“They shot people. In their homes. Bodies were falling everywhere.’ It is just one of the testimonies of a massacre at the end of March in Moura, Mali. Malian soldiers, aided by ‘white men in army uniforms who spoke an unknown language’, are said to have killed about 300 people, including according to Human Rights Watch. Estimates of some eyewitnesses are higher.
Mali’s military rule does not allow independent on-the-spot investigations to this day, but a recent report by the UN mission in the country (commanded by a Dutch commander) sees an undeniable trend: an “exponentially increased ‘ number of human rights violations by Malian soldiers, assisted by ‘foreign military elements’.
Those mysterious ‘white men in uniforms’ are Russian paramilitaries employed by one of Putin’s oligarchs. And the explosion of bloody incidents is a result of the changing of the guard going on in the country: the French and other EU countries are withdrawing, the Russian ‘advisors’ of the Wagner group are on the rise.
As Russian cannons roar in eastern Ukraine, this rapid upheaval in Mali, largely out of the sight of snoopers, is an example of how Russia is at once bolstering its influence in Africa, using its diplomatic advantages (a total lack of scruples) and methods proven elsewhere, such as disinformation and fake news.
All the blood, sweat and tears that France has invested in the country over the past ten years – in recent years succeeding in getting other Europeans on board –, like all EU training for security personnel in the country, is being washed away on a wave of anti-colonial, anti-French sentiments that Russia is grateful for.
Mali has been plagued by violence, instability, jihadism and banditry for years, and the government has effectively left large parts of its territory out of control for just as long. Since 2012, France has played an important role in Mali and neighboring countries in efforts to combat the worst excesses of terrorism.
Things went horribly wrong between the military regime and the French after the EU and the regional organization Ecowas imposed sanctions because the rulers refused to reintroduce democracy within a reasonable time. Moscow had less of a problem with that, and an effective Russian disinformation campaign helped further fuel the already existing frustrations with the French.
The attitude of the Malian military regime, as well as of many Malians, is instructive for a broader trend – in Africa, and beyond. Many Africans have priorities other than ‘community of values’ Europe. Food and physical security are often more important than the finishing touches of democracy. And from an African point of view, Americans, former European colonials, Russians and Chinese are quite similar: they all promise a lot, but always want a lot themselves.
It is also the reason that many countries outside of Europe have a different view than Western countries of the Russian invasion of Ukraine – and the question of why grain shortages are occurring. The western world continues to shrink, diplomatically too, Russia is quick to take advantage of this where possible. It is this global context of a ‘multipolar’ world that makes it even more difficult to achieve Western goals – not only in Ukraine but also in the Sahel, where Europeans fortunately still remain active.
The position of the newspaper is expressed in the Volkskrant Commentaar. It is created after a discussion between the commentators and the editor-in-chief.