Opponent Ousmane Sonko arrested and forcibly brought back to Dakar, his “freedom caravan” interrupted

2023-05-29 13:54:42

His brief disappearance which gave rise to a lot of speculation and his absence from social networks since Sunday morning have found an official explanation. The police Senegalese abruptly ended the march of the opponent on Sunday Ousmane Sonko across the country by arresting him in the south and forcibly bringing him back to Dakar, authorities said. To justify what he calls “supervised accompaniment”, the Minister of the Interior Antoine Diome invoked on public television the clashes that have accompanied since Friday the police and the supporters of Ousmane Sonko, who left Friday from the south of the country to rally Dakar with his “caravan of freedom”. One man was killed during these incidents. “There was a death in Kolda, will the State remain idly by (…) the answer can only be negative”, justified the minister, considering that the opponent should have request prior authorization before launching his convoy.

A source close to the authorities specified that Ousmane Sonko had been arrested near Koungheul by the gendarmes and brought back by them to the capital. The Interior Minister reported that weapons were found in his vehicle.

Rape case or conspiracy?

Ousmane Sonko, declared presidential candidate for 2024, is threatened with ineligibility in court cases which he denounces as a state plot. He intended to make his return march to Dakar a show of force. Beyond the regular clashes when the opponent’s supporters mobilize, the convoy has also attracted crowds of enthusiastic young supporters.

In 2021, he was arrested in Dakar as he went in procession to the summons of a judge in a rape case. His arrest had helped trigger several days of riots that had left at least a dozen dead. A criminal chamber is due to deliver a long-awaited verdict against him in the same case of alleged rape on June 1. He refused to appear, crying out for the conspiracy of power to remove him from the presidential election. In addition to a possible conviction, he risks the loss of his eligibility.