OWORAC, PSI, CAPPA, others condemn crackdown on Senegal water workers ahead of Human Rights Day

Stanley Ihedigbo

As the world prepares to mark International Human Rights Day tomorrow, the Our Water Our Right Africa Coalition (OWORAC) has strongly condemned the intensifying repression within Senegal’s water sector.

The management of SEN’EAU — the Senegalese water utility — has continued a campaign of intimidation against Comrade Oumar BA, General Secretary of the Autonomous Union of Water Workers of Senegal (SATES), an affiliate of Public Services International (PSI) and a respected member of the OWORAC network.

OWORAC, PSI, and Corporate Accountability and Public Participation Africa (CAPPA) describe SEN’EAU’s actions as a clear violation of fundamental trade union freedoms and basic human rights, calling on the company and Senegalese authorities to immediately halt all punitive measures, respect lawful worker representation, and uphold international labour standards.

Comrade BA’s latest ordeal stems from his objection to SEN’EAU’s attempt to negotiate a multi-year agreement with three unions while excluding SATES — the union he leads.

SATES is currently challenging in court a digital voting process that produced SEN’EAU’s union representatives.

Workers argue that the digital election violated Senegalese labour laws and lacked transparency.

Because of his refusal to accept these irregularities, Comrade BA now faces what the coalition describes as “illegitimate and retaliatory sanctions.”

The coalition notes that SEN’EAU’s conduct must be understood within the broader context of private control over public water services, as the company is effectively managed by the French water multinational Suez — a situation that exacerbates the power imbalance between workers and management.

This assault on trade union rights, they warn, is unfolding at a critical moment: the 2025 International Human Rights Day, themed “Human Rights: Our Everyday Essentials.”

The coalition stresses that few essentials are more fundamental than water, and few rights deteriorate more quickly when control of water is transferred to private actors with limited accountability.

“A day dedicated to everyday essentials cannot be meaningfully observed where workers are punished for exercising the very rights the day is meant to honour,” the groups said.

“SEN’EAU’s conduct exposes how fragile those rights become when private interests govern public goods.”

The consequences of this crackdown have already become severe. On November 28, Comrade BA embarked on a hunger strike in protest of years of harassment and targeted attacks by SEN’EAU’s management.

His desperate actions, the coalition warns, demonstrate the deepening despair among workers who believe their rights, safety, and health are being sacrificed for a water governance model that prioritizes private profit over public interest.

This deterioration inside SEN’EAU mirrors broader grievances reported by communities across Senegal, who describe poor service delivery, rising costs, and eroding trust under the privatised water regime.

Similar negative patterns have been documented in privately run water schemes across the country, exposing structural weaknesses in the current model of water governance.

Yet the coalition emphasizes that there is still room for meaningful reform. Major rural water contracts are set to expire in 2027 and 2028, presenting Senegal with an opportunity to rethink its water governance approach and restore accountability by returning decision-making power to the public and to the workers who ensure water remains a shared resource rather than a commodified asset.

OWORAC, PSI, and CAPPA reaffirmed their solidarity with Comrade BA, SATES, and every Senegalese water worker resisting attempts to undermine democratic participation and entrench corporate control over public water services.

In light of these developments, the coalition calls for; an immediate end to all disciplinary and retaliatory actions against Comrade Oumar BA; the withdrawal of all threats and intimidation directed at water workers.

The cancellation of the unlawful digital election that has cast doubt on the legitimacy of trade union representation within SEN’EAU.

The coalition also urges SEN’EAU to adopt procedures that comply with Senegalese labour laws and to engage in transparent, lawful dialogue with all legitimately elected worker representatives — including SATES, whose mandate cannot be erased through administrative manoeuvres.

Additionally, the groups call for urgent medical care and protective measures for Comrade BA, whose health has become a matter of national and moral concern.

“Human Rights Day will carry little meaning if those who defend public accountability are victimised and attacked for doing so,” the groups warn.

Some of the collation are; Water Citizens Network / Revenue Mobilisation Africa (Ghana); Public Service International (Africa and Arab Region); Corporate Accountability and Public Participation Africa (Nigeria); Biodiversity and Biosafety Association Kenya (BIBA Kenya).

Also Disability Not a Barrier Initiative (Nigeria); Cheriehomes Global Initiatives (Nigeria); Africa Water Justice Network; Voices for Water (Zimbabwe); Senegalese Water Justice Network (Senegal); Syndicat National Autonome des Travailleurs de l’Energie, de l’Eau et des Mines du Cameroun (SYNATEEC) (Cameroon); African Centre for Advocacy (Cameroon); Corporate Accountability (USA) and La Confédération des Syndicats Autonomes du Sénégal (CSA-Sen).