Senegal Slipping, Daily Brief August 2, 2023

Senegal’s government hit the country with two shocks on Monday.

First, they shut down mobile internet services in much of the country. Then, they announced the dissolution of a key opposition party, Patriotes africains du Sénégal pour le travail, l'éthique et la fraternité (Patriots of Senegal for Work, Ethics, and Fraternity, or PASTEF).

These events are especially alarming in the context of increasing instability in West Africa, with multiple military coups in the region recently. Senegal has also been, in many eyes, “long considered a bastion of democracy and a regional leader in diplomacy.”

The government’s moves against the opposition party did not come out of the blue. It’s been building for some time.

On June 1, a court sentenced PASTEF leader Ousman Sonko to two years in jail for “corrupting youth.” This undermined his chances to run in next year’s presidential election, where he could have been expected to do well, given his third-place showing in 2019 and his mobilization of younger voters.

Obviously, PASTEF supporters saw the legal actions as politically motivated. Protests broke out in the capital Dakar, and violence led to at least 16 deaths, including two members of the security forces. Scores of others were wounded. Some 500 people across Senegal were arrested.

Then, last week, Sonko, who hadn’t begun serving his first sentence yet, was arrested on numerous new charges. These included fomenting insurrection, undermining state security, creating serious political unrest, and criminal association.

On Sunday, Sonko announced on social media that he had begun a hunger strike in custody and called on Senegalese citizens “to resist.”

Hundreds of people heeded that call in Dakar and in the southern city of Ziguinchor, on Monday, to protest Sonko’s arrest and detention. Senegal’s interior minister announced that two people died during protests in Ziguinchor but did not provide any details.

And that’s when the government dissolved PASTEF and restricted internet access.

PASTEF has condemned its dissolution as “anti-democratic,” and that’s a fair conclusion to draw here. Senegalese authorities should immediately reinstate the party.  

They should also restore internet services, recognizing people’s right to freedom of information and to express their views.

In the words of the prominent Senegalese human rights activist, Alioune Tine, the government of Senegal must respect its human rights obligations and “prioritize dialogue with the opposition over the use of indiscriminate repression that leads to violence and instability.”