African unrest Western shame
Niger coup leader Gen Abdourahmane Tchiani attends a demonstration held by his supporters in Niamey on Sunday.
The unease in efforts to reclaim constitutional order in Niger, the fourth of 15 Economic Community of West African States (Ecowas) states to suffer a coup in three years, is becoming evident.
After President Mohamed Bazoum’s ouster, the bloc softened its tone on Thursday. The Abuja emergency summit did not consider an “ultimatum” that could lead to the “use of force” as in the aftermath of the coup. Though Ecowas has ordered the deployment of its “standby force”, it says it gives “priority to diplomatic negotiations and dialogue”.
Ironically, West African leaders are united in their fear of suffering the same fate as Bazoum, whom the putschists have threatened to execute in the event of outside intervention. But their attempts at mediation have been rejected and the leaders divided, fearing an escalation of regional warfare from which political opponents and jihadists may profit.
The stalemate is hardly surprising. On paper, it has ‘strong’ military force designed to restore constitutional legality but has not deployed it for the coups in Guinea and Mali (2021) or Burkina Faso last year.
Gen Abdourahamane Tiani, the Niamey junta head, can hardly justify his actions on grounds of a security failure against jihadist groups that the Nigerien army backed by 2,500 French and American troops, is fairly effective at containing. But the built-up frustrations of the Nigeriens at record poverty levels and the strength of the junta’s anti-French rhetoric make any external intervention extremely complex.
The inertia of the region’s countries, many of them long been under the influence of Paris, only serves to highlight France’s relegation to the background. For Americans and the French, Niger, on the crossroads between the Sahel, North Africa and West Africa, is the pivotal point in a dual struggle: Against the jihadists and the Russian influence in Africa.
The need to preserve the strategic position when Paris is being used as a boogeyman by the junta puts Washington on the front line. Whether or not to maintain military presence in Niger is crucial but the West must reconsider its policy on West Africa.
Mr Onyango is an advocate of the High Court of Kenya. [email protected].
