The political, security and diplomatic crisis in Mali challenges every Malian citizen. This crisis is the consequence of a series of coups d’etat, in particular against former President Ibrahim Boubacar KEITA – IBK – and against interim President BA N’DAW who greatly irritated Mali’s partners, starting with the Economic Community. States of West Africa – ECOWAS, which, in the absence of a concrete proposal for an electoral calendar, then decided to sanction leaders first, then Mali as a whole.

These sanctions, which resulted in the freezing of Mali’s assets and its suspension from ECOWAS authorities, were very badly received by the Malian people, who simply believe that they will have no effect on those who run but rather on the population already bruised.

The Malian government has denounced these sanctions with a rather radical position, considering that they are illegal and controlled by actors outside our sub-region. He in turn decided to close the Malian borders and to recall his ambassadors to the countries of the ECOWAS space. The government goes further and calls, for the first time in the history of Mali, the population to demonstrate in the street to protest against the cited sanctions.

During this demonstration there were strong aggressive remarks against both the international community in Mali headed by France, messages of welcome to Russia perceived as a savior like France 8 years ago when the President Dioncounda TRAORÉ appealed to his French counterpart François HOLLANDE.

The Russian presence in support of the regular armed forces of Mali has irritated Mali’s Western partners as well as the ECOWAS countries.

However, the Malians justify this by their free choice to be able to work with the partners they wish and also by the feeling of ineffectiveness of the international forces present for almost 10 years.

A series of diplomatic skirmishes then followed between Mali and France, leading to the expulsion of the French ambassador followed by Danish military forces who came to support TAKUBA. This led to widespread frustration leading to the decision to withdraw from Operation Barkhane and that of TAKUBA. It should be remembered that the United States of America were the first to suspend their military cooperation with Mali.

The maintenance of the European Union Training Mission in Mali (EUTM) which trains the Malian forces was also questioned by the European Union which had warned of the incompatibility of its presence alongside « non-state » forces. “Russians in Mali. She plans to send an assessment mission to decide her fate.

The authorities of the transition denounced these measures, which they qualified as violations of the agreements.

The sanctions mentioned have made the daily life of the Malian citizen more and more difficult with the increase in the price of basic necessities. Expensive life is setting in everywhere, particularly in this period of Covid-19.

The polarization of the debate and the unfortunate restriction of spaces for freedom of expression are another result of the management of the crisis. They are reflected in particular by the fact that a large number of actors from civil society, the political field, and also media professionals apply self-censorship, so as not to contravene the restrictions imposed. A series of arrests are suspected of being linked to the expression of opinions diverging from those of the current power. A journalist from Jeune Afrique was expelled and international media correspondents were recently called to order.

In this context, the umbrella organizations of the Malian media must demonstrate a commitment commensurate with the situation.

Freedom of expression, especially that of the press, and democracy have been obtained at the cost of the blood of many of our fellow citizens. Its restriction could lead to serious consequences in the short term.

Indeed, the adversarial approach is the energy of productive dialogue, the engine of development. It would be regrettable if any contradictory opinion were doomed to public scrutiny and lynching on the networks and if their authors were qualified as stateless. In the absence of this contradiction, are we not in danger of slipping towards single thought?

It should also be remembered that following the National Refoundation Meetings, there were a number of conclusions that came out of it, but which were contested, because the organization and conduct of these meetings did not been inclusive if we consider the fact that a very large section of political actors and civil society did not take part, nor did certain armed groups that signed peace and reconciliation agreements.

Despite these irregularities, it is clear that thanks to the revision of the transition charter, the conclusions of these meetings will become one of the missions of the new phase of the transition.

Mali then finds itself today in an unprecedented situation of isolation never encountered.

The consequences of the already very heavy sanctions for the country aggravate this feeling of isolation. They must be lifted as soon as possible.

We cannot continue to live in a vacuum. Only together do we win.

To achieve this, Mali urgently needs to return to normal constitutional order and move forward.

This return must necessarily take place through the organization of transparent, free and credible elections.

We need a return to normal constitutional order, because it is the rule of law and democracy that must prevail, not the state of mind of individuals outside this framework.

This is why we consider that organizing the elections within a reasonable time is fundamental.

To get out of this crisis, the president of the transition should strive to bring Malians together around a single objective, to return to normal constitutional order by organizing the presidential election according to the already existing legal scheme.

This implies that the organization of the elections must be entrusted to a CENI whose missions will be revalued, to the Territorial Administration whose neutrality must be proven and finally the final proclamation of the results should be made by the constitutional court whose statutes must be reviewed to ensure the sincerity of its decisions.

The organization of the presidential election will normalize Mali’s relations with other national and international actors, which is what we urgently need.

Our country does not need to put itself on the margins of the international community, nor to become a pariah.

We must function in intelligence with the world in order to be able to succeed and emerge.

Democracy does not engender bad governance and corruption, which are two devastating scourges resulting from the lack of ethical values ​​of individuals who have reached the top of decision-making bodies, often through nepotism. They achieve this because those who have the merit are often not ambitious or combative enough in the face of adversity, injustice and immorality.

In formulating the timetable leading up to the elections, it is important to bear in mind that the profound reforms required by the refoundation are the responsibility of a President of the Republic and of a parliament which draw their legitimacy from an election not of a transitional device which suffers from a lack of legitimacy.

This state leadership legitimized by credible elections must tackle the organization of a referendum on institutional issues.

The vital forces of the nation must accompany this process through the establishment by the State of a permanent multi-actor framework directed, on a voluntary basis, alternately by the parties and groupings of parties and by civil society. The parliament and the administration will have to participate as a member with human resources.

This framework should have a committee of experts led by civil society and political parties.

It must be independent of any influence of the executive to protect its neutrality.

The executive that will emerge from the elections must have the following priorities: strengthen, modernize and empower the armed and defense forces in order to enable them to defend the national territory against unconventional and hostile armed forces; strengthen economic growth through diversification, increased productivity and the rate of local integration and the facilitation of trade and support social development through public policies oriented towards inclusion, the equitable distribution of wealth and the strengthening of basic social services.

This policy of inclusion must extend to a greater participation of women in the management of the affairs of the city. The involvement of young people in the articulation of public policies concerning them should be a strategic choice. Integration policies for people living with a disability and senior citizens must be strengthened.

The design, articulation and execution of public policies must be based on an approach of extensive decentralization of skills and resources; engage in an intelligent and dynamic foreign policy articulated around the strategic interests of our country.

There can be no great democracy without a great republican army, and an army can only be republican when it respects the rules of the rule of law and accepts to obey the civil authorities, the same authorities that she is responsible for protecting

It is obvious that these reforms mentioned must be carried out without any external pressure. No state has the right to give lessons to another when it comes to defining its future. Mali does not have to submit to the will of another State.

Thus, international partners have every interest in supporting Mali by providing it with their expertise and the human and financial resources necessary for its growth, rather than prescribing its march towards its destiny.

Obviously the issues related to democracy are challenges that concern us all, but the issues related to our development begin with us first, because things decided without us are often perceived as against us.

This is why our partners must lift the sanctions without delay, because these sanctions have serious consequences for the population and they will only aggravate an already tense situation.

Mali, once back to normal constitutional order, will then be able to strengthen its democracy, a democracy which should not necessarily be taken as a democracy of election, but a democracy of a participatory nature and concerned with the satisfaction of the essential needs of populations. For this to happen, the reforms must take into account the opinions and opinions of the populations from the base of our pyramid to its summit, with substantial involvement of the authorities of the local authorities.

This therefore requires strong citizen participation, ensuring that the citizen fully plays his role without being disturbed.

It also requires leaving the press free to speak and act. Obviously a press can only be considered acceptable if it respects the professional rules of ethics and deontology without which it risks becoming a tool for destructuring the social fabric, national understanding and harmony already weakened by so many years of inter- and intra-community crises.

This is why the press has all its responsibility in this return to normality and especially for the refoundation. A refoundation that could finally allow us to be a strong and brilliant democracy, a sustainable democracy.

Once the democratic process has been improved and established, trusting the people at the grassroots level will be fundamental. Because it is from the base that we can climb to the top of the pyramid. No structure as brilliant as it is can only flourish if it is founded on solid foundations and the foundations of our new democracy must start from the decentralized communities. Everything must be done to ensure that they participate in the design, decision-making, execution and follow-up.

We must also agree to abandon some of our texts or at least to revise them because they are no longer adapted to the new context. Among these texts is the Agreement for Peace and Reconciliation. Indeed, this agreement whatever one says is not necessarily consensual and can be improved through its re-reading in Mali, by the Malians and for the Malians.

Effectively reducing Mali to a North-South bipolarity does not respond to new realities. And it is this error that keeps dividing us, or Mali, wherever we are, constitutes a one and indivisible Mali. Unity cannot exclude diversity and justify uniformity. This is why we must once again work to cherish and promote the cultural and ethnic mosaic of our people; because it is thanks to her that finally living together will have all its meaning.

To conclude, we believe today, more than ever, that Mali should act to return to the normal constitutional order for a lasting and vigorous democracy carried by the people in a state of law.

Tidiani Togola, CEO Tuwindi,
Alexis Kalambry, Publication Director Mali Tribune
Ambassador Cheick Sidi Diarra, Diplomat