In an exclusive interview with Senegalese investigative journalist Pape Alé Niang, Khady Kébé and Anna Diamanka, the wives of opposition leader Ousmane Sonko, described the nightmare they have been living with their family since 2021.
The wives called for an end to harassment against their husband. They implore the government to release the 1,020 unjustly arrested political detainees along with Ousmane Sonko, currently in intensive care following a hunger strike of more than 20 days.
Sonko was first arrested on March 3, 2021, on his way to court to face rape charges by masseuse Adji Sarr.
The case, which turned out to be a sordid plot to oust Ousmane Sonko from the 2024 presidential elections, saw its epilogue on June 1, 2023, when Sonko was cleared, but sentenced to two years in prison for “corruption of youth.”
Without any order from the court, Sonko will be sequestered with his family in his residence located in Keur Gorgui by the police for 56 days, from May 29 to July 24, 2023. He will then be arrested on July 28, 2023, at his home in the presence of his family.
Sonko is currently charged with seven counts:
1- Call to insurrection,
2- Association of criminals,
3- Undermining state security,
4- Conspiracy against the authority of the State,
5- Acts and maneuvers to compromise public security and create severe political unrest,
6- Association of criminals in connection with a terrorist enterprise,
7- Cell phone theft.
The arrest came after an alleged altercation with a woman who took the liberty to record the leader without his permission.
Two of his lawyers, Saïd Larifou and Juan Branco, met on August 18, 2023, with the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights to encourage “action that will put an end to the serious acts and violence committed against our client, Mr. Ousmane Sonko.”
Sonko, who has been on a hunger strike for more than 20 days in protest of his arbitrary arrest, is in critical condition, and his wives fear the worst.
To watch the full interview, click below.
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