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Alpha Oumar Konaré, Interviewee 
David Applefield, Interviewer
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Malian President Alpha Oumar Konare |
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Frank: It´s for that reason that your battle against corruption is perceived by some, paradoxically, as a means of increasing poverty instead of the opposite. Konare: Of course. So when we arrest someone, people cry, "That person is good because he shares his money!" Even the notion of a good person has to be managed. Frank: Much of being a president is waging this war of perception. Konare: Absolutely. In our society like we have in Mali, as soon as you start arresting people you have two problems. If you arrest militants who are political opponents, people accuse you of targeting their party. If you arrest members of the majority party, people ask why they are chosen and why not others. The other obstacle is the fragility of the instruments of control. We inherited the tools of a single-party system that went bankrupt. Thus, the system of control is fragile. Justice is fragile. If a trial doesn´t occur quickly, people say there is no justice. When you arrest people and the courts release them provisionally, they may remain free for years. We don´t have enough competent judges that specialize in economic and financial law. Often it´s the same judge that handles all cases. The irony is that the public, the workers, know what´s going on better than the officials who are supposed to enforce the law. The people know. But when there is a lack of professionalism and the legal cases are incompetently prepared, the corrupt go free. Frank: This is where journalists, media people, and intellectuals play a key role. Konare: It´s necessary that journalists talk to the people, the public, and not rely on official versions of the truth. The people know who has what, who does what, the rules of the game. The role of an investigative press is very important. If the press refuses to be investigative, it becomes a fragile press because it can be easily manipulated. It becomes a press of sensationalism. Or it becomes an obstacle to the battle against corruption. If politicians give you money to write what they want, you´ve lost your credibility. So, the first challenge is to inform journalists, and encourage the press to police its own corps. There should be industry-wide guidelines that ensure the salaries and work conditions of journalists. There is no stability in the profession today; without security, journalists are vulnerable. Frank: With an average salary in Mali of 35,000 CFA ($50 US per month), it´s easy to be vulnerable. Another problem many journalists I´ve encountered complain of is a lack of access to information. Knowing your committment to greater freedom, what would you think of a presidential press conference every month open to all accredited journalists? At least no one could complain of lack of access to the country´s head of state. Thirty minutes a month... Konare: I like that idea. I´m going to try it. Frank: Due to your colonial history of West Africa, Mali is better known among the French than to others; however, the country is regrettably little known in much of the English-speaking world. What would you like the international community to know about your country? Konare: I´d like Mali to be thought of as a country of tolerance and peace. Malians are a people who want to live from the efforts of their work; they want to live by the expression of their solidarity with humility and, thirdly, a sense of responsibility. Mali lives by the conscience that with work, good management, and solidarity, there is no reason not to go far. Malians are convinced that there is no future without our African neighbors. You know today I´m president of the Confederation of West African States (CEAO). The region is six thousand kilometers large with 220 million inhabitants. In this area, we have everything. We have the best earth for producing food. We have land for raising livestock. We have two great rivers which provide an abundance of fish. We have rich fishing coasts. We have immense mineral and energy resources. Gas. Oil. Diamonds. Gold. Manganese. Bauxite. Uranium. Iron. We have a tremendous supply of fruits and vegetables. The appeal for tourism is fantastic. We have countries with a common history and social foundation. We have an immensity of human resources in West Africa. Do you understand the potential? All we´re missing is communication. If we think of ourselves as a region, instead of individual countries, we will exist. In a West African context, we can produce and we can sell. In a West African context, we can be industrialized nations because we have the market to support that. Mali could be producing a lot of rice and cereal but there must be money to invest in these sectors. There must be a local market. We hear "privatization, privatization!" but that often means liquidation. We are moving toward globalization, but if we cannot afford to be buyers as well as sellers, we are condemned. Our future is our regional strength. Frank: President Konare, your mandate runs only until 2002... Konare: In 2002 Mali will have a new president. It will no longer be me. After a smooth and free transition of power occurs, great possibilities are open for our democracy. But I must prepare the conditions for others who may think like me, who share the same values, can continue with what I can´t do. There are things I can do today that I may not be able to do later. I´m not tempted to stay on longer. No, what I can´t do, someone else will have to do. I must help that someone else to arrive on the scene and continue. What I want for Mali is to continue this huge effort to build a democracy, to create real choice. This is very important. Frank: The intellectual and political values you hold are clearly evidenced in your work, both as a writer and as a president. What has influenced you? Who are some of the writers and thinkers who have impacted you most? Konare: You know I read a lot. I read a bit of everything. In Malian and African literature there are a lot of writers I read for different reasons. But what strikes in the works of our national writers is their quality of solidarity. That´s what strikes me. And their acceptance of responsibility. The re-discovery of my country. To re-discover that we have the fortune of living on this earth--in our daily language and daily battles. You know for me it is a great fortune and a great honor to find myself as the spokesman of my country. 
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