Gambia Truth Commission Begins Hearings Into Ex-Dictator’s Rule

Gambia Truth Commission Begins Hearings Into Ex-Dictator’s Rule

BANJUL (Capital Markets in Africa) – A commission that is investigating abuses under the 22-year rule of former Gambian President Yahya Jammeh began proceedings Monday as victims say they demand justice for atrocities committed against them. The repressive reign of Jammeh, who seized control of the West African nation in a 1994 coup, was characterized by human-rights violations such as torture, disappearances and forcing HIV sufferers to follow his own treatment methods. He was ousted two years…

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Gambia Talks With China, Norway Investors to Revive Economy

Gambia Talks With China, Norway Investors to Revive Economy

BANJUL (Capital Markets in Africa) – Gambian officials are holding talks with Chinese and Norwegian investors on infrastructure projects to drive economic growth in the West African nation after decades of dictatorship, a minister said. “We want investors that will understand the situation we are emerging from,” Trade, Industry and Regional Integration Minister Isatou Touray said in a May 22 interview in the Nigerian capital, Abuja. “We hope investors will see that Gambia is no longer…

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Gambia Chooses Lawmakers as Leader Seeks Backing for Reforms

Gambia Chooses Lawmakers as Leader Seeks Backing for Reforms

BANJUL (Capital Markets in Africa) – Gambians are going to the polls on Thursday in a parliamentary vote that will be crucial for the new government’s ability to implement reforms after two decades of rule by Yahya Jammeh, the former dictator ousted by West African neighbors in January. President Adama Barrow defeated Jammeh in presidential elections in December with the support of seven political parties that had rallied behind him amid growing discontent with the former leader’s repressive regime. While…

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Barrow Returns to Gambia as President Amid High Expectations

Barrow Returns to Gambia as President Amid High Expectations

BANJUL (Capital Markets in Africa) – Gambian President Adama Barrow returned from neighboring Senegal to take office after his predecessor went into exile under a threat by West African leaders to remove him by force. Barrow touched down at 5 p.m. at the airport in the capital, Banjul, on Thursday as thousands gathered for his arrival a week after his inauguration at the Gambian embassy in Senegal. This is “a proud day day for Gambians and a…

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Gambia’s Ex-leader Made Off With Millions, Luxury Cars

Gambia’s Ex-leader Made Off With Millions, Luxury Cars

Banjul (Capital Markets in Africa) — Exiled Gambian ruler Yahya Jammeh stole millions of dollars in his final weeks in power, plundering the state coffers and shipping out luxury vehicles by cargo plane, a special adviser to the new president said Sunday. Meanwhile, a regional military force rolled in, greeted by cheers, to secure this tiny West African nation so that democratically elected President Adama Barrow could return home. He remained in neighboring Senegal, where he took…

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Barrow Sworn in as Gambian President as Ex-Leader Seeks Deal

Barrow Sworn in as Gambian President as Ex-Leader Seeks Deal

BANJUL (Capital Markets in Africa) – Adama Barrow was sworn into office as the president of Gambia at a ceremony in neighboring Senegal as mediators sought to negotiate an amnesty deal with the outgoing leader to stave off military intervention by West African states. Barrow, 51, decided to take his oath at the Gambian embassy in the Senegalese capital, Dakar, after Yahya Jammeh, who lost the presidential election, refused to leave office and called for new elections….

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Gambia’s Jammeh Imposes State of Emergency, Defying Region

Gambia’s Jammeh Imposes State of Emergency, Defying Region

BANJUL (Capital Markets in Africa) – Gambian President Yahya Jammeh declared a 90-day state of emergency two days before he’s supposed to hand over power to the winner of last month’s election, as West African nations prepared to send a military force to remove him from power. In a speech on state TV late Tuesday, Jammeh said the measure was necessary because of the “unprecedented and extraordinary amount of interference” in the Dec. 1 ballot. He also…

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