Working with Civil Society in Authoritarian Contexts? The Case of Niger

Amongst its biggest achievements was in 2005 with the successful struggle of the “Coalition against the high cost of living”, an alliance of over 30 CSOs to oppose the government's bill to increase the taxation of essential goods.23 Headed by former leaders of the student movement, which had helped put an end to military dictatorship, the coalition managed to mobilize large segments of the populat. [...] The M62 movement, created in August 2022 as a coalition of 15 CSOs to oppose the presence of foreign military in Niger and comprised of organizations supported extensively by international donors in the past, was one of the driving forces.31 Abdoulaye Seydou, leader of the M62 movement, who had been sentenced to prison for the “production and dissemination of data likely to disturb public order”32. [...] A second crucial factor is the disappointment of civil society actors with the realities of liberal democracy in the country, which in the view of many favoured the emergence of a corrupt political class neither capable nor willing of providing development and security. [...] By adopting a sovereigntist discourse, ending the military cooperation with France or denouncing the contracts with foreign mining companies – long condemned by leading CSOs as betraying the interests of the country – the junta moreover accommo- dated some of the main demands of Niger’s civil society, thereby strengthening the belief in political change through the coup. [...] In view of the high politicization of civil society, a third explanation points to the personal and political aspirations of leading civil society actors as well as members of the former political opposition to the ousted Bazoum government, some of whom are said to collabo- rate with the junta and work towards a (post-)transition state in which they would be able to take “their turn in office”.