Senegalese Riot as President Cleared for 3rd Term

Riots erupted in Senegal's capital Dakar on Friday night, leaving one policeman dead, as angry protesters took to the streets after a court cleared President Abdoulaye Wade's bid for a highly disputed third term in office.

Published

over 1 year ago

Categories

World, Africa

Topics

Politics & Government, Africa

People

Abdoulaye Wade

Places

Senegal, Dakar, West Africa

Tags

video essay, riot police, election

Transcript

SHOTLIST: <br></br><br></br>DAKAR, SENEGAL. JANUARY 27, 2012 (SOURCE: AFPTV) <br></br><br></br>SOUNDBITE 1: Vox pop (man) (French, 24 sec): <br></br>"Everything was going well until people heard over the radio that President Wade's candidacy had been accepted. People decided to march on the presidential palace, and the police were not going to let that happen. They started being heavy handed, and that’s how the problem started.” <br></br><br></br>SOUNDBITE 2: Vox pop (man) (French, 9 sec): <br></br>"The Senegalese people do not agree with what the Constitutional Council says and people are protesting because of it, and it’s their right to do so.” <br></br><br></br>SOUNDBITE 3: Vox pop (man) (French, 20 sec): <br></br>"All citizens and patriots have been standing here together from the start, like one voice, saying ‘no’ to a third term in office for President Abdoulaye Wade. It’s over for him. He should just repect our constitution. We are prepared to take bullets, and we’re ready to give our lives here. We can’t go on with a president who confiscates power.” <br></br><br></br>SOUNDBITE 4: Vox pop (woman) (French, 30 sec): <br></br>"I will spend the night here because I’m demanding that the Constitutional Court do the right thing and apply the full force of the law. That’s all I ask. It’s already been laid out in the constitution, there was a referendum in 2001, and it said: no one has the right to hold three terms in office, so I think the president of the Republic then said it loud and clear, ‘I won’t have a third term’”. <br></br><br></br>IMAGES OF POST-PROTEST VIOLENCE: <br></br>-Protesters walking along a street <br></br>-VAR of protesters moving barricades <br></br>-VAR of protesters throwing stones <br></br>-VAR of riot police <br></br>-A police vehicle moving along a road <br></br>-VAR of protesters throwing stones <br></br>-VAR of protesters setting fire to tyres in a road <br></br><br></br>IMAGES OF THE DEMONSTRATION THAT TOOK PLACE EARLIER THAT EVENING: <br></br>-Thousands of protesters gathered in Place de l'Obelisque <br></br>-VAR of protesters gathering peacefully <br></br>-Yousou Ndour speaking to the crowd <br></br>-VAR of the crowd cheering <br></br>-Close-up of presidential candidate Youssou Ndour <br></br>-Close-up of former prime minister and presidential candidate Idrissa Seck <br></br>-Close-up of main opposition leader Ousmane Tanor Dieng <br></br><br></br>------------------------------------------------------ <br></br>AFP TEXT STORY: <br></br><br></br>Senegal-vote,6thlead-WRAP <br></br> Riots in Senegal as Wade cleared for third term bid <br></br> by Malick Rokhy Ba and Coumba Sylla <br></br> =(PICTURE+VIDEO)= <br></br> ATTENTION - ADDS Ndour, Wade comments /// <br></br><br></br> DAKAR, Jan 28, 2012 (AFP) - Riots erupted in Dakar Friday night, leaving a policeman dead, as angry protesters took to the streets after a court cleared President Abdoulaye Wade's bid for a highly disputed third term in office. <br></br> The west African nation's Constitutional Council gave the 85-year-old the green light to run in February 26 polls, sparking anger among opponents who accuse him of fiddling with the constitution to serve his own interests. <br></br> Amid the resulting unrest, Wade in turn told his opponents to stop throwing "temper tantrums". <br></br> The five-judge council rejected the candidacy of music icon Youssou Ndour, who warned of rising tension in the country and vowed to challenge his disqualification. <br></br> While the international community appealed for calm in one of Africa's most stable democracies, violence spread through the seaside capital Friday night as rioters engaged in running battles with police, setting alight tyres and shops. <br></br> "They killed a policeman," Dakar police commissioner Arona Sy told AFP of clashes between police and demonstrators, without saying how he died. <br></br> Thousands had gathered peacefully at the Place de l'Obelisque in the working class suburb of Colobane all day ahead of Friday's highly anticipated ruling. <br></br> However, shortly after the announcement, tensions rose and police lobbed teargas at stone-throwing protesters who dispersed to set up barricades and burn tyres along the city's main arteries. <br></br> "I see fires, it is impossible to pass. There are fires in Sacre-Coeur (central), on the VDN" a main road leading to the north of the capital, a witness driving through the city told AFP. <br></br> The June 23 Movement of opposition against Wade's candidacy, which called Friday's rally, appealed to Senegalese to march on the presidential palace in downtown Dakar to "remove Wade who is squatting there." <br></br> The Constitutional Council approved 13 other candidates including three ex-prime ministers, Idrissa Seck, Macky Sall and Moustapha Niasse, and main opposition leader Ousmane Tanor Dieng. <br></br> Ndour, who shocked the music world when he announced this month he was quitting singing for politics, was left off the list with the council saying thousands of signatures he provided could not be verified. A minimum of 10,000 were needed. <br></br> The singer warned in an interview with France 3 television that the approval of Wade's bid "is going to create tension." <br></br> "The opposition in its great majority does not support any fiddling with the constitution," said the singer, adding the Senegalese people were "tired" of politicians flouting the law. <br></br> The ruling seals months of speculation over the interpretation of the constitution on presidential mandates. <br></br> Wade was first elected in 2000 for a seven-year mandate, and re-elected in 2007 under a new constitution for a five-year mandate. <br></br> He again revised the text in 2008, reverting to a seven-year mandate, renewable once. <br></br> Wade argues that the law does not apply retroactively and that he is allowed to run again. <br></br> Rights activists have warned against a repetition of violent riots in June last year, and clashes between rival parties in December that left one person dead. <br></br> Amnesty International has warned the "potential for destabilisation is huge", and urged political leaders to make sure their supporters did not resort to violence. <br></br> On Friday, the 15-nation Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS) appealed for calm and restraint in a statement expressing "serious concern for the rising tensions among political parties and citizens." <br></br> Wade, a veteran opposition figure who dislodged the Socialist Party after 40 years of rule in 2000 elections, on his fifth shot at the presidency, has grown increasingly unpopular as he attempts to cling to power. <br></br> He has faced criticism over corruption, financial scandals and nepotism, with many accusing him of trying to position his son Karim Wade, 44, as his successor. <br></br> French foreign ministry spokesman Romain Nadal on Thursday: "It is up to everyone to prove their responsibility. The future of Senegal is at stake in these elections." <br></br> US deputy assistant secretary of state for African affairs, William Fitzgerald, said Monday that Wade's bid to stay in office was "regrettable". <br></br> Senegal has long been seen as a good example of democracy in Africa, with previous leaders Leopold Sedar Senghor and Abdou Diouf peacefully handing over power. <br></br> Unlike many countries in the region, Senegal has never experienced a military coup.