Niger strips President Bazoum of immunity: summary

What they said

• The State Court of Niger has lifted the presidential immunity of Mohamed Bazoum, paving the way for legal proceedings for the deposed president. This follows previous postponements by the court.
• The president has been accused of high treason, plotting against state security, and advocating terrorism. He had been detained at the presidential residence in Niamey with his wife after being overthrown by a coup on July 26, 2023.
• The lifting of immunity means the state will no longer protect Bazoum as a former head of state. He will appear as a plaintiff to be prosecuted for the crimes listed against him.
• Lawyers of the deposed president have denounced the conditions of detention of the former president and his wife Hadiza, kept under house arrest since the July 2023 coup, without access to a fair trial or visits other than those of their doctor.
• Late last year, the highest court of West African regional bloc ECOWAS ruled that Bazoum and his family were arbitrarily detained and called for him to be reinstated as President.

What they said

International lawyers of Bazoum have reacted to the court’s decision in a press release published after the announcement. They describe the decision as being a “guarantee of the putschist dictatorship” put in place by the Council National for the Safeguarding of the Fatherland (CNSP). Former President Me Moussa Coulibaly and lead counsel for President Bazoum also criticized the State Court’s decision, saying it amounted to a blatant denial of independent justice in Niger. “We are witnessing a judicial madness where our arguments have been completely ignored. We did not even have the opportunity to meet our client, and the Court rejected our legitimate requests,” Me Coulibaly was quoted as saying.