Elected in 2021, Bazoum, 65, has never resigned and with his wife Hadiza, 57, has been confined to a wing of the presidential palace where the junta leader behind his ouster also resides.

“We are calling on the national and international community to mobilise and put an end to our ordeal and that of our parents,” wrote Lucas, Zazia, Hinda, Haoua, and Salem Bazoum in the publication Jeune Afrique on Wednesday.

“We are calling on all Nigeriens, telling them that the degrading treatment inflicted on our parents is a wound to our nation,” they said.

They further claimed that their parents are “deprived of contact with the outside world” and have not “had access to daylight” since the July 26, 2023 coup.

The junta announced in August 2023 it intended to prosecute Bazoum for “plotting to undermine the state’s security and authority” and “treason”, the latter being punishable by death.

Bazoum has not faced any formal legal proceedings, but his diplomatic immunity was lifted last year.

“The leaders of this regime stubbornly refuse to present our father before a court. And for good reason, the accusations against him are baseless and unfounded,” the children stated.

Lawyers say the junta has offered to have Bazoum’s wife released, but she declined, preferring not to leave her husband alone.

“For a little over a year, we have been allowed a phone conversation with our parents every two weeks. This is our only connection that keeps us going,” the pair’s children said, lamenting “an unbearable ordeal that is pushing us to the limits of our strength and hope”.

The military junta, led by General Abdourahamane Tiani, launched a coup in the wake of chronic jihadist attacks, which have plagued the country for over a decade — but it has struggled to eradicate the violence.

bam/bdi/giv/cc