A former defence minister and long-time critic of Togo’s government, Marguerite Gnakadé, was arrested, security sources said.
Gnakadé, sister-in-law of veteran leader Faure Gnassingbé, called recently for his resignation and for the army to join the people in ending decades of family rule.
“She was detained for serious offenses, such as her recent public outing inciting the military to mutiny,” a police official told the AFP news agency. Domestic media said she was detained by security agents at her residence in the capital, Lomé, on Wednesday.
Togo has been shaken by violent protests demanding that Gnassingbé step down and free political detainees in recent weeks.
The demonstrations followed public outrage and increasing frustration with a regime of six decades ruled by one family. Gnassingbé, who has ruled the country since 2005, succeeded his father Gnassingbé Éyadéma, who reigned for 38 years from 1967.
A new constitutional framework that enabled Gnassingbé to extend his grip on power while adopting a new position as President of the Council of Ministers further enhanced the protests.
Gnassingbé was sworn in to the new office in May, which is the top job in the government’s executive branch and lacks official term limits.
Over the past few months, Gnakadé has published columns denouncing Gnassingbé, including calling for his resignation and clearing the way for a “peaceful, inclusive, and national transition”. She has further endorsed demonstrations against his rule.
Gnakadé, the widow of Ernest Gnassingbé, who was the late elder brother of Faure Gnassingbé, was the defence minister from 2020 to 2022.
She is among the first women to occupy a strategic government post, and her open criticism of the government is a major turnabout. Her arrest was widely circulated on social media.
She is undergoing interrogation by the authorities. The charges against her have been reported to be linked to purported links with exiled opposition leadership and attempts at instigating disobedience in the armed forces.
One of the security sources explained to the BBC that there was “general discomfort in the barracks with some people against her arrest, because she helped to improve working and living conditions of soldiers when she was the defence minister”.
Some sources say she could be accused of actions that would threaten the stability of the military institution.
These charges would be grave offences if they are true, and judicial sources say that she would be imprisoned for 10 to 20 years if convicted.
The days ahead are likely to clarify the exact circumstances leading to the arrest of Gnakadé.
On Wednesday, a coalition of opposition parties and civil society organizations, Touche Pas A Ma Constitution (Don’t Touch My Constitution), denounced her arrest, stating it was executed by “hooded” security agents without a warrant.
“Again, it is an abuse of power which typifies the retrograde practices of the regime. The objective is to mute a voice of dissent,” it said in a statement.
The group called for her release immediately without conditions, along with freedom for all individuals who are being held against their political views.
A youth movement called M66 has also issued a 72-hour ultimatum calling for her release, issuing an ultimatum that they will organize nationwide rallies if they are not able to do so.
“Togolese people are tired of the arrests of opposition voices. The worst part is that Gnakadé was a former defence minister, and the Togolese army was present there doing nothing. The movement is not going to abandon its stand in spite of all the threats,” Mokonzi, a leader of M66, said.
In June, at least seven individuals were killed during the crackdown on protests against the Togolese president, said civil rights groups. The bodies were retrieved from rivers in the capital.
The government, however, dismissed the deaths as not being linked to the protests.
