Prohibition to demonstrate in Sokode and Bafilo: Is the power still waiting for Paris and Washington to comply?

The Coalition of 14 political parties of the opposition demonstrated the 7, 8 and 9 November in several cities of Togo. But demonstrations were prevented in Sokodé and Bafilo. A black spot, in the lifting of the prohibition to demonstrate on weekdays by the government. To this effect, one wonders whether the Togolese authorities are still waiting for injunctions from Paris and Washington before allowing demonstrations in these two cities in the interior of the country.



On 7, 8 and 9 November, thousands of Togolese were still in the streets. Protesters responded overwhelmingly to the opposition's appeal. The opposition Coalition, which has been demanding for three months the return to the original constitution of 1992, the vote of the diaspora and the release of the political prisoners and the demonstrators incarcerated during the previous marches. In Lomé, the demonstrations went smoothly. No notable fact was found.

Between the security services of the political parties and the police, the coordination of the supervision was perfect. This is also the case in some cities like Kpalimé, Aného, ​​Vogan and others. But, the same can not be said for the cities of Sokodé, Mango and Bafilo. Three cities besieged for a few days by soldiers and men in arms.


Baf ilo and Sokodé, two cities affected ...

Following the violent protests in the city of Sokodé that killed two soldiers, the northern city was besieged by security and defense forces. Same observation in the city of Bafilo. The soldiers beat up the populations to their last limits. Some people were saved only by taking refuge in the bush. The balance sheet reports several deaths and serious injuries.

Despite this, the people went out to protest on November 07, 2017 last. The demonstration will be repressed without any state of mind. Both cities became deserted and the populations martyred. While the march in these cities did not suffer from any prohibition until an intervention, on the BBC radio, the Minister of the Safety and the civil protection, Yark Damehane. On the causes of the impossibility of holding marches in Sokodé and Bafilo, the Togolese Minister of Security and Civil Protection, Colonel Yark Damehame said on the radio that it is more judicious and cautious to ban the demonstrations. Because, he argues, weapons stolen during previous demonstrations would still be in circulation in both localities. So weapons held by the protesters.

"Commissariats ransacked, more than 80 cartridges in the wild. Is it reasonable to let people demonstrate in this situation? "He asks, adding that" we have the responsibility of the entire population in our hands and we think it is prudent to avoid any manifestation under these conditions ".

This exit from Minister Yark surprised more than one. Indeed, it is forbidden there is, it should be notified to the members of the coalition before the day of the demonstration. Which was not obviously the case.

Then, "weapons circulate in other cities countries. It's not a secret for anyone. We remember the weapons of war used for robberies at the airport and at the Lomé market recently. So why are the demonstrations not banned in the capital? "Asks the dubious, a member of a political party.

For Brigitte Kafui Adjamagbo-Johnson, coordinator of the coalition of 14 political parties of the opposition, the regime wants to silence these two cities, considered the stronghold of the opponent Tikpi Atchadam, the leader of Pnp. And to do this, "we are serene. We will go walking to Sokode and Bafilo alongside these populations very soon, "she said.

But according to a source close to the Coalition, the government does not want to hear about any demonstration in these two cities. A violation of the provisions of article 13 of the law N ° 2011-010 of May 16, 2011 which sets the conditions of exercise of the freedom of meeting and demonstrations on the public road and in public places, as well as the Articles 18 and 20 of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights, said REJADDTogo, an association for the defense of human rights.

Today, to see what happens in Bafilo and Sokodé, it is imperative that those who managed to bend the Togolese government in its prohibition of markets, intervene again so that, at first, the military stop the repression and leave the cities and in a second time, that the power of Lomé authorizes the demonstrations in these two cities. It should be noted that, following a reminder of the respect for democratic principles, the authorities of Lome decided to lift the ban on weekdays.