A prominent Malian Economist and professor, Étienne Fakaba Sissoko has been sentenced to two years in jail for his criticism of the military junta.
Recall the Malian military rulers came to power in August 2020 when then-President Ibrahim Boubacar Keïta was overthrown in a coup following huge anti-government protests over his handling of jihadist unrest.
Although one of the terms was suspended, Étienne Fakaba Sissoko was also ordered to pay a fine of 3m CFA francs ($4,900; £3,900).
The 41-year-old University of Bamako professor has been in custody since March.
He once served as an adviser to the late Keïta and spent several months in jail in 2022, the AFP news agency reported.
His lawyer, Ibrahim Marhouf Sacko, said he was “not surprised” by the verdict and would be filing an appeal, according to the AFP.
During his arraignment, Sissoko was charged with defamation and damaging the state’s reputation by distributing fake news.
The accusations relate to a book he published in 2023, which he defended in court, saying the work was based on fact.
In the work: Propaganda, Agitation and Harassment – government communication during the transition in Mali, the academic accuses the junta of using manipulation and “even lies” to sway public opinion in its favour.
Before his arrest, Sissoko also published a post on Facebook calling for elections to be held.
The sentencing is the latest case in a widespread crackdown on critics and political opponents of the military rulers, according to human rights groups.
Several junta critics have been jailed over the last year, including popular social media influencer Rokia Doumbia and prominent activist Adama Ben Diarra.
The junta also suspended political activities and imposed a media blackout on political coverage in April.
Who is Sissoko
He was advisor to the President of the Republic of Mali from 2016 to 2017 under the regime of President Ibrahim Boubacar Keïta, an economic analyst at the Prime Minister’s Office of the Republic of Mali, with the Permanent Secretariat of the Political Framework for Crisis Management of Central Mali from 2019 to 2021.
He holds a Master’s degree in Journalism and Communication from the Catholic University of West Africa and a graduate of the Pontifical Institute of Arab and Islamic Studies (PSAI) in Rome, and holder a Doctorate in International Economics, Macroeconomic Policy and Economic Conditions from the University of Paris-Nanterre. Since 2018. He has been professor of Economics at the Faculty of Economic and Management Sciences of Bamako (Fseg) and Director of the Center for Political, Economic and Social Research and Analysis of Mali (CRAPES ML).
Between 2014 and 2017, he was a political and economic analyst in the Political Affairs Division of the United Nations Multidimensional Integrated Stabilization Mission in Mali (MINUSMA).
The government will request and obtain its lineage from MINUSMA on the grounds that it participates in an “active and visible manner in political activities linked to the presidential elections of July 2018”.
