Media Home
UN Web TV
UN Audiovisual Library
UN PhotoUN / THE GAMBIA
Download
There is no media available to download.
Share
STORY: UN / THE GAMBIA
TRT: 01:58
SOURCE: UNIFEED
RESTRICTIONS: NONE
LANGUAGE: ENGLISH / NATS
DATELINE: 19 JANUARY 2017, NEW YORK CITY / FILE
FILE – RECENT, NEW YORK CITY
1. Wide shot, exterior United Nations headquarters
19 JANUARY 2017, NEW YORK CITY
2. Various shots, Security Council vote
3. Med shot, delegates
4. SOUNDBITE (English) Tekeda Alemu Permanent Representative of Ethiopia to the United Nations:
“The political crisis in The Gambia will have serious ramifications for the peace and stability of, not only the country itself, but also the region. We are seeing how things are quickly deteriorating, and for this very reason every possible effort has to be made to make sure that this country does not fall into chaos.”
5. Various shots, delegates
6. SOUNDBITE (English) Michael Keating, Deputy Permanent Representative of the United Kingdom to the United Nations:
“The people of The Gambia spoke clearly at the elections in December. They chose Adama Barrow to be their president. Their voice now needs to be heard and their will needs to be heeded by just one man. The resolution is clear, former President Jammeh must respect the decision of the Gambian people and immediately hand over power. His failure to do so up until this point is only bringing uncertainty to the people of The Gambia. ”
7. Med shot, delegates
8. Wide shot, Council
9. Wide shot, Swedish Ambassador Olof Skoog walks up to podium
10. SOUNDBITE (English) Olof Skoog, Permanent Representative of Sweden to the United Nations:
“The resolution that we just adopted gives political endorsement by the Security Council to the commitment of ECOWAS and the African Union to ensure that the outcome of the election is respected. There is a strong request to former President Jammeh to carry out a peaceful and orderly transition process and to transfer power to the elected, now inaugurated President Adama Barrow. The will of the Gambian people and the Gambian constitution must be respected.”
11. Pan right, Skoog walks away
Urging all Gambian parties to respect the outcome of the 1 December election recognizing Adama Barrow as the country’s President-elect, the United Nations Security Council today (19 Jan) expressed its support for the commitment of West African States to “ensure, by political means first, respect of the will of the people.”
Amid a political standoff over Gambia’s presidency – President-elect Barrow was reportedly sworn in today at the Gambian embassy in neighbouring Senegal even as incumbent Yahya Jammeh refuses to step down, the Council unanimously adopted a resolution expressing grave concern at the risk of deterioration of the situation in Gambia.
Ethiopia’s Ambassador Tekeda Alemu told the Council that “the political crisis in The Gambia will have serious ramifications for the peace and stability of, not only the country itself, but also the region.”
Alemu said “things are quickly deteriorating, and for this very reason every possible effort has to be made to make sure that this country does not fall into chaos.”
UK Ambassador Michael Keating told the Council the Gambian people’s voice “needs to be heard and their will needs to be heeded” by former President Yahya Jammeh.
Keating said “his failure to do so up until this point is only bringing uncertainty to the people of The Gambia.”
Outside the Council, Sweden’s Ambassador, Olof Skoog, told reporters “the resolution that we just adopted gives political endorsement by the Security Council to the commitment of ECOWAS and the African Union to ensure that the outcome of the election is respected. There is a strong request to former President Jammeh to carry out a peaceful and orderly transition process and to transfer power to the elected, now inaugurated President Adama Barrow. The will of the Gambian people and the Gambian constitution must be respected.”
The Council strongly condemned President Jammeh’s 9 December statement rejecting the official election results and the takeover of the Independent Electoral Commission by the Gambian Armed Forces on 13 December 2016, as well as the attempt by the Parliament on 18 January 2017 to extend President Jammeh’s term for three months beyond his current mandate, which ends today.
Against this backdrop, the Council strongly condemned the attempts to usurp the will of the people and undermine the integrity of the electoral process in Gambia, as well as the attempt to prevent a peaceful and orderly transfer of power to President-elect Barrow by declaring a state of emergency.
Endorsing the decisions of Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS) and the African Union (AU) to recognize Mr. Barrow as President-Elect of Gambia, the 15 nation Council called upon the countries in the region and the relevant regional organization to cooperate with him in his efforts to realize the transition of power.
The Council also requested the Gambian defence and security forces to demonstrate “maximum restraint” to maintain an atmosphere of calm in country, and stressed “their duty and obligation to place themselves at the disposal of the democratically elected authorities.”
The text further commends and strongly supports continued efforts of the AU and ECOWAS to promote peace and stability in the region. By the text, the Council requests for the Secretary-General to update the body on the resolution’s implementation within 10 days.
