A film crew made up of three Senegalese and two French citizens were on Febuary 19, 2011 arrested and detained for three days by Gendarmerie in Ziguinchor, a town in the Cassamance region.
The Senegalese, Aliou Dabo, Boubacar Dabo and Mamady Daffe, who are members of a Dakar-based sports and cultural association, and their two French colleagues, David Perez and Franck Gerard Marie Bourel, were arrested for filming a mock rebel attack in the area, which has since 1982 been experiencing rebel activities from a group demanding independence from the Senegalese government.
The Media Foundation for West Africa (MFWA)’s correspondent reported that the five persons were freed on Febuary 22 after appearing before the state prosecutor.
The crew were accused of filming without a permit, a necessary requirement for non-Senegalese citizens.
The two French citizens who were in the country for the World Social Forum have since returned to France.
