Yahya Jammeh has asked the International Criminal Court (ICC), headed by a Gambian Judge Fatou Bensouda to investigate the deaths of Africans trying to reach Europe through the Mediterranean sea. Jammeh said on National television (GRTS) that they have the right to call on the ICC to investigate the deaths of thousands of young Africans who died on the coast of Europe in suspicious circumstances. According to Jammeh, the rescue efforts by the European Navy and coastguards are fishy and questionable as he went on to asked “How is it possible that each time a vessel is capsizing, there is the Italian Navy to rescue only a few people?”
However, it was Jammeh and some of his fellow dictators who claimed that the ICC is an institution that was setup by the West to witch hunt the African leaders and as a result they have threaten to withdraw from ICC. How can he turn to the same institution again and ask them to investigate the death of Africans in the Mediterranean Sea, that’s ambiguous to say the least.
The question Yahya Jammeh should ask is, why are Africans leaving their continent to undertake such dangerous journeys to travel to Europe? The answer to this question lies within Africa herself. Gambia in particular and Africa in general has one of the highest unemployment rates in the world and that is one of the factors of this human catastrophe yet the leaders do little or nothing to address that situation. What then do you expect the youths of African to do, of course to look for greener pasture by all means possible.
Yahya Jammeh is richer than the Gambia and he is one of the richest people in the world, his daughter goes to the most expensive private school in the world, he owns private zoos, private jets, fleet of multi-million dollar cars, multi-million dollar mansions in the US, France and Morocco, he even claimed that his tenth generation will never know poverty. While Jammeh continue to amass his wealth the Gambia and her people continue to fall into poverty on daily basis and most households cannot even afford three square meal a day. At the beginning of this year, The Gambian government asked the IMF for a $10 million bailout else the country’s economy was at the point of collapse and yet he has just flamboyantly wasted nearly $3 million on his so-called birthday in May.
Meanwhile, last week Jammeh expelled the EU rep from The Gambia just because she challenged him for his bad human right records against Gambians. The killings and tortures meted out on Gambians and Africans in the Gambia by Yahya Jammeh are the issues he need to address and stop playing double standard with people. The combination of all these issues are the reasons why Africans are ready to sacrifice their lives to leave Africa for Europe and as long as those issues are not address these innocent lives will continue to be lost in these tragic and catastrophic circumstances.
Gambia Voices 