Video of police brutality shocks island nation São Tomé and Príncipe
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Brutal images of two soldiers beating a half-naked man on the ground have sent shockwaves through this tiny island nation off the coast of Gabon. The video has spread rapidly on social media networks and sparked outrage among the residents of São Tomé and Príncipe.
Screen grab from the video below.
Brutal images of two soldiers beating a half-naked man on the ground have sent shockwaves through this tiny island nation off the coast of Gabon. The video has spread rapidly on social media networks and sparked outrage among the residents of São Tomé and Príncipe.
The video was first published back in September 2014 on the Facebook page of STP Denuncias, a group of activists based in São Tomé and Príncipe. The country - Africa's second-smallest nation in terms of population - is a collection of islands off the coast of Gabon in West Africa. The images barely caused a stir when they were first published. But in mid-January the footage was re-broadcast by a local radio station, Radio Somos Todos Primos, with dramatic results.
The man on the ground is named Abidu Nagi Gomes. Since arriving from Angola 10 years ago, the 25-year-old has earned a long rap sheet for various crimes. The footage was filmed just after he had snatched a bag from a maid in the heart of São Tomé, the capital.
"I've never seen anything like this in my country"
Guedes Medeiros is a host at Radio Somos Todos Primos, the media outlet that re-broadcast the video."When I saw these images, I was extremely surprised. Violence carried out by soldiers isn't a common occurence in São Tomé. I had never seen such behaviour in my country. People are calm here. So I took matters into my own hands: we published the footage on our Facebook page and we asked our listeners to share it. With hindsight, it was a good idea: the government reacted, and said that the violence wasn't right. The person on the ground is a human being, not an animal."
By publishing this footage, Guedes Medeiros managed to get both officers shown on camera dismissed . But they weren't the only ones given the boot: Brigadier Justino Lima - the chief of the Armed Forces of São Tomé-et-Príncipe (FASTP) - was also shown the door. Faced with the outrage of Internet users and radio listeners, the island's prime minister Patrice Trovoada also published a message on Facebook in which he promised to open an investigation.
"A decade ago, residents would take justice into their own hands"
According to our Observer Suromara Giviegas, these dismissals were welcomed by the island's residents."As soon as I saw these images, I called my friends. We were all shocked: the guy is knocked to the ground and cries. We can't approve of these methods. The police and soldiers here never ask for money, they're never violent. I don't want people to believe that this kind of incident happens often here. When I was young, there weren't as many police on the island as there are now. When the residents of a neighbourhood came across a thief, they beat him to death. But things have changed since then."
Post written with FRANCE 24 journalist Pierrick de Morel (@PierrickdeMorel).