Lisa Mueller

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Police officers walk toward demonstrators during mass protests after preliminary results were released in Conakry, Guinea, on Oct. 23. (John Wessels/AFP via Getty Images)

MundoÁfrica,

Some Americans may be wringing their hands about the possibility President Trump might refuse to leave office if he loses the election. While that scenario would be unprecedented in the United States, Africa has some experience with presidents who refuse to cede power — like the current election standoff in Guinea.

Contested elections in Africa at times erupt into bloodshed. Presidents who reach their term limits step down only about half the time without trying to change the constitution — those who attempt to stay in power nearly always succeed, despite public outcry. Governments tend to respond to electoral protests with violent repression — as was the case in Burundi and Congo in recent years.…  Seguir leyendo »

MundoÁfrica

On July 10, authorities from Niger and Burkina Faso signed an accord to ease interstate cooperation on issues of counterterrorism, economic development and natural resource management.

“There will be a border but we will act as though there really isn’t one,” explained Burkinabè diplomat Alpha Barry.

It’s a significant step between two countries with a history of disputed borderlands. In 2010, Nigerien and Burkinabè delegates asked the International Court of Justice (ICJ) to settle a decades-old territorial dispute. The ICJ’s 2013 ruling delimited a new international boundary between Niger and Burkina Faso to replace the vague line on French colonial maps.…  Seguir leyendo »

Graph shows the number of protests and riots in Niger between 1997 and 2017. Source: Armed Conflict Location and Event Data Project (ACLED)

MundoÁfrica

On March 11, thousands of protesters descended on Niamey, the capital of Niger. Civil society leaders organized the march to denounce a new finance law they deemed “antisocial” for imposing taxes that they feared would raise living costs for citizens, while subsidizing the country’s utilities companies. Since October, opponents and supporters of the law have taken to the streets.

The official purpose of the law was to increase the taxation rate in order to satisfy criteria for membership in the West African Economic Monetary Union.

But this was just the latest sign of unrest in Niger, where protests have spiked in frequency over the past several years, as the chart below shows.…  Seguir leyendo »