Nancy Kassebaum: “early this week, the people of the Republic of Niger were denied their right to choose their own leadership and control…”

“early this week, the people of the Republic of Niger were denied their right to choose their own leadership and control their destiny. I want to express my deep disappointment in the Nigerian elections and in the military regime that chose to retain power through fraud and intimidation rather than honor its word to hold free and fair elections. In January, immediately after Gen. Ibrahim Barre Mainassara deposed Niger's democratically elected president in a military coup, he pledged to return the country to democracy as soon as possible. At that time, the United States rejected the use of military solutions for political problems by suspending bilateral development and military assistance, as well as support for Niger in multilateral financial institutions. We urged Barre to keep his word and encouraged the military government to reestablish democracy quickly and transparently. Balloting started on Sunday, despite the fact that the Independent Electoral Commission had twice requested a postponement in order to ensure that accurate voter lists and voter cares were in place. General Barre rejected these requests and, instead, extended the voting through Monday. On this second day of balloting, the general deployed security forces to the homes of his opponents, shut down private radio stations--including the Voice of America affiliate--and dissolved the Independent Electoral Commission.”