Musa Gassama’s journey from a student leader and activist to a civil servant and later a prominent international human rights defender has been defined by courage, resilience, and an unwavering commitment to justice. His path has taken him from outspoken activism to senior leadership within the United Nations, where he continues to shape responses to some of Africa’s most pressing human rights and humanitarian crises.
In 2004, Musa Gassama became the Africa Project Coordinator for a Human Rights Defenders Project at Amnesty International’s Africa Regional Office in Kampala, Uganda. There, he supported the creation of the East and Horn of Africa Human Rights Defenders Network, now known as DefendDefenders. Working closely with Hassan Shire, DefendDefenders’ Executive Director, Musa replicated the coalition-building model he had pioneered in West Africa, laying the groundwork for regional protection mechanisms for human rights defenders in East Africa.
Although he moved on to a new role before DefendDefenders was formally launched in 2005, Musa remained confident in the path he had set in motion. As he reflects:
“When you plant a seed, you have the faith that it will grow. I left, but I had the faith that this network would grow, and its growth has exceeded my expectations.”
Musa’s human rights journey took shape in the early 1990s, when, as a law student at Fourah Bay College, University of Sierra Leone, he found himself at the forefront of student activism. Having already been active in the Gambian Students Union during his secondary school years, Musa naturally gravitated toward leadership roles that combined his legal studies with his passion for justice.
In 1992, as President of the Gambian Students Union in Sierra Leone, Musa led a major student strike demanding fair scholarship allowances. The grievances centred on financial discrepancies: only 60 percent of funds earmarked for Gambian students were reaching them. His leadership culminated in a bold three-day occupation of the Gambian Embassy in Freetown, drawing international media coverage, including a BBC interview. The protest not only secured a 50 percent increase in student allowances but also spotlighted the systemic failures of the Gambian government.
The strike made Musa both admired and controversial. In The Gambia, authorities accused him of being infiltrated by revolutionary movements spreading across West Africa, painting him as a dissident. Yet Musa remained clear about his purpose: he was defending the legitimate rights of students and demanding accountability. Reflecting on this turning point, he explains:
“That strike defined me. It hardened me. I realised this was my life now, defending rights was no longer a choice, it had become who I am.”
Although vilified at home, Musa’s leadership won recognition among students and human rights networks in Sierra Leone.
In 1993, Musa graduated with a Bachelor of Laws degree from the University of Sierra Leone and, after completing his bar exams, was called to the Gambian Bar in 1994. His entry into legal practice coincided with a political shift: the rise of President Yahya Jammeh, who had just seized power in a military coup.
At his Bar Association call ceremony, Musa was asked to deliver the student statement on behalf of his peers. His remarks were candid and uncompromising. Speaking, Musa warned:
“We are entering a very dark era. If people with the light cannot defeat the darkness, then we will be held responsible. Gambian elites, intellectuals, people who are educated, cannot allow this darkness to overrun the country. Gambia has always been a democratic nation.”
The statement, widely reported in the press, sent shockwaves through the gathering. Musa’s words stood out as both bold and dangerous. Looking back, Musa admits he may not have realised how strong his words were in that moment. Yet his instinct to call a spade a spade, even under threat, would become a defining characteristic of his career as a lawyer.
Musa began his law career as a State Prosecutor at the Attorney General’s Chambers. It was a sobering introduction to the realities of justice under a military regime. He quickly discovered that professional integrity and the independence of the judiciary were compromised.
“I would review a case and say, ‘This is not worth prosecuting, there is nothing to defend in court.’ Yet the very next day, I would see the same case listed for hearing. When I asked why, I was told: ‘My brother, welcome. Some cases have to go to court because there are powerful people behind them.’
This moment left Musa shocked. Having grown up believing The Gambia was a democracy, he now saw firsthand how the system bent to political will. Frustrated and unwilling to compromise his values, he requested a transfer to the judiciary.
The Minister of Justice, amused by Musa’s boldness but supportive of Gambians joining the bench, which was at the time dominated by foreign magistrates, approved his request. Within weeks, at just 28 years old, Musa was appointed a Magistrate, making him one of the youngest Gambians to hold the position.
On the bench, Musa “meant business.” He was tough with prosecutors and uncompromising in his application of the law, particularly in politically charged cases.
One defining moment came when he acquitted an opposition politician accused of assaulting a governor. A prominent opposition politician was charged with assaulting a governor. As Musa reviewed the evidence, it became clear that the accusations were politically motivated. The testimony showed that the politician had not attacked the governor at all, he had simply banged a door on his way out of the office.
In his judgment, Musa carefully explained that, at most, the accused had been rude, but there was no legal basis to classify banging a door as assault. He acquitted the politician. What Musa thought was a straightforward ruling turned out to have enormous political consequences. The opposition figure was a strong candidate in a key region, and his conviction would have removed him from contesting elections.
The day of the judgment, the courthouse overflowed with people and security forces. When Musa announced the acquittal, celebrations erupted across the region. An elderly man even sought him out afterwards, telling him: “You don’t know what you’ve done. You are too young to understand. By acquitting this man, you have saved this region from going to war.”
But the ruling also put Musa in the crosshairs of the regime. He was summoned by the Ministry of Justice, interrogated about why he had not “consulted” before issuing his decision, and warned that this would be his last chance. Soon after, his security detail was replaced with intelligence operatives, and he was told bluntly that if he insisted on resigning, he could not remain in The Gambia.
Faced with growing threats, Musa made a defining choice: he resigned. As he puts it,
“For me, this was a threat. I could not serve in a system where justice was compromised. So, I handed in my resignation and said: ‘Bless my resignation. I cannot serve anymore.’”.
After leaving the Gambian judiciary, Musa’s commitment to justice found a new home in the international human rights movement. In 2000, he was recruited by Amnesty International’s West Africa Regional Office in Dakar, Senegal, as West Africa Project Coordinator for the Human Rights Defenders Project. Part of his role was to get human rights defenders to understand the fairly new concept of the Declaration on Human Rights Defenders.
“The UN had just adopted the Declaration on Human Rights Defenders, and my job was to make that declaration meaningful in Africa.”
Musa travelled extensively across West Africa, engaging with civil society organisations and stressing that defending rights also meant learning to protect themselves. At the time, this was a new and difficult concept to explain. He encouraged local organisations to form national coalitions of human rights defenders, which became the first line of protection against threats.
Within two years, almost every West African country had established a national coalition, and Musa convened leaders in Dakar to create a regional network: the West Africa Human Rights Defenders Network. With support from Amnesty International Canada, the network was formally established with a Liberian activist in exile as its first coordinator.
Musa supported the creation and strengthening of HRD networks across all four African regions: West Africa, East and Horn of Africa, Central Africa, and Southern Africa
Musa’s success in West Africa led to his transfer in 2002 to Uganda, where he spearheaded the creation of what is now the East and Horn of Africa Human Rights Defenders Network (DefendDefenders). Working closely with DefendDefenders’ Executive Director Hassan Shire, he replicated the coalition-building model that had worked in West Africa, laying the foundation of the regional protection mechanisms for HRDs.
Just before the East and Horn of Africa Human Rights Defenders Network was formally launched, Musa was recruited in 2004 to Geneva, Switzerland as Deputy Director of the International Service for Human Rights (ISHR) and Manager of its new Human Rights Defenders Program. His leadership ensured that African HRDs’ voices were represented at the UN and that protection standards gained global traction, through advocacy, training, and technical advice to civil society organisations, governments, and regional human rights mechanisms.
While working in Geneva, Musa was part of those who pushed for the networks’ voices to be at the centre of setting the agenda of the NGO Forum of the African Commission on Human and Peoples’ Rights (ACHPR). At the time, international NGOs dominated regional advocacy, often determining the Forum’s priorities, while African organisations felt sidelined. Musa and others believed this had to change, arguing that African networks were ready to take ownership of the process.
Musa recalls being approached by the African Centre for Democracy and Human Rights Studies to review the Forum’s structure.
Over six months, he consulted widely, gathered views, and proposed a new governance model. He recommended that regional human rights defender networks should sit on the steering committee.
The reform was endorsed without objection, marking a turning point in the history of the NGO Forum.
In 2008, Musa transitioned to working with the United Nations, marking the beginning of a distinguished career in senior leadership roles. His first assignment was in Togo, where he facilitated national dialogues that helped prevent election-related violence. He later served as OHCHR Regional Representative for East Africa and the African Union, advising on governance, peace, and security frameworks across the continent.
Musa’s UN journey took him to some of Africa’s most fragile contexts. He led the Human Rights Sections in UNSOM (Somalia) and MINUSCA (Central African Republic), where he provided strategic support to senior UN officials, oversaw political and human rights programs, and engaged with both national and international stakeholders on peace, security, and development.
Since 2020, Musa has been serving as Director of the Human Rights Division at UNMISS in South Sudan, where he manages a team of over 100 experts. His leadership focuses on transitional justice, protection of civilians, and advancing human rights priorities in line with UN mandates, all within one of the world’s most complex humanitarian and political crises.
Through his years in different countries and mandates, Musa has remained consistent in his approach: to first understand the environment before acting.
“Whenever I arrive, I have an open mind. I want to understand the environment first, and that is what is going to shape the strategies or the tools I will be applying. If you don’t understand the environment, you become very vulnerable. Most problems arise because people do not study the environment, they become easy prey. You need to understand the political environment, the socio-economic and cultural environment, and map out the actors.”