Gambia's political crisis has entered a dangerous phase. After publicly conceding defeat in the December 1 presidential election, incumbent President Yahya Jammeh reversed his position on December 9 and rejected the election results. The longer he refuses to agree to step down, the greater the risk of human rights violations.
A high-powered team of West African presidents, led by Liberian President Ellen Johnson Sirleaf, the current chair of regional body Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS), failed to persuade Jammeh to transfer power during a December 13 visit to Banjul, the capital, and the Gambian president appears to be digging his heels in. His party, the Alliance for Patriotic Reorientation and Construction, filed a Supreme Court challenge to the election results on the evening of December 13, making the court deadline by less than an hour.
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