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Ten injured as Senegalese police disperse protesters against controversial law change

24 June 2011 01:29 (UTC +04:00)

Baku-APA. About 10 people were injured on Thursday as Senegalese police in Dakar clashed with hundreds of protesters demonstrating against a proposed change to West Africa country’s Constitution, APA reports quoting Xinhua.

The proposed change to the electoral code, which would lower the percentage of votes a winning candidate needs to avoid a run- off to 25 percent, is expected to clear the way for the Senegal’s incumbent President Abdoulaye Wade, 86, in his re-election of the country’s president a third time in 2012.

The protesters, upholding banners reading "Do not touch my Constitution" and "No (to the change)", have been demonstrating outside Senegal’s parliament building since Wednesday. Sources said the injured included a police official.

Senegal’s National Assembly is due to vote on the constitutional change on Thursday.

Unconfirmed reports said President Wade had withdrew the proposed change to the election law to ease the anger of the opposition.

Government spokesman Serigne Mbacke Ndiaye was quoted by the reports as saying that President Wade had decided that no one could emerge as a winner in the first round of presidential election without 50 percent of the votes.

Senegal’s presidential elections will be held on Feb. 26, 2012. Wade, who was first elected in the year 2000 and re-elected in 2007, previously announced he would not seek a third term in office.

Two other candidates, Madam Amsatou Sow Sidibe and Ibrahim Fall, who once served as the country’s foreign minister, have already announced their candidature.