By Tabora Bojang
Following the announcement of the transfer of USD 2.5M by the US from the sale of former president Jammeh’s house, for victims of the former dictator’s brutal regime, members of the victim community have welcomed the development and demanded a judicious use of the funds.
The call comes at a time when victims are disappointed that the Gambia government spent over billion dalasis from the sale of Jammeh’s assets in the country without paying compensations despite its own guidelines to pay reparation from the sale of the assets. Though the government said there was no reparations body at the time, it did not cater any money for it from the sale of the assets.
By its own admission, the Reparations Commission is currently struggling with inadequate funds to complete the payement of reparations.
And so with the arrival of the funds from America, the victims community is adamant that no single dalasi must go astray and that everything should be paid to the victims as agreed among all stakeholders.
Reacting to the development, Sheriff Kijera, a senior victim community leader and former head of the Victim Centre, said the move is a win-win situation for victims, the US and the Gambia government, as well as Gambians in the diaspora who did very well in ensuring that Jammeh is held accountable, and that proceeds from the sale of the house he bought from corrupt practices be given to his victims.
“As victims, we would like to commend the US government and the Government of The Gambia for reaching an agreement to pay all the funds to the victims as reparations,” he told The Standard.
Mr Kijera recalled that when the US announced it was committed to confiscating the property, the Victims Centre wrote to the Attorney of Maryland State where the property was located demanding all the proceeds from the sale of the mansion be given to victims as reparations.
However, according Kijera, following that request to the Americans by the Victim Centre, Justice Minister Dawda Jallow and his officials visited the Centre to engage victims on how the proceeds are going to be distributed.
He alleged that during that meeting, there was a proposal by Minister Jallow that “a third” of the funds be given as reparations to victims while “the two thirds” of the funds be retained by the government to buy a property in the US for the Gambian embassy staff as residence.
“But we, the victims, rejected that proposal and we decided to engage the US States Department and the US Embassy in Banjul to see a possible way out for all the funds to be given to victims as reparations. Those discussions were done with the support of Gambia Participates and Women’s Association for Victims Empowerment (WAVE) and were characterised by constructive engagement with the US authorities as well as Gambian authorities until it was agreed that the money will be given to victims as reparations and today the US Government has agreed to transfer all the funds and this is welcomed by all victims,” Kijera noted.
Kijera who is now head of Accountability Project Gambia, said he is hopeful that the Gambia government “will do the needful to make sure that the funds are judiciously spent” for the proper compensation of all the victims.
“I have no doubt that the Reparations Commission will do justice in the redistribution of the funds as compensation to the victims,” he stated while calling on the government to expedite other accountability mechanisms including the establishment and operationalisation of the Special Tribunal to try cases of human rights violations.
Justice Minister clarifies
The Standard contacted Justice Minister Jallow about this who said he could not remember such a meeting or proposal but maintained that the government policy on this fund has been consistent in that it should go straight and directly to victims as compensation and no other purpose.
”The government has always been very consistent that this money is going to the Victims Fund and not any government account. Even the reparations commission cannot use a butut from this money for their operations. So the issue of judicious spending of the money does not arise at all . President Barrow has himself taken a lot of interest in ensuring that all the money goes to the victims and that is the instruction we are working on,” Minister Jallow said.
He added that victims have been involved in consultations and meetings in every step in the procession of this fund. Minister Jallow assured the victim community that once the funds arrived, they would be paid promptly.
Ask whether with the availability of more funds now the reparations commission should not consider an upward revision of the model of compensation drawn up by the TRRC which did not have much money at the time, Minister Jallow said there is no objection to such a proposal and the reparation commission is at liberty to do so where possible.