The Gambia Appoints First Special Prosecutor to Pursue Jammeh-Era Crimes

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Banjul:British barrister Martin Hackett has been appointed as The Gambia’s first special prosecutor to lead efforts to prosecute human rights abuses committed during the 22-year rule of former president Yahya Jammeh.

Hackett will head a newly established office tasked with handling cases linked to a period marked by widespread repression, enforced disappearances, and extrajudicial killings. The move follows recommendations from the Truth, Reconciliation and Reparations Commission, which was set up to investigate past abuses.

In its final report submitted in 2021 to current President Adama Barrow, the TRRC identified key perpetrators and called for their prosecution, alongside reparations for victims. While compensation payments have begun in phases—starting with victims of abuses following the 1994 coup—many survivors continue to demand justice over financial relief.

The commission documented several high-profile cases, including the 2004 killing of journalist Deyda Hydara and the execution of more than 50 West African migrants by security forces after they were wrongly accused of plotting a coup.

Some perpetrators have already been convicted abroad under universal jurisdiction laws, including members of the feared paramilitary group known as the “Junglers,” with sentences handed down in countries like Germany and the United States.

Hackett, who has previously worked with the UN-backed Special Tribunal for Lebanon and investigated war crimes during the Kosovo conflict, is expected to serve a four-year term, according to Attorney General Dawda Jallow.

Jammeh, who ruled from 1994 until 2017, went into exile in Equatorial Guinea after refusing to accept his election defeat. He has consistently denied any wrongdoing and declined to cooperate with the TRRC.