Senegal restricts mobile internet amid protests over postponed election
Senegal’s government has restricted access to mobile internet as opposition leaders and supporters launched protests against President Macky Sall’s decision to postpone a presidential election that was due on 25 February.
Mobile internet access in the capital, Dakar, and other parts of the country was cut as parliament was due to debate a bill that could extend Sall’s tenure beyond 2 April, when he is due to leave office.
The ministry of communication, telecommunications and digital economy said the internet was cut “due to the dissemination of several hateful and subversive messages relayed on social networks in the context of threats and disturbances to public order”.
The measure further deepens political tensions in one of Africa’s most stable democracies since Sall’s decision on Saturday to postpone the vote. He cited a dispute between the judiciary and parliament over the disqualification of some candidates and the reported dual nationality of some qualified candidates.
Many users in the capital said they had been unable to access mobile data on their phones.
Opposition figures have called for a protest outside parliament, a day after violent street protests shook Dakar, during which security forces fired teargas at demonstrators and at least one senior opposition figure was arrested.
The workers’ union at Sonatel, Senegal’s principal telephone operator, on Sunday anticipated a possible blackout, saying it “disapproves of any idea by the Senegalese government to cut off or restrict the internet”.
The government also suspended mobile data last June amid high tensions in the country.