http://current.com/community/94031507_criticism-grows-of-france-war-on-mali.htm
On January 11, France launched a war under the pretext of halting the advance of
fighters in Mali. Some political analysts believe that Mali’s abandoned
natural resources, including gold and uranium reserves, could be one of the
reasons behind the French war.
Tuesday, March 5, 2013
Quote from Sundiata: An Epic of Old Mali Quotes-Book
"I salute you all, sons of Mali, and I salute you, Kamandjan. I have come back, and as long as I breathe, Mali will never be in thrall – rather death than slavery. We will live free because our ancestors lived free."
Sundiata, p. 56
Sundiata adressed this to his newly assembled army before their final attack on Soumaoro. Sundiata is also accepting his role as the ruler of Mali in this speech. His willingness to hear and consider others a virtue helps him build alliances and maintain a peace in his rule.
Analysis credit to: gradesaver.com
Quote credit to: Sundiata: An Epic of Old Mali Quotes
French rule in Mali
Mali became a French colony in 1892 and was under an indirect rule until 1905 which shifted into a direct rule from France. In 1892 France appointted a civllian governor in Mali and the colony was called French Sudan. France had to shift into the direct rule in 1905 because there was to much resistance against France. Mali was a colony until they were able to agree with France on becoming fully independent on June 20, 1960.
Conflict in Mali
According to idsa.com (Institute for Defence Studies and Analyses), the conflict in Mali is between the forgein Islamist and ethnic rebel groups along with respective rebel and jihadist groups. The ethnic rebel groups are fighting for rights of Mali's minority Tuareg community.
Monday, March 4, 2013
Major Cultural Groups
The major cultural groups in this area are the Songhai Empire (Kingdom of Segou) which took advantage of a weakened Mali Empire to extend control over ever more
territory. The Kingdom of Kaarta which emerged as one of the most powerful empires after the Songhai Empire fell. The Kenedougou Kingdom, Maasina, Toucouleur Empire, and the Wassoulou Empire.
Mali's Background
Mali is the cultural heir to the succession of ancient African empires -- Ghana,
Malinke, and Songhai -- that occupied the West African savannah. These
empires controlled Saharan trade and were in touch with Mediterranean and Middle
Eastern centers of civilization.
The Ghana Empire, dominated by the Soninke people and centred in the area along the border of the modern states of Mali and Mauritanian, was a powerful trading state from about AD 700 to 1075.
The Malice Kingdom of Mali had its origins on the upper Niger River in the 11th century.
Expanding rapidly in the 13th century under the leadership of Sundiata Keita, it reached its height about 1325, when it conquered Timbuktu and Gao. From then on, the kingdom began to decline, and by the 15th century, it controlled only a small fraction of its former domain. The Songhai Empire expanded its power from its center in Gao during the period 1465-1530.
At its peak under Askia Mohammad I, it encompassed the Hausa states as far as Kano (in present-day Nigeria) and much of the territory that had belonged to the Mali Empire in the west. It was destroyed by a Moroccan invasion in 1591. French military penetration of the Sudan (the French name for the area) began around 1880. Ten years later, the French made a concerted effort to occupy the interior. The timing and method of their advances were determined by resident military governors. A French civilian governor of Sudan was appointed in 1893, but resistance to French control did not end until 1898, when the Malinké warrior Samory Touré was defeated after 7 years of war.
The French attempted to rule indirectly, but in many areas they disregarded traditional authorities and governed through appointed chiefs.
As the colony of French Sudan, Mali was administered with other French colonial territories as the Federation of French West Africa. In 1956, with the passing of France's Fundamental Law (Loi Cadre), the Territorial Assembly obtained extensive powers over internal affairs and was permitted to form a cabinet with executive authority over matters within the Assembly's competence.
The Ghana Empire, dominated by the Soninke people and centred in the area along the border of the modern states of Mali and Mauritanian, was a powerful trading state from about AD 700 to 1075.
The Malice Kingdom of Mali had its origins on the upper Niger River in the 11th century.
Expanding rapidly in the 13th century under the leadership of Sundiata Keita, it reached its height about 1325, when it conquered Timbuktu and Gao. From then on, the kingdom began to decline, and by the 15th century, it controlled only a small fraction of its former domain. The Songhai Empire expanded its power from its center in Gao during the period 1465-1530.
At its peak under Askia Mohammad I, it encompassed the Hausa states as far as Kano (in present-day Nigeria) and much of the territory that had belonged to the Mali Empire in the west. It was destroyed by a Moroccan invasion in 1591. French military penetration of the Sudan (the French name for the area) began around 1880. Ten years later, the French made a concerted effort to occupy the interior. The timing and method of their advances were determined by resident military governors. A French civilian governor of Sudan was appointed in 1893, but resistance to French control did not end until 1898, when the Malinké warrior Samory Touré was defeated after 7 years of war.
The French attempted to rule indirectly, but in many areas they disregarded traditional authorities and governed through appointed chiefs.
As the colony of French Sudan, Mali was administered with other French colonial territories as the Federation of French West Africa. In 1956, with the passing of France's Fundamental Law (Loi Cadre), the Territorial Assembly obtained extensive powers over internal affairs and was permitted to form a cabinet with executive authority over matters within the Assembly's competence.
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