Soumaïla Cissé, leader of the Malian opposition and Mamadou Sory Coulibaly, mayor of the rural commune of Kareri (Dioura) were kidnapped by armed groups while they were campaigning for the parliamentarian elections. One in the electoral district of Niafunké and the other in the electoral district of Ténenkou. The two candidates with their delegations are still missing. “This Friday, April 3, the party of the Leader of the Opposition announced the release of 5 members of the delegation. But Soumaïla Cissé and three other members of his delegation are still in the hands of the kidnappers.”
On Tuesday, the Malian government announced the establishment of a crisis committee chaired by ex-prime minister Ousmane Issoufi Maïga. “The Government of the Republic of Mali will do everything in its power to bring the Honorable Soumaïla Cissé and his companions back to their families”, said the press release.
The establishment of this crisis committee is a reaction of the government to the various questions that citizens are asking about the authorities’ commitment to the release of Soumaïla Cissé, according to Ibrahim Maïga, researcher at the ISS. “The committee may make it possible to coordinate actions carried out in this direction, but we must be careful not to give this case a dimension that could complicate its outcome in advance because liberation missions do not need a lot of publicity”, he adds.
Soumaïla Cissé is the third candidate in the parliamentarian elections kidnapped last week. Before him, two candidates were kidnapped, one in the electoral district of Niafunké and the other in the electoral district of Ténenkou.
“What I can tell you to date is that the government has been able to identify the instigators of the kidnapping of Soumaïla Cissé, but I can not say more because of the confidential nature of the case”, reports Nouhoum Togo, member of the crisis committee set up by the URD party, contacted by the editorial team on the phone.
Previously, RPM candidate Mohamed Dofana, in the Niafunké constituency, was also kidnapped with his delegation by armed men before being released 48 hours later. “But the attackers took away their vehicles”, said a resident contacted in the area without giving further details on the conditions of their release.
Soumaila Cisse, president of URD, the main Malian opposition party and finalist in the last presidential elections of 2018, was kidnapped on Wednesday March 25 between the localities of Saraféré and Koumaïra. His bodyguard died of his injuries after being shot.
As for Mamadou Sory Coulibaly, mayor of the rural commune of Kareri (Dioura), he was kidnapped by an armed group in Yassalamou, a village near Dioura, on Saturday March 21. He was in the company of his driver and his griot. The latter were released, but the assailants kept the candidate and his vehicle, according to our correspondent in the area. Mamadou Sory Coulibaly is the candidate for the ADEMA PASJ party in the Ténenkou constituency. He is still in captivity.
Safety of candidates
A week before the kidnapping of candidate Soumaïla Cissé, he was campaigning in the locality of Léré under escort of elements of the People’s Coalition for Azawad (CPA), an armed signatory group of the peace and reconciliation agreement resulting from the Algiers process.
Malian public opinion was outraged by the kidnapping and wondered how a figure like Soumaïla Cissé had not received adequate protection in a zone of instability. “This is also the question we are asking”, insists Nouhoum Togo. And to add “before the Honorable Cisse’s visit to Niafunké, we alerted the government of the precarious state of security in the area. Despite this, the Malian authorities and the international community did not take the necessary measures to ensure his safety”.
Soumaïla Cissé agreed to go to Saraféré and Koumaïra at the request of the mayors of these two localities. “The mayors gave a guarantee to candidate Soumaïla’s delegation that they will be safe during the trip”, said a source in the area, who does not wish to be cited.
The UN mission in Mali (MINUSMA) plays a supporting role in the organization of the elections, including logistical support for the sending of equipment, training and helping to secure certain voting centers at the request of the Malian authorities. “Currently, we are helping, as we have been asked by the Malian authorities, to try to find the candidate and we have also been helping to evacuate the victims”, explains Olivier Salgado, communications officer at MINUSMA .
Demands?
To date, no official claim has been made for these various abductions. Multiple audio recordings on WhatsApp groups suggest that the kidnapping of the opposition leader was instigated by the Katiba of Macina who would demand his release for prisoner swaps.
“In the absence of a claim from an armed group, everything remains likely. We cannot therefore attest to the authenticity of these audio recordings, or completely reject them. But, what we know on the basis of some indications that we have is that the area where he was kidnapped is an operation area for certain armed groups affiliated with the Katiba of Macina”, analyzes Ibrahim Maïga.
Attacks by armed groups are frequent in this area, which is beyond the control of the regular armed forces.
On polling day, last Sunday, several incidents were reported in the area, including a transport vehicle which jumped on a mine causing 9 deaths.
Sahelien.com