The Government refuted, on March 31, the allegations contained in the report of the Bureau of Democracy, Human Rights and Labor of the United States Department of State accusing the Malian army of several human rights violations. humans. To this end, the transitional authorities argue that this report was inspired by allegations from other documents and sources of information whose reliability remains to be proven and from media or NGOs that are notoriously biased and structurally linked to openly hostile partners. in Mali.
The subject of the question of human rights is undoubtedly the most exciting between the Malian authorities and the heads of international organizations for the promotion and protection of human rights.
Indeed, the report of the Bureau of Democracy, Human Rights and Labor of the United States Department of State on Mali published on March 20 on its site caused the transitional government to react, contesting allegations attributed in particular to the Malian armed forces.
In a document of several pages made public on March 31, the government announces its right of reply to the content of the periodic report which for some time has been disputed by Mali, considering that the question of human rights is used to other purposes.
The report, by emphasizing the allegations of arbitrary or illegal executions of civilians by the Malian Defense and Security Forces and their Russian partners, the government retorts by asserting that the FAMa conduct military operations autonomously and professional. And the presence of Russian instructors in the country is part of the exemplary cooperation with the Russian Federation, particularly in the military field, which has been strengthened in recent years in the fight against terrorism.
Furthermore, the government recalled that all cases of allegations of human rights violations (executions, abductions, torture, enforced disappearances) by the Malian Armed Forces in the theater of operations, when they are founded, in principle, are systematically investigated by military courts, as evidenced by the numerous proceedings pending before these courts.
In Moura, no civilians were killed
Again, the Moura event came up in this American report, like several others where the Malian armed forces are accused of crimes in this village against civilians.
This time, for its defence, the government recalls that on the basis of intelligence and precise information, the FAMa undertook from March 27 to 31, 2022, a vast military operation against the terrorist groups which have been raging for years in the locality of Moura, oppressed and committed numerous abuses against the population.
“The first elements of the investigation highlight the hypothesis of a confrontation that caused projectile deaths and the bodies in large numbers are male adults. The military intervention of the FAMa was salutary and brought tranquility to the population. Among the dead, there were only terrorist fighters and no national of Moura lost their lives during the military operation, all those arrested were made available to the Sévaré Gendarmerie. After investigations, they were transferred to the Judicial Investigation Services of the National Gendarmerie of Bamako, then placed at the disposal of justice”, indicates the government raising a corner of the veil on the information of this investigation eagerly awaited by observers and medias.
Also, the government denied the report’s allegations that most human rights violations committed by the Malian army appeared to target Fulani, Tuareg, and Arab individuals.
For him, there is no ethnic problem in Mali. And, maintains the government, the Malian army, republican and professional is multi-ethnic, and, as such, unites within it all the ethnic groups of Mali, including those cited in the report and who occupy different levels of responsibility.
“There cannot be any approach aimed specifically at ethnic communities,” indicates the Malian authorities’ observation document.
Moreover, the prosecution and arrest of certain people presented in the document against the restriction of freedom of expression, is not one, reacted the government, arguing that all the political actors prosecuted by the Malian justice ” are suspected of having deviated from the freedom of expression, freedom of opinion and the courtesy that political debate should assume” to indulge in real obscene insults, subversive and tendentious remarks aimed at harming the person of their target, both in his honor and in his dignity.
In addition to these facts reported in the American document which, according to the Malian government, contrast with reality, the use of the conditional in several places of the report denotes a lack of certainty concerning the allegations.
In this regard, the Government of Mali, in conclusion, rejects the unfounded allegations of violation and abuse of human rights attributed to it.
“These allegations, most often coming from other sources, are very tendentious, not cross-checked and often made on purpose with the aim of tarnishing the image of Mali”, he denounces.
Despite the complexity of the current socio-economic, political and security situation in Mali as well as the geostrategic challenges specific to the Sahel region, the Government of Mali is continuing its efforts to ensure the integrity of its national territory and the safety of people and of their property with strict respect for human rights.
BY SIKOU BAH