![]() Traore declared a state of emergency and imposed a nightly curfew. Barricades and roadblocks were erected to protect protesters from soldiers. Although the demonstrations were conceived of as nonviolent and nonviolent discipline had been maintained up to that point, riots broke out briefly following the shootings. In the capital of Bamako, in response to mass demonstrations organized by university students and later joined by trade unionists and others, soldiers opened fire indiscriminately on the nonviolent demonstrators. From March 22 through March 26, 1991, mass pro-democracy rallies and a nationwide strike was held in both urban and rural communities, which became known as les evenements (“the events”) or the March Revolution. Scattered acts of rioting and vandalism of public buildings followed, but most actions by the dissidents remained nonviolent. Peaceful student protests in January 1991 were brutally suppressed, with mass arrests and torture of leaders and participants. It also served as a framework for its longevity, many of its members were well-educated, middle ADEMA’s supporters also consisted of griots, hereditary musicians who spread the historical roots of democracy in Mali. Also, because of ADEMA’s-aged teachers and health professionals, whose skills and experience in the public sphere helped to bring ADEMA’s message to rural communities throughout the country, as well as recruit members and raise funds for the democratic movement. Through the unification of many organizations (whose histories go back as far as 1968), ADEMA broadened its geographical influence. ![]() In March of 1991, ADEMA was one of the main proponents and planners of a series of demonstrations, protests, and strikes throughout the country. In the years leading up to the overthrow of the dictatorial regime, ADEMA was able to organize unions and student groups to create a unified front. This gave the organization legitimacy as a leader of the resistance movement for subsequent transformation into a political party. The organization itself functioned in a manner consistent with democratic principles. Many different clandestine organizations came together under the persecution of the military regime, but it was ADEMA’s original organizational structure, characterized by its decentralization, that maintained the organization’s strength. These parties were underground until 1990 when, in response to international criticism, the Traoré regime legalized an association consisting of the National Democratic Initiative Committee and others, which united to form the Alliance for Democracy in Mali (ADEMA).ĪDEMA’s historical roots and their proven ability to stay strong and united against persecution lent them legitimacy in the eyes of many Malians. After a military coup d’état by Moussa Traoré in 1968 overthrew the left-leaning nationalist government which had ruled since independence from France in 1960, several clandestine parties emerged. The Republic of Mali is an impoverished landlocked country in the Sahel region of northwestern Africa. Opposition leader Amadnou Toure won the election the following year and the country remains one of the most democratic in the region. Opposition parties were legalized and a national congress of civil and political groups met to draft a new democratic constitution approved by a national referendum. Reformist army officers then overthrew the regime and allowed the formation of the Transitional Committee for the Salvation of the People, consisting of pro-democracy civilian leaders. Following a massacre of over one hundred demonstrators, army units subsequently refused to continue suppressing widening protests in the days that followed. In 1991, students organized a series of demonstrations against the autocratic government to demand free multiparty elections. An opposition movement emerged, led by the Alliance for Democracy in Mali, which was brutally suppressed by the regime. During this time, austerity programs imposed to satisfy the demands of the International Monetary Fund brought increased hardship upon the country’s population while elites close to the government lived in opulence. Opposition to the corrupt and dictatorial regime of General Mousa Traore grew during the 1980s. We are an educational organization dedicated to developing and sharing knowledge related to nonviolent civil resistance movements for human rights, freedom, and justice around the world. This conflict summary was commissioned by the International Center on Nonviolent Conflict (ICNC).
0 Comments
Leave a Reply. |
AuthorWrite something about yourself. No need to be fancy, just an overview. ArchivesCategories |