Weekend meeting in Ouagadougou to hasten Mali transition
Burkina Faso Foreign Ministry said on Thursday that discussions will center on speeding up the country’s transition process, after the former Speaker of Parliament Dioncounda Traore was inducted into office in Bamako on Thursday.
Speaking during his swearing in ceremony, Mali’s new leader, threatened a "total war" against rebels, who captured the northern region recently.
“We will not hesitate to launch a total war. Mali will remain one and indivisible. I swear before God and the Malian people to preserve in all faith the republican regime, the independence of the nation and the integrity of the national territory,” Traore said.
The new Malian interim civilian head of state also sent out a conciliatory note:
“I am conscious of being the president of a country in war, which is calling on all its brothers and sisters in rebel movements to come back to the palaver hut. My wish is that my call should be heard by the National Liberation Movement of Azawad and ansardine:
In line with the country’s constitution, Mr Traore has 40 days to organize elections.
But many analysts think this will be nearly impossible to do given the prevailing security situation in the country, with rebels controlling northern Mali.
The UN says there are continuing reports of civilians being killed, robbed, raped and forced to flee northern rebel-held areas.
Local and international NGOs in Mali have also expressed concern over reported human rights violations in the north of the country.
The groups are the International Federation of Human Rights (FIDH), the Malian Association of Human Rights (MAHR) and the Inter-African Union of Human Rights (UIDH).
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