“The testimonies of various speakers clearly indicated that the deceased (Duwa Badjie) was a man of peace who wanted to see that there is peace within the Foni and he died in that struggle. The killing that is happening in Foni must stop. You can’t kill someone in Senegal and go with impunity. Therefore, no one should go with impunity for killing someone in The Gambia.”
The BAC Chairman was speaking recently at Gilanfary village in the Foni Bintang Karanai of the West Coast Region (BAC) during the funeral rite of Duwa Badjie, 68, who was reportedly shot and killed by Senegalese soldiers stationed in Casamance, the southern part of Senegal.
“It’s time that we think outside the box. If the two governments can’t take a step about this, it is time that we go to the ECOWAS Court of Justice for redress. It’s our fundamental human right. This is what the deceased want. Life is so precious. You can’t kill someone and go scot free. There is a right to life and whosoever takes the life of someone, we should reach where we are supposed to reach,” he stated.
“We want to engage the National Assembly Members (NAMs) of Foni first, and see ways of suing the Senegalese soldiers to the ECOWAS Court. They can’t be killing people and go scot free,” he emphasised.
The burial ceremony was attended by hundreds of people within The Gambia and outside including cabinet ministers, security chiefs, and religious leaders among others. While the burial ceremony was taking place amid anger from inhabitants of the area for losing a man whom they described as “development oriented”, the Senegalese soldiers armed with guns, were also spotted at the Senegalese territory observing the burial scene.
“Starting from 6 p.m. onwards, the Senegalese Forces would mount a military checkpoint and they would deny people passing until the following day. This is something that needs to be immediately addressed by the government. In fact, some people were even arrested and detained yesterday by the Senegalese force. I can tell you that from 6 p.m. onwards, it’s a no-go-area in that route,” Hon. Bakary Badjie, the NAM for Foni Bintang Karanai claimed
Hon. Badjie further called on the two governments to work together in addressing the issue that is frequently happening in Foni, saying: “We want the government of The Gambia and Senegal to discuss between themselves so that those Gambians that are currently arrested and detained in Senegal be released,” he posited, while calling on President Barrow to not compromise on the peace and stability of the country.
“I want to inform everyone that Foni is part of Gambia. We will continue to fight for the people of Foni and we will all die and leave Foni here. Let me also make it clear that we will not leave Foni even if the killing is happening,” he emphasised.
The NAM for Brikama North, Alhagie S. Darboe, said: “The Gambia and Senegal are one and the same but it is important that they respect our fundamental human rights. There is anger and panic in the Foni, thus it is important that the government give them protection. I have been saying this for a while and I will say it during the National Dialogue at the State House that the government should not compromise the sovereignty of the country.”
Yahya Tamba, the chairman of the APRC No-to-Alliance, described the death of Duwa Badjie as so “painful”, adding: “This is the seventh person killed by the Senegalese soldiers and that The Gambia government is aware of it, but has done nothing. In fact, still now, we have not been informed of any investigation that has been conducted over the death of Haruna Jatta despite numerous calls for the government to conduct an investigation on the matter.”
“If the entire Foni want to protest, it wouldn’t be good for the government. Foni is behind the government and we wouldn’t do anything that would jeopardise the country’s peace and stability. However, we want the government to do something about the border issue as stray bullets are landing on the Gambian soil,” he said, adding that is a violation of international laws.
“We don’t want our Gambian soldiers to be fighting with the Senegalese soldiers, but we want them to end the hostility,” he stated.
