According to the U.S. Department of State's annual report on human rights in Mali for 2003, Mali's government generally respects the human rights of its citizens and observes relevant constitutional provisions (e.g., freedom of speech and of the press, freedom of assembly and association, freedom of religion) and prohibitions (e.g., arbitrary arrest and detention, forced exile, torture, and discrimination based on race, sex, disability, language, or social status).
There have been no reports of political prisoners or politically motivated disappearances in Mali. But prison conditions are poor (overcrowded, with inadequate medical facilities and food supplies), and there are occasional instances of arbitrary arrest or detention. Moreover, the judicial system has a large case backlog, which has caused significant delays in trials as well as long periods of pretrial detention.
Men play a dominant role in society, and women continue to suffer from widespread discrimination and domestic violence. Child labor and trafficking in children as forced labor remain serious problems. Relationships based on hereditary servitude and bondage persist between some ethnic groups.
Respect for the integrity of the person
Arbitrary or unlawful deprivation of life There were no reports that the government or its agents committed arbitrary or unlawful killings."Mali", Country Reports on Human Rights Practices for 2006, Bureau of Democracy, Human Rights, and Labor, U.S. Department of State, 6 March 2007.
On August 12, the body of Youssouf Dembele, secretary general of the Niono chapter of the opposition African Solidarity for Democracy and Independence party, was found in the town of Niono in the region of Segou. Dembele was one of the primary whistle-blowers in a $15.5 million (7.21 billion CFA francs) corruption scandal involving the governmental Office du Niger, which oversees agricultural production in Segou. Dembele's death was under investigation at year's end.
On October 17, in Gao, soldiers arrested and killed Assaleh ag Mohamed, a gendarme and ethnic Tuareg. Several soldiers associated with the killing were taken into custody and were awaiting trial at year's end.
On March 15, 2022, the Human Rights Watch documented that the Malian army and armed Islamist groups have allegedly killed at least 107 civilians in central and southwestern Mali since December 2021. The victims, most allegedly summarily executed, include traders, village chiefs, religious leaders, and children.
Disappearance
There were no reports of politically motivated disappearances.
Torture and other cruel, inhuman, or degrading treatment or punishment
The constitution and law prohibit such practices; however, there were occasional reports that police abused civilians, and police use of excessive force to disperse demonstrators resulted in injuries.
Prison and detention center conditions
Overall prison conditions remained poor. Prisons continued to be overcrowded, medical facilities were inadequate, and food supplies were insufficient.
Men and women were separated in Bamako prisons; however, outside the capital, men and women were held in the same building but in separate cells. In Bamako juvenile offenders usually were held in the same prison as adult offenders, but they were kept in separate cells. Pretrial detainees were held with convicted prisoners.
The government permitted prison visits by human rights monitors; however, nongovernmental organizations (NGOs) and other monitors were required to submit a request to the prison director, who then forwarded it to the Ministry of Justice. Approvals, which took up to one week, were routinely granted, but the week delay hindered the ability of monitors to ascertain if there were human rights violations. Several NGOs, including the Malian Association of Human Rights and the Malian Association of Women Lawyers, visited prisoners and worked with female and juvenile prisoners to improve their conditions.
Arbitrary arrest or detention
The constitution and law prohibit arbitrary arrest and detention, and the government generally observed these prohibitions; however, on occasion, police arrested and detained persons arbitrarily.
In December 2020, the Malian authorities arbitrarily arrested and detained seven high-profile individuals for several months.Mali: Due Process Concerns in ‘Conspiracy’ Case, Hrw.org, 14 March 2021 It was demonstrated that the Minister of Justice Mohamed Sidda Dicko ordered those detentions to put the newly putsch-instituted government in control of potential major corruption outlets. The former CEO of PMU Mali Arouna Modibo Touré was suspected of designing some of those corruption outlets and conspiring those detentions to keep a stronghold on his self-made corruption system.Mali : Authorities gamble with justice to control corruption, Africa-reports.com, 14 April 2021
Role of the police and security apparatus
Security forces include the army, air force, gendarmerie, National Guard, and police. The army and air force are under the control of the civilian minister of defense. The National Guard is administratively under the minister of defense; however, it is effectively under the control of the minister of internal security and civil protection. The police and gendarmerie are under the Ministry of Internal Security and Civil Protection. Police have responsibility for law enforcement and maintaining order in urban areas, while gendarmes have that responsibility in rural areas.
The national police force is organized into districts. Each district has a commissioner who reports to the regional director at national headquarters. The police force was moderately effective but lacked resources and training. Corruption was a problem, and some police and gendarmes extorted bribes. Impunity was not a problem, and individual police were charged and convicted of abuses. The gendarmerie conducted investigations of police officers.
Arrest and detention
Judicial warrants are required for arrest. Complainants normally deliver warrants, which stipulate when a person is scheduled to appear at a police station. However, police sometimes served warrants, generally in response to an influential relative of the complainant or if they received a bribe. In cases involving a monetary debt, the arrested person frequently resolved the case at the police precinct, and the police received a portion of the recovered money. The law provides that suspects must be charged or released within 48 hours and that they are entitled to counsel; however, in practice detainees were not always charged within the 48‑hour period. Limited rights of bail or the granting of conditional liberty exist, particularly for minor crimes and civil matters. On occasion authorities released defendants on their own recognizance. Detainees have the right to a lawyer of their choice or a state-provided lawyer if indigent, but administrative backlogs and an insufficient number of lawyers often prevented prompt access. Detainees were allowed prompt access to family members.
Police arbitrarily arrested journalists, demonstrators, students, and one teacher during the year.
Lengthy pretrial detention was a problem. In extreme cases, individuals remained in prison for several years before their cases came to trial. Approximately 77 percent of imprisoned persons were awaiting trial
Denial of fair public trial
The constitution and law provide for an independent judiciary; however, the executive branch continued to exert influence over the judicial system, and corruption and limited resources affected the fairness of some trials. Domestic human rights groups alleged that there were instances of bribery and influence peddling in the courts. The minister of justice appoints and may suspend judges, and the Justice Ministry supervises both law enforcement and judicial functions. The president heads the Council of Magistrates, which oversees judicial activity.
On September 10, a deputy public prosecutor, senior magistrate, and judge accused of corruption in 2005 were tried and found not guilty.
The country has a lower Circuit Court, a Supreme Court with both judicial and administrative powers, and a Constitutional Court that oversees constitutional issues and acts as an election arbiter. The constitution also provides for the convening of a high court of justice to try senior government officials in cases of treason.
Trial procedures
Except in the case of minors, trials generally are public, and defendants have the right to be present and have an attorney of their choice. Court-appointed attorneys are provided for the indigent without charge. Defendants have the right to consult with their attorney, but administrative backlogs and an insufficient number of lawyers often prevented prompt access. Defendants and attorneys have access to government evidence relevant to their cases. Defendants are presumed innocent and have the right to confront witnesses and to appeal decisions to the Supreme Court. These rights extend to all citizens and all groups.
Contrary to customary procedures, the June 26 trial of six persons charged with "offending" the head of state was conducted behind closed doors (see Freedom of speech, below).
Village chiefs, in consultation with the elders, decided the majority of disputes in rural areas. If these decisions were challenged in court, only those found to have legal merit were upheld.
Political prisoners and detainees
Journalists and a high school teacher were imprisoned in June for "offending" the head of state (see Freedom of speech, below).
Civil judicial procedures and remedies
There is an independent and impartial judiciary in civil matters.
Arbitrary interference with privacy, family, home, or correspondence
The constitution and law prohibit such actions, and the government generally respected these prohibitions.
Civil liberties
Freedom of speech and press
The constitution and law provide for freedom of speech and of the press; however, the government limited press freedom during the year and intimidated journalists or publishers into practicing self-censorship.
Individuals criticized the government publicly and privately, generally without reprisal; however, on occasion the government attempted to impede such criticism.
The independent media were active and expressed a wide variety of views.
Journalists were subject to harassment and arrest. For example, on March 5, a court convicted Kabako newspaper journalists Diaby Macoro Camara and Oumar Bore of defaming Marimantia Diarra, the minister of planning; a December 2006 article in Kabako alleged that the minister ordered a local mayor to annul the marriage of his ex-fiancé and compelled police to raid her residence. The newspaper claimed the mayor and police confirmed the allegations. Both journalists received a four‑month suspended sentence and a $100 (46,500 CFA francs) fine. Referring to the case, the Committee to Protect Journalists issued a statement that "sending journalists to jail for their reporting is out of step with Mali's democratic values".
In June Bassirou Kassim Minta, a local high school teacher, assigned his class a fictional essay about the mistress of an unnamed head of state and was arrested on June 14 for "offending the head of state"; Info-Matin journalist Seydina Oumar Diarra wrote an article criticizing Minta's judgment, but was arrested on the same charge on June 14. On June 20, four newspaper editors—Sambi Toure of Info-Matin, Birama Fall of Le Republican, Alexis Kalambry of Les Echos, and Mahamane Hameye Cisse of Le Scorpion—also were charged and arrested after they reprinted the original article to demonstrate solidarity with Diarra. Defense lawyers for the six boycotted legal proceedings to protest the government's restrictions on the press and handling of the case.