Senegal’s future hangs in the balance – #GardonsLesYeuxSurLeSénégal, West Africa’s longest-standing democracy!

Author: Nyasha Mcbride Mpani
Southern African project leader, Data for Governance Alliance

While the world is still grappling with the complexities arising from power struggles in Sudan, with two warlords vying for control, the situation in Senegal has added to the mounting problems on the African continent. Since February 2021, Ousmane Sonko, the leader of the Senegalese opposition, has faced charges of rape and of sending death threats. However, what started as a legal matter seems to have turned into a politically charged trial. Unfolding events have revealed a deeply troubling pattern of repression and injustice in Senegal.