Civil society in Niger inspires the country to struggle for independence from foreign meddling

The nation of Niger was urged to rally in the nation’s capital on Thursday to defend its independence and oppose foreign meddling, according to the country’s ruling junta and civil society organizations.

According to Mahaman Sanoussi, interim coordinator for the M62 civil society organization, which is coordinating the protest, “We are talking about the immediate departure of all foreign forces.””

The march occurs when anti-French feeling is at an all-time high and on the day that the West African nation gains independence from its former colonial power, France. There will likely be demonstrations in Niamey, the capital, to protest foreign interference.

The nation of Niger was urged to rally in the nation’s capital on Thursday to defend its independence and oppose foreign meddling, according to the country’s ruling junta and civil society organizations.

According to Mahaman Sanoussi, interim coordinator for the M62 civil society organization, which is coordinating the protest, “We are talking about the immediate departure of all foreign forces.””

The march occurs when anti-French feeling is at an all-time high and on the day that the West African nation gains independence from its former colonial power, France. There will likely be demonstrations in Niamey, the capital, to protest foreign interference.

According to Tchiani, Niger will confront challenging times in the future and that the “hostile and radical” views of people who disagree with his authority add nothing to the situation. He referred to the severe penalties imposed last week by the ECOWAS bloc of West African nations as unlawful, discriminatory, inhumane, and unprecedented.

In case former President Mohamed Bazoum, who is still under house arrest, is not released and reinstated by August 6, ECOWAS has additionally threatened to deploy force.

Dozens of representatives from labor unions, professional associations, and civil society organizations met behind closed doors on Wednesday to discuss the coup leaders’ plans for the nation. At the meeting, Sanoussi from M62 said that the junta discussed its priorities for the country, including protecting it from violence.

However, a different representative of civil society who attended the same event but wished to remain anonymous for security reasons told the AP that they departed feeling uneasy. They strongly believed that the French military would soon be overthrown and that members of civil society organizations would assist the junta in carrying out this plan.