Chadian opposition leader calls for unity after presidential pardon

Chad's main opposition leader, Succes Masra, has called for unity and reconciliation with President Mahamat Idriss Deby after being released from prison under a presidential pardon. Masra served a 20-year sentence for incitement to hatred and complicity in murder, a trial Human Rights Watch deemed politically motivated. The opposition leader, former prime minister and leader of the Transformers party, was released late Friday after spending over a year behind bars.

Masra acknowledged their conviction, stating, "My conviction is that we must work together," and affirmed their readiness to begin working together the following morning. The presidential decree pardoning Masra and eight other jailed opposition figures cancels their sentences, but their convictions remain, preventing them from running for office.

Masra, a 42-year-old economist and prominent opposition figure, fled Chad for Cameroon in late 2022 following a violent suppression of a protest. He returned a year later after an agreement with the Chadian government and briefly served as prime minister before running second in the 2024 election against Deby, who secured around 60% of the vote in a poll widely contested and boycotted by much of the opposition.

Chad, with a population of approximately 20 million, has been under Deby's leadership since 2021, when he assumed power following a military transition following his father's death. In October 2025, Chad adopted constitutional changes creating a renewable seven-year presidential term with no limit on re-election, a move Human Rights Watch noted as further weakening prospects for meaningful democratic change.