Mali - 2023 Referendum
Mali has an unelected transition government following a 2020 military coup d’etat that upended a constitutional democratic system. The country last held presidential elections in 2018, re-electing the late Ibrahim Boubacar Keita in elections international observers considered minimally credible despite some irregularities. Following the 2020 coup, a brief period of military rule was followed by a civilian-led transition government. In May 2021, the transition government was overthrown by the military. In June 2021, Assimi Goita, one of the 2020 coup leaders and the former transition vice president, was sworn in as transition president. Repeatedly delayed parliamentary elections were held in 2020, followed by manipulation of results by the Constitutional Court in a process observers regarded as flawed and undemocratic. Former President Keita dissolved parliament later in 2020, and it was replaced by an unelected National Transition Council.
Mali continues to face significant challenges after close to 10 years of international engagement to help the country end insecurity and achieve lasting stability. The status quo is not and cannot be an option. It can also neither be an option for the Malian people, who continue to bear the brunt of unspeakable violence and whose strong yearning for a better future remains unfulfilled, nor one for the international community, which, since 2013, has invested heavily in the stabilization of the country.
The holding of the constitutional referendum on 18 June will be a major milestone in the implementation of the political transition. Following concerns expressed by Malian stakeholders on the contents and process of the draft constitution, transitional authorities took several initiatives to enhance inclusivity and build consensus. These included nationwide consultations during the drafting phase and the creation of a 72-member commission tasked with finalizing the draft constitution.
The draft constitution retained the spirit and incorporated several aspects of the Agreement, including the creation of the Sénat as the higher chamber of Parliament, the endorsement of the role of traditional justice mechanisms such as the qadis, as well as the recognition of Malian national languages as being official in the country. If adopted, the new constitution would result in the implementation of some provisions of the Agreement. The administrative and territorial reorganization are largely aligned with the Agreement’s provision calling for new institutional architecture to enable the northern populations to administer themselves through their own representatives elected to regional and local councils and increase their representation in national institutions.
Following the finalization of the draft constitution in March 2023, the authorities embarked on the popularization of the document among the Malian population. Several national stakeholders publicly expressed their positions with regard to the constitutional reform process. Those in favour include the Adéma-Parti africain pour la solidarité et la justice, the Union pour la République et la démocratie, the Mouvement ensemble pour un Mali nouveau, Yelema-le changement, the Coordination des associations et organisations féminines du Mali, the Alliance démocratique pour la paix and the Conseil supérieur de la diaspora malienne. Conversely, the Mouvement du 5 juin-Rassemblement des forces patriotiques-Mali Kura, the Cadre des partis et regroupements politiques pour le retour à l’ordre constitutionnel, the Appel du 20 février pour sauver le Mali and the Forum des organisations de la société civile, separately called upon the authorities to abandon the process.
On 05 May 2023, the Government announced that the constitutional referendum would be held on 18 June; the electoral campaign for the referendum would start on 2 June and end on 16 June, and Malian Defence and Security Forces would vote in advance on 11 June. The announcement of the new date was welcomed by the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS) as an important step in the implementation of the transition timetable.
The operationalization of the new electoral management body, the Independent Authority for Election Management, in the regions was ongoing, with the aim of establishing 994 local coordination branches in 19 regions, 1 district, 159 circles and 815 communes. The selection of Authority members to be deployed to the branches was officially finalized on 15 May. On 10 May, the Council of Ministers adopted an ordinance amending some provisions of the electoral law to facilitate the preparation of the referendum. The provisions include the possibility for voters to use existing voter cards instead of the biometric identity cards that were being rolled out.
The referendum is the first in a series of scheduled polls meant to pave the way for presidential elections in February 2024, which Mali’s military leaders committed to hold following pressure from regional powers.
Religious leaders in the Muslim-majority country have also spoken against the decision not to remove secularism as a defining feature of the state, saying it is a legacy of Mali’s former colonial ruler France. But advocates have spoken in favour of aspects of the proposed changes, including the creation of a separate court of auditors, the legitimisation of traditional leadership and a clause to include national languages as official alongside French.
Ninety-seven percent of the referendum votes were cast in favour of the changes, the electoral authority said 25 June 2023. Voter turnout was put at 39.4 percent in the landlocked Sahel country, which is struggling with an 11-year-old jihadist insurgency. Opponents of the plan believe the vote was designed to keep the colonels in power beyond the presidential election scheduled for February 2024, despite their initial commitment to hand over to civilians after the elections.
The new constitution will strengthen the role of the president, a change that has spurred expectations that junta leader Colonel Assimi Goita intends to vie for the job. The changes will also give pride of place to the armed forces and emphasise "sovereignty", the ruling junta's mantra since it came to power in 2020. Voting was hampered in many towns in the centre and north of the country, either by fear of jihadist attacks or by political disagreements.
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