On Sunday, the Senegalese police cracked down on protests against President Macky Sall's decision to postpone Senegal's election scheduled for February 25.
The police made arrests as the demonstrations spread in the capital, including former Prime Minister Aminata Touré and Anta Babacar Ngom, one of the presidential candidates in the election.
According to the European Union, Sunday's postponement has created a "period of uncertainty," while the US demanded a prompt replacement date for free polls. Sall declared on Saturday, citing a disagreement over the candidate list, that he had canceled the relevant electoral law in a nationally televised speech.
He claimed to have signed an order abolishing legislation passed in November 2023 that established the original election date but did not specify a new date. The Constitutional Council of Senegal removed some prominent opposition members from the list of candidates last month.
Hundreds of men and women of all ages went to the streets on Sunday following the call of some opposition candidates. Toure posted about her arrest on X, formerly Twitter. She served as premier under Sall before joining the opposition and becoming one of his most outspoken critics.
She denounced Sall's decision to reschedule the election, calling it an "unprecedented democratic regression," and urged people to mobilize to defend their rights.
The AFP news agency said that the police in Dakar used tear gas to disperse opposition supporters in the first clashes after Sall's announcement.
Men and women waving Senegalese flags or sporting the national football team's jersey had gathered at a roundabout on one of the capital's main roads.
Al Jazeera's Nicolas Haque reported from the outskirts of Dakar that all 19 opposition candidates had requested their supporters to gather in the area.
"There's a sense that the security forces do not want any gathering. But for the members of the opposition, until the decree [canceling the elections] is published ... then [it] is not in place," Haque said.
He added that some opposition figures he spoke to said it was a ploy for him to cling to power.
Furthermore, he shared that a motorcycle shouted, "We're going to burn everything down." He said that every protester they spoke to was angry at the decision, and they felt robbed of their ability to express themselves in this election canceled by Sall.
An official in the communications ministry told AFP that Walf TV, a private television channel, was suspended for "incitement to violence" due to its coverage of the street protests.
According to Reuters, more demonstrations will be outside the parliament on Monday. The lawmakers are also expected to debate a bill on Monday that would reschedule the election and extend Sall's mandate until his successor takes over.
EU Calls For Credible Election
France, the former colonial power in the country, demanded a vote as soon as possible and argued that Senegal should end "uncertainty."
EU spokesperson Nabila Massrali said in a statement on Sunday that the European Union has called on all actors to work for the staging of a transparent, inclusive, and credible election.
Senegal has long been seen as a rare example of democratic stability in West Africa. This region has recently seen several coups in recent years, including those in Mali, Niger, and Burkina Faso.
The US Department of State noted Senegal's "strong tradition of democracy and peaceful transitions of power" and called on "all participants in [the] electoral process to engage peacefully to swiftly set a new date and the conditions for a timely, free, and fair election."
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