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| UN peacekeepers arrive at the Niger Battalion Base in Ansongo, in eastern Mali, on Feb. 25, 2015. (Marco Dormino/United Nations via AP) |
OTTAWA -- The Liberal government has unveiled Canada's 12-month UN peacekeeping commitment to the west African country of Mali. It includes two Chinook helicopters to provide medical evacuations and logistical support, along with four smaller, armed Griffons to act as escorts for the larger transports. Here are five things to know about Mali and the mission.
1. Lots of Canadian aid dollars. Mali has relied heavily on Canadian foreign aid, with only the United States and France contributing more. In 2014-15, Canadian development spending reached $152 million. Since 2012, Canada has also contributed $44 million in humanitarian aid following the country's 2012 crisis (more on that below) and about $10 million to support the UN peacekeeping mission, making Canada its ninth-largest supporter.
2. The 2012 crisis. It started when soldiers overthrew the country's president, creating a power vacuum that was filled by an Islamic insurgency. The fall of Libya in 2011 busted the locks off Moammar Gadhafi's arsenal, spreading weapons across north Africa, which armed various militia groups, including al-Qaida linked organizations. France led a war in 2013 that succeeded in driving the jihadists out of the stronghold they established in northern Mali. A UN peacekeeping force was established that year, and it has become its most dangerous mission with more than 160 fatalities.
3. Canada's drop in the peacekeeping bucket. Canada's contribution of 250 personnel is far less than many of its allies. The UN mission comprises more than 13,000 troops. Germany, the country whose air support operations Canada will be replacing, has authorized the deployment of more than 1,000 troops. In addition to the UN mission, Germany has contributed 350 troops to a training mission for Mali's military. France has 4,000 troops deployed to a counter-terrorism mission in northern Mali separate from the UN's peacekeeping efforts. "This announcement is a small but important step towards Canada's re-engagement in peacekeeping," said peacekeeping expert Walter Dorn of the Canadian Forces College in Toronto, noting that Canada's contribution to peacekeeping has hit an "all-time low" of a couple of dozen.
4. The political peace process. In June 2015, a peace agreement was signed between the Malian government, Tuareg rebels and other rebel groups. The Tuareg first sparked the 2012 rebellion, but that was soon hijacked by the better-armed jihadists. Those jihadists are outside the peace process. Gen. Jonathan Vance, Canada's chief of the defence staff, said "there is a prospect of a brighter future for Mali" but that "the basic deconstruction of Libya and the rise of terror groups, terror armies" has to be addressed.
5. The human rights situation. The UN's latest report on the human rights situation, tabled last month, offers a grim update of the situation in Mali. Between January 2016 and June 2017, it documented 608 cases of human rights violations involving almost 1,500 victims. These occurred across the country, including Gao, where the Canadian air contingent is expected to be based, and further north in Timbuktu. The perpetrators include signatories to the peace process and "non-signatory and splinter armed groups." The vast majority of the victims are men. The abuse included illegal detention, torture, extrajudicial executions, recruitment of child soldiers and sexual violence.
Sources: Government of Canada, The United Nations, Deutsche Welle
1. Lots of Canadian aid dollars. Mali has relied heavily on Canadian foreign aid, with only the United States and France contributing more. In 2014-15, Canadian development spending reached $152 million. Since 2012, Canada has also contributed $44 million in humanitarian aid following the country's 2012 crisis (more on that below) and about $10 million to support the UN peacekeeping mission, making Canada its ninth-largest supporter.
2. The 2012 crisis. It started when soldiers overthrew the country's president, creating a power vacuum that was filled by an Islamic insurgency. The fall of Libya in 2011 busted the locks off Moammar Gadhafi's arsenal, spreading weapons across north Africa, which armed various militia groups, including al-Qaida linked organizations. France led a war in 2013 that succeeded in driving the jihadists out of the stronghold they established in northern Mali. A UN peacekeeping force was established that year, and it has become its most dangerous mission with more than 160 fatalities.
3. Canada's drop in the peacekeeping bucket. Canada's contribution of 250 personnel is far less than many of its allies. The UN mission comprises more than 13,000 troops. Germany, the country whose air support operations Canada will be replacing, has authorized the deployment of more than 1,000 troops. In addition to the UN mission, Germany has contributed 350 troops to a training mission for Mali's military. France has 4,000 troops deployed to a counter-terrorism mission in northern Mali separate from the UN's peacekeeping efforts. "This announcement is a small but important step towards Canada's re-engagement in peacekeeping," said peacekeeping expert Walter Dorn of the Canadian Forces College in Toronto, noting that Canada's contribution to peacekeeping has hit an "all-time low" of a couple of dozen.
4. The political peace process. In June 2015, a peace agreement was signed between the Malian government, Tuareg rebels and other rebel groups. The Tuareg first sparked the 2012 rebellion, but that was soon hijacked by the better-armed jihadists. Those jihadists are outside the peace process. Gen. Jonathan Vance, Canada's chief of the defence staff, said "there is a prospect of a brighter future for Mali" but that "the basic deconstruction of Libya and the rise of terror groups, terror armies" has to be addressed.
5. The human rights situation. The UN's latest report on the human rights situation, tabled last month, offers a grim update of the situation in Mali. Between January 2016 and June 2017, it documented 608 cases of human rights violations involving almost 1,500 victims. These occurred across the country, including Gao, where the Canadian air contingent is expected to be based, and further north in Timbuktu. The perpetrators include signatories to the peace process and "non-signatory and splinter armed groups." The vast majority of the victims are men. The abuse included illegal detention, torture, extrajudicial executions, recruitment of child soldiers and sexual violence.
Sources: Government of Canada, The United Nations, Deutsche Welle
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