By: Isatou Sarr
The ECOWAS Court of Justice has adopted an amicable settlement between the Government of The Gambia and eight family members of the late Mahawa Cham, a former Gambian MP who was unlawfully disappeared and killed during the Jammeh era.
The settlement requires the Gambian Government to investigate and prosecute those responsible, provide compensation to the family, exhume and hand over Cham’s remains to his family, and strengthen mechanisms for transitional justice and accountability.
According to a press release dated October 6, 2025, the ECOWAS Court adopted the agreement as a Consent Judgment in the case of Binta Jarju, Isatou Fatty, Lamin Cham, Bakary Cham, Fatou Cham, Kaddy Cham, Omar Cham and Limam Cham versus The Republic of The Gambia, ECW/CCJ/APP/11/24.
The plaintiffs were represented by the Institute for Human Rights and Development in Africa (IHRDA), in partnership with the African Network against Extrajudicial Killings and Enforced Disappearance (ANEKED).
The case concerned the disappearance and killing of Mahawa Cham, who served as a Gambian parliamentarian.
The Truth, Reconciliation and Reparations Commission (TRRC), in its report of November 25, 2021, concluded that Cham was unlawfully disappeared and killed and recommended the prosecution of those allegedly responsible.
The government subsequently accepted the TRRC’s recommendations through its White Paper.
Under the amicable settlement reached pursuant to Article 72 of the Rules of the ECOWAS Court, the government committed to investigate and prosecute the disappearance and killing of Cham in accordance with its obligations under the African Charter on Human and Peoples’ Rights and the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights.
The government is expected to undertake the investigation and prosecution within one year of the date of the settlement.
The settlement also provides for compensation to the plaintiffs, with the amount having already been agreed upon by the parties and approved by the court.
As part of the government’s commitment to implement the TRRC White Paper, it has further undertaken to exhume and surrender the remains of Mahawa Cham to his family and ensure that the case against all alleged perpetrators is prosecuted to its final conclusion.
The agreement also called for the strengthening of transitional justice mechanisms, including the Victims Reparations Commission and the National Human Rights Commission, with the aim of improving their visibility and accessibility.
It further requires the government to strengthen existing measures and mechanisms for promoting accountability for human rights abuses and crimes committed between July 1994 and January 2017.
Lamin Cham, son of Mahawa Cham, said the absence of his father had brought hardship to the family and expressed hope that the settlement would provide some closure.
“Nobody can pay for a soul, but reparation can go a long way towards addressing some of the major hardships we have faced,” he said, while also calling on the government to take steps against those responsible and hold them accountable.
Awa Gai, legal representative from IHRDA, said the adoption of the settlement was not the end of the matter, noting that the ECOWAS Court would continue to monitor the case until the government fully implements the agreement.
She stressed that timely implementation would be important to ensuring that justice was delivered.
Sirra Ndow, ANEKED Gambia Country Director, described the development as significant for the Cham family and other victims and families affected by gross human rights violations. She called on the government to accelerate implementation of the TRRC recommendations and ensure that justice, reparations, accountability and guarantees of non-recurrence become realities for victims.
The settlement therefore leaves the government with specific commitments on investigation, prosecution, reparations and the recovery of Mahawa Cham’s remains, with implementation now remaining a key part of the case.