Alioune Tine, a specialist on human rights in Mali for the UN, said that for the first time since 2018 he had 'noted a tangible improvement in the security situation'.
Mali's armed forces are struggling with a decade-old jihadist insurgencyDAKAR - Security in Mali has improved but freedom of expression has worsened, an independent UN expert said Tuesday, in the latest assessment of the coup-torn Sahel country.
Tine warned that the improvements did not"obscure the serious challenges that remain", particularly the presence of jihadist groups that continue to"attack, kill and kidnap" civilians. Tine said during his visit to Mali this month, stopping in Mopti, Timbuktu and Bamako, he had heard from a swathe of residents that freedom of expression was in decline.
Tine expressed"deep concern about the narrowing of civic space", warning that"self-censorship for fear of reprisals from the Malian transitional authorities and their sympathisers" was widespread.Investigations into rights violations, including those carried out by the army, are increasingly rare, Tine warned.
Mali's West African neighbours have imposed stringent sanctions on Bamako for failing to meet its pledge to hold elections by the end of February.