Issue and Opponent: Colonial legacies left behind by European states have caused Casamance to feel separate from the rest of Senegal. Casamance has created an identity and culture that is distinct from Senegal and has fought the Senegalese government for independence.
Dilemma Action: In December of 1982, demonstrators took down the Senegalese flag from government buildings and replaced it with the white flag of Casamance. The protestors responsible for doing so, who were primarily leaders of the MFDC, were arrested and sentenced to five years for ‘attacking the integrity of the nation.’ The government responded harshly because if they hadn’t it would signal tolerance of the people of Casamance demonstrating their desire for independence.
Outcomes: After the government scaled up its targeting of the MFDC, they were driven to the forests where they formed a militia and became increasingly radicalized. Violence continued to escalate and by 1990 the MFDC was engaged in a low-level civil war with the Senegalese government.