CASE N° GMB/04 - BUBA SAMURA - GAMBIA

Resolution adopted without a vote by the Inter-Parliamentary Council
at its 168th session (Havana, 7 April 2001)

The Inter-Parliamentary Council,

Referring to the outline of the case of Mr. Buba Samura, as contained in the report of the Committee on the Human Rights of Parliamentarians (CL/168/13(c)-R.1), and to the relevant resolution adopted at its 167th session (October 2000),

Taking account of a communication from the source dated 26 March 2001,

Recalling that Mr. Buba Samura, an opposition Member of the National Assembly at the time of the submission of the complaint, was arrested on 11 April 2000 by personnel of the National Intelligence Agency (NIA) while travelling from his constituency to Banjul; he was taken to Brikama Police Station, where the officer on duty accused him of supporting student demonstrators; later that day he was taken to the NIA Headquarters, where every object was taken from him except his clothes and where he was detained until 17 April 2000, when he was released by the Inspector General of Police on self bail without a single charge; during his detention he was maintained incommunicado in a bare mosquito-ridden concrete cell without any toilet facilities and given food once every 24 hours; the National Assembly was not duly informed of his arrest and detention,

Recalling Article 19 of the Constitution of the Gambia, which provides that any person arrested or detained must be informed within three hours at most of the reasons for the arrest and must be brought before a court within 72 hours; recalling also that Articles 9 and 14 of the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights and the African Charter on Human and Peoples' Rights, respectively, prohibit arbitrary arrest and detention, as well as Article 9(5) of the ICCPR, which stipulates that "anyone who has been [the] victim of unlawful arrest or detention shall have an enforceable right to compensation",

Considering that Mr. Samura died in an accident on 6 February 2001,

1. Takes note with deep regret of Mr. Samura's death;

2. Considers that his death does not efface the past violation of his human right to liberty;

3. Calls therefore on the authorities, in particular the National Assembly, to ensure that the measures of redress to which Mr. Samura was entitled are granted to his family;

4. Calls also on the National Assembly to take action to ensure that arbitrary arrests of members of Parliament do not recur, and that anyone lawfully arrested is detained in humane conditions and only in legally authorised places of detention;

5. Requests the Secretary General to convey this resolution to the authorities and to the source;

6. Decides to close this file while deeply regretting that the authorities failed to respect Mr. Buba Samura's right to liberty and to humane treatment.

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