Dakar — CPJ welcomes the release of journalist and writer René Capain Bassène, who had been detained since 2018 in Senegal. Bassène was sentenced to life in prison on charges of complicity in murder and attempted murder, crimes that CPJ reporting found he could not have committed.

"CPJ is particularly pleased by Senegalese President Bassirou Diomaye Diakhar Faye's decision to release journalist René Capain Bassène after more than eight years of unjust detention," said Moussa Ngom, CPJ's Francophone Africa representative. "The Senegalese president has sought to correct a grave miscarriage of justice against a journalist who has devoted his entire career to the resolution of the separatist conflict in Casamance."

Bassène was released from a prison in Dakar on Wednesday following a May 26 presidential pardon. CPJ first reported on the flaws and inconsistencies in Bassène's prosecution in January 2025, followed by continuous investigation and sustained advocacy.

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On May 22, CPJ submitted a letter, accompanied by an online and written petition with 1,208 signatures, to President Faye calling for Bassène's release. The latest of CPJ's written communications to Senegalese officials, the letter cited CPJ's six-episode podcast exploring the journalist's life, flawed trial, and unjust detention. Published on May 3, World Press Freedom Day, the podcast detailed new evidence showing how Bassène could not have committed the crime he was accused of and included rebel leader César Atoute Badiate's first public comments on the case, rejecting claims against the journalist.

"I still can't find the right words to express my gratitude to everyone who has supported me, and especially to CPJ for their extraordinary efforts to secure my release," Bassène said on the day he was freed.

René Capain Bassène finds freedom.

CPJ's Moussa Ngom describes the Senegalese journalist's first hours after his release.