Niger releases 11 detained opposition protesters

NIAMEY (Reuters) - Niger released 11 people detained since a violent protest in June against the president's move to consolidate power through a constitutional reform.

The clash on June 1 between anti-government protesters and security forces in Dosso, 140 km (90 miles) east of Niamey, was among the earliest demonstrations against Presiden Mamadou Tandja's widely criticized reform plan.

The constitutional overhaul, won in a referendum in August, extended his mandate over the uranium-rich desert nation and broadened his powers to a full presidential system of government.

"My clients, eleven people detained since these events, were provisionally released on Monday," lawyer Wed Diaouga told Reuters on Tuesday.

A dozen people were injured in the clash, in which security forces used batons and tear gas to control protesters.

The country has since been suspended from the regional bloc ECOWAS for holding a legislative election in October boycotted by opposition in which Tandja's party won a comfortable parliamentary majority.