Under the 2001 constitution, the president was directly elected for a single five-year term, with eligibility rotating among the main islands of Grande Comore (Ngazidja), Anjouan, and Mohéli. However, a new constitution approved in 2018 allows the president to run for two consecutive five-year terms and abolished the system of rotating power among the islands.

The 2018 constitution allowed President Azali Assoumani of the Convention for the Renewal of the Comoros (CRC) party to contest and win the 2019 presidential election, which was boycotted by the opposition. Observers, including from the African Union (AU), said the contest was marred by irregularities, and 12 opposition candidates rejected the results.

In 2023, political parties prepared for a January 2024 presidential election, and some opposition parties announced that they would boycott the election.

The unicameral Assembly of the Union consists of 24 directly elected members who serve five-year terms. The 2020 legislative elections were boycotted by the major opposition parties. Progovernment candidates won every seat; the CRC won 20, the allied Orange Party won 2, and progovernment independent candidates won the remaining 2. AU monitors called the contest generally peaceful, but noted a lack of public interest due to the opposition boycott.

The Independent National Electoral Commission (CENI), while historically able to run credible elections, has faced more recent accusations of bias and corruption. Ahead of the January 2024 presidential election, the opposition demanded that the CENI be reconstituted in order to ensure that it would be independent and that the electoral process would not be influenced by the country’s armed forces.

Opposition groups boycotted the 2018 constitutional referendum, denounced it as an unconstitutional power grab by Azali, and said Azali’s dismissal of the Constitutional Court ahead of the vote rendered it illegal. There were also allegations of voter intimidation and fraud. Among other things, the 2018 constitution allows the president to run for two consecutive terms and transfers the competencies of the Constitutional Court, which was considered impartial in deciding electoral matters, to a new Supreme Court chamber.

Political parties are mainly formed around specific leaders and draw on island or ethnic bases of support. In the past, parties generally operated freely, though the government occasionally disrupted opposition parties’ activities by denying them meeting and assembly space.

The authorities systematically cracked down on opposition figures who publicly criticized the 2018 constitutional referendum. The former governor of Anjouan, Abdou Salami Abdou, was sentenced to 12 years in prison in 2022 for allegedly participating in an insurrection, among other charges. Observers have called the former governor a political prisoner. Presidential candidates Achmet Said Mohamed and Soilihi Mohamed were briefly detained in 2019. Soilihi, who led a National Transitional Council (CNT) that unsuccessfully attempted to force Azali from office through civil disobedience and industrial action, agreed to refrain from further involvement after his release.

Ahead of the January 2024 presidential election some opposition leaders were arrested after publicly praying for political prisoners.

In the past, numerous opposition parties had a realistic chance of gaining power through elections, though they were impeded by occasional government interference, and allegations of misuse of state resources by incumbents were not uncommon. However, the arrests, convictions, and harsh sentencing of opposition leaders who spoke out against the 2018 constitutional referendum hampered the ability of opposition parties to compete in elections. The 2020 legislative elections were boycotted by the opposition and ended with progovernment candidates winning every seat.

While individuals are generally free to exercise their political choices, the influence of Comoros’s army and religious authorities can place pressure on voters and candidates. The army cracked down on dissent during the 2018 constitutional referendum, and was also used to intimidate and detain opposition figures during and after the 2019 presidential campaign.

There are no laws preventing various segments of the population from enjoying full political rights and electoral opportunities. However, traditional attitudes discourage women from participating in politics. Only four women won legislative seats in the 2020 polls. Legal and societal discrimination against LGBT+ people make political advocacy for LGBT+ rights difficult.

According to the constitution, the president decides on the policies of the state, which are executed by the government. However, irregular legislative activity has hampered representative policymaking in previous years.

There are reports of corruption at all levels, including within the judiciary, civil service, and security forces. The Azali administration dissolved the National Commission for Preventing and Fighting Corruption in 2016.

In 2018, former president Ahmed Abdallah Sambi was arrested for corruption, embezzlement, and forgery in connection with a passport-sales scheme that reportedly cost Comoros as much as $971 million. Sambi was convicted of “high treason” for his role in the scheme and sentenced to life in prison in 2022.

Government operations are characterized by opacity. Various reform initiatives have been unsuccessful. Financial asset disclosures by public officials are not released to the public. Comoros provides no opportunities for public engagement in the budget process.

The constitution and laws provide for freedom of speech and of the press. However, some pressures, including the use of censorship laws to prosecute legitimate journalistic work, have prompted widespread self-censorship. Journalists continue to face harassment and intimidation, including from government officials, and arrests of journalists and bloggers are common.

Journalistic activity remained restricted throughout 2023. During the year, Comoran authorities arrested four journalists who reported on alleged sexual harassment within the Comoros Radio and Television Office (ORTC). The journalists were charged with “defamation and insult,” convicted, and given a suspended sentence of nine months.

Some 98 percent of the population is Sunni Muslim. Sunni Islam was made the state religion in 2018. Previously, the state religion had been “Islam,” and some observers suggested the change reflected Azali’s efforts to bring Comoros closer to Saudi Arabia and to counter the influence of former president Sambi, who was seen as close to Iran.

Anti-Shia sentiments have been publicly expressed by some government figures, while many Christians keep their faith private to avoid harassment. Proselytizing and public religious ceremonies are prohibited for all religions except Sunni Islam.

Comoros has two types of schools: madrassas, where the Quran is integral, and state-run schools with French instruction. Academic freedom is generally respected, though the education system is sometimes affected by unrest from student protests and teacher strikes. Self-censorship on political topics is reportedly common within the education system.

Private discussion is generally free. However, the country’s volatile political history—including authorities’ monitoring of social media during the 2019 presidential campaign, and a one-day shutdown of telecommunications services that March—can discourage people from openly discussing politics in some situations.

Freedoms of assembly and association are constitutionally protected, but these freedoms have been inconsistently upheld, and have deteriorated significantly since 2018. Opposition rallies held before and soon after the 2019 presidential election were violently dispersed.

Nongovernmental organizations (NGOs) sometimes face bureaucratic interference, including requirements to secure permits from high-level officials to visit prisons. Some NGO representatives have spoken out against the atmosphere of repression in recent years, but did so at some risk, given the broad crackdown on dissent.

Workers have the right to form unions, bargain collectively, and strike. In cases of national interest, the government may require essential personnel to return to work. No law prohibits antiunion discrimination or protects workers from retribution for striking. There are some laws that impose mandatory arbitration processes for labor disputes.

The judicial system is based on both Sharia (Islamic law) and the French legal code. Though the law establishes mechanisms for the selection of judges and attorneys, the executive often disregards these and simply appoints people to their positions. Court decisions are not always upheld.

The 2018 referendum abolished the Constitutional Court and established a new constitutional chamber of the Supreme Court. This chamber ruled in favor of the government during the 2019 election period by barring several candidates from running and by validating the electoral results, despite widespread concerns over voting irregularities.

All defendants have the right to a fair public trial, but they often face lengthy delays. Due-process rights are affected by corruption.

Political figures, including candidates, have been denied due process. Former president Sambi’s legal pretrial detention period ended in 2019, but he remained under house arrest until his trial in 2022. Sambi refused to attend the trial after the first day, calling the proceedings “illegitimate.” Some observers have called Sambi a political prisoner. Though Sambi was initially charged with corruption, at his trial, he was sentenced to life in prison for the crime of “high treason”—a crime his lawyers claim does not exist in Comoran law.

In 2020, Inssa “Bobocha” Mohamed was arrested for allegedly attacking President Azali in an unsuccessful bombing the previous month. Bobocha remained in pretrial detention until escaping from prison that November; he was returned to custody in 2021. He was allegedly held as a “secret prisoner” before his 2022 trial, after which he was sentenced to eight years in prison for “criminal association and conspiracy.”

The law prohibits the illegitimate use of physical force, but security agents have engaged in excessive force, and are generally not held accountable for such behavior. There are questions about the will or capacity of the army to identify and punish abuses within its ranks.

The law provides for equality of persons. However, same-sex sexual activity is illegal, with punishments of a fine and up to five years’ imprisonment. Few women hold positions of responsibility in business outside of elite families. Laws requiring that services be provided for people with disabilities are not well enforced.

Internal and external freedom of movement is constitutionally and legally protected. While these rights are generally respected in practice, poverty frequently prevents travel between the islands as well as access to higher education.

In accordance with civil and some customary laws, women have equal rights in inheritance matters. Local cultures on Grande Comore and Mohéli are matrilineal, with women legally possessing all inheritable property. However, this is complicated by the concurrent application of Sharia, interpretations of which can limit gender equality. In addition, a poor land-registration system and women’s difficulties in securing loans hampers their right to own land.

Endemic corruption and a lack of transparency hampers normal business activity.

Early and forced marriages have been reported in Comoros. The law prohibits domestic violence, but courts rarely fine or order the imprisonment of convicted perpetrators, and women and children rarely file official complaints. Sexual violence and workplace harassment are believed to be widespread, but are rarely reported to authorities.

The Comoran economy, which is primarily agricultural, relies heavily on remittances from Comoran citizens in France. Many young people struggle to find sustainable opportunities for employment. Poverty has driven many people to attempt the dangerous trip to Mayotte.

Government efforts to identify and prosecute human trafficking are minimal, and if trafficking cases are addressed it is often through informal mediation processes. These mechanisms have sometimes facilitated the return of trafficking victims to traffickers. However, in 2021, Comoros ratified the International Labour Organization’s (ILO) Forced Labour Protocol, which is designed to “eliminate forced labor,” and requires the government to take legal action against traffickers.