"Disappointing", "political plot": in Senegal, Adji Sarr and Ousmane Sonko face to face
Adji Sarr after his confrontation with Ousmane Sonko, December 6, 2022. AFP - SEYLLOU
Text by: RFI Follow
2 mins
In Senegal, a long face-to-face took place on Tuesday December 6 between Ousmane Sonko and his accuser, Adji Sarr.
The opponent, declared presidential candidate of 2024, is accused of repeated rapes by the former employee of a massage parlor.
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With our correspondent in Dakar,
Charlotte Idrac
Almost two years after the complaint filed by Adji Sarr in February 2021 and the procedure which had provoked deadly riots in March 2021, the two main protagonists
found themselves before the dean of judges
for a first confrontation.
Each side accuses each other of refusing to answer questions.
They spent more than eight hours in court, but did not speak to each other, according to their respective defenses.
At the exit, Adji Sarr, in a red dress, made a very short statement.
"
It's disappointing
," she said.
Master El Hadj Diouf, one of his lawyers, believes that "
there was no confrontation
" because "
Mr. Sonko refused to answer questions from the judge, the prosecutor and Adji Sarr's lawyers
" .
“
And when Adji Sarr was asked questions, she answered the judge and the prosecutor, but refused to answer Sonko's lawyers.
It's normal.
Sonko completely distorted the
spirit of the confrontation
,” he added.
► To read also: Adji Sarr (Senegal): "I want nothing but a trial"
"
Political conspiracy
"
"
It was not a confrontation, it was a massacre
," said Ousmane Sonko for his part in front of the cameras back at his home.
In his defense, the face-to-face would have confirmed a “
political plot
”.
“
This person declared everywhere that the day of the confrontation, the evidence would fuse.
But no evidence has come out.
On the contrary, apart from the strategy of silence that she kept to the questions that were asked by Ousmane Sonko's lawyers, it is a lot of contradictions that we detected in her statements
", according to Ousseynou Ngom, member of the group of opponent's lawyers.
So what happened at the Sweet Beauty massage parlour?
After this confrontation, it is the
status quo
.
The dean of the judges could request new hearings, before deciding to open a trial, or to dismiss the case.
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