Light the beacon for Benin
Democracy is under attack in Benin, argues the former foreign minister, but the world press remains silent
You’d be forgiven for not knowing Benin is holding a presidential election next month. How could you? The first result I get searching “Benin Election” on Google News is about a French artist transforming a playground in Benin in the “Beyond Walls” project. You’d have to scroll down to learn that Reckya Madougou, our country’s first ever female presidential candidate, was arrested and charged with terrorism.
Here sits Benin, a sliver of a country sandwiched between smaller still Togo and Nigeria, the most populous country on the continent. We’re mere days from the most consequential election in our country’s democratic history and yet the brazen arrest of an opposition candidate has barely registered in the international press.
Betting this trend will continue, President Patrice Talon is rolling back years of democratic progress in Benin, transforming our country from democratic standard-bearer to democracy’s pallbearer.
I had the honour of representing Benin as a foreign diplomat from 2003 to 2006. During my time in government, Benin was recognised as one of only a handful of countries in all of Africa that was consistently rated “free” by the global watchdog group Freedom House. We received this recognition every year I was in government. Because of Talon’s leadership, that is no longer the case.
When he was elected in 2016, Talon seemed committed to serving only one term. He claimed he’d need only five years in office to “miraculously change Benin”. He certainly has. In just five years, he has destabilised the foundations of our democracy. This disturbing pattern began in earnest in April 2019 when opposition candidates were barred from running in parliamentary elections. When our citizens flooded the streets in protest, police opened fire. The government shut down our internet. Step into our National Assembly today you will see it is composed entirely of ruling party supporters.
Talon’s political opponents have been consistently targeted during his time in power. Before Madougou’s arrest and terrorism charge, Lionel Zinsou, runner-up in the 2016 presidential election, was swiftly barred from standing for office due to alleged “campaign violations”. Former president Thomas Boni Yayi was forced to flee the country after being held under de facto house arrest for weeks following the 2019 elections. The assault on the opposition is widespread and enduring.
Earlier this year, Benin’s media commission enacted repressive policies meant to silence the opposition and stifle legitimate campaign activities. A directive issued in January forbids local media from broadcasting “any element of the electoral campaign relating to the presidential election of 2021”. This new rule went into effect just after Talon and his ruling twin parties wrapped up a nationwide media tour. The ruling party’s monopoly over state media is unfair, unconstitutional and unacceptable. And yet for most everyone not living in Benin, it occurred entirely unnoticed.
The warning signs have been flashing for years now and so far, the international community has done little. Benin may not register prominently among the foreign policy priorities of countries such as the US, the UK or even South Africa, but any country — and indeed anyone — concerned with democracy should steady their eyes on Benin in April.
Our deteriorating democracy reflects a troubling pattern in West Africa. Heads of state in Guinea and Côte d’ivoire have extended their stays in power despite protests and deaths. In Togo, the Gnassingbé family dynasty, in power since the late 1960s, rigged yet another election in their favour early last year.
As the late Dr Martin Luther King Jr said, “Injustice anywhere is a threat to justice everywhere”. The international community should not let this election become another example of injustice overlooked.
Rogatien Biaou is the president of the Alliance Patriotique Nouvel Espoir in Benin. He is a veteran diplomat and a former foreign affairs and African integration minister of Benin (2003-2006)