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Senegalese Pop Star N’Dour Tussles With Police
An Associated Press reporter saw police tussle with international pop star Youssou N’Dour, who was pushed back by police when he tried to enter a police station where a leading opposition figure is being detained.
N’Dour had come on Saturday to the Criminal Investigation Division as part of a large crowd of opposition supporters who wanted to show their solidarity with Alioune Tine, a well-known human rights activist who is being questioned by police.
Tine was the organizer of a demonstration Friday that turned violent following the decision of Senegal’s constitutional court to allow the country’s leader to run for a third term. The legal body approved President Abdoulaye Wade’s third term bid, even though critics say the constitution allows a maximum of two.
Photo: AP Photo
2010 file photo shows the Senegalese pop star, center, greeting government officials in Dakar, Senegal.
THIS IS A BREAKING NEWS UPDATE. Check back soon for further information. AP’s earlier story is below.
DAKAR, Senegal (AP) – Senegal’s opposition called on the population Saturday to rise up against President Abdoulaye Wade’s decision to run for a third term, a move that foreshadows more unrest after a night of clashes that saw a policeman stoned to death in the normally peaceful nation on Africa’s west coast.
The streets of the capital were strewn with debris, sign of the riots that spread from a downtown square to the interior of the country late Friday after the country’s constitutional court approved Wade’s candidacy in next month’s election.
The constitution was changed soon after the 85-year-old Wade took office in 2000 in order to impose a two-term limit. He argues that because the law was not in effect when he was elected, it should not apply to him.
In a statement Saturday, the M23 coalition representing all the major opposition candidates running in the election said the court had betrayed the people.
“A black page has been written in the history of our country by the decision to validate the candidacy of Abdoulaye Wade,” the statement said. “We are inviting the population to organize and mobilize themselves to face Wade. The combat has started.”
Opposition candidate Macky Sall, a former prime minister under Wade who is now running to unseat him, said they had given “the order” for people to take to the streets. He denied that future protests could turn violent.
Police spokesman Col. Alioune Ndiaye said a policeman had been killed late Friday during the riots that followed the court’s verdict. A graphic video posted on YouTube shows a body lying on the ground, a cinderblock lying near his head, as a group of young men hurl more rocks.
“I can confirm that one policeman was killed,” Ndiaye said. “He was attacked and he was hit in the head by a brick. He was stoned to death,” he said.
Senegal finds itself at a crossroads before the Feb. 26 election. The dispute over the legality of Wade’s candidacy is compounded by the worsening economic situation, including spiraling prices and grinding unemployment.
Wade has alienated many former allies as well as the population by giving an increasing share of power to his unpopular son. Corruption scandals have erupted at regular intervals, detracting from the government’s achievements which include the building of numerous roads and bridges.
In 2008, an audit of the Ministry of the Family discovered that officials there had billed the government for coffee spoons costing $74 a piece. The entire cutlery set cost Senegal nearly $30,000.