Four people have died in Senegal in the clashes which have opposed the police since Wednesday to demonstrators demanding the release of the opponent Ousmane Sonko, the government said on Friday, promising to implement "
all necessary means to bring back order
”.
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"
The government regrets the loss of four human lives
", during events which "
relate to organized crime and insurrection
", the Minister of the Interior, Antoine Félix Abdoulaye Diome, said live on television.
He accused Ousmane Sonko of having "
launched calls for violence
" and "
insurrection
".
The police wiped the crowd's anger.
ZOHRA BENSEMRA / REUTERS
The arrest of Ousmane Sonko, third in the 2019 presidential election and expected to be one of the main competitors for that of 2024, has also since Wednesday triggered looting and looting of stores, in particular under the French banner, in the capital and various cities. from the country.
This arrest not only angered his supporters, but also, say many Senegalese, brought to its height the exasperation accumulated in this poor country in the face of the harshness of life for at least a year and the Covid pandemic. 19.
During a charge on the main avenue Blaise Diagne, at least dozens of young people chanting "
Free Sonko
" managed to temporarily push back the police, despite the heavy fire of tear gas canisters.
The ground was strewn with stones, grenade cartridges and burnt tires.
Fourteen Auchan supermarkets in Dakar were "
attacked
", including ten "
looted
", announced Friday the management of the French group, which ensures that its employees were "
sheltered
".
On Thursday evening, demonstrators attacked the premises of the daily Le Soleil and the radio RFM, deemed close to power.
French schools in the country have closed, as has the Air France agency.
Sonko officially arrested for disturbing public order
Ousmane Sonko's custody is due to end on Sunday.
He will be presented to the judge again on Monday, according to his advice.
Sonko was officially arrested for disturbing public order, as he was marching to court where he was summoned to answer charges of rape.
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It is therefore targeted by at least two procedures.
He was presented to the judge on Friday in the one for alleged rape and came out without being charged, but with a new appointment on Monday, according to his lawyers.
He was taken back into custody in the proceedings for disturbing public order, they added.
Sonko is the subject of an “
attempted liquidation for the purpose of eliminating a political opponent
,” said Abdoulaye Tall.
He has been targeted since early February by a complaint for rape and death threats filed against him by an employee of a beauty salon where he was going to get a massage to, he said, relieve his back pain.
A personality with an anti-system profile, the deputy shouts at the plot hatched by President Macky Sall to remove him from the next presidential election.
Macky Sall denied at the end of February, but has remained silent on the matter since.
Fourteen Auchan supermarkets in Dakar were “
attacked
”, including ten “
looted
”.
SEYLLOU / AFP
Restrictions on social networks, messaging and television
As of Thursday evening, the authorities announced to suspend the signal of two private televisions guilty according to them to have diffused "
in loop
" of the images of violence.
Social networks have reported disturbances on the internet, like those observed in a number of countries at the initiative of governments in times of crisis.
The specialist Netblocks observatory has confirmed restrictions on social networks and messaging applications, affecting the sharing of photos and videos on Facebook, YouTube, WhatsApp and Telegram according to it.
The authorities have banned the circulation of motorized two-wheelers until Saturday evening.
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Rights defenders are moved by the authorities' response.
"
The Senegalese authorities must immediately stop the arbitrary arrests of opponents and activists, respect the freedom of peaceful assembly and freedom of expression, and shed light on the presence of men armed with clubs alongside the security forces
Amnesty International said.
The national football federation has announced that it will suspend all competitions because of the “
more than probable unavailability
” of the security forces.
Security forces have been mobilized.
ZOHRA BENSEMRA / REUTERS
UN Secretary General Antonio Guterres "
is very concerned about the recent violence seen in Dakar and elsewhere in Senegal (which) followed the arrest of an opposition leader
," his spokesperson said on Friday. word, Stéphane Dujarric. "
He calls on all parties in Senegal to avoid an escalation of the situation,
" the protesters at "
peaceful
"
gatherings
and the security forces "
to act in accordance with international human rights
," the spokesperson added in response. to a question on the acts of violence that occurred during the day in Senegal.