Bazoum’s lawyer has requested the ECOWAS court to order Niger’s army rulers to finish his ‘arbitrary arrest’ and hand energy over to him.
The coup-toppled president of Niger has appealed to a court of the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS) to free him, his lawyer stated on Wednesday.
Mohamed Bazoum was overthrown by members of his presidential guard on July 26 and has been detained at dwelling along with his spouse and youngster since.
He filed a lawsuit with the West African bloc’s court based mostly in Abuja, the Nigerian capital, on September 18, stated his Senegalese lawyer Seydou Diagne.
The lawsuit invokes his “arbitrary arrest” and “violation of freedom of movement”, Diagne stated.
“We request… in view of the violation of political rights, that the State of Niger be ordered to immediately restore constitutional order by handing over power to President Bazoum, who must continue to exercise it until the end of his mandate.”
ECOWAS which imposed sanctions in opposition to Niger, has warned that it may intervene militarily in Niger if diplomatic efforts to return Bazoum to energy fail, as a final resort.
Niger’s coup passed off in a area wracked by violence from armed teams, following overthrows in neighbouring Mali and Burkina Faso. This September, the three international locations signed a mutual defence pact to turn out to be the Alliance of Sahel States and assist one another in opposition to doable threats of armed rebel or exterior aggression.
If the court guidelines in favour of Bazoum, “Niger has the legal obligation to execute the decision”, Diagne stated.
Niger’s coup leaders have declared their intention to “prosecute” the democratically elected Bazoum for “high treason and undermining internal and external security”.
On Wednesday the European Union (EU) reiterated its assist for ECOWAS’s place and made a contemporary name “for the immediate and unconditional release” of Bazoum and his household.
“The EU position is clear and unchanged: The EU does not recognise authorities emanating from the putsch. President Bazoum remains the sole legitimate president of Niger,” EU international affairs spokesperson Nabila Massrali stated.
The remarks got here a day after the EU ambassador to Niamey, Salvador Pinto da Franca, was summoned by Niger’s military-appointed Prime Minister Ali Mahamane Lamine Zeine.
https://www.aljazeera.com/news/2023/9/21/nigers-ousted-bazoum-appeals-to-west-africa-bloc-court-to-free-him?traffic_source=rss
