Africa-Press – Gambia. Gambian rapper and activist Ali Cham alias Killa Ace is demanding urgent legal and systemic reforms following his release from Mile 2 Central Prisons. He was among 23 protesters arrested last week for demonstrating against a controversial data price increase by the Public Utilities Regulatory Authority (PURA).
The group was granted bail on Wednesday by Magistrate Touray of the Kanifing Magistrates’ Court. Each person’s bail was set at D50,000,00 with the condition of a Gambian surety or a biometric ID.
Speaking at the beach around Palma Rima Beach Hotel, where they went for bathing purification after their release, Killa Ace said the experience highlighted the need for fundamental change in the country. “A lot of things are lacking, from the constitution to security sector reform,” he said. “It’s up to us, the Gambian people, to keep those in power in check and remind them they have a lot of work to do.”
He pledged that the protests would continue despite the arrests. “We will never be intimidated. We are lawful, we are legal,” he said. “All the young people out there, be disciplined, mobilize, be aware, be informed, and we will continue the revolution.”
Killa Ace also revealed that his dreadlocks were forcibly cut off in prison, a tactic he described as a deliberate effort to intimidate him. “It is part of the methods used to break people down, whether through brutalization, incommunicado detention, or taking away something dear to you,” he explained. “But my hair will grow again. These are all intimidation tactics.”
He criticized Mile II’s continued use of what he called “colonial-era” prison regulations dating back to the 1950s. He argued that these laws were designed to suppress anti-colonial activists by denying them books and stripping their confidence.
“The prison was built by the British with limited ventilation and harsh conditions, and successive governments from Jawara to Jammeh to now have failed to repeal these colonial laws,” he said. “We must go to the National Assembly and reform a lot of these laws, including rules like cutting off your hair before entering prison.”
The activist concluded by reaffirming his resilience in the face of such adversity. “This is my third set of dreadlocks,” he stated. “I grow Rasta (dreadlocks), Rasta doesn’t grow me.”
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