Senegal Supreme Court Weighs Defamation Ruling Against Opposition Leader
By AFP
Senegal’s Supreme Court on Thursday is due to rule on a six-month suspended sentence handed to jailed opposition leader Ousmane Sonko for defamation, a decision which could jeopardise his chances of running for president.
The 49-year-old, who has filed his candidacy to stand in next month’s presidential election, has been at the centre of a stand-off with the state that has lasted more than two years and sparked several episodes of deadly unrest.
Despite the state’s refusal to provide him with the necessary documents to run, Sonko’s camp maintains he still has the right to contest the vote since a judge in December ordered that he be re-instated on the electoral roll.
The defamation hearing opened on Thursday without Sonko present, an AFP journalist saw.
The opposition figure, who came third in the 2019 presidential election, was in March handed a two-month suspended sentence and a hefty fine for defamation and insults against Senegal’s Tourism Minister Mame Mbaye Niang.
A Dakar appeals court later extended the term to six months.
It is widely understood that the sentence would scupper his presidential bid, but there is a legal grey area over a six-month threshold.
The Supreme Court’s decision will close the case.
Sonko was struck off Senegal’s electoral register after being sentenced in June to two years’ imprisonment for morally corrupting a young person.
He has been jailed since the end of July on other charges, including calling for insurrection, conspiracy with terrorist groups, and endangering state security.
He has denied the charges, saying they are intended to prevent him from running in the February 25 election.
The firebrand figurehead has generated a passionate following among Senegal’s disaffected youth.
