Gambia’s leader returns to cheers

‘MY PRESIDENT!’

BANJUL, GAMBIA • President Adama Barrow returned triumphantly to Gambia on Thursday, nearly two months after winning an election disputed by the country’s longtime dictator, to the cheers of hundreds of thousands who jammed the roads in welcome.

“That’s my president!” the crowds cried, eager to see Barrow fulfil the promise of democratic reforms and new-found freedoms in this tiny West African nation.

The impasse after the Dec. 1 balloting had brought Gambia to the brink of military intervention, as regional leaders vowed to install the democratically elected Barrow despite legal efforts by longtime ruler Yahya Jammeh to overturn the result of the vote.

Barrow had flown to Banjul from Senegal, where he had waited for Jammeh to leave Gambia.

“Barrow! Barrow!” people shouted from atop vehicles as far as the eye could see at sunset Thursday as the president’s convoy made its way through Banjul. Women danced on minibuses and the sound of drums and music blared in the streets. Spontaneous parties erupted.

Barrow stood out of the roof of his vehicle and waved as he slowly made his way on a tour of the city and back to his home.

“I am a happy man today,” Barrow said amid the crush of his arrival. “I think the bad part is finished now.”

Gambians had eagerly awaited Barrow, who has promised to reverse many of the authoritarian policies of Jammeh. The former leader oversaw a government accused of imprisoning, torturing and killing his political opponents. Some political prisoners have been released, but the fate of many who have disappeared remains unknown.

Jammeh, who had been accused of rigging previous elections during his regime, initially called Barrow to concede after the balloting. But when the talk began about whether he could be indicted on war crimes charges, Jammeh shocked the world with a dramatic about-face, saying he would not cede power after all.

Jammeh finally left Gambia last weekend, bowing to international pressure and ending his more than 22-year rule. The West African troops were poised to oust him if talks failed. Since then, they have been securing the country for Barrow’s arrival.

About 2,500 of the ECOWAS troops remain in Gambia — in the capital, Banjul, as well as at key crossing points between Gambia and Senegal and at the port and airport, according to Sweden’s UN Ambassador Olof Skoog, the current U.N. Security Council president.

Jammeh ended up in Equatorial Guinea, taking luxury cars and other riches amassed during his presidency, and accompanied by family and trusted security guards. When he left, Banjul exploded in celebration, with music blaring from speakers and people dancing in the streets.