Opposition leader of Senegal has been sentenced to two years in prison

Thursday, a Senegalese court acquitted opposition leader Ousmane Sonko of rape charges but sentenced him to two years in prison for corrupting youth, disqualifying him from next year’s presidential election.

Thursday’s court hearing was attended by Sonko, 48, the leader of the PASTEF-Patriots party, who has maintained that the allegations were politically motivated since their inception in 2021. In 2021, he was accused of raping a massage parlor employee and threatening her with death.

Despite being a lesser charge than rape under Senegalese law, Sonko’s conviction for “corrupting youth,” which is defined as immoral behavior or encouraging such behavior in a person under the age of 21 (his accuser was 20 when he was charged) disqualifies him from standing for office.

Sonko’s counsel told reporters outside the courthouse on Thursday that the conviction was intended to prevent him from challenging the incumbent president in 2024. Uncertain is Sonko’s ability to appeal the verdict.

Sonko has been an outspoken critic of the current president and is regarded as Sall’s most formidable challenger in the impending election.

This week, Sonko, a popular figure among young Senegalese, called for massive protests in response to the charges brought against him. Thursday, Agence France-Presse reported demonstrations and arson in the streets of Dakar, the capital.

According to the French news source, security forces launched tear gas at journalists stationed near Sonko’s residence. The news agency’s website featured a video of a reporter and camera crew escaping a gas cloud.

The case against Sonko has heightened tensions in a normally peaceful West African nation. One individual was slain during confrontations between the “freedom caravan” led by Sonko from his birthplace in southern Senegal to the capital last week.

Sall launched a “national dialogue” on Wednesday, a day before Sonko’s sentencing, as part of an effort to alleviate tensions, involving political forces, civil society, religious leaders, and labor unions. A substantial portion of the opposition is boycotting the scheduled two-week-long negotiations.

This summary contains information from the Associated Press, Reuters, and Agence France-Presse.