Opposition leader Succès Masra sentenced to 20 years in prison: a shock for Chad

Opposition leader Succès Masra sentenced to 20 years in prison: a shock for Chad

The political situation in Chad is coming to a head: Succès Masra, the leader of the opposition party Les Transformateurs, was sentenced to 20 years in prison on August 9, 2025. This reports, among other things Agence Africa. The charges include spreading “hate messages” and “compliance with murder” in the context of deadly intercommunal conflict on May 14 in Mandakao. 42 people were killed in these clashes.

Masra had positioned himself as a sharp critic of President Mahamat Idriss Déby. Human Rights Watch (HRW) classifies the trial as politically motivated and describes the conviction as a further attack on the country's formerly thriving political opposition. The court also fined Masra one billion CFA francs, equivalent to around $1.8 million.

Background and reaction

The critical view of the judicial system is not new: HRW emphasizes that the legal framework in Chad is becoming increasingly restrictive. A total of 74 other defendants were sentenced along with Masra, some of them also serving 20 years in prison. The critical atmosphere in the country signals an increase in political repression, especially in the run-up to the planned elections in May 2024. Since the death of long-time President Idriss Déby in April 2021, the civilian landscape has been suffering from massive state attacks and crackdowns on opposition members.

The political landscape is a powder keg: at the end of 2022, the population's frustration erupted in protests when the military government's transition period was extended by two years. The result was hundreds of deaths and many injuries in the brutal police operations. The situation currently does not look rosy, especially after the violent death of opposition leader Yaya Dillo at the hands of security forces in February 2024.

Masra's turbulent political career

Succès Masra was not always in prison, but continued to play an active political role until his arrest. He was even prime minister for a time, but resigned in May 2024, accusing the government of encouraging election fraud. With his return after a self-imposed exile a year ago, following a peace agreement, Masra had hoped for political stability. But the subsequent pressure on him led to a rapid relapse into repression.

The development is fundamental to the torn society in Chad: over 120 ethnic groups live side by side and with one another, and they are often entangled in historical conflicts. The dominance of certain groups repeatedly leads to tensions, especially between the Muslim-Arab north and the African-Christian south. Chad is considered one of the poorest countries in the world and suffers from widespread corruption.

In this situation, the question remains: How will the international community, which sees Chad as a strategic partner in the fight against Islamist terror, position itself while the Déby family regime continues to repress civil society and opposition movements?

Human Rights Watch calls for urgent action to ensure political rights and respect the peace agreement, which the government appears to be ignoring when Masra returns. As election time approaches, pressure on the opposition continues to mount.

The next few months will be crucial for Chad: Will the political situation calm down or is there a risk of further flare-ups of violence and protests? Given recent events, the pendulum seems to be swinging more in the direction of repression.

Sources: Agence Africa, Human Rights Watch, bpb.de.