GAMBIA

Case N° GMB/02 - MAMADOU CADI CHAM
Case N° GMB/03 - OMAR JALLOW

Resolution adopted without a vote by the Inter-Parliamentary Council at its 159th session
(Beijing, 21 September 1996)

The Inter-Parliamentary Council,

Having before it the case of Mr. Mamadou Cadi Cham and Mr. Omar Jallow, members of the dissolved House of Representatives of Gambia, which has been the subject of a study and report of the Committee on the Human Rights of Parliamentarians, in accordance with the "Procedure for the examination and treatment by the Inter-Parliamentary Union of communications concerning violations of human rights of parliamentarians",

Taking note of the report of the Committee on the Human Rights of Parliamentarians (CL/159/11(a)-R.1), which contains a detailed outline of the case,

Considering that Mr. Mamadou Cadi Cham and Mr. Omar Jallow were arrested on or about 12 October 1995 and have since been held in a disused hangar at Fajara army barracks in Bakau, outside the capital of Banjul; that they have reportedly been denied visits from their families and have had serious difficulties in gaining access to their lawyers,

Considering also that reportedly no charges have been brought against them,

Considering further that, according to the source, the authorities stated that Mr. Cham and Mr. Jallow, together with others, had been arrested for planning a demonstration in support of the return to power of former President Dawda Jawara,

Noting that, according to Decree 57, a detainee has to be brought before a court within 90 days,

Bearing also in mind that Gambia is a party to the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights,

1. Deeply regrets that the authorities have not deemed it necessary to reply to the Committee's repeated requests to them for information on the situation of Mr. Cham and Mr. Jallow;

2. Emphasizes that the Committee's Procedure is based on the principle of dialogue and international co-operation, thus enabling it independently and impartially to cross-check the allegations submitted to it;

3. Expresses deep concern at the arrest of Mr. Cham and Mr. Jallow on account of their having exercised their right to freedom of assembly by reportedly planning a demonstration in support of the return to power of former President Dawda Jawara;

4. Wishes to ascertain:

(i) The exact date of their arrest;

(ii) The legal grounds on which it was based;

(iii) The charges against them;

(iv) The facts adduced to substantiate the charges;

5. Also wishes to ascertain their state of health, the exact conditions of their detention, in particular their right to receive regular visits from their families and lawyers and to have access to medical treatment, if necessary;

6. Stresses that according to international and national law, namely Decree 57, which requires a detainee to be brought to trial within 90 days, Mr. Cham and Mr. Jallow must be either released or immediately brought to trial on a tenable criminal charge;

7. Stresses that Gambia is a party to the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights and therefore obliged to respect the rights set out therein, in particular the right to freedom of assembly (Article 21), the right not to be subjected to arbitrary arrest and detention; the right of anyone arrested or detained on a criminal charge to be promptly brought before a judge and tried without undue delay or otherwise be released (Article 9);

8. Requests the Secretary General to convey this resolution to the authorities, pressing its concerns with them and once again inviting them to supply the desired information;

9. Calls upon all National Groups and their Parliaments, in particular those whose countries have particular ties to Gambia, to use every means at their disposal to press the Committee's and Council's concerns with the competent Gambian authorities;

10. Requests the Committee on the Human Rights of Parliamentarians to pursue the examination of this case and report to it at its next session (April 1997).