HISTORY
Considerable
evidence indicates that about 600,000 years ago, humans inhabited
what has since become the desolate Sahara of northern Niger. Long
before the arrival of French influence and control in the area,
Niger was an important economic crossroads, and the empires of
Songhai, Mali, Gao, Kanem, and Bornu, as well as a number of Hausa
states, claimed control over portions of the area.
During
recent centuries, the nomadic Tuareg formed large confederations,
pushed southward, and, siding with various Hausa states, clashed
with the Fulani Empire of Sokoto, which had gained control of
much of the Hausa territory in the late 18th century.
In the
19th century, contact with the West began when the first European
explorers--notably Mungo Park (British) and Heinrich Barth (German)--explored
the area searching for the mouth of the Niger River. Although
French efforts at pacification began before 1900, dissident ethnic
groups, especially the desert Tuareg, were not subdued until 1922,
when Niger became a French colony.
Niger's
colonial history and development parallel that of other French
West African territories. France administered its West African
colonies through a governor general at Dakar, Senegal, and governors
in the individual territories, including Niger. In addition to
conferring French citizenship on the inhabitants of the territories,
the 1946 French constitution provided for decentralization of
power and limited participation in political life for local advisory
assemblies.
A further
revision in the organization of overseas territories occurred
with the passage of the Overseas Reform Act (Loi Cadre) of July
23, 1956, followed by reorganizational measures enacted by the
French Parliament early in 1957. In addition to removing voting
inequalities, these laws provided for creation of governmental
organs, assuring individual territories a large measure of self-government.
After the establishment of the Fifth French Republic on December
4, 1958, Niger became an autonomous state within the French Community.
Following full independence on August 3, 1960, however, membership
was allowed to lapse.
For its
first 14 years as an independent state, Niger was run by a single-party
civilian regime under the presidency of Hamani Diori. In 1974,
a combination of devastating drought and accusations of rampant
corruption resulted in a military coup that overthrew the Diori
regime. Col. Seyni Kountche and a small group of military ruled
the country until Kountche's death in 1987. He was succeeded by
his Chief of Staff, Col. Ali Saibou, who released political prisoners,
liberalized some of Niger's laws and policies, and promulgated
a new constitution. However, President Saibou's efforts to control
political reforms failed in the face of union and student demands
to institute a multi-party democratic system. The Saibou regime
acquiesced to these demands by the end of 1990. New political
parties and civic associations sprang up, and a national conference
was convened in July 1991 to prepare the way for the adoption
of a new constitution and the holding of free and fair elections.
The debate was often contentious and accusatory, but under the
leadership of Prof. Andre Salifou, the conference developed consensus
on the modalities of a transition government. A transition government
was installed in November 1991 to manage the affairs of state
until the institutions of the Third Republic were put into place
in April 1993. While the economy deteriorated over the course
of the transition, certain accomplishments stand out, including
the successful conduct of a constitutional referendum; the adoption
of key legislation such as the electoral and rural codes; and
the holding of several free, fair, and nonviolent nationwide elections.
Freedom of the press flourished with the appearance of several
new independent newspapers.
Rivalries
within a ruling coalition elected in 1993 led to governmental
paralysis, which provided Col. Ibrahim Baré Maïnassara
a rationale to overthrow the Third Republic in January 1996. While
leading a military authority that ran the government (Conseil
de Salut National) during a 6-month transition period, Bare enlisted
specialists to draft a new constitution for a Fourth Republic
announced in May 1996. After dissolving the national electoral
committee, Bare organized and won a flawed presidential election
in July 1996 and his party won 90% of parliament seats in a flawed
legislative election in November 1996. When his efforts to justify
his coup and subsequent questionable elections failed to convince
donors to restore multilateral and bilateral economic assistance,
a desperate Bare ignored an international embargo against Libya
and sought Libyan funds to aid Niger's economy. In repeated violations
of basic civil liberties by the regime, opposition leaders were
imprisoned; journalists often arrested, beaten, and deported by
an unofficial militia composed of police and military; and independent
media offices were looted and burned with impunity.
In the
culmination of an initiative started under the 1991 national conference,
however, the government signed peace accords in April 1995 with
all Tuareg and Toubou groups that had been in rebellion since
1990, claiming they lacked attention and resources from the central
government. The government agreed to absorb some former rebels
into the military and, with French assistance, help others return
to a productive civilian life.
In April
1999, Bare was overthrown in a coup led by Maj. Daouda Mallam
Wanke, who established a transitional National Reconciliation
Council to oversee the drafting of a constitution for a Fifth
Republic with a French style semi-presidential system. In votes
that international observers found to be generally free and fair,
the Nigerien electorate approved the new constitution in July
1999 and held legislative and presidential elections in October
and November 1999. Heading a coalition of the National Movement
for a Developing Society (MNSD) and the Democratic and Social
Convention (CDS), Mamadou Tandja won the presidency.
In July
2004, Niger held municipal elections nationwide as part of its
decentralization process. Some 3,700 people were elected to new
local governments in 265 newly established communes. The ruling
MNSD party won more positions than any other political party;
however, opposition parties made significant gains.
In November
and December 2004, Niger held presidential and legislative elections.
Tandja Mamadou was elected to his second 5-year presidential term
with 65% of the vote in an election that international observers
called generally free and fair. This was the first presidential
election with a democratically elected incumbent and a test to
Niger’s young democracy.
In the
2004 legislative elections, the National Movement for the Development
of Society (MNSD), the Democratic and Socialist Convention (CDS),
the Rally for Social Democracy (RSD), the Rally for Democracy
and Progress (RDP), the Nigerien Alliance for Democracy and Progress
(ANDP), and the Social Party for Nigerien Democracy (PSDN) coalition,
which backed Tandja, won 88 of the 113 seats in the National Assembly.
A previously unknown group, the Mouvement des Nigeriens pour la Justice (MNJ), emerged in February 2007. The predominantly Tuareg group has issued a number of demands, mainly related to development in the north. It has attacked military and other facilities and laid landmines in the north. The resulting insecurity has devastated Niger's tourist industry and deterred investment in mining and oil. The government has labeled the MNJ criminals and traffickers, and refuses to negotiate with the group until it disarms.
