Who is Kemi Seba, for whom Baku has raised its voice?
Azerbaijani Foreign Ministry representative Ayhan Hajizade described the arrest of Kemi Seba, a “fighter for the rights of African peoples,” in France, as a fundamental violation of human rights, alongside the founder of the social network Telegram, Pavel Durov. The Azerbaijani Foreign Ministry considers the persecution of these individuals for their political beliefs and views to be unacceptable.
“We believe that such politically motivated arrests in France should be investigated by the relevant bodies of the European Union, the Council of Europe, and the OSCE, and appropriate assessments should be made,” said the Foreign Ministry representative.
While Pavel Durov is well known, few have heard of Kemi Seba. A quick search online reveals a lot of interesting information.
Kemi Seba was born on December 9, 1981, in Strasbourg, France, to a family of Beninese descent. His real name is Stélio Gilles Robert Capo Chichi. He identifies as a politician advocating for pan-Africanism and is regarded as an icon of Black radicalism. He is the founder of the Front Against French Neocolonialism.
At the age of 18, he joined the Nation of Islam. In 2002, he became one of the founders of the Kemetic Party and adopted the pseudonym Kemi Seba. In 2004, he established the group “Tribu Ka”, which preached a mix of anti-Semitism, Kemeticism, and Islam. They oppose interracial marriage, advocate for racial separation worldwide, and demand compensation for slavery. In July 2006, “Tribu Ka” was disbanded by the French Ministry of the Interior.
In 2011, Seba moved to Senegal, where he lectured. In September 2017, the Senegalese government expelled him from the country for being a “serious threat to public order.” In March 2019, he traveled to Ivory Coast to organize protests but was also expelled to Benin due to security concerns.
In December 2019, during a conference in Burkina Faso, he referred to the president of that country as a robot, Niger as “Mad,” Ivory Coast as “Dramatic,” and France as a “puppeteer.” Following these statements, he was arrested for two months and fined 200,000 francs.
On February 23, 2020, Seba returned to Senegal, where he was arrested at the airport and then expelled to Belgium. Kemi Seba has been arrested three times: in September 2006 for anti-Semitic remarks, again in February 2007 for insulting an Israeli representative, and in April 2008, when he was sentenced to one year in prison.
In February 2024, French authorities began the process of stripping Seba of his French citizenship due to his promotion of anti-French sentiments throughout West Africa.
It should also be noted that Kemi Seba participated in a recent international conference in Baku titled “The Neocolonial Policy of France in Africa.”