On Monday February 18, 2013 a U.S. congressional delegation (CODEL) visited Bamako for one-day. Headed by Senator Christopher Coons, Chairman of the Senate Foreign Relations Subcommittee on Africa, he was accompanied by Senator Johnny Isakson, Congresswomen Karen Bass and Congresswomen Terri Sewell. According to Reuters Senator Coons stated, “The United States is likely to eventually resume direct support for Mali's military, but only after full restoration of democracy through elections”.
Senator Coons further noted that after the deposing of President Amadou Toumani Toure in March 2012, “U.S. law prohibited direct assistance to Mali's armed forces because of the military coup...” He added, "After there is a full restoration of democracy...we will renew our direct support for the Malian military. We are committed to ensuring support...in the ongoing fight against extremism”.
When the Arab Spring began, Muammar Gadhafi warned “that al-Qaeda would take over Libya if he is overthrown”. The UN quickly sanctioned the U.S.-backed incursion into Libya, in which Muammar Gadhafi was overthrown. In the chaos that followed large caches of weapons fell into the hands of al-Qaeda linked Islamists, including Al-Qaeda in the Islamic Maghreb (AQIM), Movement for Oneness and Jihad in West Africa (MOJWA), and Ansar Dine in Mali; subsequently taking control of the northern region, an area the size of Texas. The same Islamists were involved in the September 2012 attack on the U.S. diplomatic compound in Benghazi.
Mali had requested help from the UN and U.S. in April 2012 to subdue the Islamists, since their northern frontier was becoming the “epicenter” for insurgents from a number of countries. Instead of supporting military action, Secretary Hillary Clinton responded, “Only a democratically elected government will have the legitimacy to achieve a negotiated political settlement in northern Mali, end the rebellion and restore the rule of law”. French President Francois Hollande was more pragmatic, stating “How can we organize elections when northern Mali is occupied by terrorist movements that don’t apply democracy. Mali’s territorial integrity should be restored as soon as possible and that any lost time would only complicate matters.”
Three UN Resolutions were passed to deal with the Islamist threat in northern Mali, but military action was withheld. Secretary General Ban Ki-moon stated “The United Nations was developing a strategy on the Sahel that would look as a whole at issues including security...and the promotion of democratic governance”. Even after neighboring African countries stated that Islamists were infiltrating Mali, and the UN needed to act to prevent the Islamists from taking control of Mali, no action was authorized.
The CODEL’s one-day visit to Mali was reminiscent of Secretary Clinton’s ten-day visit to nine African countries in August 2012. The common thread in the Secretary’s remarks was on the building blocks for democratic institutions, good governance, rule of law, and security. Mali was not on the itinerary, and was barely mentioned. Such short delegation visits, are more about “face-time” than learning about what is really happening inside a country.
An August allAfrica article noted that Mali’s security issues were briefly alluded to by the Secretary, but that no concrete solution to stabilize Mali was offered. The situation in northern Mali had only become worse, with almost five-hundred thousand Malian refugees fleeing to camps in Mauritania, Burkina Faso and Niger.
On my visit to Mali in September 2012, government and military leaders discussed their need for immediate action, since Islamists controlled most of Mali’s northern towns, and had instituted Sharia law. They were undertaking many atrocities, and destroying ancient Sufi shrines. There was also a great need for humanitarian assistance for the displaced refugees. The UN and U.S. should have supported military action in April 2012, when the Islamists could have been more readily subdued. Almost a year later the Islamists were expanding their reach into the south.
On January 10, 2013 the AQIM Islamist coalition advanced to the town of Konna, just 300 miles from Bamako. Dioncounda Traore, Mali’s interim president, asked French President Francois Hollande for help to underpin the Malian military. Within hours French troops arrived from neighboring Chad, and by the following day the insurgents were driven from Konna. Additional troops arrived from several Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS) and other African countries to help subdue the Islamists embedded in the northern towns of Gao, Timbuktu and Kidal. The U.S. sent cargo planes to ferry the troops and equipment to battle zone areas, and tankers to refuel French jets; a drone base was established in Niger for surveillance and intelligence gathering.
I will be visiting Mali next month to meet with interim government leaders in Bamako, and Tuareg and Arab leaders in several northern towns, to ascertain the current situation in the region. I also want to understand what preparations are being made for the upcoming July 2013 presidential elections; the unifying National Reconciliation Conference, which is of utmost importance for Mali’s success as a democratic state.
Mali leaders that I talked with want the French troops to stay until after the elections for security, and to make sure democratic institutions are in place. The U.S. needs to participate in training the African troops, to prepare them for an extended security role in Mali, in the event the Islamists return.
The increased presence of al-Qaeda linked Islamist extremists in the Sahel region is alarming. Congressional delegations need to spend more time in sub-Saharan Africa. Many members of Congress have a myopic view of this faraway continent and a limited understanding of its importance to our national security. Congress needs to shake off its ennui and undertake meaningful measures to help create a way forward with sustainable development programs for the otherwise vulnerable people. The knowledge that members of Congress would gain from information gathering trips could also protect U.S. security interests.