The Hague/New York: 8 February 2017
PGA warmly congratulates Mr. Adama Barrow, the newly elected President of the Gambia, on his statement that his administration was working on rejoining the International Criminal Court (ICC) and the Commonwealth.
PGA Members have welcomed his election and the peaceful transition that was ensured by efforts of the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS). In a resolution adopted during the 9th Consultative Assembly of Parliamentarians on the ICC and the Rule of Law (CAP-ICC) in Dakar (Senegal), PGA Members had called on his predecessor, Mr. Yahya Jammeh, which had been at the head of the country for more than 20 years, to relinquish power when he decided to reject the results of the elections and stay in the highest office of the country.
A congratulatory letter was sent on 7 February 2017 to the new President on behalf of PGA, urging Mr. Barrow to make the halting of the withdrawal from the ICC “one of [his] first acts of government”. Mr. Jammeh had previously decided to withdraw from the ICC, the only permanent international criminal court, and notified it to the United Nations Secretary General in November 2016. However, such a withdrawal could not enter into force before 12 months after its notification. Thus, PGA welcomes the very positive statement made by Mr. Barrow during today’s meeting with the diplomatic community in Banjul, through which he committed to strengthen the Rule of Law, the judiciary, law enforcement and security forces, and asked support by the International Community for a successful transition to, and consolidation of, democracy in The Gambia.