Dominique Désiré Erenon, a prominent critic of the Central African Republic’s government and leader of the March for Democracy and the People’s Salvation (MDSP) party, has been detained by security officials at the country’s main airport.
Erenon had been living in exile in France for three years after opposing the 2016 constitutional reforms that extended presidential powers, a move widely seen as a setback for democracy.
He returned to the country after President Faustin-Archange Touadéra’s public call for Central Africans in the diaspora to come home.
Authorities have not disclosed the reasons for his arrest or any formal charges, sparking speculation and criticism among civil society groups, who view it as part of a growing pattern of political intimidation ahead of December elections.
