The United Kingdom (UK), yesterday, joined the United States of America (USA), France and Germany in condemning the detention of President Mohamed Bazoum by the military junta in Niger Republic, calling for his immediate release.
Niger’s President Mohamed Bazoum attends a meeting with United Nations Secretary-General Antonio Guterres at the presidential palace in Niamey on May 2, 2022. – Access to the residence and offices of Niger President Mohamed Bazoum were blocked off on July 26, 2023 by members of the elite Presidential Guard, a source close to Bazoum said, although the reason was unclear.
During his visit, Heappey met the Chief of Defence Staff, General Christopher Musa; and Chief of Army Staff, Lt.-Gen. Taoreed Lagbaja. The UK defence chief also met with the Minister of Defence, Abubakar Badaru; and the Minister of State for Defence, Bello Matawalle. Nigeria is a key partner in promoting regional security and countering violent extremism in West Africa, including the Lake Chad Basin. The Nigerian Armed Forces are a leading contributor to the Multinational Joint Task Force , showing the resolve of its constituent nations to deliver security in the region.
“The aim is to contribute to a political solution that will spare this country and the entire region the repercussions of a possible escalation of the situation,” the ministry said. “Today, taken hostage with his family, he is not resigning because he holds democratic values dear and has always fought against military regimes. He fights and sacrifices himself for the future of our dear country, Niger, for the Sahel and for the whole of West Africa.”
“This injustice against my family and against Niger makes me wonder if there isn’t a link with the fact that Niger was due to become an oil-exporting country in three months’ time,” she said. U.N. officials estimate over 7,000 are living on Niger’s streets because centres run by the International Organisation for Migration are too crowded to take in more. The centres hold about 5,000 people trying to get home.
The EU has however frozen assistance to Niger, same with the United States. Observers, according to a report in the UK Guardian, have linked Mohamed Bazoum’s support for EU policies aimed at stifling migration routes through North Africa to his ousting. Bazoum became interior minister in 2016, the same year the law was implemented. The legislation became known as the “Bazoum law”. In 2021, he was feted by the international community including the former colonial power France after winning elections that ushered in Niger’s first peaceful transition of power.
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