Mali

In late November, the Malian government implemented a law that banned NGOs funded by France from operating in the country. Some observers interpreted this as a response to France’s decision to suspend its contributions of development aid to Mali (official humanitarian aid is still being provided). The ban on French-funded groups had an immediate impact on the provision of humanitarian aid through NGOs. However, it has now had even broader effects, as all NGOs must now have their sources of funding audited by the Ministry of Territorial Administration -- annually for Malian organizations, and monthly for foreign organizations. This new legal arrangement has already made operations difficult for foreign NGOs and provides an opportunity for the Malian government to exert further control over NGOs in the future.

Basic Welfare NGO/CSO Freedom of Association and Assembly Humanitarian Aid

On 2 November, the High Authority for Communication (HAC) suspended the operations of Joliba TV News for content it called defamatory. The content in question was an editorial statement made by the news director of Joliba TV News, Mohamed Attaher Halidou, on 30 September. In the editorial, Mr. Halidou had emphasized the rising threats of misinformation, intolerance, and threats to freedom of expression, and had called on the HAC to take action to deal with these problems. The National Human Rights Commission condemned the suspension of the station. This suspension comes after the HAC already suspended France24 and Radio France Internationale in April and added new restrictions on the activities of foreign media.

Freedom of Expression Censorship