Senegalese opposition leader Ousmane Sonko says he will no longer obey court summonses or co-operate with the justice authorities unless his security is guaranteed.
“It is no longer justice, it is judicial banditry, and that is why I made the decision, still within the framework of my civil disobedience campaign, to no longer collaborate with this justice to no longer appear before it,” he said.
Mr Sonko said he had been subject to five court summonses which he had obeyed except one on legal grounds – despite “propaganda” that was not respecting institutions.
He said he had been the “subject of so much fierceness, so much brutality and an attempt almost at physical liquidation” after being summoned by court.
He was appearing to refer to his March claim of an assassination attempt when police allegedly sprayed a toxic liquid on him during a forced transfer to Dakar court.
Mr Sonko is facing two court cases that may bar him from contesting the presidency in next year’s elections.
He is facing trial later this month for rape and death threats over a complaint filed by an employee of a beauty salon. He denies the charges saying they are politically driven.
He was in March found guilty of defaming the tourism minister and has appealed against the judgment. The hearing on that appeal was set to begin on Monday.