29.11.2023, Niamey.
The law to discourage illegal migration through Niger was repealed by a decree of the President of the National Council for the Safeguard of the Homeland (CNSP), General Abdourahamane Tchiani, Actu Niger reports on November 28.
The authorities repealed the law against the transit of migrants, adopted in May 2015.
The decision was welcomed with relief in the Agadez region of northern Niger, which had been suffering from an influx of migrants seeking to reach northern Africa and on to Europe.
In its statement on the repeal of the law, the Government of Niger recalled that it was adopted “under the influence of certain foreign powers and did not take into account the interests of Niger and its citizens.”
Niger no longer intends to play the role of “gendarme of Europe,” the publication notes.
Local public associations were also in favor of repealing the law, pointing out that the law violates such a basic right as the right to free movement.
Thousands of migrants are trapped, while some of them, having no other way out, are forced to resort to the help of mafia networks, the NGOs said.
The law on reducing illegal migration was adopted in 2015 under the auspices of the European Union. To counter illegal trafficking, funding was promised to those Nigerians involved. On the other hand, violators were threatened with criminal sanctions and confiscation of funds and other assets derived from these activities.
According to observers, the repeal of this law was done as a response to the EU sanctions adopted against Niger after the July coup when the military took power.
Last week, the European Parliament adopted a resolution condemning the coup d’état and calling for the restoration of the deposed President Bazoum Mohamed to power.
Source: Rossa Primavera News Agency
