One of the leading presidential contenders, Yeah Samake, was interviewed by Marco Orman of PRI’s The World. Samake was near the radio station when the coup occurred, but he appears to be actively working to stanch the downward spiral:
Samake: Every single day I meet with the five to six presidential candidates. We just formed an alliance called L’Association Pour Que Les Démocrates et Les Patriotes Sortent de la Crise.
Werman: And that literally means the association for the democrats and patriots to get out of the crisis, literally.
Samake: Yes, the military leaders now have no choice than working with the people to transfer power so that democracy can continue to flourish. And I believe in this. It picks people apart. We cannot live under dictatorship anymore. The power needs to be given to a transitional government that needs to work for the next nine months making sure that we can hold fair and transparent elections.
via Mali Junta Unveils Constitution And Promises Elections | PRI’s The World.
But Henry Glickman at FPRI concludes with this discouraging prognosis:
Time is not on the side of restoration of the integrity of Mali and liquidation of jihadist Islamism in the region. New al Qaeda-type franchises will probably emerge in the Sahel region. The new Mali government, with or perhaps through ECOWAS, the US, and its European allies, all need to co-operate to address the demands of MNLA as well as the threat of AQIM.At present Mali faces a humanitarian crisis: cutbacks in trade and foreign assistance at the moment of threatened drought. Added to its current political crisis, that is a recipe for more difficulties.
via E-Notes: The Coup in Mali — Background and Foreground – FPRI.
Globo Diplo 