Hundreds of demonstrators marched through the streets of Bangui on Friday, demanding lower fuel prices and the immediate release of detained activists.
The protest follows government fuel price increases introduced at the start of last month, pushing the cost to 1,150 CFA francs for a litre of petrol and 1,400 CFA francs for a diesel litre, according to Channels Television. Those hikes have intensified pressure on households in the Central African Republic, where security and logistical challenges routinely create shortages and force residents toward the black market.
Demonstrators carried placards through the capital bearing messages highlighting their economic strain. The rally gathered a diverse group of participants including motorcycle taxi drivers, vendors, local residents, civil society members, and affiliates of the opposition coalition.
Chanting “Resistant Central Africans,” the crowds also sang slogans proclaiming “Gas is expensive, everything is expensive, free our leaders.” Motorcycle taxi drivers pushed their vehicles along the route to illustrate the severe difficulties that fuel prices and shortages have created for their businesses.
Transportation is costing me almost more than my house, Stephane, a 31-year-old demonstrator who declined to give his full name, told AFP. He described the rally as a warning to authorities, adding that the population has reached its limit and warning that larger crowds will turn out on the streets next time.
The coalition behind Friday’s march, the Republican Bloc for the Defence of the Constitution (BRDC), previously organized a capital shutdown on October 12. That earlier action resulted in the arrests of several civil society organizers who remain in detention. The BRDC has demanded the immediate and unconditional release of everyone arrested on October 12, alongside a reduction in fuel prices to under 1,000 CFA francs ($1.70) per litre.
BRDC spokesman Martin Ziguele said that fuel prices have climbed three times within a year, while the monthly minimum wage of 35,000 CFA francs — equivalent to about $59 and around 53 euros — has remained unchanged for more than 30 years, according to Punch Newspapers and Galaxy Television.
Although government spokesman Evariste Ngamana initially warned that the march “will not be able to go out and march because it will be illegal” and asserted that authorities “will not allow disorder,” the demonstration ultimately proceeded under police and United Nations peacekeeping mission escorts.
Ngamana had maintained that the administration must uphold the rule of law and respect established rules, asserting that officials were unafraid of the demonstration while viewing the BRDC itself as illegitimate and illegal.
Despite the official warnings, the march went ahead and was accompanied by armoured vehicles belonging to the UN peacekeeping mission in the Central African Republic together with local police forces.
“The rising prices of basic necessities are starting to suffocate us. Where will this situation lead us?” said 38-year-old trader Joachim Lessoua.
Even as Friday’s protest concluded, the political standoff continued to escalate as the opposition coalition called for another demonstration the following Friday. Government spokesman Evariste Ngamana reiterated the administration’s hardline stance regarding any subsequent gatherings, stating that participants would be blocked from marching because such actions remain illegal.