Two prominent opposition figures in Mali have been missing since Thursday after being seized by masked gunmen, Human Rights Watch (HRW) has reported, highlighting increasing repression under the country’s military-led government.
Abba Alhassane, aged 68 and serving as general secretary of the Convergence for the Development of Mali (CODEM), was detained at his residence in the capital, Bamako. According to HRW, the assailants were “masked gunmen claiming to be gendarmes” who whisked him away in an unmarked vehicle.
That same day, El Bachir Thiam, a leader within The Change party, was reportedly abducted “off the streets of Kati town,” situated just outside Bamako. The information was sourced from party officials and local media outlets, according to the rights group.
“Alhassane and Thiam’s colleagues said they have searched for them in police and gendarmerie stations across Bamako and Kati to no avail,” HRW noted in its statement.
A senior figure at the Ministry of Territorial Administration, speaking to AFP under the condition of anonymity, confirmed that both politicians “are currently being questioned by the relevant authorities for investigative purposes”.
Mali’s military authorities, who seized power in successive coups in 2020 and 2021, have tightened their grip on political activity in the country. Although they initially pledged a return to civilian rule by 2024, their actions have increasingly stifled dissenting voices.
In a rare show of opposition last weekend, a coalition of political parties rallied several hundred demonstrators in Bamako in protest against the junta. According to HRW, both Alhassane’s and Thiam’s parties were involved in organising the demonstration—an act that appeared to trigger swift retribution.
Shortly after the protest, the government moved to suspend the activities of all political parties, citing “reasons of public order”.
