The "Hands Off My Constitution" coalition of civic groups and opposition leaders in Togo has called for further protests in the coming days to oppose what it has referred to as a "constitutional coup."

Since the introduction of a new political structure in June, President Faure Gnassingbe can now remain at the helm of the country without any term limits.

According to Ulf Laessing of the German Konrad Adenauer Foundation (KAS), as well as an increasingly disenchanted opposition, many Togolese are concerned about a recent surge in prices.

"The hike in electricity prices was kind of the trigger of these protests, which broadly target the presidential family, Gnassingbe, which has been in power for 60 years," Laessing told DW.

"There have been protests before, but this [one] looks relatively large. But it's impossible to say where it's going," he added.

A clampdown on dissent saw over 80 people arrested earlier in June during the first round of several-day rallies. Police reportedly used tear gas against crowds.

Activists also reported that protesters had been mistreated by security forces.

"Several people were beaten during their arrest," Aime Adi, director of Amnesty International's office in Togo, told The Associated Press in mid-June.

Press freedom is also under attack: Earlier in June, French international broadcasters RFI and France 24 were suspended for three months for an alleged lack of impartiality in their coverage of the protests.

A journalist from French public broadcaster TV5 was even held without charge at a police station for several hours, during which time authorities reportedly deleted footage she had filmed at a rally.

One of the smaller states in Africa, Togo has been a republic since gaining independence from France in 1960.

The country's founding years were marked by successive coup d'etats, ultimately resulting in Eyadema Gnassingbe taking over in 1967 and hanging onto........

© Deutsche Welle