Illicit Trafficking in Mali: Local Impacts of Global Criminal and Terrorist Networks

Illicit Trafficking in Mali: Local Impacts of Global Criminal and Terrorist Networks

For centuries, nomadic populations have made use of the trade routes that traverse the Sahel-Sahara belt. While the use of these routes declined in the 19th century, they were re-established and reinvigorated after decolonization in the 1960s and the establishment of modern national borders. Informal illicit networks were established that made use of ethnic and tribal connections between groups that shared traditional territories across multiple newly-established borders. Originally developed to smuggle illicit subsidized goods such as gasoline, as well as cigarettes and foodstuffs, these networks have experienced something of a boom since the turn of the century with the introduction of South American cocaine. The influx of drugs, money, and arms from this illicit trafficking has a massive impact on the nations that make up this route through the Sahel. Mali, with a large and porous border that sits at the center of this route, shows the degree to which this globalized illicit trafficking in drugs has impacted local economies, politics, and realities for its population; Mali has experienced massive upheavals throughout the beginning of the 21st century, and continues to find itself in a complicated convergence of international drug, terror, and criminal networks that interact with and influence local ethnic, social, political, and religious aspects of life in Mali in very impactful ways.

Mali, from Independence to Current Conflict

Land-locked in the heart of the Sahel region of Africa, Mali shares its borders with Mauritania, Algeria, Niger, Burkina Faso, Cote D’Ivoire, Guinea, and Senegal. “With an estimated population of 12.7 million, a life expectancy of 51 years, and a ranking on the Human Development Index of 182 out of 186, the citizens of the Malian state are some of the most vulnerable in the world.” (Tinti, 2) Having achieved independence from France in 1960, for over three decades Mali was governed by a single-party dictatorship and did not hold multi-party elections until 1992. During this time, Mali was subject to a virtual north-south divide that developed over ethnic, tribal, and religious differences. Populations in the large and sparsely populated northern regions of Mali are typically Muslims of either Arab or Berber descent, and have traditionally lived largely nomadic or pastoral lives within family-based tribal structures. These populations lobbied for, but were ultimately unsuccessful in, establishing their own states during decolonization, and they can now be found spread throughout many of the countries that share Mali’s northern and eastern borders. Communities in Mali’s more urban and densely populated southern region are predominantly of black African descent, and typically adhere to a mix of Christian, Muslim, and native African religious faiths. Bamako, the capital and largest city of Mali, has been the political and economic center of the country since independence.

From its elections in 1992 up until 2012, Mali was generally viewed by Western observers as a model democracy in the region; despite enormous economic and political challenges, Mali was able to transition through a number of democratic elections, while dealing with occasional violent secessionist movements from Tuareg (ethnic Berber) rebels in the north who considered themselves alienated and marginalized from the southern-focused state. Various Bamako-based leaders had pursued an aggressive policy of decentralization in the north which saw power (and control over illicit trafficking) handed to local leaders that were in favor with Bamako-based politicians. This strategy exacerbated regional and ethnic tensions, as Bamako-based politicians used this political favoritism to play off Arab and Berber populations against each other – ensuring that no single group in the north was sufficiently established to rival the power and influence exercised by the government in the south.

These tensions came to a head in 2012, when over the span of several months the government was toppled by a coup, and subject to three separate rebellions. Ethnic, religious, and regional tensions coalesced in a relatively short span, and the weakness of the Malian state was exposed. Tuareg rebels, frustrated with their treatment and the continued reneging on agreements from the southern government, were able to forcefully take over several towns and major cities throughout the north. Military officers, disenchanted and frustrated with the government’s weak response to this development, facilitated a coup that overthrew President Amadou Toumani Touré (ATT), who was finishing his second term in office. On the heels of this coup, Islamic extremists fueled by Libyan arms (largely purchased with money from drug trafficking and kidnapping schemes) swept into major cities in Northern Mali including Gao, Kidal, and Timbuktu. Although elected civilian rule was re-established in 2013 after a French military intervention, stability in the country remains fragile. Illicit trafficking, and most importantly the trafficking of cocaine in the region, had a direct role in all of these events, and continues to play a major role in Mali. “Through the corruption required to ensure ‘protection’ or safe passage, illicit trafficking became thoroughly integrated within political and military structures in northern Mali, and hollowed out the Malian state…undermining institutions and eroding the legitimacy of official systems of government at the community level.” (Anderson, 4) Governments and development actors have only recently begun to discover the extent to which illicit trafficking has influenced, and continues to influence, nearly all aspects of life in Mali, and are only just beginning to employ anti-trafficking tactics as a key component of their stabilization, security, and development strategies for the country.

The Evolution of Illicit Trafficking in Mali

The trade routes that transcend the Sahel and make up modern-day illicit trafficking routes run directly through Mali, and have existed for nearly a millennium. In the 15th and 16th centuries, Malian cities such as Timbuktu and Gao were considered major hubs of trade and commerce. These routes and trade hubs declined during the colonization period when Mali fell under the control of France during the 19th century, and weren’t truly re-established until after Mali achieved independence.

Contemporary trafficking networks in Mali began to take form in the 1970s, when networks were developed to facilitate the flow of illicit goods from Algeria and Libya into Mali and Niger. “These goods included subsidized fuel and manufactured goods, as well as cigarettes, vehicles, and food stuff.” (Abderrahmane, 8) These networks were centered heavily on ethnic communal ties; the Berabiche Arabs who comprised much of the traditional merchant class in Timbuktu were able to leverage ethnic, cultural, and linguistic ties with similar communities in Mauritania and Algeria. Similarly, the ethnic Berber Tuareg communities in northern Mali coordinated their activities with Tuareg communities in Mauritania, Algeria, Niger, and Libya to establish their own series of illicit trafficking networks.