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Gambia: Police Round Up Partying Teenagers

On Friday 18 May, 2007, teenagers who had just completed their schooling in three Upper Basic Schools namely, St. Therese's, Latrikunda and Ndow's Upper Basic were rounded up by the members of the NIA, Police Intervention Unit and plain clothes officers when they were about to start their celebrations of the completion of nine years of basic education.

According to sources, these teenagers, from the said three schools, had planned to celebrate their completion of basic education jointly. For this reason they agreed to put on a special uniform ("ashobi") for the day and planned to have games like hunting and other types of masquerades. It is reported that on Friday morning just when the students were about to start their events they were greeted by a heavy presence of police intervention personnel who arrested their masquerades and some members.

When this reporter asked Madam Jammeh, the headmistress of St. Therese's, she said she had no hand in the matter.

She said as from Thursday 17 May the teenagers were no longer members of her school, since they have sat to their final examination.

During the police round up many students at Latrikunda School panicked and could be seen running in and out of the school as a truck full of PIU members disembarked at the school gate.

The arrested kids were initially detained at the PIU Headquarters at Kanifing before being transferred to Serrekunda Police Station where they were not only beaten but turned into clowns by asking then to kneel under the hot sun and sing. They were later released in the evening.

According to the Police Public Relations Officer, Superintendent Jobarteh, the police decided to arrest and dispersed the students because of the manner in which the students conducted themselves. He noted that they made this decision because the situation might go out of hand if certain characters joined the students. Jobarteh confirmed the release of all those arrested, noting that no charges were preferred against them. He did not say how many were arrested in their rounding up process.

Subsequently, the second phase of the student's passing out ceremony which was scheduled at Jakarlo Night Club was cancelled.