Politics

Mali/France relations hit new low, Bamako says Paris violating its airspace, finally bans French media

Published

3 years ago

April 28, 2022

The bilateral relationship between Mali and France has continued to suffer as French troops have started leaving Mali.

In the latest escalation of tensions between them, Mali’s military rulers have accused the French army of repeatedly violating controlled airspace over the country’s centre and north to “spy” on its forces.

Until recently, the relationship between Mali and France seems smooth with French-led military intervention ousting jihadists who were taking control of northern Mali but the relations have deteriorated with Mali’s new military leaders, who seized power in a 2020 coup.

The junta in Mali on Tuesday said in a statement that over 50 breaches of the West African country’s airspace had been recorded since the start of the year, mainly by French-operated aircraft.

The government claimed in the statement that there was the “illegal” flying of a drone on April 20 over the northern military base of Gossi, a day after France handed the site back to Mali as part of its ongoing troop withdrawal.

Last week, the French military released footage that appears it claimed showed Russian mercenaries burying bodies near the Gossi base. The drone images are the direct cause of the recent accusations by Malian military.

Following the release of the footage, Bamako said French aircraft flew back and forth over a convoy of Malian troops heading to Gossi on April 21 but France has denied the accusation.

France said its army said the men in the drone video were Russian mercenaries accused of helping Mali’s military junta fight militants and summarily executing civilians in the process. A move that has been widely condemned by the United States, United Nation, and the European Union.

“French forces are guilty of subversion in publishing fake mounted images in order to accuse the (Malian army) of killing civilians,” the government said in Tuesday’s statement.

Also on Wednesday, Mali’s High Communications Authority took its suspension of French affiliated media further as it announced the definitive suspension of French state-funded international news outlets RFI and France 24, a decision the France Medias Monde organization said it would contest.

Politics

Mali’s junta names spokesman Abdoulaye Maiga new Prime Minister

Published

2 hours ago

November 22, 2024

Ifeoluwa Dada

A day after dismissing Choguel Maiga for criticising the government, Mali’s governing junta named its spokesperson, Abdoulaye Maiga, as Prime Minister on Thursday, according to state broadcaster, ORTM.

A source close to Choguel Maiga told Reuters that the ruling generals were incensed by Maiga’s remarks over the weekend denouncing the junta’s inability to hold elections within the 24-month timeframe given for the return to democracy.

After promising to hold elections in February, the military authorities, who took control in two separate coups in 2020 and 2021, have put off the poll indefinitely, citing technological difficulties.

Choguel Maiga’s firing coincides with indications of growing discontent and disarray among Mali politicians, even those who first supported the coup and collaborated with the junta.

As the wait for elections continues, Choguel Maiga, a civilian prime minister who was installed by the military junta in 2021, is the most recent to lose support.

He was cited on Saturday as claiming he learnt of the junta’s decision via the media and that there had been no discussion regarding the delay of the elections inside the cabinet.

“It’s all happening in total secrecy, without the prime minister’s knowledge,” Choguel Maiga told reporters.

Before then, he had frequently stood up for Mali’s junta against criticism from foreign friends and neighbours in West Africa who denounced its repeated election delays and military collaboration with Russian mercenaries.

As government spokesperson, Abdoulaye Maiga, the new prime minister, has also made strong public remarks against France, the previous colonial master. One such speech was demanding French President Emmanuel Macron to stop his “neocolonial” and “condescending” behaviour.

Abdoulaye Maiga and Assimi Goita, the leaders of the junta, announced they had kept all of the important cabinet ministers in their portfolios in the new administration in a statement that was broadcast on state television ORTM.

The announcement said that Abdoulaye Maiga will remain minister of territory administration.

Politics

Congo opposition mobilizes protests against constitution review

Published

24 hours ago

November 21, 2024

Ifeoluwa Dada

In response to President Felix Tshisekedi’s intentions to amend the constitution, opposition lawmakers in the Democratic Republic of the Congo have called for national protests on Wednesday.

Tshisekedi, who was sworn in for his second and last term in January, said that a panel would be formed in October to recommend possible constitutional amendments.

According to critics, it may be a ploy to lift term restrictions and give him another chance to run.

Tshisekedi said the current constitution, ratified by a referendum in 2005, needed to change because it did not align with the country’s current realities.

Opposition politicians, including former president Joseph Kabila and past presidential candidates Martin Fayulu and Moise Katumbi, issued a unified statement on Wednesday urging rallies to “block” Tshisekedi.

A request for a response from the Congo’s presidency was not answered.

Patrick Muyaya, the minister of communications, stated on Monday that discussions surrounding the constitutional revision should be de-politicized and that no one should doubt the president’s intentions.

“We’re at the beginning of our mandate… The President of the Republic still has four years to go, and we must avoid attributing intentions to him,” Muyaya told reporters.