In Senegal, an opposition figure is accused of insulting President Macky Sall
Arrested for remarks about the legacy of Senegalese President Macky Sall, opponent Birame Souleye Diop was charged Tuesday with insulting the head of state, his lawyer announced.
Birame Souleye Diop, an opponent of Senegalese President Macky Sall, was charged on Tuesday (July 11th) in particular with insulting the head of state, his lawyer, Moussa Sarr, announced.
This president of the parliamentary group of the opposition coalition Yewwi Askan Wi and the leader of Pastef, the party of Ousmane Sonko, the fiercest opponent of the head of state, “is accused of actions likely to compromise public peace, insulting the president of the republic,” said his lawyer to AFP, adding that he had been held under a court order.
On July 3, Macky Sall announced that he would not run for a third presidential term scheduled for 2024. During a press conference the following day, Birame Souleye Diop warned of a possible reversal of the head of state. “I warn the next candidates of the APR (presidential party): avoid eating with him, avoid drinking his water, he is able to poison you and say ‘Since we have no more candidates, I will be back’. And that do it à la Ouattara. Be careful,” he said before apologizing.
Ivorian President Alassane Ouattara had chosen Amadou Gon Coulibaly to succeed him, but the latter’s death at the age of 61, following heart problems, had pushed Alassane Ouattara to run for president in 2020, having announced that he would not would stand up. third period.
The day after this press conference, Birame Souleye Diop was arrested.
President Macky Sall’s decision not to run for re-election has eased a very heavy political climate in Senegal. The two-year prison sentence of dissident Ousmane Sonko has caused the worst unrest in Senegal for years, with 16 officially killed, around 30 according to the opposition.
AFP
