In a hall of the Bobigny Labor Exchange (Seine-Saint-Denis), a hundred Nigeriens met on Saturday, August 12, at the call of the Council of Nigeriens in France (Conif), an association which notably offers support for students arriving in France. Organized at the request of many Nigeriens, this meeting aimed to discuss the situation created, in their country of origin, by the military coup of July 26 which overthrew President Mohamed Bazoum.
“We must define action plans to help the population on site”, explained Adam Oumarou Aboubacar, the president of Conif, at the start of the meeting. On the situation, the Council had, in the previous days, sought to define a position which could achieve consensus. He condemned the coup in the name of a “democratic principle” and condemned the sanctions decided by the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS) to make the junta bend, as well as the threat of military intervention by the African organization.
“The soldiers are not going to leave”
But this position, which aims to be balanced, was reviled by some of those present who saw in it implicit support for Mohamed Bazoum. While some still call for a return to the old regime, most show fatalism. This is the case of this man, in his thirties, who assures us that “to condemn or not to condemn will not change anything: the soldiers are not going to leave”. Amadou, who follows the meeting by videoconference in Toulouse, goes further: “In sixty years of independence, we have known five coups. For me, everything suggests that coups d’etat are part of the DNA of our system of governance. »
Many participants express the feeling that the putsch benefits on the spot from a “massive membership” and that this support is a form of expression of Nigerien popular sovereignty. “As long as it is the people themselves who support the coup, I think we are in a democracy”insists Boukari, in his thirties, in costume. Hassimi, on the other hand, considers it impossible to “condemn the coup d’etat which responded to an expectation of the people”. Another Nigerian assures that “The people chose to reject the fallen regime, they came out massively to say ‘Yes!’ to the military junta. “We have to deal with it”, he adds.
What predominates is the hope aroused by this change at the head of the country. “I have never been so proud of Nigeriens as during these last fourteen days”, expresses, with tears in his eyes, a man who was on vacation in the country at the time of the coup. A woman, colorful turban on her head, hopes that this situation will lead “to improve political governance in Niger”.
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