the human rights officers and the woman with her infant (part of the 10 victims and witnesses of human rights violations)

Cases

Relevant SG report

From Country

Country Geolocation

Latitude: 17.570692

Longitude: -3.996166

From Region

UN body that raised the case prior to the SG report

Individual's/organization's activity: 10 victims and witnesses of human rights violations

Type of rights defended

Was the victim a civil servant or member of the security forces or of the judiciary?: No

Reported trigger of reprisal: being interviewed by HRPD human rights officers

Engagement with UN body

Type of attempted engagement

Meeting with UN officials during country visit / with locally present UN officials

Reprisal information

The Human Rights and Protection Division (HRPD) of the Multidimensional Integrated Stabilization Mission in Mali (MINUSMA) documented several instances of intimidation and reprisals for cooperation with the United Nations. Incidents were attributed to State and non-state actors affecting civil society representatives and victims and witnesses of human rights violations.
Specifically, MINUSMA documented that, on 25 April 2022, 10 victims and witnesses of human rights violations were arrested in Mopti region, while they were being interviewed by HRPD human rights officers.54 The Territorial Brigade, composed of seven policemen, entered the location of the interview without a search or arrest warrant, and ordered all victims and witnesses to go to the police station, while one of them fired a warning shot in the air. The victims and witnesses, including a woman with her infant, were taken to the police station in police cars. HRPD human rights officers were forced to stay in the compound of the Police station while the victims and witnesses were taken inside the station and accused of engaging in suspicious activities with MINUSMA. The same day, the human rights officers and the woman with her infant left the police station without charges. The other victims and witnesses remained in custody and were only released on 29 April 2022, without charges.

Types of reprisals suffered

Does the report make general comment about country’s environment for engagement with UN?: Yes

Government response content

On 28 July 2023, the Government responded to the note verbale sent in connection to the present report noting that, despite its cooperation and readiness to engage in dialogue, attempts to exploit sensitive issues persisted. It also noted that some of the alleged incidents had taken place outside the reporting period and rejected the allegations of reprisals, inviting OHCHR to prevent any attempts to instrumentalize human rights issues
The Government asserted that on 24 April the Sevaré (Mopti) Army camp was the object of a terrorist attack. It noted further that the Sevaré gendarmerie went to the scene, arrested suspects, and brought them before the public prosecutor at the Mopti High Court and provided information on the initial police investigations.
The Government addressed the allegations of reprisals against a woman civil society actor alleging that she had misrepresented herself as a civil society actor and had engaged in destabilizing actions. It added that the authorities were not aware of the existence of the organization which she purported to represent. With respect to a complaint against her lodged by the association “Collectif pour la Defense des Militaires”, the Government asserted that associations are free to carry out their activities, including taking legal actions, and noted that the State was not a party to these proceedings.

Is the country cited for a "pattern of reprisal" in the context of this case?: No

Is a pattern of reprisals mentioned otherwise in the context of this case?: No

Does the report cite "self-censorship" as an issue in the context of this case?: No

#EndReprisals