Zawaya

Bahanga is dead, and Tuareg insurgency continues

By: Jemal Mohamed Oumar

The death of the Tuareg rebel leader, who had been the head of rebel military operations for decades, has a significant impact on the Sahel countries. Mali, in particular, had suffered mightily from this feisty leader who had always disregarded the peace agreement signed in Algeria in 2006 between Mali and Tuareg rebels. Bahanga took refuge in Libya in 2009 after the Malian army killed and arrested some of his companions.

Some optimists believe that Bahanga’s death is a great gift for peace in the region, as the Tuaregs lost a charismatic and stubborn figure; while most observers speculate on the return of the Tuareg insurgency to northern Mali, Niger and southern Algeria, not to avenge Bahanga’s death only, but also as a result of Kadhafi’s fall, which means losing a strong supporter who had always defended their rights. Consequently, large Tuareg groups will move back to their countries of origin that had failed in the past to provide them with the economic prosperity and considerable political representation they aspire for.

Insecurity in Libya resulted in a flourishing arms trade and drug trafficking, which have been the main activities of the Tuaregs in the region for years, as a result of strategic and interest alliances with Polisario smugglers, with the blessings of AQIM that adapts its religious beliefs to allow drug smuggling as long as that aims to harm the economy of “infidel governments”, and buy weapons to attack them.

Bahanga’s death is only the first spark, or one of the aspects of the expected chaos in the region. The Tuareg rebel movement strongly voiced their stand in their last statement, and seemed to be looking for a reason to revive a new-old rebellion: “The chief died on August 26 in a car accident, a few kilometers from the Tinassalak military base, and was buried on August 27, but the real causes of his death will be revealed in the coming weeks. All the Tuaregs are saddened by the death of this man who will leave a void in the region, but his struggle will definitely not cease with his death, and his companions will keep on struggling for a better future that will enable the Tuaregs to consolidate social and political justice in the region”.

Regardless of the possible repercussions of Bahanga’s death on the stability of the Sahel, the region has no choice other than economic development, the political participation of the Tuareg, openness to the various components of society, enhanced democracy, and security approaches based on alliances between the Sahel countries (Mauritania, Mali, Algeria, Niger).