Joy in the streets as former dictator Jammeh leaves Gambia

African leaders say Mr Jammeh could return to Gambia when he pleased, and any property “lawfully” belonging to him would not be seized.

Yahya Jammeh waves to supporters as he departs from Banjul airport in Gambia on January 21, 2017. Jerome Delay / AP Photo

Banjul // Former Gambian leader Yahya Jammeh flew out on Saturday night from the country he ruled for 22 years, bringing to an end a political crisis over his succession by Adama Barrow.

Scenes of jubilation broke out almost immediately on streets near Banjul, the port capital, after the news filtered out that Mr Jammeh had gone.

“We are free now. We are no longer in prison. We do not have to watch our back before we express our opinions,” said Fatou Cham, 28, who was celebrating with her friends.

Mr Jammeh refused to step down after the December 1 presidential election in which Mr Barrow was declared the winner, triggering weeks of uncertainty that almost ended in a military intervention involving five other west African nations.

Wearing his habitual white flowing robes, Mr Jammeh waved to supporters before boarding a small, unmarked plane at Banjul airport alongside Guinea’s president Alpha Conde after two days of talks over a departure deal.

He landed in Conakry, Guinea’s capital before setting off again for Equatorial Guinea, where he will remain in exile, said Marcel Alain de Souza, the president of the Economic Community of West African States (Ecowas).

“No legislative measures” would be taken that would infringe the “dignity, security, safety and rights” of Mr Jammeh or his family, Ecowas said in a joint declaration with the African Union and United Nations.

Mr Jammeh could return to Gambia when he pleased, the statement added, and property “lawfully” belonging to him would not be seized.

The longtime dictator finally said he would step aside in the early hours of Saturday morning and hand power to Mr Barrow, who has been in neighbouring Senegal but is expected back in Gambia soon.

Mr Jammeh took power in a 1994 coup from Dawda Jawara, the country’s only other president since independence from Britain, making this Gambia’s first democratic transition of power.

The choice of Equatorial Guinea for his exile eases concerns that Mr Jammeh might interfere in Gambian politics if he stayed in Guinea, whose border is not far from Gambia’s eastern region.

Activists will be keen to see Mr Jammeh – who controlled certain sections of the security forces – refused amnesty for crimes committed during his tenure, which was marked by systemic rights abuses.

Jim Wormington, West Africa researcher at Human Rights Watch, called Mr Jammeh’s departure “the chance to usher in an era based on respect for the rule of law and human rights”.

Mr Jammeh left Gambia after days of mediation led by Mauritanian president Mohamed Ould Abdel Aziz and Guinea’s Mr Conde, who said he “welcomed the successful outcome of the crisis in The Gambia, which, through dialogue, avoided a bloodbath.”

Mr Jammeh attempted to build a personality cult and has left behind a small minority of diehard supporters, some of whom wept as his plane departed.

“We wanted to be behind this man for a century or more,” said Alagie Samu, speaking on the tarmac. “He is the most successful, visionary leader in the entire world.”

Dressed in green, the colour of his political party, some were loyal to the end.

“No human being is perfect, but for 22 years in the country here he has tried hard for Gambians,” said a woman with cheeks wet from tears, who did not wish to be named.

The Gambia is one of the world’s poorest nations and although education and health standards have lifted in recent years, poverty remains endemic.

With Mr Jammeh gone, all eyes will be on the Barrow administration as a government of reform and development.

“The will of the people has come to be at last,” said Isatou Touray, a key official in the government-in-waiting. “Democracy is back, you can’t stop the people.”

Army chief Ousman Badjie, a former Jammeh loyalist, has pledged allegiance to Mr Barrow along with top defence, civil service and security chiefs.

The first priority will be to help the return of tens of thousands who fled in recent weeks fearing a bloody end to the crisis, Mr Touray said.

* Agence France-Presse