Updated
May 13, 2004
Gambia Tourist Support - Reg Charity No 362/2003
GTS Container Broken Into
Our watchman for over a year disappeared taken with his the window and door from his watchmans house
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We hear in the West that Islamic punishment is harsh and indeed in some cases it is - but theft is only deemed really serious if the person has no real reason to steal, in other words is stealing purely for personal gain.
Where someone is forced to steal because those around him have not helped him with a desperate problem, (like a sick parent or child) then the community is as to blame as the thief for not recognising his need and providing charity.
In Gambia such issues are settled locally - for serious offences like murder or rape the result may be a TOTAL banishment from the society - sounds like a soft option BUT for the people of West Africa where community is such an attachment it is far worse than losing a limb.
Most big theft in Gambia is by dishonesty and lying to obtain goods on trust and them claiming them to belong to you.
The excuse offered recently to my daughter "It's what we Gambians do"
Comments to GTS
I was first alerted of this when Adam emailed me to say he had been told that the watchman at Brufut 1 had been trying to sell the land to someone and had approahed the Brufut village Alcalo.
The locks on the container had been changed and when opened the contents had obviously been turned over and were in such a mess that it was impossible to tell what had been stolen.
The most obvious loss was the metal door and window from the house they had been hacked from the walls and the watchman had disappeared.
The conclusion is obvious - but I suspect that some tragedy became known to the watchman maybe back in his homeland of Senegal and he desperately needed money to get away. What ever the reason It is always sad when a previously honest person suddenly becomes dishonest.
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The police were notified - but even if he was caught what could be done? It is unlikely that he has the door and window strapped on his back, they, along with whatever else he has taken from the container will have been sold - I assume locally in Brufut - but no one there is going to own up to that - and young Amadou - he couldn't be fined as he has no money - he could be sent to jail but any court case would cost more than the value of the stolen items and I suspect we will never see him again !!
If he stole from a local and was caught he would receive a very severe beating, but from a Toubab the attitude is that 'Toubabs can afford it' and although everyone is sympathetic, no one really cares realising that nothing can be done.
In the UK most theft is done locally by people who know you and this is just the Gambian equivalent - in the UK the police may come to the scene of the crime - in Gambia you have to arrange a taxi, as the police have no available transport for such cases.
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