Three
witnesses testified before the TRRC yesterday as regards to their arrests and
subsequent detentions at Mile 2 Central Prison. They recollected horrible
treatments meted on them in 1996 by members of the security forces of the
former president, Yahya Jammeh.
Alfusainey
Touray, a resident of Brikama who is based in the U.S., recalled his father
Karamo Touray was the Imam of Brikama at the time of mosque incident in
Brikama.
He
explained that the incident started after a group of young people intended to build
a fence at the Brikama Mosque, and during that discussion with elders of the
community, his father told them not to fence the place where elders use near
the mosque to wait for prayer time.
He
added that his father was given the assurance by the youth that they would not
touch the place.
He
said the youth group was affiliated to the former APRC regime.
“The
elders were arrested and I remember a police officer who told my father to join
them but he refused. I later recognised him as Daba Marena who was the head of
the plain cloth at State House. Marena told the police officers to forcefully
take my father away.”
He
indicated that he was also arrested midnight and tortured at the Brikama Police
Station with Lamin Waa Juwara who was also “beaten seriously.”
Mr.
Touray explained that after all that, they were taken to prison, saying Pa
Njaga Mendy a senior NIA officer was the one driving the vehicle.
He
narrated that they stopped at Denton Bridge where Waa Juwara was beaten
seriously for almost 15 minutes. “Baba Jobe was ordering the beating and it was
when Njaga came back and grabbed Jobe’s hands that his men stopped the
beating.”
The
witness added that they were detained for a week before their trial at Kanifing
Magistrates’ Court and then to the high court. He said Ousainou Darboe and Jack
Denton were the ones who represented them in court with charges of demolishing
a mosque and conspiracy to commit crime.
“We
were after granted bail and subsequently used to report at Brikama Magistrates’
Court until 2000, when Magistrate Lamin Darboe dismissed the case.”
Former
revenue collector at Brikama Area Council, Abdoulie Sanneh, explained that
Alhagie Karamo Touray was the Imam of Brikama till 1998. He said the cause of
his arrest was in connection to a job of fencing to be carried by a youth group
called High-Pack.
He
said the Imam welcomed the idea and gave them ideas of how to carry out the
work and not to touch the place they sit within the territory.
“When
the youth attempted to destroy the place, the Imam asked them not to. Ba Jerry
and I plus two others were the people who demolished the pillars that were
built by the youths. After that, in the evening prayer, I saw Kebba Pateh Bojang
and armed paramilitaries who arrested and put me in the military truck with
Malang Khalifa, Ba Sansang who was around 90 years older and Bakary Jatta who
was around 85 years.”
He
said they were later taken to Mile 2 Central Prison where they spent 21 days
lying on the ground. At the prison, he said, he was able to recognise David
Colley and Yahya Jarju alias Chief.
Ba
Jarreh also testified that when they (youths) built some pillars, he was part
of those who destroyed the pillars. He said the group got their funds from
Jammeh’s ex-wife Tuti Faal.
He
said he was also arrested after the evening prayers by the armed paramilitaries
and put in a truck. He added that they were driven to Police Headquarters,
Banjul.
