In the wake of the recent coup in Niger, concerns on a global scale are intensifying as the well-being and security of ousted President Mohamed Bazoum take center stage.
Following almost three weeks of requesting assistance from the United States and other allies to reinstate Niger’s president, advocates and allies of the democratically elected leader have shifted their plea to a more basic one: Ensure his survival.
President Mohamed Bazoum, who heads the sole remaining Western-backed democracy across a significant expanse of Africa’s Sahara and Sahel regions, is presently confined alongside his family in a dim underground section of his presidential residence.
The junta responsible for his overthrow has isolated them from food supplies, electricity, and cooking gas, as conveyed by Niger’s ambassador to the United States in a statement to The Associated Press.
“They are killing him,” said the ambassador, Mamadou Kiari Liman-Tinguiri, a close associate who maintains daily calls with the detained leader. The two have been colleagues for three decades, since the now 63-year-old president was a young philosophy instructor, a teacher’s union leader, and a democracy advocate noted for his eloquence.
“The plan of the head of the junta is to starve him to death,” Liman-Tinguiri told AP in one of his first interviews since mutinous troops allegedly cut off food deliveries to the president, his wife and 20-year-old son almost a week ago.
“This is inhuman, and the world should not tolerate that,” the ambassador said. “It cannot be tolerated in 2023″
Bazoum occupies the dimly lit basement, according to the ambassador’s statement. He picks up the phone only for calls he recognizes from friends or individuals he wishes to converse with. The president, besieged by challenges, along with his ambassador, who has been declared unemployed by junta members, engage in daily conversations.
Since July 26th, when military vehicles obstructed access to the presidential palace and security forces asserted control, Bazoum has not been spotted in public.
Independently confirming the president’s circumstances proves difficult. Expressing ongoing worry about Bazoum’s deteriorating situation in captivity, the United States, U.N., and others caution the junta about being held accountable for Bazoum and his family’s welfare.
Human Rights Watch, on another note, reported direct communication with the detained president and his associates, noting some parallel descriptions of mistreatment.
Nonetheless, backing Niger’s new military leadership, activist Insa Garba Saidou contradicts the grim reports regarding the president’s condition, maintaining communication with junta members. However, the origin of his information concerning the president remains undisclosed.
Saidou conveyed to AFP that Bazoum had the fortune of remaining in his current location, staying within his palace and connected via his phone, reiterating that those responsible for him have no intentions of causing him harm.
He further asserted that interventions cannot ensure Bazoum’s survival, considering his presidential aspirations, and that it is unlikely he will survive.
“I’m firmly convinced of this aspect. Although the junta’s higher-ranking officers refrain from directly targeting Bazoum, if a gunshot were to echo along Niger’s border, with the aim of reinstating Bazoum’s position, there’s a high likelihood that soldiers will bring his life to an end. This isn’t a matter of choice; it’s the reality. As a result, ECOWAS will carry the burden of responsibility,” said Saidou.
The abrupt political upheaval has sparked a wave of unease, with international leaders imposing strict sanctions, revoking vital aid to the poverty stricken nation and closely monitoring the situation, assessing its potential implications for stability in the West African region.
As the world holds its breath, questions surrounding Bazoum’s fate and the future of Niger’s democratic processes loom large, casting a shadow of uncertainty that stretches far beyond the nation’s borders.
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