Togo opposition figure, Gnassingbé’s sister-in-law, arrested after urging military to end family rule

A former defence minister and outspoken critic of Togo’s long-serving president, Marguerite Gnakadé, has been arrested after calling for an end to decades of dynastic rule.

Gnakadé, sister-in-law of President Faure Gnassingbé and widow of his late elder brother Ernest, was taken from her home in Lomé on Wednesday by security forces, according to local reports.

Security sources said she was being held for “serious acts,” including urging the military to stand with the people and force Gnassingbé’s resignation. Police accused her of inciting rebellion, while some reports linked her arrest to alleged contacts with exiled opposition figures.

Gnakadé, who served as defence minister from 2020 to 2022, had in recent months written articles demanding Gnassingbé step down and allow a “peaceful, inclusive national transition.”

According to BBC report, her detention comes amid deadly protests that have rocked Togo since May, following constitutional changes that entrenched the president as head of the powerful Council of Ministers, a post with no term limits.

Opposition coalition Touche Pas A Ma Constitution condemned the arrest, saying masked officers seized her “without a warrant.” A youth group, M66, has given a 72-hour ultimatum for her release, threatening mass demonstrations if the government fails to comply.

Civil rights groups say at least seven people were killed in June during a crackdown on anti-Gnassingbé protests, though the government denies the deaths were linked.

Gnakadé’s arrest, now viral on social media, marks one of the most high-profile detentions of a ruling family insider turned critic. If convicted on charges of destabilising the military, she could face up to 20 years in prison.