all in effort to extract a confession from him of his involvement in the coup plot. Among those who tortured him were officials of the Presidential Bodyguards including the President's cousin Lt. Musa Jammeh and RSM Tamba. 4. The plaintiff further averred that during the interrogations he was accused of being disloyal to the government because he had invited President Thabo Mbeki of South Africa to pressurize the government of The Gambia to expedite investigations into the brutal killing of one Deyda Hydara, a newspaper editor, and attacks on newspaper houses. He was also accused of embarrassing the government by writing stories about the mysterious killings of over forty ECOWAS nationals by the Gambian security forces in 2005. 5. The plaintiff claimed that he suffered injuries on his back, legs, arms and a bayonet cut on his left jaw. He also suffered mental and psychological torture. 6. He was released on bail, yet the security officers continued to put him under surveillance and this put his wife, aged mother and junior brothers to fright. The situation became unbearable so he and his wife decided to flee the country for security reasons. Therefore on the night of 13th May 2006 they fled the country an arrived in Dakar. Senegal on 15th May 2006. However, the defendant has continued to harass and intimidate his family members in Banjul, especially his brother who stood surety for his bail. He stated that it was in Dakar that he received medical attention at the expense of Amnesty International. Pleas in law 7. The plaintiff stated in his application that he would rely on Article 4 of the ECOWAS Revised Treaty. He also stated that he would rely on Articles 1, 2, 5, 6, 7 (b) and (d) of the ACHPR. These enactments will be referred to as and when appropriate in this judgment. Reliefs and Orders sought. 8. The plaintiff sought the following reliefs and orders from the court: a. "A declaration that the arrest of the plaintiff in Banjul, The Gambia on March 27, 2006 by the armed agents of the defendant is illegal and unconstitutional as it contravenes the plaintiff's human right to personal liberty as guaranteed by Article 6 of the ACHPR. b. A declaration that the detention of the plaintiff by the defendant's agents at the National intelligence Agency detention centre for 22 days without trial is illegal as it violates the plaintiff's right to personal liberty and fair hearing as guaranteed by Articles 6 and 7 of the ACHPR. c. A declaration that the torture inflicted on the plaintiff by the defendant's agents during his 22 days detention is illegal as it violates the plaintiffs right to personal dignity as guaranteed by Article 5 of the ACHPR. d. An order restraining the Defendant from harassing or intimidating members of the plaintiff's family who are based in The Gambia in any manner whatsoever and howsoever. e. US$2 million being compensation for the violation of the plaintiff's human rights to dignity, personal liberty and fair hearing." The Defence case 9. The defence consisted largely of a complete denial of all the averments contained in the initiating application. The defendant denied any knowledge of the publication of the names of coup plotters and denied sending any security agents to arrest any journalists. The defendant further stated they did not receive any reports of any arrests, detention or torture and put the plaintiff to strict proof. 10. The defence stated that Lt. Musa Jammeh and RSM Tamba are not identifiable persons. A person known as Col. Musa Jammeh is deceased. That the names Musa Jammeh and Tamba are very common names in the Gambian Armed Forces, with many persons bearing those names and with similar ranks. 2