Mali+History

The History of Mali
 * =History = || =Geography= || =Culture= || =Economics= || =Politics= || =Class Activities= || =Resources = ||

Although Mali is today one of the poorest countries in the world, it has a long and celebrated past as an important part of great African empires. Malians express great pride in their ancestry. Mali is the heir to the succession of the ancient African empires Ghana, Malinke, and Songhai that occupied the West African savannah. The first of these empires was the empire of Ghana.



Kingdoms of Ghana and Malinké:
The Ghana Empire, dominated by the Soninke or Saracolé people was a powerful trading state from about A.D. 700 to 1075. The Malinké Kingdom of Mali originated on the upper Niger River in the 11th century. Expanding rapidly in the 13th century under the leadership of Soundiata Keita, it reached its height in 1325, when it conquered Timbuktu and Gao. Thereafter, the kingdom began to decline, and by the 15th century, it controlled only a small fraction of its former domain.

**Songhai Empire and Timbuktu:** The Songhai Empire expanded its power from its center in Gao during the period 1465-1530. At its peak under Askia Mohammad I, it encompassed the Hausa states as far as Kano (in present-day Nigeria) and much of the territory that had belonged to the Mali Empire in the west. It was destroyed by a Moroccan invasion in 1591. Timbuktu was a center of commerce and of the Islamic faith throughout this period, and priceless manuscripts are still preserved in Timbuktu.

Arrival of the French:
French military infiltration of the Soudan (the French name for the area) began around 1880. Ten years later, the French made an effort to occupy the interior. A French civilian governor of Soudan was appointed in 1893, but resistance to French control did not end until 1898, when the Malinké warrior Samory Touré was defeated after 7 years of war. The French attempted to rule indirectly, but in many areas they disregarded traditional authorities and governed through appointed chiefs.

From French Colony to French Community:
As the colony of French Soudan, Mali was managed with other French colonial territories as the Federation of French West Africa. In 1956, when France's Fundamental Law was passed, the Territorial Assembly gained extensive powers over internal affairs and was permitted to form a cabinet with executive authority over matters within the Assembly's power. After the 1958 French constitutional referendum, the //Republique Soudanaise// became a member of the French Community and enjoyed complete internal independence.



Independence as Republic of Mali:
In January 1959, Soudan joined Senegal to form the Mali Federation, which became fully independent within the French Community on 20 June 1960. The federation collapsed on 20 August 1960, when Senegal seceded. On 22 September Soudan proclaimed itself the Republic of Mali and withdrew from the French Community.

Socialist Single-Party State:
President Modibo Keita – whose party had dominated pre-independence politics, moved quickly to declare a single-party state and to pursue a socialist policy based on extensive nationalization. A continuously worsening economy led to a decision to rejoin the Franc Zone in 1967.

Bloodless Coup by Lieutenant Moussa Traoré:
On 19 November 1968, a group of young officers staged a bloodless coup and set up a 14-member Military Committee for National Liberation, with Moussa Traoré as Chairman. The military leaders attempted to pursue economic reforms but for several years faced devastating internal political struggles and the disastrous Sahelian drought. A new constitution, approved in 1974, created a one-party state and was designed to move Mali toward civilian rule. However, the military leaders remained in power.

Single Party Elections:
In September 1976, a new political party was established, the //Union Démocratique du Peuple Malien// (Democratic Union of the Malian People) based on the concept of democratic centralism. Single-party presidential and legislative elections were held in June 1979, and General Moussa Traoré received 99% of the votes. His efforts at consolidating the single-party government were challenged in 1980 by student-led, anti-government demonstrations, which were brutally put down, and by three coup attempts.

1980 to Today:

 * The political situation stabilized during 1981 and 1982 and remained generally calm throughout the 1980s.
 * By 1990, there was growing dissatisfaction.As demands for multiparty democracy increased the Traoré government allowed some opening of the system (the establishment of an independent press and independent political associations) but insisted that Mali was not ready for democracy.
 * In early 1991, anti-government rioting broke out again, but this time government workers and others supported it. On 26 March 1991, after 4 days of intense anti-government rioting, a group of military officers arrested President Moussa Traoré and suspended the constitution. Amadou Toumani Touré took power as the Chairman for the Transitional Committee for the Salvation of the People.
 * A draft constitution was approved in a referendum on 12 January 1992 and political parties were allowed to form. On 8 June 1992, Alpha Oumar Konaré, was inaugurated as the President of Mali's Third Republic.
 * President Konaré won the presidential election against scant opposition on 11 May 1997.
 * General elections were organized in June and July 2002. President Konare did not seek reelection since he was serving his second and last term as required by the constitution.
 * Retired General Amadou Toumani Touré, former head of state during Mali's transition became the country's second democratically elected President in 2002, and was reelected to a second 5-year term in 2007.

**Current**:

 * The 2012 Malian coup d'état began on March 21, when mutinying Malian soldiers, led by Amadou Haya Sanogo, displeased with the management of the Tuareg rebellion attacked several locations in the capital Bamako, including the presidential palace, state television, and military barracks. The soldiers, who said they had formed the National Committee for the Restoration of Democracy and State, declared that they had overthrown the government of Amadou Toumani Touré.
 * On 6 April, the junta agreed with Economic Community of West African States negotiators that they would step down from power in return for the end of sanctions, giving power to transitional government led by parliament speaker Dioncounda Traoré.
 * Gunfire rang out over the West African capital Monday April 30 as soldiers loyal to the president who was deposed in the earlier March coup appeared to be attempting a countercoup against the ruling military junta.

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 * But by early Tuesday morning the junta aired a message on state television saying that it controlled the positions that had been under attack, including the state broadcaster, the city’s international airport and a military base in Kati, and the garrison village at the edge of Bamako where the military junta and its troops are based.
 * The junta, under international pressure, agreed three weeks ago to an interim government, with a president and prime minister. It appeared to have ceded power, but since then has shown increasing signs of not wanting to give it up, arresting many opposition figures.


 * President overthrown:** Amadou Toumani Toure
 * Interim President & head of Parliament:** Dioncounda Traore
 * Appointed Interim Prime Minister:** Cheick Modibo Diarra
 * Head of Junta:** Amadou Haya Sanogo
 * ECOWAS** = Economic Community of West African States
 * MNLA** = National Movement for the Liberation of Azawad
 * The Tuareg** = a nomadic people who live largely in the Sahara Desert, spanning Niger, Mali, Algeria and Libya
 * Definition: jun·ta **
 * 1.** A group of military officers ruling a country after seizing power.
 * 2.** A council or small legislative body in a government, especially in Central or South America.

Resources http://africanhistory.about.com/od/mali/p/MaliHist1.htm  http://www.infoplease.com/ipa/A0107759.html http://www.aljazeera.com/news/africa/2012/04/201243021132449292.html