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  • World - Africa
  • Updated: October 27, 2022

Human Rights Watch Calls For Investigation Following Shooting Of Protesters In Chad

Human Rights Watch Calls For Investigation Following Shootin

Human Rights Watch (HRW) on Thursday called on Chadian authorities to conduct an "independent investigation" into the violent protests in Chad that left some 50 people dead last week.

"Security forces fired on demonstrators in several towns in Chad, including the capital, N'Djamena," HRW wrote in a statement referring to demonstrators being "beaten" and "hundreds" of arrests during and after the demonstrations.

The human rights group called for an "independent and effective" investigation to determine "whether the use of lethal force by the security services was a justified and proportional response to any alleged violence," said Lewis Mudge, Central Africa director at Human Rights Watch.

On October 20, the Chadian opposition called for protests against the young general Mahamat Idriss Déby Itno's government, which had recently added another two years to the transitional phase before elections.

This occurs 18 months after he was elected president, serving at the time as the head of a military junta, to succeed his deceased father Idriss Déby Itno.

On October 20, the transitional administration announced that some 50 people had perished, adding that 12 law enforcement officers had lost their lives battling a violent insurrection.

Human Rights Watch said it was "unable to confirm" the deaths of law enforcement officials from "independent sources."

"The transitional government should ensure that its security forces refrain from using unwarranted and disproportionate force during demonstrations and respect the fundamental rights to life, and liberty, as well as the rights of assembly and peaceful protest," said Lewis Mudge.

Independent experts from the African Union and the United Nations have expressed grave concern over claims of hundreds of arbitrary arrests and have denounced "the fatal repression of peaceful protesters over the political transition period."

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