Transitional Justice in The Gambia: Reflections on The Gambian Truth, Reconciliation and Reparations Commission
Notes & Changes
This event will run as a Zoom meeting. To attend, register here. Please note that this event may be recorded, with the exception of any live audience questions.
The Gambian Truth, Reconciliation and Reparations Commission (TRRC), established to address the human rights violations committed during the regime of former President Yahya Jammeh, is set to submit its final report and recommendations to President Adama Barrow on 25 November 2021. This comes after several months of delay as well as outrage over Jammeh’s political party announcing an alliance with President Barrow’s party for the upcoming December 4 presidential elections. In this backdrop, this discussion will consider the work of the Gambian TRRC so far, the challenges it faced and continues to face, and the way forward for transitional justice in The Gambia. We are joined by panellists Musu Bakoto Sawo, Mustapha Darboe and Didier Gbery.
Musu Bakoto Sawo is the National Coordinator for Think Young Women, a Law Lecturer at the Faculty of Law, University of The Gambia, and a women’s rights activist. She holds a Master of Laws (LLM) in Human Rights and Democratisation in Africa from the University of Pretoria and a Bachelor of Laws (LLB) from the University of The Gambia. She previously served as the Deputy Executive Secretary of the Gambian TRRC.
Mustapha Darboe is an award-winning investigative journalist in The Gambia. He co-founded the country's first investigative journalism newspaper Malagen.gm in June 2020. He previously served as the vice-president of the Gambia Press Union and is a correspondent for the Turkey News Agency (Anadolu Agency) and JusticeInfo.net. In 2018, he authored the e-book ‘Playbook of a Tyrant’ on the 22-year dictatorship under former president Yahya Jammeh.
Didier Gbery leads the work of the International Centre for Transitional Justice (ICTJ) in The Gambia as their Head of Program there. Previously, he served as the deputy reporting and program development officer for the Agence d’Aide à la Coopération Technique et au Développement (ACTED). He has also worked for CARE International and Save the Children. Didier holds a master’s degree in Criminology from the University of Abidjan-Cocody.