Beninese pan-Africanist Kemi Seba, known for his outspoken anti-Western views and stripped of his French nationality in July 2024, was arrested in Paris on October 14, according to sources close to the case.
Seba, whose real name is Stellio Gilles Robert Capo Chichi, was previously the leader of Tribu Ka, a controversial group that advocated racial separation and was disbanded by the French government in 2006 due to its anti-Semitic stance. He has been convicted several times in France for inciting racial hatred. The specific reason for his recent arrest has not yet been disclosed.
At 42, Seba is now the head of the pan-African activist group Urgences panafricanistes and has gained a significant following on social media. In August, he received a diplomatic passport from Niger, issued by the military junta that took power in Niamey. Seba serves as a special advisor to the junta’s leader, General Abdourahamane Tiani. He announced this development on his Facebook page, stating that the passport was granted in response to France’s revocation of his nationality, which he claimed was an attempt to restrict his movement and hinder his anti-colonialist activism. He highlighted his 25-year struggle for Africa, declaring that he has fought for the continent at great personal risk.
In recent years, Seba has been involved in organizing and participating in protests against the CFA franc in several African countries. These activities have led to his frequent arrests, expulsions, or being barred entry, particularly in Ivory Coast, Senegal, and Guinea. In France, he was accused last year by Thomas Gassilloud, a Renaissance MP and former president of the Defense Committee of the National Assembly, of acting as a “mouthpiece for Russian propaganda” and serving “a foreign power that fuels anti-French sentiment.”