Moussa Traoré | |
|---|---|
_(cropped).jpg) Moussa Traoré in 1989 | |
| 2ndPresident of Mali | |
| In office 19 November 1968 – 26 March 1991 | |
| Deputy | Yoro Diakité Amadou Baba Diarra |
| Preceded by | Modibo Keïta |
| Succeeded by | Amadou Toumani Touré |
| Personal details | |
| Born | (1936-09-25)25 September 1936 Kayes,French Sudan (nowMali) |
| Died | 15 September 2020(2020-09-15) (aged 83) Bamako, Mali |
| Political party | Military (laterUDPM) |
| Spouse | Mariam Sissoko |
| Military service | |
| Allegiance |  Mali |
| Branch/service | Malian Army |
| Years of service | 1960–1991 |
| Rank | Major General |
| Battles/wars | Agacher Strip War Tuareg rebellion (1990–1995) |
| Criminal details | |
| Conviction | Death of an estimated 300 protesters |
| Target | protesters to his regime |
| Victims | 200+ |
| Period | 1991 |
| Penalty | Capital punishment 1993, 1999 |
| Imprisoned | Markala Prison |
Moussa Traoré (25 September 1936 – 15 September 2020) was aMalian military officer, politician, and dictator who served as the secondPresident of Mali from 1968 to 1991. As a lieutenant, he led the military ousting of PresidentModibo Keïta in1968. Thereafter he served as head of state until March 1991, when he was overthrown by popular protests anda military coup.
During his tenure, political activity was banned, marking a shift to authoritarian control. His right-hand manTiécoro Bagayoko oversaw a regime of surveillance with the help of informants. He dismantled the socialist economic policies of his predecessor, Modibo Keïta.[1] He was twice condemned to death in the 1990s, but eventually pardoned on both occasions and freed in 2002. He retired from public life and died in 2020.
Born inKayes Region, Traoré studied atKita and at the military academy inFréjus,France. He returned to Mali in 1960, after its 1959 independence. He becamesecond lieutenant in 1961, andlieutenant in 1963. He went toTanganyika (which later together withZanzibar formed the new state ofTanzania) as military instructor to its liberation movements. He then became instructor at theÉcole militaire interarmes in Kati.[citation needed]
On 19 November 1968 he took part in thecoup d'état which deposed PresidentModibo Keïta. He became president of theComité militaire de libération nationale, which made him effective Head of state of Mali.[2] All political activity was banned. Apolice state was run by CaptainTiécoro Bagayoko. Informers monitored academics and teachers, mostly hostile to the military rule. The socialist economic policies of Modibo Keïta were partially dropped. In 1972–1973, a majordrought hit Mali.[3]
In 1974, Traoré issued a changed constitution for aMalian Second Republic, which was inaugurated in 1978. The new constitution was purported to move Mali toward civilian rule, the military junta stayed in power. In September 1976, they established theDemocratic Union of the Malian People (UDPM), a new ruling political party organised according to a "non-ideologicaldemocratic centralism" which they borrowed from Modibo Keïta's conception ofdemocratic centralism. In June 1979, a single-partygeneral election was held. As general secretary of the UPDM, Traoré was automatically elected to a six-year term as president, and he was confirmed in office with 99 percent of the vote.[4] The UDPM was intended to be the main link between the government and the people.[citation needed] Among its auxiliaries were theUnion Nationale des Femmes du Mali andUnion Nationale des Jeunes du Mali, compulsory organisations for women and young people.[citation needed]
In 1977, Keïta died in detention, under suspicious circumstances. The government reacted strongly, and made violent arrests. On 28 February 1978, Traoré arrested both Tiécoro Bagayoko andKissima Doukara, the defense and security ministers, on accusations of plotting a coup. In trying to move to more open politics, he appointed the historianAlpha Oumar Konaré as arts minister. In 1980, student demonstrations were broken up, and their leaderAbdoul Karim Camara ("Cabral") died from torture. In 1982, he was made commander-in-chief. Traoré waschairperson of theOrganization of African Unity from May 1988 to July 1989.[citation needed]
Traoré was reelected in 1985, again as the only candidate. Later that year, the UDPM-controlled legislature amended the constitution to exempt him from the two-term limit.[citation needed]
The political situation stabilized during 1981 and 1982, and remained generally calm throughout the 1980s. The UDPM began attracting additional members as it demonstrated that it could counter an effective voice against the excesses of local administrative authorities. Shifting its attention to Mali's economic difficulties, the government approved plans for cereal marketing liberalization, reform in the state enterprise system, new incentives to private enterprise, and an agreement with theInternational Monetary Fund (IMF). However, by 1990, there was growing dissatisfaction with the demands for austerity imposed by the IMF's economic reform programs and the perception that the president and his close associates were not themselves adhering to those demands. As in other African countries, demands for multi-party democracy increased. Traoré allowed some reforms, including the establishment of an independent press and independent political associations, but insisted that Mali was not ready for democracy.[4]
 | This sectionmay need to be rewritten to comply with Wikipedia'squality standards.You can help. Thetalk page may contain suggestions.(June 2024) |
On December 25, 1985 tensions rose betweenMali led by Traoré andBurkina Faso led byThomas Sankara. Traoré's regime struggled to manage social unrest. When officials in Burkina Faso conducted a census in disputed border communities, Malian forces launched an offensive onChristmas Day. Since Mali had more power than Burkina Faso they usedguerrilla warfare as the war continued raids were conducted in both countries. Then in early 1986 a peace agreement was made and resulted in Thomas Sankara and Traoré to avoid each other. This would affectMali negatively but it boosted his popularity.[5][6]
In 1990, theNational Congress for Democratic Initiative (Congrès National d’Initiative démocratique, CNID) was set up by the lawyerMountaga Tall, and theAlliance for Democracy in Mali (Alliance pour la démocratie au Mali, ADEMA) by Abdramane Baba and historianAlpha Oumar Konaré. These with theAssociation des élèves et étudiants du Mali (AEEM) and theAssociation Malienne des Droits de l'Homme (AMDH) aimed to contest Moussa Traoré's rule, with a plural political life.[citation needed]
On 22 March 1991 a huge protest march in central Bamako was put down violently, with estimates of those killed reaching 150. Four days later, the commander of Traoré's presidential guard, Col.Amadou Toumani Touré, removed Traoré from office and arrested him.[7][8] ATransitional Committee for the Salvation of the People was set up under Touré's chairmanship, which oversaw a transition to democracy a year later.[9]
Imprisoned in Markala local Prison, in February 1993, Traoré was condemned to death for "political crimes", largely focused on the killing of around 300 pro-democracy demonstrators in Bamako,[10] but his sentence was later commuted. In 1999 he was once more condemned to death with his wife Mariam Traoré, for "economic crimes": the embezzling of the equivalent of US$350,000 during his rule. President Alpha Oumar Konaré commuted these sentences to life imprisonment. Shortly before leaving office, on 29 May 2002, he further pardoned the couple, for the sake of national reconciliation, a stance which incoming presidentAmadou Toumani Touré championed.[11][12]
Traoré's once reviled legacy somewhat softened under Touré, with the former dictator recognised at least informally as a former head of state and many former supporters now rallying aroundChogel Maiga'sPatriotic Movement for Renewal party (Mouvement Patriotique pour le Renouveau, MPR). Both Traoré and his wife retired from public life, in part due to ill health.[13]
Traoré died on 15 September 2020 inBamako, just ten days before his 84th birthday.[14] He was given astate funeral, which was attended by members of the rulingNational Committee for the Salvation of the People.[15]
| Political offices | ||
|---|---|---|
| Preceded by | President of Mali 1968–1991 | Succeeded by |
 | ||
*acting †military | ||
| International | |
|---|---|
| National | |
| Other | |
