By Staff Reporter
The Chairman of the National Human Rights Commission (NHRC) has enjoined people to be serious and work towards a better Gambia where everyone will live together in peace and harmony.
Chairman Daniel Emmanuel Joof was speaking at an international conference with support from the Open Society Foundation on the acceleration of the effective implementation and monitoring of the government recommendation of the TRRC report said the TRRC report is very explicit and the plights of the victims and families must be addressed adequately and speedily.
The Chairman assured of the NHRC’s commitment to ensure the full monitoring and establishment of the government white paper on the Truth, Reconciliation, and Reparation Commission (TRRC) report.
‘The strides taken by the government so far towards the recommendations of TRRC and preparations for implementation is encouraging and we further urge you to hasten the pace of implementation to give the NEVER AGAIN mantra coined by the TRRC a true and impactful meaning,’ Chairman Joof told the audiences comprised of local and international civil society organizations.
The NHRC chairman also assured the recommitment of the commission to ensure the establishment of a monitoring framework to systemically keep track of the implementation process, produce advisory notes and quarterly reports to document the process to ensure lessons are learned from the past two decades of human rights abuses, torture, and extra-judicial killings.
To ensure the Never Again is meaningful, the chairman also challenged relevant stakeholders such as the National Council for Civic Education, CSOs, and faith-based organizations to constantly engage communities to preach the language of peace and tolerance.
‘We must all be serious and work towards the Gambia where we will all live together in peace and harmony respecting each other regardless of our tribal, religious, political, sexual differences, caste, social, and other,” he said.
Mr Joof reiterated that “the TRRC report is very explicit and has exposed us to the divisive nature that some of our political, opinion and even religious leaders played in fanning the seeds of disunity and division among Gambians – unfortunately, some continue to do the same.”
The three-day international forum availed stakeholders and partners who have been closely involved with the work of the commission to engage in in-depth discussions of the White Paper.