Mali leader appoints crisis cabinet

Mali’s President Ibrahim Boubacar Keïta has appointed a slimmed down cabinet to work towards a government of national unity, according to a statement from his office.

The new cabinet would include the Prime Minister Boubou Cissé and six other ministers, it said.

It came hours after a summit of West African leaders called for the swift creation of a unity administration and a fresh vote, following disputed elections.

No statement has been made on the other proposals by the regional grouping Ecowas, like the resignation of 31 parliamentarians whose election was disputed and the remodelling of the constitutional court.

The opposition coalition in Mali had earlier rejected a proposal for a national unity government, insisting the president must go.

Although dissatisfaction over the country’s economic woes, corruption and worsening security situation has been simmering for a while, the trigger for the current crisis was a decision by the Constitutional Court in April to overturn the results of parliamentary polls for 31 seats, in a move that saw candidates with Keita’s party get re-elected.

The protests turned violent earlier this month when three days of clashes between security forces and protesters killed 11 people. Several opposition leaders were also briefly detained.

An ECOWAS mission days before the Bamako visit of the five West African leaders proposed setting up a government of national unity that would include members of the opposition and civil society groups. It also suggested, among others, the appointment of new judges to the Constitutional Court, which had already been “de facto” dissolved by Keita in a bid to calm unrest.

But the proposals were rejected by the June 5 Movement, with protest leaders insisting that Keita must go and calling for accountability for the killings in the June 10-12 protests.