"Shots of joy" and democracy in tears: citizen observation report on the Chadian presidential election of May 6, 2024
On May 6, 2024, more than 8 million Chadian men and women were called to the polls for the first round of the presidential election. This report highlights, through specific examples, the numerous incidents of political violence and irregularities that marred the electoral process. These incidents were documented by Tournons La Page Chad (TLP-Chad) during their impartial and independent observation of the presidential election, carried out to verify that the process was democratic, genuine and representative of the will of the Chadian people. The report highlights serious problems, including the deaths of several dozen people, including one candidate, the exclusion of several candidates, problems updating the electoral roll, low participation by women, the impossibility of accessing results by polling station, and a severe deterioration in freedom of expression and of the press.
Policy and legislative mechanisms for promoting presidential term limits within ECOWAS
This study was written, at TLP’s request, by the African Network of Constitutional Lawyers (ANCL), a partner association based in South Africa, whose work focuses on the development of constitutionalism and democracy in African countries. It is the result of several months’ research and analysis by members of the ANCL, including judges, lawyers, academics, activists, NGOs, research institutes and academics.
Repression with discretion. State of play of Internet outages in Africa since 2014
Although the majority of Internet outages take place in Asia, the African continent is not far behind. For example, since the launch of Tournons La Page in 2014, of the 14 African countries where Tournons La Page operates, 13 have resorted to Internet blackouts. This generalization is all the more worrying in that very often, major repressions are organized during blackouts, hidden from the eyes of the international community.
Niger : Civic space on the verge of extinction
This report is an analysis of all acts of reduction of civic space in the country since 2014, the year that marked the beginning of increased repression against civil society. Since then, a monitoring of arrests and a critical analysis of the legal and institutional framework have been carried out by members of TLP-Niger. Between the arrests of journalists and internet blackouts, freedom of expression, demonstration, association and privacy are no longer guaranteed.
Chad : a hereditary repression
This report is the result of a collaborative effort between Tournons La Page (TLP), Agir ensemble pour les droits humains and Tournons La Page Tchad (TLP-Tchad). Through its members, TLP collected information and images on human rights violations in the country since the 2021 presidential campaign.This work aims to shed light on the course of events and the conditions under which these abuses occurred.
Building new relations between France and Africa
France is at a turning point in its relations with African societies. A refoundation of relations between France and the African continent necessarily requires a political and military "withdrawal" of Paris, simply by accepting that France is a partner among others and that the history of Africa can also be written without France.
In Africa as elsewhere, there is no democracy without changes of power !
Togo and Gabon have only had one family in power... Yet they do not live in a monarchy! If many African countries suffer from the absence of alternation, it is not a question of culture, as dictators would have us believe. These are political systems organized around the monopolization of power and wealth. In this system, which benefits the leaders in place and their clientele, but also many states and foreign investors, the population is held hostage.
2023 Elections in the Democratic Republic of Ccongo: Rectifying past mistakes to consolidate democracy.
This report provides an overview of the pre-election situation in the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC). It examines the issues and challenges of the current electoral process and proposes courses of action for the European Union (EU) and its member states. This report was enriched by data from interviews and questionnaires conducted with stakeholders in the current electoral process.
Guinea sinks into repression and France looks away