Emergency Mini-Summit of ECOWAS Heads of State and Government On the Situation in Mali

Abidjan - Cote d' Ivoire — 1. Among the decisions taken at the Extraordinary Summit of ECOWAS of 27 March 2012 on the political situation in Mali, Summit resolved to dispatch a high- level delegation to Mali on 29 March 2012 to acquaint the Junta with the content of Summit decisions and to discuss, in particular, the modalities for the speedy restoration of constitutional order in Mali.

2. The six-member high-level delegation is composed of the following Heads of State:

ï‚§ His Excellency Alassane OUATTARA President of the Republic of Côte d'Ivoire and Current Chairman of ECOWAS.

ï‚§ His Excellency Thomas Boni YAYI Current Chairman of the African Union and President of the Republic of Benin.

ï‚§ His Excellency Blaise COMPAORE President of Burkina Faso and ECOWAS Mediator in the Malian crisis.

ï‚§ Her Excellency Ellen JOHNSON-SIRLEAF President of the Republic of Liberia.

ï‚§ His Excellency Issoufou MAHAMADOU President of the Republic of Niger

ï‚§ His Excellency Goodluck Ebele JONATHAN, President of the Federal Republic of Nigeria, Represented by His Excellency Nurudeen MOHAMMAD, Minister of State at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs.

3. In fulfilment of its mission, the Delegation set out for Bamako today, 29 March 2012, but could not land at the Bamako airport for security reasons as a result of chaos provoked by demonstrators at the airport.

4. The Heads of State, therefore, returned to Abidjan to hold an emergency meeting.

5. The Heads of State took note of the reports of the President of the ECOWAS Commission, the Foreign Ministers, and the Chiefs of Defence Staff, who had just returned from Bamako after their meetings with the Comité National de Redressement pour la Démocratie et la Restauration de l'Etat (CNRDRE).

6. At the end of their meeting, the Heads of State recalled the main decisions taken at the Extraordinary Summit of the ECOWAS Heads of State and Government in Abidjan on 27 March 2011, namely to:

I) deny any form of legitimacy to the Comité National de Redressement pour la Démocratie et la Restauration de l'Etat, and to demand the immediate restoration of constitutional order in Mali.

II) remind the CNRDRE of its responsibility for the safety and security of President Amadou Toumani Touré.

III) demand that the CNRDRE release all political detainees.

IV) suspend Mali from all decision-making bodies of ECOWAS with immediate effect, in accordance with Articles 1(e) and 45(2) of the Supplementary Protocol on Democracy and Good Governance, and the provisions of the African Charter on Democracy, Elections and Governance, until such time that constitutional order is effectively restored.

V) demand the CNRDRE to take immediate steps to restore constitutional order in Mali, in line with ECOWAS Protocols, and bearing in mind the decisions adopted by the AU Peace and Security Council on the suspension of Mali.

VI) instruct the ECOWAS Commission to put the ECOWAS Standby Force on high alert for all eventualities.

VII) in the event of non-compliance by the CNRDRE with these Decisions, invite all Member States to impose a travel ban, as well as a diplomatic and financial embargo, on the members of the CNRDRE and their close collaborators with immediate effect.

7. In application of these decisions, and after consultation and accord of all ECOWAS Heads of State and Government, Authority hereby adopts the following sanctions against Mali:

A. Political and Diplomatic Sanctions:

i) Suspend the membership of Mali from ECOWAS;

ii) Recall all ECOWAS Ambassadors accredited to the Republic of Mali for consultation;

iii) Impose a travel ban on members of the CNRDRE and their associates within the ECOWAS space; iv) Close all borders of ECOWAS Member States with Mali, except for humanitarian purposes.

B. Economic Sanctions:

i) Freeze the assets of the leaders of CNRDRE and their associates in ECOWAS Member States;

ii) Deny Mali access to seaports of ECOWAS Member States.

C. Financial Sanctions:

i) Freeze the accounts of Mali held at the Central Bank of West African States (BCEAO);

ii) Deny the procurement of funds from BCEAO to accounts held by the Malian State in private banks.

iii) Freeze all financial assistance to Mali through the West African Bank for Development (BOAD) and the ECOWAS Bank for Investment and Development (EBID).

D. Additional Sanction: i) Suspend Mali from participating in all sporting and cultural events in the ECOWAS space.

9. In the event of non-compliance by the CNRDRE with the decisions of Authority, the sanctions outlined above shall take effect within 72 hours of their adoption and, in any case, not later than Monday, 02 April 2012.

10. Furthermore, Authority invites the African Union to reinforce its own sanctions against the CNRDRE and its associates, and to bring the ECOWAS sanctions to the attention of the Secretary-General of the United Nations.

11. On the Rebellion in the North of Mali, Authority reiterates its appeal to all the stakeholders concerned to observe a cease-fire with immediate effect, as well as the ECOWAS offer of mediation.

12. Authority renews its firm undertaking to support Mali to defend its territorial integrity as soon as constitutional order is restored. In this regard, Authority shall mobilize the assistance of all partners.

13. H.E. Blaise Compaore, the President of Burkina Faso and the Mediator appointed at the Extraordinary Summit of 27 March 2012, shall be entrusted with the follow-up on the implementation of these measures, and shall liaise with ECOWAS Member States and the regional institutions referred to above for this purpose.

14. Authority remains seized with the situation in Mali, and instructs the President of the ECOWAS Commission to transmit these decisions to the President of the AU Commission for the attention of the AU Peace and Security Council for information and appropriate action.

Read the original article on Ecowas.