Moussa Tchangari. © Photo: Aurora info
On 3 December, 2024, my good friend and comrade, Moussa Tchangari, was arrested at his home in Niamey by plain-clothed officers. He was later charged with “criminal association in connection with a terrorist enterprise,” “undermining national defence,” as well as “intelligence with enemy powers.” It has been very painful to me ever since because he was just returning from my 70 Anniversary Birthday Symposium in Abuja where comrades had assembled to debate the contributions of activists and progressive intellectuals to improving the lives and livelihoods of Africans and he was one of several comrades attending from outside Nigeria.
Tchangari’s English was not very good so he addressed the symposium in Hausa calling for African solidarity in defending democracy and the civic space. He took a flight back to Niamey the following day and was arrested. Maybe it is more accurate to describe what happened to him as a kidnap because those that took him did not identify themselves or explain why they were taking him. He was simply taken by a large number of armed operatives from his house one hour after he arrived from Abuja. The charges emerged following his public critiques of recent military governance policies and his advocacy against the repression of civic space. Indeed, three weeks before his arrest, on 12 November 2024, Tchangari had criticised on social media the decision of Niger’s interior minister to revoke the licenses of two humanitarian non-governmental organisations operating in the country.
