Activist Mohamed Youssouf Bathily, aka “Ras Bath”, in Bamako, August 2018. ISSOUF SANOGO / AFP
A well-known radio and television presenter in Mali was charged and jailed in Bamako on Monday, March 13, after declaring that a former prime minister who died in custody a year ago had been “assassinated,” according to reports learned from legal sources. Activist, polemicist and animator with many sympathizers, Mohamed Youssouf Bathily, known as “Ras Bath”, said on Saturday that Soumeylou Boubèye Maïga “is not dead, he was murdered, that’s the right term”.
His charges and his placement under an arrest warrant were confirmed to AFP by two legal sources and by Sam Samabaly, a member of the Republic Defense Collective, of which Mr Bathily is the spokesman.
The circumstances of Mr Maïga’s death made news again as the first anniversary of his disappearance approached on March 21. This heavyweight of national politics died in custody despite his family’s urgent calls for the junta to evacuate him abroad due to his deteriorating health.
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Mr Maïga was Prime Minister between 2017 and 2019 under President Ibrahim Boubacar Keïta, who was ousted in August 2020 by colonels still in power today. His memory was evoked on Saturday during a conference intended to mark the return to politics of his party, the Alliance for Solidarity in Mali. This was Ras Bath speaking. He did not directly blame the junta. He particularly criticized the former prime minister’s allies for their inaction when they shared power. “Nobody questioned the authority,” he said.
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The presenter was summoned by the police on Monday before he was brought to justice. The Military Defense Collective asked the courts to take up these statements before being subpoenaed. The appeals of this organization, one of the junta’s most outspoken supporters, often have repercussions. “Could Ras Bath be a demon created for his people? ‘ the collective asked in a press release.
Outside Ras Bath, a senior judge, Mohamed Chérif Koné, told Joliba TV on Thursday night that Mr Maïga had been “targeted” for calling for a quick return of civilians to power while the junta supporter “wanted an endless transition.” This former Supreme Court Advocate General was fired in September 2021 after protesting the arrest of the former prime minister.
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On Joliba TV, Mohamed Chérif Koné accused the President and Attorney General of the Supreme Court of being “at the base of [la] legal tragedy” suffered by the former head of government. The latter was jailed in 2014, when he was defense minister, as part of an investigation into the purchase of military equipment and a presidential plane.
Ras Bath and several figures have already spent nearly four months in detention in 2021 after being implicated in preparing a mysterious coup against the junta. The case caused a lot of confusion at the time. The Supreme Court eventually ordered the charges dropped.