Four years ago, a group of Sheffield-based pals banded together to raise money in order to help save their friend, a Gambian national, from deportation and certain persecution in his country of origin. Through fundraising efforts, including a sponsored bike ride and a huge party, they raised over £2,000 that went towards Yankuba’s legal fees.
Sadly, Yankuba Jawneh’s asylum claim has once again been rejected by the UK Home Office, despite their concession that his life would be in danger should he return to The Gambia, a country that has undergone significant political upheaval and violence in recent years.
Undeterred, the group have once again rallied to their friend’s aid, and as part of their fundraising efforts this time around, they will host The Wham-Bam Yankuba Jam at The Brother’s Arms on Sunday, 15 December.
The second edition of the Be a Legend, Save a Legend fundraising campaign features three of the artists from the original night, as well as fresh reinforcements from some incredible new artists eager to join the cause.
Fighting to keep Yankuba safe from persecution this time are Yo Dynamo, Goldivox, Basic Faces, Doncaster Railway Social Club, The Psycles, Captain, Jacob Harrap, The Ginger Prince, and a DJ set from the legend Dirty Cheese. Plus, there will also be a special beer available on the night brewed by Abbeydale Brewery, called Idea Koskuro, which means ‘cheers in Gambian, as well as some very special guests and a raffle with amazing prizes.
Fundraiser Phil Newnham told Exposed: “It’s incredibly infuriating to find ourselves back here after so long. When someone reached out to me and told me Yankuba needed help again (he’s never wanted to burden us with this bad news himself), I wondered how the hell we were going to ask the same community to donate to the same cause yet again, without meeting frustration or fatigue.
“The result has been far from it. This time, the community remembers Yankuba, his positivity, his kindness, and if there are any bad feelings about being asked to come through for him again, it’s at the Home Office, not us.
“We’ve been incredibly lucky to receive support from bands, artists, local businesses and writers, coming together to offer help in whatever way they can. Which has, of course, resulted in a big musical piss up, in true Sheffield fashion. And we couldn’t be prouder of what this collaboration has achieved, even just so far.”
Yankuba’s story is a scary one: He was uprooted to Sheffield in 2018 when he fled The Gambia against the backdrop of tribal conflict and violent attempts to claim the ancestral lands he spent his days farming.
A self-described “child of the soil”, Yankuba suffered a violent attack while working his banana plantation in February 2018. Three men arrived on his property, told him he must surrender his land, and attacked him with machetes. He still bears the scars on his forehead, arm, and ankle, where they’d aimed for his Achilles tendon to cripple his ability to farm.
The motivations for the attack can be found in the rising political and ethnic tensions in the West African country. Yankuba is part of the Jahanka tribe, a small tribe that represents roughly 1.5% of the ethnic population of The Gambia. The land he worked was formally granted to them under tribal law in 1973 by Chief Muhammed Krubally when it was first contested by members of the Mandinka tribe from a neighbouring village.
The Mandinka tribe, the largest ethnic group in the country, representing roughly 42% of the population, were threatened with extinction towards the end of former President Jammeh’s two-decades-long autocratic rule, which was marred by egregious human rights violations.
Since Jammeh was overthrown in 2017, the new government has struggled to ease the tensions created by the former president, and conflicts have taken on an increasingly ethnic hue, often descending into serious violence.
This was unfortunately the case in 2018 when tensions in Yankuba’s region finally boiled over. The Mandinkas attacked the Jahankas with machetes, sticks, and rocks when they refused to abandon their lands to the Mandinkas.
The threat to Yankuba’s safety and his precarious status as a landowner led him to flee to the UK to find safety here in Sheffield. While residing in Sheffield, Yankuba’s family members who have remained in The Gambia have been warned that if he returns, he will be killed.
Against this horrifying backdrop, Yankuba has sought asylum here in the UK, and despite the obvious distress and financial hardship, has forged a meaningful life and lasting connections in his adopted country.
For over five years, he has awaited a final verdict on his asylum claim. In that time, he has been moved out of Sheffield, cutting off access to charities that were helping him, as well as his friends and support networks here.
In this isolated state, the Home Office have rejected his claim once again. Despite being satisfied that his life is in danger should he return home, they see no reason why he cannot relocate within The Gambia – a viewpoint that Yankuba, experts, and his friends in the UK vehemently reject.
They argue that the probability of Yankuba facing retribution is extremely high as The Gambia has a population that is only twice the size of Sheffield, and you’d be hard pushed to avoid 42% of the population in Sheffield for the rest of your life, so relocating would put Yankuba at significant risk of being found and harmed.
This is why they have once again mobilised, planning a sponsored run to Wakefield, where Yankuba currently resides, and a party at The Brothers Arms on 15 December.
Through these and other efforts, they are hoping to raise the £3,000 needed to pay for his legal bills and ask that you: “Please dig deep and donate to help us reach our mark, and we’ll see you at the pub on Sunday 15 December for some boss live music, booze, and fun.”
Details of the event can be found here, and you can donate to the JustGiving page here.
