According to Amnesty International: "State efforts to repress the rights to freedom of expression, assembly and association have intensified during a period that has encompassed a highly contested Presidential election, attacks by Boko Haram and a severe ongoing economic crisis provoked by a sharp drop in the price of crude oil. [...] In a growing number of cases, because of the history of banning assemblies, associations have decided to organize peaceful demonstrations without notifying the authorities nor seeking prior authorization. In most cases, they have just communicated about their plans through press conferences, public statements or social media. This is something they should be able to do, according to international treaties ratified by Chad, without rendering the assembly unlawful. However, in such cases, the authorities have resorted to the use of excessive force – beating [...] protesters, using tear gas and in some cases using live ammunition – to break up peaceful protests and arrest protesters. [...] In February 2016, authorities banned and repressed a wave of demonstrations across the country that had been triggered by the rape of a 16-year-old girl, Zahara Mahamat Yosko alias Zouhoura, by five men, and the release of a video online showing Zouhoura naked and in tears. Following the release of the video, women and youth associations called on Chadians to march to demand justice for Zouhoura on 15 February 2016. Across the country, dozens of protesters were arrested, many were injured and at least two young men were killed. On the day of the protest, hundreds of people gathered in front of Zouhoura’s house in N’Djamena to demonstrate peacefully. When the protesters decided to march into town, they were stopped by the police, who used tear gas and firearms. Several demonstrators were injured and a 17-year-old boy, Abachou Hassan Ousmane, was killed. Witnesses including the person who took him to hospital and a relative who washed his body before burial told Amnesty International that he had been fatally shot by the police, with bullets hitting him in one leg and in the lower stomach." ^[+]