DAKAR, Senegal (AP) – Riot police in armed personnel carriers fired tear gas and rubber bullets at crowds in Senegal’s capital for hours on Monday after authorities took opposition leader Ousmane Sonko out of custody after days of violent protests in one of the most stable democracies in Senegal. West Africa.
Upon his release, the 46-year-old politician blamed President Macky Sall for his arrest and accused the incumbent leader of putting aside his future political prospects ahead of the country’s 2024 elections. While Sonko publicly accused the president of plunging Senegal into an unprecedented crisis, the opposition leader said his goal was not to force Sall from power.
“We don’t want to take responsibility for undermining our democracy,” he tweeted late on Monday. “But let’s be clear, the revolution is on the rise to 2024.”
At least eight people have died since the unrest started last week, marking the worst unrest to hit Senegal in nearly a decade, according to Amnesty International.
Sonko is widely seen as the president’s biggest potential political challenger in the next election, and the protests that began Wednesday have been accelerated by wider, long-standing grievances against Sall’s government.
The two men met the nation on Monday evening: Sonko first, then the president.
Sall told Senegalese families that he knew they were suffering from the economic downturn of COVID-19, and that the resulting poverty only fueled dissatisfaction with his government. He agreed to reduce the curfew that many merchants blame for deepening their hardships.
“I understand your concerns and the anger you feel about the harsh life you have to live in, mainly because of the unemployment rate exacerbated by COVID-19,” Sall said. “But when you loot a company, you don’t create jobs, you destroy them.”
However, some Sonko supporters said they would still continue their civil disobedience even after their leader was granted parole by a judge on Monday. Throngs of boisterous supporters came to the courthouse in the center waving Senegalese flags and then made their way to his residence.
Protesters have sought to undermine Sall’s business ties with former colonizer France by attacking more than a dozen supermarkets opened by French retailer Auchan. Total gas stations are also targeted by the protesters in Dakar.
Seeing burnt-out cars and boarded-up shops is a rarity in Senegal, which has never suffered the military coups and dictatorships that have destabilized so many of its West African neighbors over the past half century.
The demonstrations began Wednesday before Sonko appeared in court for questioning on rape allegations. He was detained and arrested on the way to the courthouse for disturbing public order after hundreds of his supporters clashed with police blocking unauthorized protests. He has now been charged with rape and death threats.
A populist who has spoken out against corruption and poverty, Sonko finished third in the 2019 presidential election with just over 15% of the votes cast and received strong support from younger voters. His message of greater economic independence for Senegal has attracted an even wider audience amid the financial troubles of the COVID-19 pandemic amid curfews and other restrictions on movement.
Sonko also called on the president on Monday to publicly relinquish a third term in office. After easily winning reelection in 2019 with more than 58% of the vote, his opponents fear he will try to extend his mandate for a third term, as presidents in neighboring Guinea and Ivory Coast did last year. However, Sall has not yet publicly commented on his intentions.
While Sall is credited with infrastructure and development projects, his critics say progress comes with sidelining political rivals. Two other emerging political stars have previously faced allegations that their supporters said were politically motivated.
Karim Wade, the son of President Sall, who was defeated in 2012, was once widely seen as the heir apparent before being charged with corruption the following year. He eventually spent three years in prison before going into exile in Qatar. Former Dakar Mayor Khalifa Sall, who at one point was seen as one of the top candidates for the 2019 election, was arrested in 2017 on corruption charges and was later pardoned after the vote took place.
Leaders of the influential Muslim Brotherhoods in Senegal have urged protesters to exercise restraint in the coming days.
“Any Senegalese has the right to comment on the situation in the country, but with respect for institutions and without the destruction of public or private property,” said Serigne Mansour Sy. “We call for peace and serenity.”