Niger has rejected key human rights recommendations issued by United Nations member countries, including calls to halt arbitrary detentions, end discrimination against lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender people, and maintain membership in the International Criminal Court.
Niger Rejects Key UN Human Rights Overhaul
The rejections emerged from Niger’s formal response to the UN Human Rights Council’s Universal Periodic Review, a peer-review mechanism examining the human rights records of member states every five years.
Junta Formalizes Stance on 265 Proposals
On September 1, Niger’s military junta formally replied to 265 recommendations delivered in May by 97 UN member states.
While the government accepted 254 of those proposals—including pledges to bolster civilian protection and train security forces in international human rights and humanitarian law—it rejected 11 specific recommendations targeting some of the nation’s most severe rights issues.
Among the rejected proposals was a call to reverse a June decision initiating Niger’s withdrawal from the International Criminal Court.
Defiant Denial Over Arbitrary Detentions
The junta also dismissed recommendations to release individuals held arbitrarily, specifically addressing the continued detention of ousted President Mohamed Bazoum and his wife.
Rejecting the calls, the government maintained that their cases fall exclusively under national jurisdiction and denied that any arbitrary detentions exist in the country. That position conflicts with prior international findings.
In February 2025, the UN Working Group on Arbitrary Detention concluded that the detentions of Bazoum and his wife were arbitrary and demanded their immediate release, echoing a December 2023 ruling by the ECOWAS Court of Justice.
Crackdown on Political Opposition and Media
Political and civil society arrests have escalated since the military seized power in 2023.
Authorities have curtailed political activities, restricted media freedom, and targeted activists and journalists, including prominent rights defender Moussa Tiangari, who has been arbitrarily detained since December 2024.
Defense of Strict Penal Code on LGBTQ+ Rights
Niger further rejected recommendations to repeal a law criminalizing consensual same-sex relations and to prohibit discrimination based on sexual orientation and gender identity.
The government cited cultural, social, and religious sensitivities in refusing the measures.
The rejection follows the junta’s adoption of a new penal code in March that punishes consensual same-sex relations with up to 10 years in prison, running counter to the state’s regional and international human rights obligations.
