Senegal/Crisis: Students at Cheikh Anta Diop University in Dakar are leaving the campus following a decision by the administration to evacuate the premises.
At Cheikh Anta Diop university, which witnessed prolonged clashes and significant destruction, students were instructed to leave. Fearing further vandalism, shops remained closed along entire streets still bearing the marks of the previous day’s violence.
Students still struggle to understand the extent of this disaster situation. « We didn’t expect this, political matters should not concern us», assured 26-year-old student Babacar Ndiaye. «But there is injustice», he said, referring to Sonko’s conviction. Sonko has been engaged in a fierce legal and political battle with the authorities for the past two years.
Senegal experienced one of its worst days of protest in years on Thursday, with the death of nine people according to the Ministry of Interior, following the conviction of opposition leader Ousmane Sonko to two years of imprisonment in a moral case.
So far, around thirty civilians have been killed in unrest largely linked to Ousmane Sonko’s legal troubles. While acquitted of charges of rape and death threats against a beauty salon employee, the opposition leader was sentenced to two years in prison on Thursday for inciting debauchery with a woman under the age of 21.
Considering the electoral code, this conviction could lead to Ousmane Sonko’s ineligibility for office.
Yannick H
