Spent the morning in the Djenne Manuscript Library, where the team is progressing to schedule in the British Libary project.
Leaving for Bamako tomorrow, where I will try and work on finalizing the MaliMali online shop website, courtesy of better internet connection.
I have steered clear of any political commentary so far, and have kept my head down trying to find a solution for our little team here in Mali- salvation through bogolan!
But of course, the situation in Mali is dire, and getting worse every day the north is left alone. I have Australian friends who have sent me articles, and today my dear friend Giulietta sent me the following link/
http://www.guardian.co.uk/world/2012/jul/13/islamists-mali-threat-europe

The failure to react to this situation is going to cost the West dearly. The Ecowas and the international community are fiddling about, complaining, frankly without cause, about the Malian domestic government situation, and what they conceive is the lack of democratically elected government after the coup.
This is both wrong and irrelevant in the present over all situation. Mali now has a legal interim government, with a President and a Prime Minister. This interim government has been put in place according to the Malian constitution.
There are factions from ATT's old government and representatives of political parties who are complaining that they have no place in this interim government. The International community , and above all Ecowas, are taking these complaints seriously, and this is how everything is breaking down in Mali's domestic affairs! These political parties will once more have their place and their say, once the north has been liberated and elections can be organized. This is not the moment to for party politics! This southern government is legal. For goodness sake, someone, please come and help Mali to liberate the north before something worse than 9/11 happens!