Silence in the Sahel...

A tragedy is happening in Mali. Half a million displaced, ancient Sufi shrines destroyed and a ban on secular music being performed. What's causing this is al-Qaeda's attempt to impose sharia law in the north of the country. This is a new dimension to an old conflict.... It began around 50 years ago with the Mali's independence from French colonial administration. The new country was a combination of the Songhai, Ghana and Malian empires, and as a result, multitudes of different cultures. As with most post-colonial states, some groups couldn't accept nationhood under multiculturalism. 'The Tuaregs - a nomadic people located in over 10 African countries by way of the Sahara - were one of the dubious lot, and started a (hitherto now) unsuccessful bid for independence.

Buoyed by weapons Libyan weapons and a convenient coup southern Mali, their group 'Liberation of Azawad' or the 'NMLA'  took advantage of the chaos and declared independence of the North. Whilst regional and global actors continue to condemn this, no intervention has taken place - a weakened Mali government can't do it, and Ecowas has so far failed to get UN funding or permission to go in. Disastrously, in the midst of the confusion, Islamic fundamentalists have taken large swathes of the north. They immediately banned secular music and busied themselves destroying ancient heritage sites. Here is a video of Redi Tlhabi of Al Jazeera talking with some musicians about their experiences...

Why is fundamentalism taking such a grip on northern Africa now?! An incredible sounding 'Festival in the Desert' in Mali has had to be cancelled, meaning the artists will now have to perform in exile (festival-au-desert). The human rights abuses occurring are of course an abhorrent reality of all such conflicts, but the added tragedy is the destruction of culture and history. With heritage treasure-troves like Timbuktu, Mali is on of the 'Griot Nations' of the continent. Attacks on its traditional practices and arts are as such attacks on the collective African identity...