Mali's junta suspends all political activities until further notice
Mali's ruling junta has issued a decree
suspending all political activities until further notice, saying it needs to
preserve public order, a move that follows last year's decision to call off
elections indefinitely.
Junta spokesman Abdoulaye Maiga read out the
statement on state television late Wednesday evening, while the country was
celebrating Eid al-Fitr, the holiday marking the end of the holy month of
Ramadan in which observant Muslims fast from dawn until dusk.
Mali has experienced two coups since 2020,
amid a wave of political instability that has swept across West and Central
Africa. The country has battled a worsening insurgency by jihadi groups linked
to al-Qaida and the Islamic State group for over a decade.
Col. Assimi Goita, who took charge after a
second coup in 2021, promised to return the country to democracy in early 2024.
But in September, the junta canceled elections scheduled for February 2024
indefinitely, citing the need for further technical preparations.
Analysts said the move was likely a backlash
against political figures, civil society and students who have expressed
frustration with the junta's repeated moves to delay the nation's transition
back to democratic rule.
"Recent weeks saw mounting pressure by
political parties and figures," Rida Lyammouri of the Policy Center for
the New South, a Morocco-based think tank, told The Associated Press. "For
the first time, the public and politicians have publicly criticized junta
leaders and accused them of a lack of seriousness."
Mali previously relied on French troops to
help push back the insurgents. Amid growing frustration over the lack of
progress, the ruling junta ordered French troops out and turned to Russian
contractors instead for security support. The last French forces departed in
August 2022 after almost a decade of operations in Mali.
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