Ryan Lenora Brown and Belinda O'Donnell, Foreign Policy: The Un-Freedom Agenda
The rise of ISIS, al Qaeda, and Boko Haram has turned Niger from a backwater into a key U.S. counterterrorism partner. So why is it becoming more authoritarian?
JOHANNESBURG and WASHINGTON, D.C. — On Feb. 9, authorities in Niger arrested a woman they claimed was a threat to national security.
She wasn’t a military officer plotting a coup, a populist leader inciting unrest, or even an opposition politician challenging the president. Far from it, Hamsou Garba is one of Niger’s better-known singers, a vivacious pop star with an affinity for glamorous jackets, synchronized choreography, and reflective lyrics. And yet she was charged with inciting civil disobedience and briefly put behind bars.
“Hama Amadou is a second Mandela,” Garba had sung in a popular single released before the first round of Niger’s presidential elections on Feb. 21, referring to the country’s leading opposition candidate. “Hama Amadou is Niger’s Mandela.”
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WNU Editor: For more details on Niger's problems, this DW post says it all .... Niger President Mahamadou Issoufou vows to fight jihadists and poverty in second term (DW).
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