Protests in Togo turn into clashes as pressure grows on Faure Gnassingbé

# Protests in Togo turn into clashes as pressure grows on Faure Gnassingbé

Clashes have broken out between protesters and security forces in Togo’s capital, Lomé, as opponents of President Faure Gnassingbé step up pressure over constitutional changes they say could extend his rule indefinitely.

The Associated Press reported that hundreds of demonstrators set up barricades in several neighborhoods, burned tires and threw projectiles at security forces. Police used tear gas and arrested around 10 people in the Bè neighborhood, one of the opposition’s strongest bases. Military jeeps were also deployed as reinforcements, while many businesses in the capital remained closed under a heavy police presence.

The protests were called by civil society groups and social media influencers for June 26, 27 and 28 after an earlier government crackdown on demonstrations. A coalition called Hands Off My Constitution urged Gnassingbé to release political prisoners and restore purchasing power, presenting the march as a peaceful demonstration against a political system they view as increasingly closed.

Gnassingbé has ruled Togo since 2005, after the death of his father. In May, he was sworn in as President of the Council of Ministers, a powerful role without official term limits, making him eligible for indefinite re-election by parliament. Opposition figures have denounced the move as a constitutional coup.

The unrest matters because public protests are rare in Togo. They have been banned since 2022 following a deadly attack at Lomé’s main market, which means the current mobilization carries both political and legal risk for participants. That helps explain the heavy security response and the speed with which the protests escalated into clashes.

The protests also reflect wider anxiety about democratic backsliding in West Africa, a region already dealing with coups and institutional instability. Togo’s constitutional changes are being viewed by critics not as a technical adjustment to governance, but as a mechanism to entrench power.

At street level, the scene in Lomé was one of blockades, smoke and tear gas. But beneath that was a far larger fight over how power is organized in the country and whether any formal mechanism remains that can force a leadership transition.

For now, the protesters’ message is clear: they want to challenge the constitutional settlement before it becomes permanent. The government’s answer has been security force deployment and arrests, setting up another round in a confrontation that is likely to continue beyond a single day of unrest.