Mali president’s speech fails to appease opposition Mali’s main protest leader called for fresh anti-government demonstrations on Thursday, rejecting the president’s latest attempts to appease the resurgent opposition in the fragile West African state. ‘Failed speech’The embattled president’s attempt to appease Mali’s growing opposition movement appears to have fallen on deaf ears. For example, one of the leaders of the protest movement, Moussa Sinko Coulibay, said on Twitter on Thursday that the speech had “completely failed”. President Keita is on increasingly shaky political ground as protests continue, alarming the international community which is keen to avoid Mali sliding into chaos. Since then, back-and-forth talks between the opposition and Keita have failed to achieve a breakthrough, however, with the president refusing to dissolve the parliament.

Source: The North Africa Journal July 09, 2020 18:56 UTC