(2 Jun 2023)
FOR CLEAN VERSION SEE STORY NUMBER: 4437660, 4424612, 4437694
ASSOCIATED PRESS
Dakar, Senegal - 1 June 2023
1. Various of car on fire and riot police shooting tear gas outside the Cheikh Anta Diop university
HEADLINE: Senegal protesters clash with police after Sonko verdict
2. Various of police shooting tear gas
ANNOTATION: Supporters of Ousmane Sonko and police have clashed in Dakar after the Senegalese opposition leader was convicted of corrupting youth.
ANNOTATION: A number of people were killed as demonstrations across the country turned violent.
ASSOCIATED PRESS
ARCHIVE: Dakar, Senegal - 16 March 2023
3. Various of Sonko exit vehicle and walk into court
ANNOTATION: Sonko was sentenced to two years in prison for the charge.
ANNOTATION: Authorities were yet to issue a warrant for his arrest after he did not attend his trial and was judged in absentia.
ASSOCIATED PRESS
Dakar, Senegal - 1 June 2023
4. SOUNDBITE (French) Bamba Cissé, lawyer for Ousmane Sonko:
“Their objective was to tarnish his name. They did not succeed. Their other objective was to render him ineligible and they got that.”
5. Various of police shooting teargas to disperse protesters
ANNOTATION: Under Senegalese law, this conviction would bar Sonko, who is popular with the country’s youth, from running in the 2024 presidential election.
ANNOTATION: Sonko is considered President Macky Sall’s main competition should Sall seek a third term in office.
STORYLINE:
Senegal opposition leader Ousmane Sonko was convicted Thursday of corrupting youth but acquitted on charges of raping a woman who worked at a massage parlor and making death threats against her.
Shortly after the verdict was announced, clashes erupted throughout the country.
In Dakar, protesters threw rocks, burned vehicles and in some places erected barricades while police fired tear gas.
Nine people were killed in the violence nationwide according to the Interior Ministry.
The court sentenced Sonko to two years in prison. He did not attend his trial in the capital, Dakar, and was judged in absentia.
His lawyer said a warrant had not been issued yet for the politician's arrest.
Sonko placed third in Senegal's 2019 presidential election and is popular with the country’s youth.
His supporters maintain his legal troubles are part of a government effort to derail his candidacy in the 2024 presidential election.
Sonko is considered President Macky Sall’s main competition and has urged Sall to state publicly that he will not seek a third term in office.
Corrupting young people, which includes using one's position of power to have sex with people under age 21, is a criminal offense in Senegal that is punishable by up to five years in prison and a fine of up to more than $6,000.
Under Senegalese law, his conviction would bar Sonko from running in next year’s election, according to his legal team.
The government has said Sonko can ask for a retrial once he is imprisoned. It was unclear when he would be taken into custody.
Tensions were rising across the country before Sonko’s conviction and sentencing. Tight security surrounded the court as well as Sonko's house on Thursday, and many businesses closed for fear of violence.
AP video shot by Yesica Fisch
===========================================================
Clients are reminded to adhere to all listed restrictions and to check the terms of their licence agreements. For further assistance, please contact the AP Archive on: Tel +44(0)2074827482 Email: info@aparchive.com.
Find out more about AP Archive: [ Ссылка ]
Twitter: [ Ссылка ]
Facebook: [ Ссылка ]
Instagram: [ Ссылка ]
You can license this story through AP Archive: [ Ссылка ]
