According to the Republic of Niger's Constitution of 1999, most human rights, as defined by the Universal Declaration of Human Rights, are upheld and protected. Despite these protections, concerns of both domestic and international human rights organizations have been raised over the behavior of the government, military, police forces, and over the continuation of traditional practices which contravene the 1999 constitution. Under French colonial rule (1900–1960) and from independence until 1992, citizens of Niger had few political rights, and lived under arbitrary government power. Although the situation has improved since the return to civilian rule, criticisms remain over the state of human rights in the country.

Constitution of 18 July 1999 The Constitution of 18 July 1999, the founding document of the Nigerien Fifth Republic and the basis of its legal system, guarantees certain rights for every citizen of Niger. These include rights to equality before the law, due process, universal suffrage, freedom of speech, and freedom of religion.Constitution du Niger du 18 juillet 1999 and CONSTITUTION OF THE FIFTH REPUBLIC OF NIGER. Adopted on 18 July 1999, promulgated on 9 August 1999 .

Title I, Article 9 states:

The same prerogatives shall be accorded every citizen of Niger enjoying full civil and political rights and fulfilling the conditions of eligibility as provided for by the law.

Title II: Rights And Duties Of The Individual includes:

Article 23:Each person shall have the right to freedom of thought, opinion, expression, conscience, religion, and worship. The state shall guarantee the free exercise of worship and expression of beliefs. These rights shall be applicable in regard to public order, social tranquility, and national unity.

Human Rights offices The constitution also created an official Nigerien National Commission on Human Rights and Fundamental Liberties to investigate and report upon human rights abuses. Its members are elected from several human rights associations, legal bodies, and government offices. It has no power to arrest, but it may investigate abuses either on its own volition or when charged by a victim. It reports to the President of Niger.Niger:Country Reports on Human Rights Practices, 2001. United States Bureau of Democracy, Human Rights, and Labor. March 4, 2002

In August 2008, the government established a Mediator of the Republic. The mediator's role is to solve difficulties in the implementation and interpretation of laws and regulations. The president appoints the mediator, who is an independent administrative authority charged with investigating citizens' complaints and trying to find amicable solutions. The mediator has no decision-making powers, however, and instead submits results of investigations to the president and the prime minister.Niger:Country Reports on Human Rights Practices, 2008. United States Bureau of Democracy, Human Rights, and Labor. February 25, 2009

International conventions

Niger is a signatory of a number of international human rights conventions, including the African Charter on Human and Peoples' Rights of 1986, for which it submits regular reports to the African Union's African Commission on Human and Peoples' Rights.STATUS ON SUBMISSION OF STATE PERIODIC REPORTS TO THE AFRICAN COMMISSION ON HUMAN & PEOPLES’ RIGHTS . Niger is one of the States Parties to the Rome Statute of the International Criminal Court.

History since independence

Niger has had four republican constitutions since independence in 1960, but four of its seven presidents have been military leaders, taking power in three coups. The first presidential elections took place in 1993 (33 years after independence), and the first municipal elections only took place in 2007. The 1999 constitution followed the coup against and murder of President Ibrahim Baré Maïnassara by fellow military leaders. Prior to the 1992 uprising that led to free elections, Nigeriens have had little say in their nation's governance. In 2004 Mamadou Tandja was elected to his second five-year presidential term in an election that international observers deemed generally free and fair.

While the 1999 constitution guarantees a right to free assembly, in practice the government places restrictions on political gatherings, especially at time of popular unrest. There have been three blanket states of emergency declared since 1999, the longest beginning in August 2007 for the entire Agadez Department, and renewed in November 2007. These states of emergency essentially remove all rights to protest, gathering and free movement. They also allow detention without charge or trial.

Security forces

The involvement of the military in politics has historically led to regular, if infrequent, arbitrary arrest and detention, use of excessive force, torture, and extra-judicial killing by security forces and police. The judiciary has historically suffered from poor jail and prison conditions, prolonged pretrial detention, and executive interference in the judiciary. While all these have improved dramatically since the return to civilian rule, international human rights organizations continue to report sporadic incidents of all these abuses. Post-1999 there has been a marked improvement of civilian control of security forces, with the United States State Department contending every year since 2001 that the military was under civilian control.For this section, see Amnesty International, Amnesty International Report 2007, Human Rights Watch: Niger: Warring Sides Must End Abuses of Civilians, Combatants Engaged in Executions, Rape, and Theft. (Dakar, December 19, 2007); and U.S. Department of State. Report on Human Rights Practices - Niger. 1993-1995 to 2006.

Current concerns

The United States, in line with the United Nations and Amnesty International, has consistently found the post-1999 government's human rights record "generally poor; although there are improvements in several areas, some serious problems remain". With the 1999 election of President Tandja and members of the National Assembly in generally free and fair elections, citizens exercised their right to change their government. Since 2001, every year has seen less than a dozen prisoners die or go missing after having last been seen in the custody of military officers. Police and members of the security forces beat and otherwise abuse persons. Prior to the beginning of the Tuareg insurgency of 2007 the government has generally respected the right to association; however, several Islamist organizations that engaged in or threatened violence have been and remain banned. The government frequently restricts freedom of movement.U.S. Department of State. Report on Human Rights Practices - Niger. 1993-1995 to 2006.

Domestic violence and societal discrimination against women continue to be serious problems. Female genital mutilation (FGM) persists, despite government efforts to combat it. There is societal discrimination against persons with disabilities and ethnic and religious minorities. Worker rights generally are respected; however, there are reports that a traditional form of servitude still is practiced. Child labor occurs, including child prostitution. There are reports of trafficking in persons.

Freedom of the press

Niger has had a tradition of lively press opposition, punctuated by bouts of government repression. From 1999 to 2007, the independent press, especially radio has flourished. With the advent of the Second Tuareg Rebellion in 2007, the government has begun to prosecute under emergency powers, those foreign and domestic press who are accused of contact with rebel leaders, and have expelled members of the foreign press from the country. The north, under a state of emergency, has become a no-go zone for foreign press, and the independent Radio Agadez in the north has been closed by the government.

Media

Since literacy and personal incomes are both very low, radio is the most important medium of public communication. The government-owned Radio Voix du Sahel transmits 14 hours per day, providing news and other programs in French and several local languages. There are several private radio stations, including Radio France International, Africa Number One, Radio et Musique, Radio Souda, Radio Tenere, Radio Anfani, and Radio Tambara; the last five are owned locally and feature popular news programs in local languages, including Djerma and Hausa. These private radio stations generally are less critical of government actions than are the private newspapers. Radio Anfani and Radio et Musique presented news coverage that has included a variety of points of view. The other private domestic radio stations are smaller and offer little domestic news programming. The government-operated multilingual national radio service provides equitable broadcasting time for all legal political parties during the year.

The government publishes a French-language daily newspaper, Le Sahel, and its weekend edition. There are approximately 12 private French-language weekly or monthly newspapers, some of which are affiliated loosely with political parties. The private press remains relatively assertive in criticizing government actions, though since mid-2007, there have been a number of arrests of foreign and local journalist.

2007–2008 crackdown Two local journalists were imprisoned in 2007 under charge of aiding the Tuareg insurgency in the north, and several radio stations have been closed. The journalist Moussa Kaka was held over a year on charges stemming from a radio interview of Rebel leaders, before being provisionally released. Foreign journalist circulated and reported freely prior to mid-2007, but since have been restricted from reporting on or traveling to the north of the country (Agadez Region). Since this time radio re-broadcasts of foreign news services have been restricted, having previously been a staple of Nigerien news coverage.