As central Mali sinks deeper into an unrelenting cycle of violence, the statement from the National Human Rights Commission (CNDH) following the attacks on Ningari and Sarédina exposes the deep structural failures in the transitional government’s security approach.
The pattern has become tragically familiar: villages are raided, unarmed civilians are executed, homes are set ablaze, and then comes the inevitable wave of official communiqués expressing outrage and sympathy. The latest atrocities in the Bandiagara area, specifically in Ningari and Sarédina, underscore a harsh reality that official rhetoric tries to hide: despite triumphant claims about the growing strength of the Malian armed forces (FAMa), the day-to-day protection of citizens remains a glaring failure.
The illusion of territorial control and the neglect of civilians
The CNDH’s statement, signed by interim president Me Aissata Founè Tembely, serves as a stark wake-up call to the authorities in Bamako. By stressing that the security of people and property is the state’s primary sovereign duty, the CNDH effectively highlights the administrative and military shortcomings on the ground.
In the Dogon country, the security vacuum left by the absence or ineffectiveness of sustained state presence leaves communities at the mercy of armed terrorist groups. While public discourse focuses on national sovereignty and managing the narrative, the fundamental social contract between the state and its citizens in the central region is broken. True sovereignty cannot be measured by the firmness of speeches in Bamako, but by the real ability to protect the life of a farmer or trader in Ningari.
Institutionalised impunity and the rhetoric of investigations that go nowhere
As with every tragedy, the CNDH calls for ‘independent and impartial’ investigations to bring those responsible to justice. But how credible are these appeals when the judicial system is effectively paralysed in conflict zones?
The accumulation of massacres without any major trial to assign responsibility fuels a devastating sense of impunity. Without concrete prosecutions, demands for investigations start to resemble a bureaucratic ritual meant to fill an institutional void. This justice system, which seems absent when needed, erodes public trust in the state and inevitably pushes communities towards self-defence or opportunistic alliances, further fragmenting the social fabric.
The trap of a purely military approach and breaches of humanitarian law
By urging the FAMa to strictly adhere to International Humanitarian Law (IHL), the CNDH also points to the dangers of a purely military strategy without safeguards. In their pursuit of terrorist groups, security forces and their auxiliaries are frequently accused by civil society of indiscriminate actions and abuses against local populations.
This approach, which prioritises body counts and flashy communication over lasting community security, produces the opposite of the intended effect. Each mistake or summary execution becomes the best recruitment tool for extremist groups. By reminding that the fight against terrorism cannot disregard human rights, the CNDH warns: a military victory achieved at the expense of the law is an illusion that sows the seeds of future unrest.
The CNDH’s warning is clear. If the transitional authorities continue to favour political posturing and security-focused communication over real, impartial, and judicial protection of their citizens, Mali risks losing far more than territory: it will lose the very legitimacy of its state.
