Tuareg Rebellion
Encyclopedia
Rebellion
Rebellion, uprising or insurrection, is a refusal of obedience or order. It may, therefore, be seen as encompassing a range of behaviors aimed at destroying or replacing an established authority such as a government or a head of state...
by various Tuareg groups in Niger
Niger
Niger , officially named the Republic of Niger, is a landlocked country in Western Africa, named after the Niger River. It borders Nigeria and Benin to the south, Burkina Faso and Mali to the west, Algeria and Libya to the north and Chad to the east...
and Mali
Mali
Mali , officially the Republic of Mali , is a landlocked country in Western Africa. Mali borders Algeria on the north, Niger on the east, Burkina Faso and the Côte d'Ivoire on the south, Guinea on the south-west, and Senegal and Mauritania on the west. Its size is just over 1,240,000 km² with...
with the aim of achieving autonomy or forming their own nation-state. The insurgency occurred in a period following the regional famine of the 1980s and subsequent refugee crisis, and a time of generalised political repression and crisis in both nations. The conflict is one in a series of Tuareg-based insurgencies in the colonial and post-colonial history of these nations. In Niger, it is also referred to as the Second or Third Tuareg Rebellion, a reference to the pre-independence rebellions of Ag Mohammed Wau Teguidda Kaocen
Ag Mohammed Wau Teguidda Kaocen
Ag Mohammed Wau Teguidda Kaocen was a Tuareg noble and clan leader. Born in 1880 near Zinder , Kaocen became the Amenokal of the southern Ikazkazan Tuareg, a subset of the Kel Owey confederation...
of the Aïr Mountains
Aïr Mountains
The Aïr Mountains is a triangular massif, located in northern Niger, within the Sahara desert...
in 1914 (Kaocen Revolt
Kaocen Revolt
The Kaocen Revolt was a Tuareg rebellion against French colonial rule of the area around the Aïr Mountains of northern Niger during 1916-17.-1916 rising:Ag Mohammed Wau Teguidda Kaocen was the Tuareg leader of the rising against the French...
) and the rising of Firhoun of Ikazkazan in 1911, who reappeared in Mali in 1916. In fact the nomadic Tuareg confederations have come into sporadic conflict with the sedentary communities of the region ever since they migrated from the Maghreb
Maghreb
The Maghreb is the region of Northwest Africa, west of Egypt. It includes five countries: Morocco, Algeria, Tunisia, Libya, and Mauritania and the disputed territory of Western Sahara...
between the 7th and 14th centuries CE. Some (but not all) Tuareg wished for an independent Tuareg Nation to be formed when French Colonialism ended. This combined with dissatisfaction over the new governments led some Tuareg in Northern Mali to rebel in 1963. This rebellion was short-lived as the military response of the new Malian government was swift and harsh.
Background
Tuareg people form a distinct minorityMinority group
A minority is a sociological group within a demographic. The demographic could be based on many factors from ethnicity, gender, wealth, power, etc. The term extends to numerous situations, and civilizations within history, despite the misnomer of minorities associated with a numerical statistic...
in all the Sahara
Sahara
The Sahara is the world's second largest desert, after Antarctica. At over , it covers most of Northern Africa, making it almost as large as Europe or the United States. The Sahara stretches from the Red Sea, including parts of the Mediterranean coasts, to the outskirts of the Atlantic Ocean...
n countries they inhabit and a majority in many Saharan regions. In many cases, the Tuareg have been marginalised by governments based in the Sahel
Sahel
The Sahel is the ecoclimatic and biogeographic zone of transition between the Sahara desert in the North and the Sudanian Savannas in the south.It stretches across the North African continent between the Atlantic Ocean and the Red Sea....
or on the Mediterranean coast. Desertification
Desertification
Desertification is the degradation of land in drylands. Caused by a variety of factors, such as climate change and human activities, desertification is one of the most significant global environmental problems.-Definitions:...
and drought
Drought
A drought is an extended period of months or years when a region notes a deficiency in its water supply. Generally, this occurs when a region receives consistently below average precipitation. It can have a substantial impact on the ecosystem and agriculture of the affected region...
s in 1972–74 and 84–85 killed livestock
Livestock
Livestock refers to one or more domesticated animals raised in an agricultural setting to produce commodities such as food, fiber and labor. The term "livestock" as used in this article does not include poultry or farmed fish; however the inclusion of these, especially poultry, within the meaning...
and forced the alteration of traditional migration routes, increasing conflict between neighboring groups. Aid from national governments was often unforthcoming, and many sided against the Tuareg–one notable exception being Libya. In both Mali and Niger large numbers of Tuareg nomads fled to refugee camps in Algeria and Libya. There, militants who blamed their respective national governments for failing to aid communities in need began to co-mingle and form the future rebel groups.
Both Mali and Niger, unable to cope economically with famine, and plagued by weak, authoritarian governments, faced dissent in all communities. In Mali, President Moussa Traoré
Moussa Traoré
General Moussa Traoré is a Malian soldier and politician. As a Lieutenant, he led the military ouster of President Modibo Keïta in 1968. Thereafter he served as Head of State from 1968-1979, and President of Mali from 1979 to 1991, when he was overthrown by popular protests and military coup...
, a former military leader who had come to power in a 1968 military coup, was facing growing pressure over poverty, International Monetary Fund
International Monetary Fund
The International Monetary Fund is an organization of 187 countries, working to foster global monetary cooperation, secure financial stability, facilitate international trade, promote high employment and sustainable economic growth, and reduce poverty around the world...
restrictions on government spending, drought, and 20 years of one-party rule. On 22 March 1991 he was overthrown in another military coup.
In Niger, president Ali Saïbou
Ali Saibou
Ali Saibou was the third President of Niger from 1987 to 1993 succeeding the deceased Seyni Kountché.A member of the Djerma people, he was born in Dingajibanda, a village in the Ouallam arrondissement. Although from Kountché's home village, Saibou is not a cousin...
, the unelected military successor to 1974 coup leader General Seyni Kountché
Seyni Kountché
Seyni Kountché was a Nigerien military officer who led a 1974 coup d'état that deposed the government of Niger's first president, Hamani Diori. He ruled the country as military head of state from 1974 to 1987...
, was facing similar problems. On 9 February 1990 police suppression of a peaceful student march at Niamey
Niamey
-Population:While Niamey's population has grown steadily since independence, the droughts of the early 1970s and 1980s, along with the economic crisis of the early 1980s, have propelled an exodus of rural inhabitants to Niger's largest city...
's Kennedy Bridge
Kennedy Bridge (Niamey)
The Kennedy Bridge is the main crossing for the Niger River in Niamey, Niger. It was built in 1970, and named for United States President John F. Kennedy. Its construction enabled Niamey to expand onto the right bank of the river to the west...
killed at least three people. Ongoing student and labor protests began to target the government and army throughout the country.
Niger, 1985-1990
In Niger's far north, drought, economic crisis, and the central government's political weakness came to a head in 1985. That year, a number of Tuareg in Libya formed a political opposition group called the Popular Front for the Liberation of Niger (FPLN). An armed attack by FPLN members in Tchin-Tabaradene sparked the closing of the borders with Libya and Algeria, and the resettlement of thousands of Tuareg and other nomads away from the area. As economic and political conditions worsened, grievances grew. When aid promised by Ali SaïbouAli Saibou
Ali Saibou was the third President of Niger from 1987 to 1993 succeeding the deceased Seyni Kountché.A member of the Djerma people, he was born in Dingajibanda, a village in the Ouallam arrondissement. Although from Kountché's home village, Saibou is not a cousin...
's government to Tuareg returning from Algeria
Algeria
Algeria , officially the People's Democratic Republic of Algeria , also formally referred to as the Democratic and Popular Republic of Algeria, is a country in the Maghreb region of Northwest Africa with Algiers as its capital.In terms of land area, it is the largest country in Africa and the Arab...
failed to materialise, some Tuareg attacked a police station in Tchin-Tabaradene in May 1990, leading to the death of 31, including 25 of the attackers. Initially the rebel's main demand was for the right for their children to learn Tamashek at school, but this soon escalated to a demand for autonomy. Later in May 1990, the Nigerien Military
Military of Niger
The Niger Armed Forces comprises both the military and national police services of the West African nation of Niger, totaling around 12,000 active personnel and 5,000 reservists...
responded by arresting, torturing, and killing several hundred Tuareg civilians in Tchin-Tabaradene, Gharo
Gharo
Gharo is a city in Thatta District, Sindh, Pakistan. The Gharo Wind Power Plant is being built in Gharo.It has large bazar for shopping of local commnunities...
and In-Gall
In-Gall
In-Gall is a town in the Agadez Region, Tchirozerine Department of northeast Niger, with a year-round population of less than 500...
. This became known as the Tchin-Tabaradene massacre. Tuareg outrage sparked the creation of two armed insurgent groups: the Front for the Liberation of Aïr and Azaouak and the Front for the Liberation of Tamoust.
Mali Civil War, 1990-1996
In Mali, the rising began in 1990 when Tuareg separatists attacked government buildings around GaoGao
Gao is a town in eastern Mali on the River Niger lying ESE of Timbuktu. Situated on the left bank of the river at the junction with the Tilemsi valley, it is the capital of the Gao Region and had a population of 86,663 in 2009....
in Mali. The Malian Army
Military of Mali
Mali's armed forces are the Army, Air Force, Gendarmerie, Republican Guard, National Guard, and National Police . They number some 7,000 and are under the control of the Minister of Armed Forces and Veterans. The IISS Military Balance 2009 lists an Army of 7,350, Air Force of 400, and Navy of 50...
's reprisals led to a full-blown rebellion in which the absence of opportunities for Tuareg in the army was a major complaint. The conflict died down after Alpha Konaré formed a new government and made reparations in 1992. Also, Mali created a new self-governing region, the Kidal Region
Kidal Region
Kidal is the eighth administrative region of Mali, covering 151,430 km². Its capital is the city of Kidal.-Geography:The region is bordered on the west by Tomboctou Region, to the south by Gao Region, to the east by Niger and to the north by Algeria....
, and provided for greater Tuareg integration into Malian society.
In 1994, Tuareg, reputed to have been trained and armed by Libya, attacked Gao, which again led to major Malian Army reprisals and to the creation of the Ghanda Koi Songhai militia to combat the Tuareg. Mali effectively fell into civil war
Civil war
A civil war is a war between organized groups within the same nation state or republic, or, less commonly, between two countries created from a formerly-united nation state....
.
Weapons were ceremonially burnt in 1996 in Timbuktu
Timbuktu
Timbuktu , formerly also spelled Timbuctoo, is a town in the West African nation of Mali situated north of the River Niger on the southern edge of the Sahara Desert. The town is the capital of the Timbuktu Region, one of the eight administrative regions of Mali...
as a symbolic conclusion to the conflict. Aid has since been given to the Tuareg areas of the country and separatism has declined. The situation, however, remained tense with fears that the conflict would be renewed.
1996-2007
Malian Tuareg insurgents have taken part in a long series of peace processes. The 1995 peace deals which ended the First Tuareg Rebellion promised the repatriation of Tuareg communities forced into resettlement camps in the south of the country and opportunities for Malian Tuaregs to join the central government in Bamako. Unlike the Niger ex-combatants who appeared successfully integrated into national life, small numbers of Malian Tuaregs remained restive, complaining of the Kidal region's poverty, some involved in cross-border smuggling and crime, while a splinter faction of the Tuareg ex-combatants rose in 2006. The MaliMali
Mali , officially the Republic of Mali , is a landlocked country in Western Africa. Mali borders Algeria on the north, Niger on the east, Burkina Faso and the Côte d'Ivoire on the south, Guinea on the south-west, and Senegal and Mauritania on the west. Its size is just over 1,240,000 km² with...
-based Tuareg group May 23, 2006 Democratic Alliance for Change
May 23, 2006 Democratic Alliance for Change
The May 23, 2006 Democratic Alliance for Change is a Malian Tuareg rebel group, formed in 2006 by ex-combatants from the 1990s Tuareg insurgency in Mali. In 2007, splinters of the organisation returned to combat in northern Mali, launching the Malian element of the 2007 Tuareg insurgency...
(Mai 23, 2006 Alliance démocratique pour le changement - ADC), led a short, sporadic campaign in the north of Mali from May to July 2006, when they signed another peace deal with the Bamako
Bamako
Bamako is the capital of Mali and its largest city with a population of 1.8 million . Currently, it is estimated to be the fastest growing city in Africa and sixth fastest in the world...
government. After renewing the ceasefire, these forces apparently splintered further in 2007.
1990 to 1995 peace accord
In Niger, sporadic fighting in the Aïr MountainsAïr Mountains
The Aïr Mountains is a triangular massif, located in northern Niger, within the Sahara desert...
of the far north continued from 1990. The tourist center of Agadez
Agadez
-Sources:* Aboubacar Adamou. "Agadez et sa région. Contribution à l'étude du Sahel et du Sahara nigériens", Études nigériennes, n°44, , 358 p.* Julien Brachet. Migrations transsahariennes. Vers un désert cosmopolite et morcelé . Paris: Le Croquant, , 324 p. ISBN : 978-2-91496865-2.*. Saudi Aaramco...
, the uranium mining town of Arlit
Arlit
Arlit is an industrial town and capital of the Arlit Department of the Agadez Region of northern-central Niger, built between the Sahara desert and the eastern edge of the Aïr mountains. It is 200 km south by road from the border with Algeria...
(largely exploited by the French multinational Areva
Areva
AREVA is a French public multinational industrial conglomerate headquartered in the Tour Areva in Courbevoie, Paris. AREVA is mainly known for nuclear power; it also has interests in other energy projects. It was created on 3 September 2001, by the merger of Framatome , Cogema and...
), and the traditional Tuareg trade town of In-Gall
In-Gall
In-Gall is a town in the Agadez Region, Tchirozerine Department of northeast Niger, with a year-round population of less than 500...
were evacuated of foreigners and armed by the Nigerien Army
Military of Niger
The Niger Armed Forces comprises both the military and national police services of the West African nation of Niger, totaling around 12,000 active personnel and 5,000 reservists...
. Attacks were few, the response was ineffective, but great economic damage was done, rendering the Agadez Department largely off-limits to outsiders.
The two main rebel groups in Niger agreed to a truce in 1994, just as war flared up again in Mali. The Niger based groups formed two umbrella organisations called the Organisation of Armed Resistance (Organization de Resistance Armee, ORA), and the Coordinated Armed resistance (Coordinasion de Resistance Armee, CRA), and continued a series of negotiations with the government, punctuated by fighting on both sides. The CRA signed an October 1994 accord, but by 1995 was in conflict with the government again. The ORA then negotiated an April 1995 Peace Accord, rejected by the CRA Mano Dayak, the CRA negotiator and who leader of Tuareg rebels in the Tenere
Ténéré
The Ténéré is a desert region in the south central Sahara. It comprises a vast plain of sand stretching from northeastern Niger into western Chad, occupying an area of over...
region died in a suspicious plane crash in 1995, on his way to meet government officials.
Finally, the government reached peace accords on 15 April 1995 with all Tuareg (and some Toubou
Toubou
The Tubu are an ethnic group that live mainly in northern Chad, but also in Libya, Niger and Sudan....
) rebel groups, negotiated in Ouagadougou
Ouagadougou
Ouagadougou is the capital of Burkina Faso and the administrative, communications, cultural and economic center of the nation. It is also the country's largest city, with a population of 1,475,223 . The city's name is often shortened to Ouaga. The inhabitants are called ouagalais...
. These "Ouagadougou Accords" marked the end of most fighting, with the last armed group signing up in 1998. Since the late 1990s, the Tuareg have claimed they lacked attention and resources from the central government. The government agreed to absorb some former rebels into the military and, with French assistance, help others return to a productive civilian life. Controversy has continued to revolve around Tuareg leaders brought into government, with the arrest of the Minister of Tourism Rhissa ag Boula
Rhissa Ag Boula
Rhissa Ag Boula is a Nigerien Tuareg politician and former leader of rebel factions in both the 1990–1995 and the 2007–2009 Tuareg based Insurgencies. He was Nigerien Minister of Tourism from 1996-1999, and again from 1999-2004. His arrest on murder charges in 2004 precipitated armed conflict...
in 2004 and his July 2005 pardon, on suspicion of involvement in a political murder. Niger's Tuaregs continue to watch closely the development and economic activities of the government, especially in regards the Aïr Mountains
Aïr Mountains
The Aïr Mountains is a triangular massif, located in northern Niger, within the Sahara desert...
' burgeoning tourist trade, and Arlit's recovering uranium
Uranium
Uranium is a silvery-white metallic chemical element in the actinide series of the periodic table, with atomic number 92. It is assigned the chemical symbol U. A uranium atom has 92 protons and 92 electrons, of which 6 are valence electrons...
industry.
An uneasy peace: 1995-2007
In the early first decade of the 21st century, sporadic attacks continued to be claimed by Tuareg groups and the Toubou Revolutionary Armed Forces of the SaharaRevolutionary Armed Forces of the Sahara
Revolutionary Armed Forces of the Sahara is a Toubou militant group in Niger, presumably of separatist intentions, who kidnapped two Italian tourists in August 2006. Boubakar Mohamed Sogoma, ethnically Toubou, is a commander of FARS in 2008.- External links :...
, but press accounts suggested these have little support in the larger community. Whatever the feelings of the broader Tuareg community in Niger, 2007 saw a complete break in relations between ex-combatants and the government. A unified force of ex-combatants began attacks against the government and mining interests in the north and repudiated the 1995 accords. This marks the beginning of the Second Tuareg Rebellion.
The Niger Movement for Justice
Niger Movement for Justice
The Nigerien's Movement for Justice is a largely Tuareg ethnic, northern Niger based militant group...
(Mouvement des Nigériens pour la justice, MNJ) is apparently led by Aghaly ag Alambo, a former member of the Front de libération de l’Aïr et de l’Azawagh (FLAA), and Mohamed Acharif, a former captain in the Nigerien Armed Forces
Military of Niger
The Niger Armed Forces comprises both the military and national police services of the West African nation of Niger, totaling around 12,000 active personnel and 5,000 reservists...
who defected to the rebels in May 2007.
Little information on the motivation or the make-up of the Niger-based rebels was publicly available by the summer of 2007 outside of statements by the MNJ and the Nigerien government. The government of Niger claimed these attacks were the work of small scale "bandits" and drug-trafficking gangs, and has also suggested "foreign interests" (or Areva, specifically) were funding the rebel forces. Three newspapers in Niger which speculated that Libya might be behind the rebel group were threatened with legal action by the Libyan government. On the other hand, the MNJ statements portray their movement as Niger-wide (as opposed to Tuareg nationalism) and limited to the demand for economic, political and environmental reforms.
Niger rebels say their government has failed to honor the 1995 peace deal, which ended the First Tuareg Rebellion and promised them a bigger share of the region's mineral wealth. Nigerien Tuareg leaders and some Non Government Organizations have claimed the violence of February 2007 was the culmination of widespread disaffection amongst Tuareg ex-combatants with the slow progress of promised benefits, lack of functioning democratic institutions, and a perceived special status given to foreign mining interests and southern political leaders.
Malian Tuareg groups
Numerous rebel groups were active in Mali during the rebellion, including:- Arab Islamic Front of AzawadArab Islamic Front of AzawadArab Islamic Front of Azawad was a militant rebel group in northern Mali. It was headed by Zahabi Ould Sidi Mohamed....
(FIAA) - Popular Movement for the Liberation of AzawadPopular Movement for the Liberation of AzawadPopular Movement for the Liberation of Azawad , a Tuareg militant rebel group in northern Mali . Initially based amongst exiles in Algeria and, especially, Libya, MPLA launched an armed campaign in June 1990. This fed into the disturbances already underway in Mali, and started a civil war...
(MPLA or MPA) - Revolutionary Liberation Army of AzawadRevolutionary Liberation Army of AzawadRevolutionary Liberation Army of Azawad , a Tuareg militant rebel group in northern Mali. ARLA surged as a dissident group opposing the Tamanrasset Accords. In December 1991 ARLA joined the United Movements and Fronts of Azawad , which unitedly signed the National Pact peace treaty....
(ARLA) - Popular Liberation Front of AzawadPopular Liberation Front of AzawadThe Popular Liberation Front of Azawad was one of several militant rebel groups active during the Tuareg Rebellion in northern Mali from 1990 to 1995....
(FPLA) - National Liberation Front of Azawad (FNLA)
- The Autonomous Group of Timitrine
- The Autonomous Liberation Front of Azawad (FULA)
- The Patriotic Movement of Ganda Koye (MPGK)
Most of these groups united in 1991 to form the United Movements and Fronts of Azawad (MFUA).
Nigerien Tuareg groups
Rebel groups in Niger included:- Front for the Liberation of Aïr and Azaouak (FLAA)
- Front for the Liberation of Tamoust (FLT), led by Mano DayakMano DayakMano Dayak was a Tuareg freedom fighter, leader, and negotiator. He led the Tuareg Rebellion in Ténéré region, northern Niger during the 1990s. He was born in Tiden valley in the Aïr mountains in 1949...
For Niger
- Bram Posthumus. Niger: A Long History, a Brief Conflict, an Open Future, in Searching for Peace in Africa, European Centre for Conflict Prevention (1999). ISBN 90-5727-033-1
- Samuel Decalo. Historical Dictionary of Niger. Scarecrow Press, London and New Jersey (1979). ISBN 0810812290
- Jolijn Geels. Niger. Bradt London and Globe Pequot, New York (2006). ISBN 1841621528.
- Full text of the 15 April 1995 Niger peace accords (French). Accord établissant une paix définitive entre le Gouvernement de la République du Niger et l'Organisation de la Résistance Armée (O.R.A.).
Further reading
- Baz Lecocq (2004). Unemployed Intellectuals in the Sahara: The Teshumara Nationalist Movement and the Revolutions in Tuareg Society. International Review of Social History, 49 , pp 87–109
External links
- "'Tuareg rebels' leave Mali towns", BBCBBCThe British Broadcasting Corporation is a British public service broadcaster. Its headquarters is at Broadcasting House in the City of Westminster, London. It is the largest broadcaster in the world, with about 23,000 staff...
, 24 May 2006