Minister in charge of Administration and Equipment, Cheikh Oumar Diagne had affirmed that “those who celebrate the riflemen do not know what” these colonial soldiers are in reality, in an interview with a local television, fafa Tv, broadcast on December 21.
“This outing is very unfortunate. I am completely out of step with what Mr. Diagne said. I consider that these riflemen are heroes of the Nation”criticized government spokesperson Moustapha Njekk Sarré on private radio RFM.
He questioned Mr. Diagne’s reasons for “row against the tide” on the riflemen while“No more than a month ago, the President of the Republic (Bassirou Diomaye Faye) organized a grand ceremony in their honor. A spokesperson for a collective bringing together sons and descendants of Senegalese riflemen, former minister Lamine Bâ, denounced Thursday “insulting and shameful remarks” by Mr. Diagne, during a press conference in Dakar.
“We demand his dismissal because he no longer has his place in the Republic”said Thierno Birahim Guèye, another leader of the collective according to whom their organization has filed a complaint against the minister. On the internet and in the media, Mr. Diagne’s comments were also criticized, with some calling for his resignation.
This year, Senegal commemorated, on an unprecedented scale, the events of December 1, 1944 at the Thiaroye military camp, near Dakar. French colonial forces had fired on riflemen repatriated from fighting in Europe, not only Senegalese but also from other African countries, who were demanding payment of arrears of pay.
Many gray areas remain regarding the circumstances of the tragedy, the number of riflemen killed, their identity, and the place of their burial. French authorities at the time admitted the deaths of 35 people. Several historians put forward a much higher number of victims, up to 400.
