Civil society coalition escalates pressure against Lomé over disputed constitutional changes

An unprecedented coalition of 43 civil society organizations spanning Africa and its diaspora has escalated diplomatic pressure on Togo by formally urging ECOWAS, the African Union, and United Nations to impose sanctions against the government in Lomé. The move follows a landmark ruling by the ECOWAS Community Court of Justice, which declared the country’s March 2024 constitutional reform a unconstitutional change of government.

The signatories, representing a broad cross-section of civic actors, argue that the reform—which shifts the country from a presidential to a parliamentary system and transfers executive power to a Council President—constitutes an institutional maneuver to bypass presidential term limits. They further highlight that the amendments were adopted by lawmakers whose mandates had expired and were passed without a public referendum.

Five immediate sanctions demanded by African civic groups

To prevent similar constitutional circumvention across West Africa, the coalition has outlined five decisive measures they urge ECOWAS and the African Union to enforce:

1. Immediate suspension of Togo from all decision-making bodies within ECOWAS;

2. Suspension of voting rights and participation for Togo within the African Union;

3. Judicial prosecution of those responsible for drafting and implementing the contested institutional changes;

4. Review of diplomatic appointments held by current Togolese government officials;

5. Appointment of a UN Special Rapporteur to monitor human rights and governance in Togo.

Lomé fires back: sovereignty over regional court ruling

In response, the Togolese government has dismissed the ECOWAS court’s ruling as legally unenforceable and an infringement on national sovereignty. Official statements from Lomé assert that the regional judiciary lacks the authority to review internal constitutional matters or judge the sovereign decisions of member states. Authorities maintain that the transition to the so-called Fifth Republic is an internal affair aimed at modernizing the country’s governance structure.