Krakow, Central Market Square.
Writing from Malmo, Sweden. It is evening, I have just arrived after a long journey from Krakow, Poland. This was a fabulous place which deserves much more than just a brief mention, especially as I met up with my dear old friend Gilliane who came down to meet me from Warzaw- I will return to this.
But just now I spoke to Keita, courtesy of Skype and news is worrying from Mali, as I had predicted. It seems that a large crowd of pro-junta protesters have today attacked and injured Diankounda Traore, the interim president, near the presidential palace in Bamako. They are very angry about the deal that has just been brokered with the ECOWAS which allows him to stay in power for a year, to give time to sort out the problems in the north, and to organize elections. It appears that they feel betrayed by Captain Sanogo, who does indeed seam to have been ‘bought’ by being promised the status of a former head of state, with all the related privileges, in return for his acceptance of Traore’s continuing as a President. The reason the protesters do not want Traore to continue as interim president is two-fold: firstly, and most importantly, they do not want to see any member of the old ruling political class, (such as Traore, ) viewed as rotten and corrupt to the core, to have anything further to do with the government of Mali. Secondly they do not want the ECOWAS to dictate to Mali how to run their country.
It is also quite clear by this attack, which was independent of the ex-junta, that Mali’s leadership crisis would not be solved simply by the removal or defusing of Sanogo’s power. Even if he himself is bought off what he represented is a widespread movement for change which cannot be so easily disregarded or squashed.