Calm, restraint urged as Senegal's legislative election campaign nears end

Dakar: Just days before the end of the campaign for the November 17 legislative elections in Senegal, authorities, political actors and leaders of civil society organisations are stepping up their calls for calm and restraint.

These calls follow incidents in Kounghueul in central Senegal, the national capital of Dakar, and in Saint-Louis in northern Senegal where clashes between security guards of a political caravan and street vendors led to the arrests of 81 people Monday.

In response, Al Hassan Sall, the governor of the Saint-Louis region, called on "the population in general and political actors, in particular, to banish violence and carry out their activities in peace, serenity and respect for laws and regulations."

He also urged the police and gendarmerie to pay more attention to the security of people and property as political caravans pass through the region, Xinhua news agency reported.

Senegal's Minister of the Interior and Public Security Jean-Baptiste Tine warned against any acts of violence and sabotage, stressing that the perpetrators of such acts will be punished according to the law.

In a press release, Amadou Ba, former Senegalese prime minister and leader of the "Jamm ak Njerin" coalition, called for the campaign to end in "peace, serenity and mutual respect, so that every citizen can express himself freely."

"The Senegalese people expect more concrete solutions than speeches that incite violence that could have dramatic consequences," he said.

The Women's Watch Platform for Peace and Security, which brings together more than 60 women's civil society organizations, denounced acts of violence during the electoral campaign and urged political actors to work toward "compromise in discourse, calm in behavior and attitudes."

Amsatou Sow Sidibe, the president of Senegal's National Human Rights Commission, also called for "serenity and a return to the debate of ideas."