Niger’s President Mohamed Bazoum, democratically elected in February 2021, has been confined and detained at the Presidency of the Republic of Niger since Wednesday July 26th, by members of his presidential guard.

On Wednesday evening, after general confusion during the day and the failure of talks initiated by the regional authorities of the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS), Nigerien soldiers announced a coup d’état in a statement read out on national television suspending all institutions in the name of a National Council to Safeguard the Country (CNSP).

In a statement delivered by Colonel Major Amadou Abdramane, the soldiers also announced the closure of borders and the introduction of a nationwide curfew. 

On Thursday July 27th morning, the Nigerien army general staff issued a communiqué announcing their support for the putsch, in order to avoid bloodshed and preserve the physical integrity of President Mohamed Bazoum.

On Friday July 28th, General Abdourahamane Tchiani, head of the Presidential Guard, read out a statement on Niger’s national television in his capacity as President of the Conseil national pour la sauvegarde de la patrie (National Council to Safeguard the Country), justifying the coup d’état on the grounds of rising violence by terrorist groups within the country.

This umpteenth violation of republican order in Africa, and more specifically within the ECOWAS space, runs counter to the African Charter on Democracy, Elections and Governance (ACDEG) which, in articles 2 and 23, prohibits, rejects and condemns any unconstitutional change of government in any member state of the African Union (AU). 

Furthermore, the ECOWAS Protocol on Democracy and Good Governance, which Niger has ratified, stipulates that any accession to power must be through free, fair and transparent elections. It goes on to specify that any unconstitutional change is prohibited, as is any undemocratic accession or retention of power.

AfricTivistes cannot contradict these fundamental principles and cannot support an unconstitutional power grab.

In less than three years, five countries in West Africa and the Sahel have suffered military coups. After Mali, Chad, Guinea and Burkina Faso, Niger is now in the hands of a military junta. Since independence, the country has gone through four coups d’état and several attempted coups.

The resurgence of this scourge is a cause for concern to Africtivistes as an organisation that defends and promotes the democratic and peaceful transfer of power.

Not only do we strongly condemn the unconstitutional move, we also reaffirm our support for civil society and the population, some of whom demonstrated on Wednesday support for President Mohamed Bazoum, only to be dispersed with warning shots.

We also call for a swift return to constitutional order and for the people’s demands to be taken into account in the forthcoming phases of the political process. We also call on the military to uphold republican and democratic loyalty to the government. 

AfricTivistes demands the immediate release of President Mohamed Bazoum and a swift return of power to civilians. We encourage national consensus and call for the facilitation of peaceful and transparent transfers of power.

We urge the military junta to comply, during the transition period, with the political commitments made by Niger to such institutions as the African Union (AU), ECOWAS and the United Nations (UN). 

On the other hand, we urge the above-mentioned institutions to adopt a paradigm shift towards multi-actor collaboration that goes beyond the executive powers of member states. By doing so, they will be able to contribute to building the Africa of tomorrow with the active forces, through preventive actions that reinforce good governance. And as a result, slow down or halt the destabilisation of the continent’s democratic gains.

Finally, we call for peace and respect for human rights in the country, while urging Niger’s active forces to promote dialogue and the peaceful settlement of disputes over political issues.

AfricTivistes stands in solidarity with the people of Niger and their aspirations for democratic governance and national development.