Days before Algeria’s 82-year-old strongman president Abdelaziz Bouteflika was ousted from power, the country made one last ditch attempt to keep control: it shut down the internet. A few weeks later, 75-year-old Sudanese president Omar Hassan al-Bashir’s rule ended with a picture of mainly female protestors going viral on social media platforms. If there has been any common …
EDITORIAL By Salif Romano Niang Bamako — In Mali, the votes of the run-off have been cast. And in sharp contrast to elections in Africa or even Western democracies, the defeated candidate conceded not by press release or defiant speech but by visiting the winner in his living room, surrounded by their families. With the …
MALI’S ELECTION BRINGS THE PROMISE OF DEMOCRACY TO A POPULATION EAGER TO MOVE ON FROM THE PAST 20 MONTHS OF STRIFE. Bamako, Mali – Mali’s crucial presidential election on Sunday will take place in an atmosphere of hope but shaded by uncertainty. Uncertainty because since the end of military rule, Mali has held five elections. …