BANJUL (AFP) — More than 300 people held in a government-backed witchhunt in Gambia have been released without charge after several detainees fell seriously ill, a senior police source said Monday.
Amnesty International and anonymous police sources said as many as 1,000 people have been snatched by "witch hunters" backed by armed men carrying out orders from the Gambian authorities.
They are forced to drink hallucinogen concoctions which caused some detainees to develop intestinal and kidney problems. Police sources say at least two people have died after drinking the potions.
"A total number of 312 people who were abducted by the so-called witch doctors early last month have been released in the early hours of Sunday morning without any charges levied against them," a senior police source, who preferred not to be named, told AFP Monday.
Their release came after five victims were admitted at various health facilities in Gambia suffering from kidney and stomach problems.
"Five out of those abducted are currently in hospital while others are seriously ill, and this prompted the authorities to release the remaining abductees before the situation worsens", the police source said.
Those released are mainly men and women aged 40 to 60. They were all arrested in early March.
Gambia, the smallest nation in Africa, has been ruled by President Yahya Jammeh who took power in a bloodless coup in 1994.
In recent years it has increasingly come under fire over its human rights record. Despite an international and domestic outcry over the witch hunts, the government has not responded to the allegations.
Observers say Jammeh invited Guinean witch hunters into Gambia after suspecting witchcraft in the death of an aunt earlier this year.
No comments:
Post a Comment