Is anyone out there paying attention?
https://www.bbc.com/news/world-africa-66339528
By Robert Plummer
Niger’s democratically elected President Mohamed Bazoum has been overthrown by the very people who were supposed to protect and uphold his office – the presidential guards who stood watch outside his palace.
President Bazoum was the first elected leader to succeed another in Niger since independence in 1960. Now his captors have suspended the country’s constitution and installed Gen Abdourahmane Tchiani (Abdoo rach man Chee ahni) as head of state.
Niger is a key part of the African region known as the Sahel (sa hell)- a belt of land that stretches from the Atlantic Ocean to the Red Sea. The area is plagued by jihadists and beset by military regimes.
Western nations had looked to Niger as a bulwark against further disorder and spreading Russian influence in the region. But that turned out to be short-lived.
Here’s what you need to know about the crisis.
Why is Niger important?
Geographically, it is the largest country in West Africa.
Politically, it had been seen as an example of relative democratic stability in recent years, while its neighbors Mali and Burkina Faso had already succumbed to military coups.
Strategically, it hosts French and US military bases and is seen as a key partner in the fight against Islamist insurgents.
In fact, the US state department describes Niger as “important as a linchpin for stability in the Sahel” and “a reliable counter-terrorism partner” against various Islamist groups linked to either the Islamic State or al-Qaeda.
Economically, it is rich in uranium – producing 7% of all global supplies. The radioactive metal looms so large in the country’s economy that one of the grandest thoroughfares in the capital, Niamey, is named the Avenue de l’Uranium.
However, Niger’s people consistently rank as having the lowest standards of living anywhere in the world.
Why did the coup happen?
The Sahel region is a turbulent and unstable part of the world and democracy is currently in retreat there.
Violent Islamist groups have gained ground by controlling territory and conducting attacks in the tri-border region between Mali, Niger and Burkina Faso.
The mutinous soldiers in Niger have cited this worsening security situation as a reason for their uprising, although Niger was handling the insurgencies far better than Mali and Burkina Faso before their own coups.
The growing unrest has led some to believe that only harsh military crackdowns can solve the problem, hence the popular support that the coup seems to enjoy in some quarters.
However, it is far from clear that a military junta would have greater success in tackling the insurgents than the recently ousted government. The takeovers in neighboring countries have not made much difference.
What’s the international reaction to the coup?
France, the former colonial power, has been stern in its condemnation of the military takeover.
A statement by the French foreign ministry said President Bazoum was the country’s sole leader, adding that France “does not recognize the authorities resulting from the putsch led by Gen Tchiani”.
It added that France “reaffirmed in the strongest terms the clear demands of the international community calling for the immediate restoration of constitutional order and democratically-elected civilian government in Niger”.
The US Secretary of State, Anthony Blinken, has called for the president’s immediate release, while the African Union, the West African regional bloc Ecowas, the EU and the UN have all spoken out against the coup.
The only voice in favor has been that of the leader of Russia’s Wagner mercenary group, Yevgeny Prigozhin, who has reportedly described it as a triumph.
Yes, this is the same Yevgeny Prigozhin who led mercenaries for Putin in Ukraine and attempted a coup in Russia last month. He is the guy known as “The Chef”.
“What happened in Niger is nothing other than the struggle of the people of Niger with their colonizers,” he was quoted as saying on a Wagner-affiliated Telegram channel, although his comments have not been independently verified.
What’s it got to do with Russia and Wagner?
As well as jihadist groups, the Wagner mercenaries, who are active elsewhere in the region, have been seen as exercising a evil influence in Niger. Some supporters of the coup have been seen waving the Russian flag alongside that of Niger.
Before the coup, President Bazoum had complained of “disinformation campaigns” by Wagner against his government – and there is little doubt that Wagner, which has exploited mineral resources in other African countries to fund its operations, would like to do the same in Niger.
The US has said there is no indication that the Wagner force was involved in the overthrow of President Bazoum, but added that the situation continues to be quite fluid.
Now there are concerns that Niger’s new leadership could move away from its Western allies and closer to Russia.
If it does, it would follow in the footsteps of Burkina Faso and Mali, which have both pivoted towards Moscow since their own military coups.
Now here is another question to think about.
Is history to blame for the current situation in Niger?
https://www.bbc.com/news/world-africa-66406137
By Leonard Mbulle-Nziege & Nic Cheeseman
Niger has become the latest country in West Africa where the army has seized control, following Burkina Faso, Guinea, Mali, and Chad – all former French colonies. Since 1990, a striking 78% of the 27 coups in sub-Saharan Africa have occurred in French colonial states leading some commentators to ask whether France – or the legacy of French colonialism – is to blame?
Many of the coup plotters would certainly like us to think so. Colonel Abdoulaye Maiga, who was named prime minister by the military junta in Mali in September 2022, launched a scathing attack on France.
Criticising “neocolonialist, condescending, paternalist and vengeful policies”, Mr Maiga alleged that France had “disowned universal moral values” and stabbed Mali “in the back”.
Anti-French vitriol has also flourished in Burkina Faso, where the military government ended a long-standing accord that allowed French troops to operate in the country in February, giving France one month to remove its forces.
In Niger, which neighbors both countries, allegations that President Mohamed Bazoum was a puppet for French interests were used to legitimize his removal from power, and five military deals with France have since been revoked by the junta led by Gen Abdourahmane Tchiani.
Partly as a result, the coup was followed by popular protests and attacks on the French embassy.The historical record provides some support for these grievances.
French colonial rule established political systems designed to extract valuable resources while using repressive strategies to retain control.
So did British colonial rule, but what was distinctive about France’s role in Africa was the extent to which it continued to engage – its critics would say meddle – in the politics and economics of its former territories after independence.
Seven of the nine French colonial states in West Africa still use the CFA franc, which is pegged to the euro and guaranteed by France, as their currency, a legacy of French economic policy towards its colonies.
France also forged defense agreements that saw it regularly intervene militarily on behalf of unpopular pro-French leaders to keep them in power.
Does any of this sound familiar folks? Surely, we would never do such a thing!
In many cases, this strengthened the hand of corrupt and abusive figures such as Chad’s former President Idriss Déby and former Burkinabe President Blaise Compaoré, creating additional challenges for the struggle for democracy.
Although France did not intervene militarily to reinstate any of the recently deposed heads of state, all were seen as being “pro-French”.
Worse still, the relationship between French political leaders and their allies in Africa was often corrupt, creating a powerful and wealthy elite at the expense of African citizens.
François-Xavier Verschave, a prominent French economist, coined the term Françafrique to refer to a neocolonial relationship hidden by “the secret criminality in the upper echelons of French politics and economy”. These ties, he alleged, resulted in large sums of money being “misappropriated”.
Although recent French governments have sought to distance themselves from Françafrique, there are constant reminders of the problematic relations between France, French business interests and Africa, including a number of embarrassing corruption cases.
It is therefore easy to understand why one Nigerien told the BBC that: “Since childhood, I’ve been opposed to France… They’ve exploited all the riches of my country such as uranium.”
Such scandals were often swept under the carpet while France’s African political allies were strong, and France’s military support helped to maintain stability.
In recent years, the ability of France and other Western states to ensure order has deteriorated, leaving them increasingly vulnerable to criticism.
Despite considerable funding and troops, the French-led international response to Islamist insurgencies in the Sahel region has failed to enable West African governments to regain control of their territories.
This was particularly significant to the fate of civilian leaders in Burkina Faso and Mali because their inability to protect their own citizens created the impression that French support was more of a liability than a blessing.
In turn, growing popular anger and frustration emboldened military leaders to believe that a coup would be celebrated by citizens.
Yet, for all of the mistakes France has made in its dealings with its former colonies in Africa over the years, the instability French colonial states are currently experiencing cannot be solely laid at its door.
It has hardly been the only former colonial power to prop up authoritarian leaders abroad.
During the dark days of the Cold War, the UK and the United States helped prop up a number of dictators in return for their loyalty, from Daniel arap Moi in Kenya to Mobutu Sese Seko in what was then Zaire, now the Democratic Republic of Congo.
The strong relationship between coups and the former colonial power was also much less prevalent in previous eras.
Four of the countries that have seen the highest number of coup attempts since 1952 are Nigeria (8), Ghana (10), Sierra Leone (10), and Sudan (17), which all experienced British rule.
Each of the coups over the last three years has also been driven by a specific set of domestic factors that demonstrate the agency of African political and military leaders.
In Mali, the background to the coup included an influx of extremist forces following the the collapse of the Libyan state in 2011, allegations the president had manipulated local elections, and mass anti-government protests orchestrated by opposition parties in the capital.
The trigger for the coup in Niger appears to have been President Bazoum’s plans to reform the military high command and remove Gen Tchiani from his position.
This is a strong indication that the coup was not really intended to strengthen Nigerien sovereignty, or to aid the country’s poorest citizens, but rather to protect the privileges of the military elite.
The mixed motives of recent coups are well demonstrated by the speed with which many of the new military governments have sought to replace one problematic relationship with an external ally with another.
At the recent Russia-Africa summit in St. Petersburg, leaders from Burkina Faso and Mali declared their support for President Vladimir Putin and the invasion of Ukraine.
As in the past, the beneficiaries of these global alliances are likely to be the political elite rather than ordinary citizens.
There are already reports that in May, troops from the Wagner group, in alliance with Putin’s government at the time, were responsible for the torture and massacre of hundreds of civilians in Mali as part of anti-insurgency operations.
Reducing French influence is therefore unlikely to be a straightforward boon for political stability, and in decades to come we may well see a new generation of military leaders attempting to legitimize further coups on the basis of the need to rid their countries of malign Russian influence.
So now we come to the real issue. While we are busy issuing indictments to former presidents and focusing on American politics, Russia is expanding its influence in Africa, continuing to drain our resources in the Ukraine, and conducting joint military actions in Alaska with the Chinese navy. Does anyone else see this as a problem?
In simple terms, while the US is distracted, Russia, China, Iran, and a host of other adversaries are taking advantage of the situation and expanding their holdings worldwide.