Hopes of deporting Gambia's exiled dictator from Equatorial Guinea fade with video of NYE despots' dance

Call it the Tyrants' Tango, the Despots' Dad Dance, or a case of Strictly Dictators. Video footage has emerged of two of Africa's most ruthless strongmen taking to the dance floor together at New Year’s Eve - and offering proof, perhaps, that guilty feet do indeed have no rhythm.

The video, shot in a lavish ballroom in Equatorial Guinea, shows the country's long-standing ruler, Teodoro Obiang, leading in the 2019 celebrations along with Yahya Jammeh, the fugitive former dictator of Gambia.

Mr Jammeh, 53, was ousted as Gambia's president two years ago after a two-decade reign of terror. Despite calls for him to be tried for human rights abuses, he was granted refuge by Mr Obiang, 76, who has a similar record of atrocities. 

Mr Jammeh has been barely been in public since, but appears to have been invited as a guest of honour to Mr Obiang's champagne-fuelled New Year's Eve party.

Both men look far from confident on the dance floor, shuffling around awkwardly after being urged to join in the fun by fellow revellers. 

But while the video has attracted as much mockery online as anger, it appears also to dash hopes that Mr Obiang might have been having second thoughts about hosting his controversial guest. 

Mr Obiang has never signed the statutes of the International Criminal Court, meaning that Mr Jammeh cannot be extradited without his permission. 

However, in a rare interview last year, Mr Obiang said that any extradition requests would be "considered" by his lawyers. His comment was  interpreted as a signal that he wanted to leave the door open on the matter. However, Mr Jammeh's presence as a VIP guest at his New Year's party would suggest the welcome remains as warm as ever.

Reed Brody, a lawyer for the advocacy group Human Rights Watch, which has been compiling testimony of human rights abuses during the Jammeh era, said of the video: "It’s a slap in the face to the victims he left behind in Gambia.  Jammeh should be answering atrocity charges before a court of law, not cavorting around the dance floor with his fellow despot like a celebrity."

Mr Jammeh left Gambia in January 2017 after his refusal to step aside after 22 years took the country to the brink of civil war
Mr Jammeh left Gambia in January 2017 after his refusal to step aside after 22 years took the country to the brink of civil war Credit: Jerome Delay/AP

There has been no official confirmation that Mr Jammeh was present at the New Year's Eve party, and his face is hard to identify clearly from the grainy footage. But he is wearing the same traditional white robes that he favoured while in office. His presence was also mentioned online by Koffi Olomide, the Congolese singer and MC seen dancing with both men on the video. 

Mr Olomide, who was reportedly flown in Mr Obiang’s private jet to perform at the party, posted the video on his Instagram account, under the title "Les Presidents sur la piste" (Presidents on Track).

During Mr Jammeh's 22-year rule, thousands of people were imprisoned without trial and hundreds more allegedly "disappeared" for opposing his regime. When he lost elections unexpectedly in late 2016 to underdog opposition candidate Adama Barrow, he tried to cling to power, sparking a stand-off that nearly took the country to civil war. 

He was allowed to take asylum in Equatorial Guinea on condition that he stepped down peacefully. But his departure let many of his alleged victims to fear he will never face a court.

Mr Barrow's government is privately keen to see him put on trial, but wants to wait for the outcome first of a forthcoming Truth and Reconciliation Commission into human rights abuses during the Jammeh era.

Mr Jammeh is believed to be living in one of several grace-and-favour palaces built by Mr Obiang in his home town of Mongomo, which also boasts an international airport, a football stadium that hosted matches for the 2015 Africa cup, and an international standard 18-hole "Presidential Golf Course".

The only other pictures that have emerged of Mr Jammeh in Equatorial Guinea were of him farming a plot of land - again clad in the same style of white robes that he was seen dancing in at New Year’s Eve.

License this content