Gambia, Africa
The Republic of The Gambia used to be part of the Empire of Ghana and the Kingdom of the Songhais (Bureau of African Affairs 2005). First records came from Arab traders of the 9th and 10th centuries who had commercial relations with the native for slaves, gold and ivory. The Portuguese took over through sea routes at the time The Gambia became part of the Kingdom of Mali. Exclusive trade rights were sold to the English under Queen Elizabeth I. In the 17th and 18th centuries, England and France fought for political and commercial control over it until the Treaty of Versailles of 1783 turned it over to Great Britain. Slaves from The Gambia were first taken to Europe when the labor market expanded in the West Indies and North America in the 18th century. The British established a military post at Bathurst or the modern-day Banjul in 1816. In 1888, it became a separate colonial entity and, in 1889, a British Crown colony. In 1901 it received its own executive and legislative councils and grew towards self-government. Former President Franklin D. Roosevelt was the first to stop by Banjul en route to and from Casablanca for a conference in 1943. The Gambia was granted full internal self-government after general elections in 1962 and gained independence in 1965 as a constitutional monarchy within the British Commonwealth until it became a republic on April 24, 1970 following a referendum. Its President was Sir Dawda Kairaba Jawara, re-elected five times until his government was toppled by a military coup in July 1994. The Gambia and Senegal combined forces against the coup forces and formed the Senegambia Confederation. The Gambia withdrew from the union in 1989.
In its transition to a democratic civilian government, The Gambia held elections in 1996, which foreign observers believed were unfair and unrepresentative (Bureau of African Affairs 2005). A full cycle of credible presidential, local and legislative elections were held in 2001 with the same retired Col Yahya A.J.J. Jammeh as President.
American policy sought to improve relations with The Gambia on the basis of historical interests and ties, mutual respect, democratic rule,
then lifted the sanction imposed against it according to Section 508 of the Foreign Assistance Act and since then, relations between the two countries dramatically improved. The Gambia has demonstrated greater respect for human rights and strong support for the War on Terrorism, making it eligible for preferential trade benefits under the African Growth and Opportunity Act or AGOA on January 1, 2003 (Bureau of African Affairs).
The Office of the U.S. President, U.S. Congress and the U.S. Department of State each have a stake in the developments in the Republic of The Gambia (Haley et al. 2005). The U.S. has retained a hard stand against dictators and their domestic supporters and another country can have a different concept and application of democracy from those of the U.S.U.S. Congress determines foreign policy, the President executes it and the Department of State creates a secure, democratic and prosperous world for the benefit of the American people and the international community. The Department's mission is anchored on the President's national security strategy of diplomacy, development and defense. These positions place countries with different views and strategies of democracy under pressure. The U.S. believes that the principle and tradition of democracy are required by due process, the right to public assembly, the right to economic pursuit within the boundaries of law, the right to protest and the right to form opinion against the current government. Conflicts in African countries and republic, such as The Gambia, can derail progress already gained by a revamped…
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