MALI: Thousands protest against foreign interference in transition road-map

By: Ollus Ndomu

Several thousands of Malians took to the streets on Friday as they protested against foreign interference by the regional body Ecowas, and the former colonial power, France.

Yesterday’s mass protest in the capital, Bamako, came after it became apparent that Ecowas and France have been trying to coerce the military junta into agreeing to their proposed democratic transition.

With placards and banners of varied sizes, a mob of protesters at the Independence Square as they chanted anti-French slogans, saying French influence was part of what had gone wrong in the West African country.

The mass protest which was organized by the country’s main activist group together with pro-junta politicians, follows external pressure on the military to return Mali to civilian rule.

Mali has been under a military rule after the August 2020 overthrow of President Ibrahim Boubacar Keïta.

Yesterday’s protests were an expression of majority Malians’ disagreement to Ecowas’ insistence that elections that are supposed to restore civilian power in the country should be conducted in February 2022 according to the set deadline.