An important meeting between the Mali coup and mediators from the West African regional bloc to seek a return to civilian rule ended after just 20 minutes.
The talks on Saturday were set to last 90 minutes, according to a preliminary schedule set by the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS). But the meeting ended after just 20 minutes, according to Reuters.
It was not clear if the schedule was changed or talks were cut short.
Tuesday’s reversal of Mali President Ibrahim Boubacar Keita has been condemned abroad, but celebrated by many in a country struggling with an armed uprising and months of political unrest.
A 15-nation delegation arrived earlier in the capital, Bamako, for talks aimed at reversing Keita.
The bloc has taken a hard line on the coup, closing borders and stopping financial flows – a diplomat from a movement said it was as much about warning opponents at home as stabilizing Mali.
Before a series of meetings with the mutineers and other groups, the head of the delegation, the former President of Nigeria, Goodluck Jonathan, sounded optimistic.
“I believe at the end of the day we will come up with something that is best for the people and good for ECOWAS and the international community,” he told reporters.
The most anticipated meeting was held at the Ministry of Defense, where ECOWAS mediators sat in face masks at a long table opposite military government leader Assimi Goita, who wore a desert camouflage uniform and was flanked by other military officers in berets. in fatigues.
ECOWAS and the interns, who call themselves the National Committee for the Salvation of the People (CNSP), have not yet commented on the talks.
The coup has controlled Mali since Tuesday, when the mutiners held President Keita at gunpoint and forced him to dismiss [Mamadou Keita/Reuters]
Ahmed Idris of Al Jazeera, reporting from neighboring Nigeria, said ECOWAS is looking to resolve the disaster as soon as possible, to prevent foreign forces from plunging the country into total crisis that could be exploited by armed fighters.
The CNSP has been controlling the country since Tuesday, when the mutiners detained Keita at gunpoint and forced him to be fired. They have promised to control a transition to elections within a “reasonable” time.
The overthrow of Keita, known as IBK, has been welcomed by many in Mali, who were rocked by months of protests demanding his resignation for heightened corruption and enhanced security in areas where al-Qaeda affiliates and ISIL are active.
Keita resumes ‘out of the question’
The presidents of Côte d’Ivoire and Guinea are among those pushing for the tough ECOWAS response, said one diplomat, as both violent public protests have opposed their bids in the third term and want the bloc to show no power gets in its own back home.
“They can not tolerate this event. They are taking it very personally. It is on their doorstep and they think they are next,” said a second regional diplomat.
After three days of post-coup calm in the Bamako capital, police used tear gas earlier on Saturday when a quarrel broke out between a group of 50 pro-Keita protesters and local residents who threw stones, a witness told Reuters News Agency.
“Re-establishing IBK is not out of the question. The only thing they (the delegation) can achieve is the transition. Under the rules of ECOWAS, ECOWAS should redeem the transition,” said one of the diplomats, referring to the outcome of the delegation’s visit.
On Friday, thousands of coups gathered in a central square in Bamako to celebrate the takeover. There is no outward sign that ECOWAS ‘suspension of financial relations is still being felt.
SOURCE:
Al Jazeera and news agencies
.
