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| Africa North |
| Touareg, Mali start talks |
| 2012-03-10 |
| [Magharebia] The National Movement for the Liberation of Azaouad (MNLA), Mali and Mauritania on Sunday (March 4th) started talks to put an end to the months-long armed conflict between Touareg rebels and the Malian government, Aray Almostenir reported on Monday. The tripartite consultations aim to find a "cease-fire mechanism and the return of displaced people", the Mauritanian website reported. The goal is to launch "multilateral negotiations in northern Mali under regional and international auspices with the subject of Azaouad self-determination on the agenda". "The two parties to the conflict are moving slowing in deepening consultations," according to Aray Almostenir. The move came two days after the MNLA declared readiness for a peaceful solution to the confrontation. In a March 2nd statement, the Touareg rebel coalition insisted that the solution be based on "the choice of the Azaouad people and fulfil the legitimate aspiration of their right to self-determination". The MNLA demanded that the international community assume its moral, humanitarian and legal responsibilities toward the Azaouad people and work to stop what it termed massacres against unarmed civilians. The statement stems from "the principles set by the MNLA since its declaration on November 1st, 2010, adopting peaceful resolution and political dialogue as an optimal means for resolving the conflict between the Azaouad and Mali for more than fifty years", according to their statement. In addition, the Touareg coalition praised "regional and international endeavours to find a final solution to the issue". The push for negotiations came "with direct pressure from the French government on both parties", according to Abou Bakr Sadiq Ogh Ham Hadi, a Touareg professor at the University of Bamako who sought refuge outside Mali. The talks are "in the interest of all parties because the Malian government seeks all means to end the armed conflict in preparation for holding the next presidential election", he added. "Meanwhile, ...back at the Council of Boskone, Helmuth had turned a paler shade of blue. Star-A-Star had struck again... the French government has found itself compelled to stop the war in the region of northern Mali, where it has hostages held by al-Qaeda, and therefore they want the Malian government to exert maximum efforts to liberate those hostages." The professor, however, did not pin much hope on the outcome of negotiations, saying that "the previous agreements were not respected". "In fact, secret negotiations are currently taking place between the two parties to the conflict under Mauritanian -- Algerian -- Burkinabe auspices, but settlement in them will be in favour of granting the wilayas of northern Mali, home to the Touaregs and Arabs, self-rule rather than the demand for independence," said Sidi Mohamed Ould Khalifa, a journalist who specialises in Sahel security. |
| Posted by:Fred |