In Tamanghasset, Algeria, Tuaregs from the north of Mali protested in front of the Nigerien consulate. They expressed dissent regarding the comments made against Kidal and on the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS) by the Nigerien President Mahamadou Issoufou. Issoufou made a visit to Mali on September 7 to discuss “strengthening bilateral cooperation in the fight against terrorism” with the head of Mali.
During a joint conference with his Malian counterpart, Mahamadou Issoufou declared that “the status of Kidal is a threat to the internal security of Niger.”
On September 28, a young Tuareg activist and member of Imouhagh International was stopped in Tamanghasset by State Security for having called people to protest in front of the Malian and Nigerien consulates to support the Azawad cause.
On September 29, people took to the streets chanting “Azawad yes! CEDEAO no!”, “Azawad yes! Mali no!” and “God is great.” They stood outside the tribunal to demand the liberation of activist Lansari.
The organization Imouhagh International for Justice and Transparency tells Algerian authorities that writing an article rejecting the war in Azawad is not a valid reason for arrest. They demand the immediate and unconditional release of its activist Ahmed Lansari (Tanas). They condemn the violation of the right of expression and invite Algerian authorities to also respect national and international laws.
Tuareg refugees in Tamanrasset and the Azawad cause
Algeria is 400 km away from the border of Mali from Tamanghasset. Former Senator Othmane Ben Messaoud summarizes the dynamic between the two countries (paraphrased): “The economic relations between the Algerians of the South and the inhabitants of the north of Mali are such that all that happens on the other side of the border touches us too.”
Since the beginning of the conflict, there have been more than 30,000 Malian refugees as of 2012, 450 officially, to have sought asylum in Algeria.
Boudjemaa Balaou, APW elect in Tamanghasset, said, “However, Azawad remains the problem of Malian Tuaregs. Whether their partition project succeeds or not, it’s not our business.”
He is not the only one to score distance with his Tuareg neighbors. Yet, neither Tuaregs indigenous to Tamanghasset nor the descendants of Tuareg refugees are being sufficiently supported politically and economically. “The people of Tam are not well enough represented. Neither in the National Assembly, where they have only five seats, nor in the administration,” says Ali, a young official. “Yet, our wilaya represents a quarter of the country!”
