Open letter to Sydney Moussavou by the Gabon2025 Collective
Sydney, we write to you today with a heavy heart. It is with sadness that we must tell you that you have been abandoned by the Gabonese people. Despite your public apologies, despite those of your parents, despite the humiliation and the tears you shed on your knees... all this was for nothing. The president could have shown greatness of soul, turned the page, but no. Why? Out of ego? Out of pure wickedness? This is what they want our country to become, and this is why we are all responsible. This is not how Gabon will grow, nor we, its children.
Yet everyone is well aware of the trials you are going through, the difficulties of incarceration at an age when you should be playing outside with your friends, and the sadness surrounding your fate. We have tried everything. We have relayed the petition, we have informed the population, mobilized our contacts, but unfortunately, the collective response has not been up to what we had hoped for.
15 years old. It is the age of carelessness, of stupidity, of impertinence. You were one of those impertinent children. Your act is not glorious, but it is not serious either. It is the act of a child. And by condemning you, it is all the children of this country who have been condemned. Condemned to be automatons, little soldiers, well-trained sheep, at the orders of a system. This is the message they wanted to convey.
We are sorry Sydney. We are sorry to see that Gabon has become a country where indifference and selfishness reign. We are sorry to see that some, paralyzed by what people will say and by the anger of an authoritarian power, bury their heads in the sand. So many Gabonese prefer to look the other way and remain silent in the face of injustice. Where has this nation gone that said it was united, ready to defend its children? Today, too many are afraid... but afraid of what? Of standing up for the truth? Of fighting for a child's freedom?
However, in this darkness, some lights still shine. We do not forget the few people who had the courage to support you, despite the repression. A few courageous anonymous people stood up to denounce injustice. They showed the world that there are still Gabonese people who refuse to bow to fear, and we are grateful to them.
Sydney, you have become a hero in spite of yourself, who resonates in the hearts of many. Because we are a country of freedoms. We will not abandon you. Keep holding on, because the fight for a better Gabon will not stop here. And even if the support seems weak, know that the Gabon 2025 team and many others will never forget the injustice that has struck you.
With all our support and friendship,
The Gabon 2025 collective
