Chad’s military government agrees to opposition leader’s return from exile

KINSHASA, Congo (AP) — Chad’s military government has agreed to allow the return of opposition leader Succes Masra, who fled the country last year amid a political clampdown, the Congolese presidency announced Tuesday.

Abderaman Koulamallah, the Chadian minister of reconciliation, signed an agreement on Monday with Masra’s political party that allows the exiled politician and other opposition figures to return, according to a statement read on state television by Congo’s presidential spokeswoman Tina Salama.

Masra, the president of The Transformers opposition party, fled Chad in October last year after the military government suspended his party and six others in a clampdown on protests against interim leader Mahamat Idriss Deby’s decision to extend his time in power by two more years. More than 60 people were killed in the protests, which the government condemned as “an attempted coup.”

No date was announced for Masra’s return in the agreement, which was initiated by Central Africa’s regional bloc and had appointed Congolese President Felix Tshisekedi as an envoy to help facilitate Chad’s transition to civilian rule. The agreement was signed in the Congolese capital of Kinshasa.

“In addition, the (regional bloc) ECAC’s facilitation mission, led by Félix Tshisekedi, president of the DRC, reaffirmed its commitment to supporting the Chadian people in easing the political climate with a view to the organization of democratic, free, transparent and peaceful elections,” Salama said.

She added that the agreement was signed in “good faith” between the two parties, attempting to allay fears that Masra could be arrested again upon his return.

Rudel Tuka, a Congolese political analyst, said the deal could help advance the peace and transitional process in Chad, where Deby has ruled as the head of a transitional government after his father, former President Idriss Deby Itno, died in April 2021.

“This agreement is a success for mediation. Everything now rests on the political will of Chadian political actors,” said Tuka.