[ad_1]
Chadian police fired tear gas and made several arrests as hundreds protested President Idriss Deby’s nomination to run for a sixth term in the April elections.
In the capital N’Djamena, on Saturday, hundreds of demonstrators set tires on fire and chanted “No to a sixth term!” and “Go, Deby!” a witness told Reuters news agency.
Police fired tear gas and made several arrests, including Mahamat Nour Ibedou, a prominent human rights activist. Demonstrations also took place in the towns of Moundou, Doba, Sarh and Abéché, according to witnesses.
Nicolas Haque, of Al Jazeera, said the protests were led by opposition and human rights activists.
“Their plan was to march to the presidential palace before the police fired tear gas [and] arrested some of them, ”he said, coming from the capital of Senegal, Dakar.
Deby, 68, came to power in the 1990 rebellion that overthrew former leader Hissène Habré.
He has been re-elected every five years since then, thanks to constitutional changes approved by referendum in 2005 to remove presidential term limits.
In 2018, a new constitution restored term limits but allowed him to stay in power until 2033. His opponents accuse him of trying to create a monarchy.
“The trust of the people has a sacred value to me,” said Deby, who took the title of Marshal last August, accepting the nomination of his Patriotic Salvation Movement (SPM) party.
“Allow me, my brothers and sisters, to tell you that it is after a mature and deep introspection, that I decided to respond favorably to this call of the people”, he declared.
‘Lessons learned’
Last Tuesday, 12 opposition party leaders signed a manifesto defining a common approach for the government, a code of conduct and “the criteria for appointing a single candidate on a transparent and consensual basis”.
Among the signatories are two prominent opposition figures – Saleh Kebzabo, a finalist in the 2016 elections with around 13% of the vote, and Mahamat Ahmat Alabo.
The manifesto says other opposition parties can join, although it does not set a date when the sole candidate will be appointed.
Alliance coordinator Alladoumngar Tedengarti said that “the lesson has been learned” from previous elections in which Deby was able to navigate fragmented opposition.
Other leaders who have yet to join include Laokein Kourayo Medar, who finished third in 2016, and Succes Masra, whose campaign group, The Transformers, joined NGOs in calling for protests.
Supported by the former colonial power
Although he ruled with an iron fist, Deby enjoys the support of the international community, which sees him as an essential ally in the fight against armed groups in the Sahel region.
Deby has faced strikes and protests in recent years over economic hardship caused by low oil prices and armed rebellions in the northern desert, where the former colonial power, France, stepped in to support the government.
“They have intervened twice inside the country to protect President Deby from attempts to overthrow him,” Haque said.
“The former colonial power has the headquarters of Operation Barkhane for the Sahel region based in the capital of Chad,” he added, referring to the French military operation against armed combatants in the Sahel.
Human rights groups have regularly raised objections against the ban on opposition protests, arbitrary arrests and restricted access to social media. They also accused the ruling class of rampant corruption and suppression of dissent.
The country ranks 187th out of 189 in the UN Human Development Index.
But Deby has relied on his effective control of the media and state institutions to maintain his political dominance and has won repeated electoral victories.
Deby has also placed some of his family in key government positions, Haque said.
“Meanwhile, the 13 million people living in Chad, an oil-rich country, live on less than $ 2 a day,” he said.
[ad_2]
Source link
