GAMBIA: GOVERNMENT COMMUTES ALL DEATH SENTENCES TO LIFE IMPRISONMENT

May 11, 2019:

Abubacar Tambadou, the Attorney General and Minister of Justice said on 7 May 2019 the government of the Gambia as part of fulfilling its international obligation is willing to remove the death penalty. He said 22 death sentences have been commuted life imprisonment sentences.
“There is no longer any person on death row,” the Minister explained, adding that their death sentences have been commuted to life imprisonment.
He said as far as the Constitutional Review Commission (CRC) public consultations are concerned, there is a divided public opinion with regards to the death penalty in The Gambia where some believe it should be maintained whereas others are of the opinion that it should be revoked from the laws of the land. He said the government is awaiting the report by the CRC.
On the reforms, Tambadou said his office will ensure that there is no culture of impunity in the Gambia.  He added that The Gambia would no longer tolerate human rights violations or impunity.