The Gambia banned protests without permits following days of unrest over persistent electricity blackouts. The crackdown — which included police firing tear gas at demonstrators — comes ahead of December’s general election in which President Adama Barrow will seek a controversial third term.
The country’s electricity problems have surged in recent weeks, due to a shortage of imports from neighboring Senegal, reportedly over unpaid electricity bills, and Guinea, which is grappling with its own blackouts due to a drought affecting hydropower stations. A deal with Turkish floating power plant company Karpowership, which at one point supplied 40% of the country’s power, expired last year.
Unrest in Gambia is the latest in a string of youth-led political protests across the continent over living conditions and perceived corruption. Last year, demonstrations in Madagascar toppled the government, while Tanzania’s crackdown on election protesters led to the deaths of an estimated 1,000 people.