Many young Gambians took to the streets on Thursday to protest against rape and sexual violence that women and girls are continually being subjected to in the country.

The protest was called to show support and solidarity with an alleged rape victim Fatou Toufah Jallow, a former beauty queen, who recently accused the former Gambian president Yahya Jammeh of raping and sexually assaulting her.

The protesters, who carried placards that read: “No Means No”, “I am Toufah”, “Stop Violence against Women”, “Break the silence”, chanted slogans and called for the end of all sexual violence against women and girls in the country.

“I want to bring the conversation here. I want to break the silence around sexual violence. A lot of women are suffering in silence. I don’t think it’s fair for Jammeh to be in Equatorial Guinea while my silence is protecting him there,” said Ms Fatou Toufah Jallow who led the protest march and had become the public face of the metoo movement in The Gambia.

Many have shown their support for
the bravery of these women to speak out and spark a conversation in a society where sexual harassment and abuse against women are usually swept under the carpet.

“We just want to show our support, show our utter disgust, show that we condemn rape, [and] show that we will stand against it,” the National Assembly member for Banjul South, Fatoumatta Njie, said.

Dr. Ismaila Ceesay, a university lecturer, who also took part in the protest said the march is to raise awareness on the issue of sexual violence.

“We have to accept that there is a problem in our society, then we can be able to raise awareness and come up with the proper solutions,” he said.