Macky Sall’s controversial parting gift
One of the former president’s last acts in office was to pass an amnesty law that freed his political rivals from prison – and gave himself immunity from prosecution.
Borso Tall in Dakar
After 100 days in power, Senegal’s ruling duo, President Bassirou Diomaye Faye and Prime Minister Ousmane Sonko, find themselves with two big legal headaches – both thanks to the legislative actions of their predecessor, Macky Sall.
The first issue is an amnesty law passed by Sall’s government last year, after it failed to postpone the presidential election. The law was designed to bring “appeasement to the political space”, and ended the prosecution of nearly 2,000 people who had been arrested during political protests – including both Faye and Sonko, who were then opposition politicians. The duo were released from prison on 14 March, and just ten days later would win the presidential election on a joint ticket.
But there was a catch: the law also exonerated Sall and his allies of potential illegal activity committed during his tenure. Victims of political violence during Sall’s rule have called for the law to be repealed, so that the former president can be prosecuted.
Among the loudest are the families and friends of two soldiers, Fulbert Sambou and Didier Badji, who disappeared in late 2022, after they went fishing together. Sambou’s body was recovered days later but Badji is still missing.
Their friends and family blame their fate on the former president. “Macky Sall crossed all the rubicons. We are asking the authorities to issue an arrest warrant against Macky Sall,” said fellow soldier Alassane Camara at a press conference earlier this month.
Lawmaker and former presidential aspirant Aminata Touré has also called for the law to be repealed. Speaking on local radio station Rfm in late June, Touré – who also served as prime minister during Sall’s first term – called for those responsible for political violence to be held accountable in court, including the former president.
Mutually assured destruction
Calls to punish Sall should be music to the ears of Faye and Sonko – but for their own massive conflict of interest. Without the amnesty law, they might still be in prison.
Repealing the law would reopen an impossible question on whether or not to reopen old prosecutions, including those targeting Faye and Sonko.
Despite promising justice and accountability during their run for office, Faye and Sonko have not publicly engaged much with the complication arising from the amnesty law. For survivors of some of the most gruesome violence, that is unacceptable. Bounama Ndiaye, 24, says he was arrested in June 2023, beaten and raped and then detained at Yeumbeul police station about 20km outside Dakar. He wants to face his abusers one day.
“It’s out of the question to ignore this law,” Ndiaye told The Continent. “We were tortured in very serious ways. Justice must be pursued.”