students at the (Brikamaba) police station. They were many – everyone who was brought to the police station was beaten by us,” he said.
He apologized and sought forgiveness from the families of the two students he had killed during the course of the scuffle.
He said he participated in the trampling of students on the hot tar road. He said those who participated were Paul J. Mendy, Lamin Camara, Alieu Kambi and other soldiers who came from Basse, adding that Corporal Camara did not participate in the torture of the students. He said they were acting on the orders of Lieutenant Baldeh from Basse Barracks.
“He (Baldeh) fired his pistol in the air and told his men to get them. His men chased the students and captured some of them,” he said.
He said captured students were taken to the police station and when the station couldn’t accommodate the students, it was the time Lieutenant Baldeh gave the order that they lie on the hot tar road awaiting to be transported to Janjanbureh.
“We were doing things on our own. The number of students who were asked to lie on the tar road were about 10,” he said.
He said he did not escort the students to Janjanbureh. He said village elders came to the stations and requested from their command that they should stay for a while. He said this was approved by their authorities and the villagers were providing them with food every day during their one month stay in Brikamaba.
About the Witness
Abdou Njie said he was born on the 15th August 1970 in Kerr Ardo in Badibou – North Bank Region.
He said he went to Njawara Primary School and proceeded to Kerewan Secondary school where he completed his schooling. He said he was enlisted in the Gambian National Army (GNA) in 1991. He said he did his military training in Farafenni and they completed their training in 1992 January. He said he spent 10 years before receiving his first promotion to the rank of Lance Corporal.
He said his nickname Giri was given to him by his school teachers because he was an athlete.
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A clear conscience fears no accusation - proverb from Sierra Leone |
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Momodou
Denmark
11525 Posts |
Posted - 02 Oct 2019 : 13:12:04
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Gorgi Mboob admits assaulting Ousman Sabally on April 10 demo
The Point: Tuesday, October 01, 2019
http://thepoint.gm/africa/gambia/article/gorgi-mboob-admits-assaulting-ousman-sabally-on-april-10-demo
The head of Anti Crime Unit of The Gambia Police Force, Gorgi Mboob, who testified before the Truth, Reconciliation and Reparations Commission (TRRC), on Monday admitted he had assaulted Mr. Ousman Sabally, a P.E. teacher at St. Augustine’s during the 2000 April 10/11 students’ demonstration in Banjul.
‘‘In the morning of April 10, 2000, RSM Kajali Jarju called us for general falling, where he briefed us that there was a demo going in Serrekunda. He told us that there was a need for an intelligence officer to go and investigate because he was informed that The Gambia High School was on the plan to demonstrate. Sgt. Manga went and came back running, saying they were coming. There, Kajali told us to report to the station.’’
Mboob explained that at the station, he found Commander Jai Sowe, the commanding officer of Banjul Division, who was armed with three weapons.
According to him, they were told to go on operation and as they reached the main road, they saw students coming toward the police, chanting: “We must kill the fire service officers.” He added that they fired their guns in the air to scare them and they all ran away.
‘‘When they went, we returned to the parade ground and we were told that we were now going for a patrol and we would be posted in different places in Banjul. I and 333 Njie were posted in Lie Joof’s compound at Tobacco Road. After 11 a.m., we decided to go back to the police station on foot. As we were moving, we decided to branch at St. Augustine’s, not knowing that there was confrontation between the students and the PIU officers. We backed-off and ran away from the territory.’’
The witness further stated that during that time they saw students chasing them and he jumped around Gambia High School.
‘‘There was a boy called Brikama who stoned and insulted me. Out of anger, I ran after him and he entered Saint Augustine’s High School, then Mr. Sabally wanted to stop me by opening his arms and I punched him and he withdrew. I hit him with my rifle, he fell and I kicked him multiple times. That was the time I saw students coming with full force and stoning at me. I ran for cover up from the PIU and proceeded to Polyclinic to show them my injuries and later reported my case to the police headquarters.’’
At this juncture, lead Counsel Essa Faal chipped in that the witness’s narration was a lie and that his testimony was incorrect and told him not to play game because he was at TRRC. He, however, admitted lying before the commission.
Reading from Inspector Darboe’s statement, lead Counsel Faal recalled that Darboe mentioned the security officers he was with whilst entering St. Augustine’s on April 10, 2000, adding that Darboe said Mboob was one of them. However, the witness said that the statement was a lie.
Further referring him to what Father Jarju, the former vice principal of St. Augustine’s gave to the Commission of Inquiry in 2000, which states that Mboob was with the PIU officers who attacked Saint Augustine’s School and assaulted Mr. Ousman Sabally. He replied, saying it was false.
He said when he was asked to answer to the commission, Sankung Badjie, the former deputy Inspector General of Police told him not to mention anybody’s name, instead to fabricate his testimony.
Witness apologised to Mr. Sabally for assaulting him which he knew was unlawful.
Author: Pa Modou Cham |
A clear conscience fears no accusation - proverb from Sierra Leone |
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April 11th, 2000: Soldier confess killing students
