20120215
AP
DAKAR, Senegal (AP) — Senegal's minister of the interior has refused to authorize an anti-government demonstration.

If the opposition goes ahead with Wednesday's planned demonstration, police will be allowed to crack down because the event was not authorized.

In a letter dated Monday, Minister of the Interior Ousmane Ngom said the government has the right to "restrict such liberties through legal channels when there is a real threat to public order."

Thirteen opposition candidates are running against 85-year-old President Abdoulaye Wade in the Feb. 26 election. Protests have been held every few days since the country's highest court in January validated Wade's bid to run for a third term, even though the constitution was revised in 2001 to impose a two-term maximum.