Mali: The Need for Determined and Coordinated International Action

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INTERNATIONAL CRISIS GROUP - NEW BRIEFING

Mali: The Need for Determined and Coordinated International Action

Dakar/Brussels, 24 September 2012: Concerted effort by national, regional
and international actors at a special Sahel meeting on 26 September, on the
margins of the UN General Assembly in New York, is urgently needed to stop
Mali from descending further into chaos.

<http://goo.gl/IY9i0> Mali: The Need for Determined and Coordinated
International Action, the latest briefing from the International Crisis
Group, raises alarm over the deteriorating political, security, economic and
social situation in the country, stemming from the power vacuum following
the military coup. To prevent further disintegration of the state and the
spread of violence and extremism to the neighbouring area, swift and
concerted action must be taken at national, regional and international
levels.

“All scenarios are still possible, including another military coup and
social unrest in the capital, which risk undermining the transitional
institutions and creating an even more explosive situation”, says Gilles
Yabi, Crisis Group’s West Africa Project Director.

Six months on from a military coup in March, none of the pillars of the
Malian state has been able to give a clear direction to the political
transition. The announcement on 23 September of a hard-won agreement between
Mali and the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS) on the
conditions for deployment of a West African force is promising, but over the
last few months the regional organisation has shown serious limitations,
which now require it to work more closely with the African Union and the UN.

The use of force may well be necessary at one point to neutralise some of
the armed groups involved in transnational crime activities combining
terrorism, jihadism and drug trafficking. However, any military intervention
should be preceded by political and diplomatic efforts aimed at isolating
questions regarding intercommunal tensions within Malian society from those
concerning collective security of the Sahel-Sahara region. Further, minimal
and lasting security cannot be reestablished in northern Mali without the
clear participation of the Algerian political and military authorities and
other North African countries from where armed groups get their supplies,
including sophisticated weapons.

The country’s political institutions and armed forces remain unstable. Under
the auspices of the UN, African Union and the ECOWAS, a mission to
facilitate reconciliation within the Malian army needs to be undertaken to
prevent another coup with unpredictable consequences. The three
organisations must work closely together and harmonise their initiatives, to
guarantee security and stability in the south to allow space for the
resolution of the conflict in the north.

The international community must stand by Mali, and help the transitional
government confront the economic and social crisis, and produce a credible
roadmap for the restoration of the country’s territorial integrity and rule
of law.

“The following six months will be crucial for the stability of Mali, the
Sahel and the entire West African region”, says Comfort Ero, Crisis Group’s
Africa Program Director. “The country urgently needs to mobilise the best
Malian expertise irrespective of political allegiance rather than engaging
in power plays that will lead the country to the verge of collapse”.

<http://goo.gl/IY9i0> Executive Summary