Senegal shuts down TV channels, internet disrupted by protests

Senegal has faced internet disruption and authorities have suspended two television channels as protests in the West African country escalated after the arrest of its main opposition leader.

Metrics show that Facebook, YouTube, WhatsApp and some Telegram servers were limited on Orange / Sonatel as of Friday morning, UK-based NetBlocks, which tracks internet disruption around the world, said in a statement. Some services had been restored at 7:30 a.m. GMT, he said.

A spokesperson for Sonatel, the country’s largest operator by subscriber, did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

Senegal is entering its third day of nationwide protests triggered by the detention of Ousmane Sonko, one of the government’s loudest critics, for disturbing public order.

Authorities announced the charges after protests erupted as he headed to court to respond to another rape case. Sonko was charged with rape last month by a beauty salon employee and summoned to appear in court after his parliamentary immunity was lifted last week.

Knowledgeable broadcasters

The country’s National Audiovisual Regulatory Council suspended two television channels Thursday for 72 hours over their coverage of the protests, after warning broadcasters in a March 3 statement against the release of content that could ” threaten national stability or social cohesion ”.

At least one person was killed during a demonstration where authorities fired live ammunition on Thursday in the southern town of Bignona, Amnesty International said in a statement on Friday, calling on authorities to investigate.

Sonko, 46, came third in the 2019 presidential election in the West African country with 16% of the vote, after former Prime Minister Idrissa Seck, who has since joined the government. President Macky Sall, 59, who won 58% of the vote, will end his second and final constitutional term in 2024.