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At the end of his first mission to Mali from 24 to 29 June 2018, the Independent Expert on the situation of human rights in Mali, Alioune Tine, who took up his duties as Independent Expert on the situation of human rights in Mali on 1 and May 2018, expressed grave concern about the continuing deterioration of the security, human rights and humanitarian situation in the center of the country, as well as in the region of Menaka
The gradual increase in violations and abuses of human rights since the beginning of 2018 is alarming. In the central and Ménaka regions, there is an increasing number of deadly and heinous acts of violence with extrajudicial executions, recurrent allegations of mass graves, not to mention the numerous injuries and other material damage. caused by identity violence, the explosion of improvised devices whose victims are civilians. Added to this are the victims of attacks by armed groups and extremist groups that terrorize populations and communities by engaging in kidnappings, targeted killings and the destruction of property. All this leads to a high, worrying and unacceptable level of insecurity and serious human rights abuses.
The Independent Expert has collected direct and indirect accounts of several attacks by community militias, often with the involvement of armed groups, resulting in the deaths, injuries, destruction or burning of property and displacement. The government has taken measures to tackle the problem, including the Prime Minister's mission in the center of the country, the sending to Mopti of a reconciliation mission, led by the Minister of National Reconciliation and Cohesion in March 2018 or in April of the same year, or the disarmament of all civilians in the central region, ordered by the Prime Minister. In addition, the Government undertook to initiate criminal investigations into allegations of serious human rights violations and abuses.
" I urge the authorities to take concrete action on these statements in Undertaking impartial investigations to bring to justice all alleged perpetrators. These attacks have become increasingly deadly and recurrent for various reasons with the involvement of armed groups causing a serious and worrying development that must be addressed urgently to stop the spiral of violence. I do not want to see these communities killing each other and being torn apart by manipulation "said the Independent Expert.
During his mission on the ground in Mopti, Mr. Tine heard members of the civil society as well as community representatives on the issue of indiscriminate attacks by extremist groups, including Jama'at Nusrat al-Islam Wa al-Muslmeen (JNIM). The very limited presence of the state in this region, its absence in several localities of the center, lack of basic community services and insecurity caused by extremists, armed groups, organized crime actors added to anti-terrorist operations which do not respect the international norms of the human rights, are likely to create confusions and amalgams within the communities of the Region. In addition, terrorists take advantage of the absence of the state to exploit communities and oppose them against each other. It should be noted that at the end of February 2018, more than 657 schools were forced to close in the central and northern regions, affecting more than 190,000 students.
Independent Expert expresses deep concern in relation to the increasing number of allegations of serious human rights violations by the Malian armed forces. The Independent Expert commends the Prime Minister for his statement in May of this year reaffirming that the Government will not tolerate any exaction against the civilian population. In addition, the Independent Expert emphasized to the authorities the need for a prompt, independent and impartial investigation into the facts, that public and detailed explanations be provided, and that all alleged perpetrators be brought to justice. On counterterrorism operations, the Independent Expert was briefed on the workshop held on 7 and 8 May to develop a regulatory framework to prevent human rights violations related to G5 Sahel Joint Force. The Expert will follow up this workshop with the concerned parties. The Joint Force G5 Sahel Command informed the Expert that, following the events in Boulkessy, they sent a fact-finding mission to the field which led to the suspension of the unit involved in this case. It is now up to the Malian authorities to continue the proceedings by bringing the alleged perpetrators to justice.
The Independent Expert notes that important steps have been taken in the implementation of the Peace Agreement, and especially with regard to the provisions on security and security reform. The joint units of the Operational Coordination Mechanism have been set up in Kidal and Timbuktu. The return of the administration was observed in Kidal. Registration of fighters eligible to participate in the disarmament, demobilization and reintegration program is continuing. " I call on all actors to do everything to ensure that these processes are accomplished and are successful because the fundamental challenge is the protection of civilians" said the Expert . The Independent Expert raised with the authorities his concerns about certain provisions of the draft National Understanding that violate human rights principles. This bill should be transmitted to the National Assembly after having been adopted by the Council of Ministers. Mr Tine was assured that the text was not definitive and that all concerns would be taken into account
The Independent Expert was informed of the presence of internally displaced persons in the regions of Mopti, Timbuktu, Gao, Menaka and Segou. To date, there are 61,404 internally displaced persons and 138,675 refugees in neighboring countries, including Niger, Mauritania and Burkina Faso.
The Independent Expert has also been seized of serious violations and human rights abuses that continue to occur in the region of Menaka, some of which are attributed to armed groups including, the Salvation Movement of the Azawad (MSA) and the Touareg IMGHAD Self-Defense Group and Allies (GATIA). From April 26 to May 18, 2018, 123 people were executed in the area. The Expert calls on the Malian authorities to open judicial investigations as soon as possible in order to render justice to the many victims of these crimes
The humanitarian situation in the region is worsening. An estimated 4.1 million people are in need of food assistance. This year, severe acute malnutrition is projected to increase from 162,913 to 274,145 at the national level, and projected cases of moderate acute malnutrition also range from 470,000 to 582,000. These figures include 11,232 children severely affected by severe acute malnutrition. 5 years and 489,238 children aged 6 to 59 months suffering from moderate acute malnutrition. In addition, 45,245 pregnant and breastfeeding women suffer from moderate acute malnutrition. This is an emergency we can not turn a blind eye to.
The Independent Expert has been informed of the continuing attacks against humanitarian workers. For example, on June 6, 19 drivers of a humanitarian convoy were abducted after a puncture. They were attacked, forced to stop and taken to an unknown place. The diversion of food and humanitarian convoys is now one of the methods used by armed groups to spread violence and terror. The Expert recommends to the armed groups to respect the humanitarian space and to facilitate the access of the humanitarian actors to the populations which need assistance and protection.
As for the elections, the Expert estimates that the presidential election must be truly free, transparent and peaceful and must meet international standards in this area. In his discussions with the authorities, the Expert placed particular emphasis on the freedom of peaceful assembly and association as well as on the freedom of access to the media throughout the electoral process. The Expert believes that the presidential election is at a turning point in the democratic life of the Malian people. He believes that all the political actors must act so that the big national debate does not have a negative impact on the vulnerability of the situation of the country, but that it is an opportunity to bounce Mali and to provoke a hope for peace and security. The Independent Expert appeals to all political actors to ban calls for violence and hate speech.
During his visit, Mr. Tine met with members of the Government of Mali, representatives of society civil society, including victims' associations, religious and traditional leaders
The Independent Expert wishes first to thank the Government of Mali and its institutions for the collaboration and cooperation in the accomplishment of its mission. Mr. Tine also thanks the Special Representative of the Secretary-General for Mali, Mahamat Annadif and the United Nations Multidimensional Integrated Stabilization Mission in Mali (MINUSMA) for the support of his first visit to Mali.
The Expert Independent will present its report on the situation of human rights in Mali to the Human Rights Council in March 2019.
M. Alioune Tine (Senegal) took office as Independent Expert on the situation of human rights in Mali on 1 and May 2018. Mr. Tine was a founding member and the President of the Meeting African for the Defense of Human Rights (RADDHO) and Coordinator of the Forum of African NGOs at the World Conference against Racism in 2000. He has published many articles and studies on the literature and the Rights of the Man.
The Independent Experts are part of what is referred to as the Special Procedures of the Human Rights Council. The Special Procedures, the largest body of independent experts in the United Nations Human Rights System, is the general term applied to the Council's independent investigative and monitoring mechanisms that address specific situations. countries or thematic issues around the world. Special Procedures experts work on a voluntary basis; they are not part of the UN staff and they do not receive a salary for their work. They are independent of governments and organizations and perform their functions independently.
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