Their fight does not weaken. The one to do free Coline Fay, Isère resident from Claix, held prisoner in Senegal after her arrest on November 17, while participating in a peaceful demonstration in support of Ousmane Sonko, the main opponent of the country’s current president, Macky Sall. Since then, his family has been mobilizing. She called her loved ones to come and gather on Saturday afternoon, Place Félix Poulat in Grenoble (Isère). Between 100 and 150 people came together to make their voices heard.
“It warms our hearts,” reacts Véronique, Coline’s mother. “That’s what this gathering is for. To bring together all those who support us, who wanted to do something. It’s a lot of emotion, that’s for sure.”. Relatives were also present in the crowd. Some are worried about the conditions of their friend’s detention. The family wants to be reassuring: according to his information, Coline is well treated.
A sign demanding the release of Coline Fay. © Radio France – Romain Bitot
A “Free Coline” banner
Pierre-Jean, Coline’s friend since high school, is very angry. “It’s revolting to think that Coline finds herself in this situation today,” he gets angry. **”I have a hard time accepting it. That’s why we’re here, to make a little noise. With our little voice, we try to alert people to their situation. She is a very kind person and it is unacceptable that today she is in prison there.”
Coline’s family criticizes the French state for not doing enough to speed up his release. The 26-year-old young woman is one of around 1,000 other people arrested and imprisoned for political reasons by the Senegalese authorities. An untenable situation for Fatoumata Diagne, of the “Pastef – Les patriotes” party, dissolved in Senegal. She came on Saturday to support Coline, victim of a tense national context:“We live in a total dictatorship in Senegal”she denounces. “We have abusive arrests. Coline was arrested for political reasons and we are reaching a point where we can no longer say anything even on social networks.
The “Free Coline” banner. © Radio France – Romain Bitot
Read also
The 28/11/2023
A 26-year-old Isère woman detained in Senegal for plotting against state authority
2023-12-16 16:23:39
#people #gathered #Grenoble #support #Coline #Fay #Iséroise #imprisoned #Senegal #France #Bleu
