Mali: the junta gives itself two years to return power to civilians

Published on: 07/06/2022 – 00:00 The head of the junta in power in Mali, Colonel Assimi Goïta, initialed on Monday a decree setting the duration of the so-called transition period at two years, before returning power to civilians. It started on March 26. Partially responding to repeated requests from ECOWAS to hurry the transition, the junta in power in Mali gave itself, Monday, June 6, until March 2024 before returning power to civilians. The leader of the junta, Colonel Assimi Goïta, signed a decree to this effect read on state television and stipulating that “the duration of the transition is set at 24 months, (from) March 26, 2022”. This announcement comes two days after a summit of the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS), which on January 9 imposed severe commercial and financial retaliation measures on Mali to force the junta to present an “acceptable” timetable for the return of civilians to power . In particular, ECOWAS had, in March, asked the transitional authorities to adhere to the recommended 12 to 16 month transition schedule. Pretensions lowered under sanctions The colonels who took over the leadership of this country by force in August 2020, plunged since 2012 into a deep security, political and humanitarian crisis, have withdrawn from their initial commitment to give way to civilians after elections scheduled for last February. At the beginning of the year, they even planned to govern for up to five more years. Before the ECOWAS summit, as sanctions accentuate the crisis in this poor and landlocked country, they had reduced their claims to 24 months, without formalizing them as they did on Monday. the continuation of the dialogue between ECOWAS and the junta had raised some hope in Mali in the lifting of sanctions. Divided on what to do, West African leaders deferred any decision to a new summit on July 3. But they decided to “continue the dialogue in order to reach an agreement allowing a gradual lifting of sanctions as the steps of the transition will be made”. It remains to be seen whether the decree will have an impact. With AFP