…Coalition Demands End to Harassment of Union Leader on Hunger Strike
In commemoration of the International Human Rights Day, the Our Water Our Right Africa Coalition (OWORAC), and other global civil society coalitions –including Public Services International (PSI), and Corporate Accountability, have strongly condemned what they describe as escalating repression within Senegal’s water sector.
In a joint statement issued on Tuesday, the groups denounced Senegal’s national water company, SEN’EAU, for what they called a “sustained campaign of intimidation” against Comrade Oumar BA, General Secretary of the Autonomous Union of Water Workers of Senegal (SATES).
The statement was endorsed by 13 organisations across Africa and beyond, including Water Citizens Network / Revenue Mobilisation Africa (Ghana), Corporate Accountability and Public Participation Africa (Nigeria), Biodiversity and Biosafety Association Kenya (BIBA Kenya), 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) and La Confédération des Syndicats Aitonomes du Sénégal (CSA-Sen)
BA, a longstanding labour activist and member of OWORAC, is currently facing punitive measures which the groups say amount to blatant violations of trade union rights and international human rights standards.
According to the coalition, the sanctions against BA stem from his opposition to SEN’EAU’s controversial attempt to negotiate a multi-year agreement with selected unions while excluding SATES.
SATES is currently challenging in court the digital voting process used to elect worker representatives, a system the union insists is unlawful, opaque, and incompatible with Senegal’s labour codes.
For refusing to accept the process, BA has allegedly been met with retaliatory actions from management.
The coalition noted that SEN’EAU’s operations are significantly influenced by Suez, the French multinational that holds a major stake in the company – a factor they argue has contributed to a widening power imbalance between workers and corporate leadership.
“Sadly, this ongoing assault is unfolding on the eve of International Human Rights Day 2025, which carries the theme Human Rights: Our Everyday Essentials. Few essentials are more fundamental than water, and few rights deteriorate more rapidly when control over water is ceded 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.
“SEN’EAU’s conduct exposes how fragile those rights become when private interests govern public goods.,” the statement read.
The situation escalated on November 28 when Comrade BA embarked on a hunger strike in protest against what the coalition describes as years of targeted harassment. His deteriorating health, they warn, reflects growing distress among water workers and deepening mistrust in SEN’EAU’s management.
Beyond the workplace, the coalition said the crisis mirrors a broader decline in water services in Senegal, ranging from rising costs to deteriorating service delivery and dwindling public confidence under the privatised SEN’EAU regime. Reports of similar challenges across other privately-run water systems in the country further underscore what they describe as systemic failings.
Despite the tensions, the organisations believe Senegal has a rare opportunity to reform its water governance. With major rural water contracts set to end in 2027 and 2028, they urge the government to “restore accountability by returning control of water to the communities and workers who rely on it.”
The joint statement called on SEN’EAU and Senegalese authorities to take immediate action, including, ending all disciplinary and retaliatory actions against Comrade Oumar BA, withdrawing threats and intimidation targeted at water workers, canceling the disputed digital election process, ensuring compliance with Senegalese labour laws and opening transparent negotiations with all legitimately elected representatives, including SATES.
They also demanded urgent medical attention and “robust protection” for BA as concerns grow about his wellbeing.
The coalition warned that Human Rights Day would carry little meaning if those who defend public accountability are victimised and attacked for doing so.
