close
Thursday, May 15, 2025

ECOWAS Court declares Senegal’s internet shutdown unlawful

The Republic of Senegal had defended the shutdowns, citing public order and national security concerns

• May 14, 2025
ECOWAS court
ECOWAS court

The ECOWAS Court has declared Senegal’s shutdown of internet services and social media platforms in June/July 2023 unlawful. Stating that it also violated the rights to freedom of expression and access to information.

The Senegalese Government had shut down the internet in response to protests following the conviction of opposition leader Ousmane Sonko.

The government’s Ministries of the Interior and Communication had arbitrarily restricted access to the internet and blocked mobile data and social media platforms.

The Republic of Senegal had defended the shutdowns, citing public order and national security concerns due to the dissemination of allegedly subversive messages.

Consequently, an IT firm, the Association des Utilisateurs des Technologies de l’Information et de la Communication (ASUTIC) and its President, Ndiaga Gueye, sued the government over the decision, and sought damages.

The applicants in the suit marked: ECW/CCJ/APP/37/23, claimed that the government’s actions violated their fundamental human rights, including freedom of expression, right to access information, right to assembly, and the right to work.

Delivering judgment, the court’s three-man panel presided over by the Vice President Justice Sengu Koroma and read by Justice Edward Asante, held that the shutdown was unlawful.

According to the court, access to the internet and social media is an essential derivative of the right to freedom of expression and information, hence, the government’s decision was a violation of the Applicants’ rights to freedom of expression and information.

The community court also held that Senegal’s actions were not based on clear legal grounds, failed to meet the test of legitimacy and proportionality.

It declared that the government’s decision violated Article 9 of the African Charter on Human and Peoples’ Rights and Article 19 of the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights (ICCPR).

The Court also upheld Mr Gueye’s claim that the internet shutdown negatively impacted his professional activities as an IT consultant, and a violation of his right to work.

It ruled that the internet shutdown violated Article 15 of the African Charter and Article 6 of the International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights (ICESCR).

The court therefore awarded 250,000 CFA francs each to ASUTIC and Mr Gueye as compensation for the violation of their rights to freedom of expression and information.

It also awarded an additional 250,000 CFA francs to Mr Gueye for the violation of his right to work.

The community court further ordered Senegal to refrain from imposing unlawful or arbitrary internet restrictions in the future.

(NAN)

We have recently deactivated our website's comment provider in favour of other channels of distribution and commentary. We encourage you to join the conversation on our stories via our Facebook, Twitter and other social media pages.

More from Peoples Gazette

Abubakar Kyari

Agriculture

FG tasks ECOWAS on leveraging financing strategies for agroecology

The federal government has urged stakeholders in the agriculture and finance sectors in the West Africa region to leverage financing strategies to enhance agroecology practices

Katsina State

Politics

Katsina youths pledge to deliver over 2 million votes to Atiku

“Katsina State is Atiku’s political base because it is his second home.”

Seplat

Economy

Seplat sets eyes on well revival, output growth

Samson Ezugworie, Seplat Energy CEO, says the company is prioritising the revival of existing wells in its SEPNU asset.

Armed police officers on duty

Education

Kwara: Schools shut down over student unrest

The government reiterated its commitment to maintaining discipline and safety across all public schools in the state.

Nigerian Senate

States

Employment: Senators tackle MDAs for overlooking federal character mandate

The Senate on Wednesday promised to expose violators of the federal character system of recruiting into ministries, departments and agencies.

States

Ogun assembly urges transparency in council budgets

The committee inspected various local government projects.

Seyi Makinde

States

Oyo govt approves N4.5 billion for 2024 Bodija explosion victims

He added that efforts were being intensified to apprehend other suspects linked to the case but were at large.