On 15 March 2020, the police brutally repressed a demonstration organised by various trade unions and civil society in Niamey, Niger, to demand an investigation into allegations of embezzlement by the Ministry of Defence. Security forces fired tear gas at the roofs of stores in the Tagabati market, triggering a fire. Moudi Moussa, journalist and trade unionist, and Halidou Mounkaila, leader of a teachers' union (SYNACEB), were arrested and arbitrarily detained for seven months.
Right to justice
Moudi Moussa, journalist and trade unionist, and Halidou Mounkaila, leader of the teachers' union (SYNACEB), took part on 15 March 2020 in a demonstration in Niamey, Niger, to demand an investigation into allegations of embezzlement by the Ministry of Defence. The rally was violently repressed by security forces. A dozen people, including Moussa and Mounkaila, were arrested and charged with “organising an unauthorised rally, complicity in damaging public property, arson, and homicide with extenuating circumstances”. While the detained protesters were released on 30 April, Moudi Moussa, and Halidou Mounkaila remained behind bars for another five months and were only released on 29 September 2020 after sustained international mobilisation.