Since three days, a joint strike by the Syndicat des Travailleurs de la Justice (SYTJUST) and the Union Nationale des Travailleurs de la Justice (UNTJ) has totally paralysed the courts throughout the national territory. As a result, almost no hearings were held, and the Senegalese judiciary was plunged into an uneasy lethargy. A situation which alarms both the legal profession and the judiciary, whose proceedings are suspended indefinitely. The trade unions denounce a deep crisis ignored by the authorities and call for an urgent reaction of the government. “Justice cannot function without justice for those who make it live”, the workers recall in a communiqué published on 20 June 2025. This strike directly impacts thousands of justiciables across the country. The blocked files, the delayed judgments, the prolonged provisional detentions: the human and social consequences are considerable. For the prisoners awaiting trial, this paralysis is experienced as a double penalty. The trade unions also point to the passivity of the authorities. According to them, the silence of the government constitutes a political and moral fault, notably on the part of the ministries of justice and the public service, which have remained silent since the beginning of the movement. The strikers denounce the non-respect of commitments made for several years.
Paralysie de la justice au Sénégal: the workers on strike are sounding the alarm
