Senegal Restricts Internet As Pro-Ousmane Sonko Protests Escalate

Following the unrest on Thursday, there are mixed reports of restricted internet access in Senegal. Senegalese police has continued to clash with supporters of detained opposition leader Ousmane Sonko this Friday, causing at least three deaths.

The leader of the Pastef party was arrested on Wednesday for disturbing public order ahead of his court appearance on a rape charge in Dakar.

Reports of an internet blackout

Internet monitor NetBlocks said social media and messaging apps including Facebook, WhatsApp, and Youtube had been restricted early on Friday ahead of a planned demonstration by civil society and opposition parties led by protest movement “Y En A Marre” (Enough is Enough).

“It’s true that all of last night, beginning at 9 p.m. [local time, 21:00 UTC] my WhatsApp connection stopped working properly. But at the same time, I also did not experience any difficulties sending Emails,” DW correspondent Robert Ade reported from capital city Dakar.

DW digital security expert Oliver Linow tweeted that the demand for so-called Virtual Private Networks (VPNs) to circumvent social media platforms blocks had risen in Senegal, according to Google Trends.

He advised internet users to “only install trustworthy VPN apps” or to “use Tor” — otherwise known as the onion router, the free software helps users conceal their location while on the internet.

Another DW correspondent, Mamadou Alpha Diallo reported no internet slowdown in Casamance region, south of the Gambia.

What happened during the unrest?

Hundreds of people followed Sonko’s motorcade on Wednesday, as he traveled to a court to deny rape charges filed against him last month by an employee at a salon where he received massages.

Supporters sounded horns and sang before clashes erupted, and Sonko was arrested before even reaching the court.

Angry protesters attacked the headquarters of state-owned Le Soleil and radio station RFM on Thursday evening for their close government ties.

Authorities suspended two private television stations, Sen TV and Walf TV, for 72 hours from 5 p.m. on Thursday. Government officials accused them of “stirring up hatred and violence.”

The deaths happened after clashes on Thursday in Bignona town in the southern Casamance region, with another casualty in Yeumbeul, the police officials said. On Friday the body of another demonstrator was found in Pikine. Four police were also injured in the fighting.

At Dakar’s Cheikh Anta Diop University, students on Thursday and Friday threw concrete blocks at police.

The police responded with tear gas and stun grenades, a reporter for news agency AFP reported from the scene.

Who is Ousmane Sonko?

A 46-year-old Muslim, Sonko is frequently critical of Senegal’s ruling elite andis popular with young people.

He ran against President Macky Sall in the 2019 vote but finished third in a race that delivered the incumbent a second term.

Sonko is considered a key potential challenger to Sall in elections in three years.

Presidents in the former French colony are limited to two consecutive terms, but Sall launched a constitutional review in 2016, raising suspicions he intends to run again.

Sonko maintains the charge against him is politically motivated.

What’s next?

Sonko was scheduled to be transferred on Friday to a Dakar courthouse where his case will be heard by a judge, but his lawyers said new charges have been preferred on Sonko.

The streets of Dakar and other regions in Senegal have turned into scenes of violence between demonstrators and the police in all the regions of Senegal.