Pape Ale Niang, a well-known Senegalese journalist and government sceptic who has been fasting in opposition to charges brought against him, has been taken to a hospital, according to a statement made by his lawyer to AFP on Sunday.
According to Moussa Sarr, one of Niang’s attorneys, Niang was brought to a hospital in Dakar on Saturday night after his health declined as a result of his most recent hunger strike.
Niang was detained on November 6 and charged with “divulging information likely to impair national defence” in a case that has drawn attention from around the world.
On December 2, he began a hunger strike, and when his health deteriorated, he was subsequently admitted to a clinic. After receiving a temporary release, he was detained once more on December 20 when he began a new hunger strike.
Niang, the editor-in-chief of the online newspaper Dakar Matin, is well-known in Senegal for his frequent editorials on current events.
After he wrote about Ousmane Sonko, the head of the country’s largest opposition, being accused of rape, the case against him developed.
According to labour unions, he is accused of divulging private information regarding the security plans for Sonko’s interview with investigators on November 3.
The press, civil society organisations, and Senegal’s opposition all expressed outrage at his detention and demanded his release.
In unstable West Africa, Senegal has a solid reputation for openness and journalistic freedom, but Reporters Without Borders claims that this image is deteriorating (RSF).
Senegal dropped 24 places from its 2021 ranking to 73rd position in its 2022 Press Freedom Index, which evaluated 180 nations.
