While I was in Mali, South Africa went to the polls and elected Jacob Zuma as president. This was a very interesting election, as for the first time there was a viable "African" alternative party to the ANC --The Congress of the People, or COPE. Until this election, the parties were pretty segregated, with the ANC collecting over 75% of the vote, mostly from Black africans, while the Democratic Alliance was the most dominant "opposition" party, with around 10% of the vote nationally, mostly from white voters. Well, while COPE was not overwhelming, they did take enough votes away from the ANC so that for the first time, the ANC does not have a 2/3 majority in congress. So, for the first time, there is a viable opposition in South African politics, which most folks seem to think is a very positive development.
Elections in Mali
Well, though I missed the South African elections, I was in Mali for the final two weeks of campaigning for their local elections. Mali has recently implemented a decentralization plan, giving more decision-making authority and budget control to local elected officials. So, these elections were a big deal, and there was campaigning going on everywhere. Banners with the party symbols (the bee, the ram, the star, the shaking hands, etc), people wearing T-shirts, and even full-on "grande boubous" with the party symbols and pictures of the local candidate. Maria's husband Ibrahim was atively campaigning with the URD in Kati; and my friend Baba who is a high school teacher from Banamba, was on "the list" to become a councilmember with ADEMA in his home town. Every afternoon there was drumming and dancing, as one political party or the other would be out doing "la campagne." For each gig, you would have huge speakers blaring traditional music, rental chairs placed around a circle, and the obligatory shaded 
"famaw" or VIP seating area. Remember, 110 degrees! Then, little by little, the people would gather, and the dancing would start; usually featuring folks sporting the party colors (in this case, blue for PARENA). But, no Malian political campaign in Kati (a middle class suburb of the capital) would be complete without the obligatory 
plastic can full of ice water. This was all new for me. Having left Mali 22 years ago, in the days of the one-party military dictatorship, all this political campaigning was new. But, the ice water was also new. It was amazing watching these incredibly beautifully "bou-bou"'ed women meticulously unwrapping blocks of ice, and adding them to the big blue container. This ice water was then assiduously distributed to those who either danced their tushies off during the "warm-up," or the "famaw" (VIPs) who came up later on to give speeches of support. No doubt, most everyone getting the ice water at this event was wearing the blue/white of PARENA.
"famaw" or VIP seating area. Remember, 110 degrees! Then, little by little, the people would gather, and the dancing would start; usually featuring folks sporting the party colors (in this case, blue for PARENA). But, no Malian political campaign in Kati (a middle class suburb of the capital) would be complete without the obligatory 
plastic can full of ice water. This was all new for me. Having left Mali 22 years ago, in the days of the one-party military dictatorship, all this political campaigning was new. But, the ice water was also new. It was amazing watching these incredibly beautifully "bou-bou"'ed women meticulously unwrapping blocks of ice, and adding them to the big blue container. This ice water was then assiduously distributed to those who either danced their tushies off during the "warm-up," or the "famaw" (VIPs) who came up later on to give speeches of support. No doubt, most everyone getting the ice water at this event was wearing the blue/white of PARENA.La Campagne Comes to Genguan
One of the most amazing "birth of democracy" scenes that I witnessed took place in Genguan (see the post of XXXXX). I had gone out with Sambou and 3 of his sons, to visit his family's farming hamlet, 30 kms on pretty ugly dirt roads. It took us about 90 minutes to get there, where we ended up spending an incredibly peaceful afternoon. Believe me, I doubt that they see
one or two cars/trucks passing there a week. But on this day, not only did I show up with Sambou in our pick-up, but a couple hours later, we heard engine sounds in the distance. Sure enough, la campagne had arrived in Genguan. ADEMA (Association pour la DEmocracy MAlienne) had arrived!
One of the most amazing "birth of democracy" scenes that I witnessed took place in Genguan (see the post of XXXXX). I had gone out with Sambou and 3 of his sons, to visit his family's farming hamlet, 30 kms on pretty ugly dirt roads. It took us about 90 minutes to get there, where we ended up spending an incredibly peaceful afternoon. Believe me, I doubt that they see
one or two cars/trucks passing there a week. But on this day, not only did I show up with Sambou in our pick-up, but a couple hours later, we heard engine sounds in the distance. Sure enough, la campagne had arrived in Genguan. ADEMA (Association pour la DEmocracy MAlienne) had arrived!Coming up from Bamako, I had brought my friend Baba, who is a high school teacher at one of the best schools in Bamako, and runs his own private school, Ecole Sirido Baba. He told me he was happy to come to Banamba with me, but little did I know that as soon as we arrrived, he was to be swept up by his political buddies, and off he sped in his pick-up for some unkown bougou (village). Baba's home town, Sirido, is not far from Sambou's homestead. So Baba (standing up in front of the truck wearing the sport coat), was an important man in the area. The families in the area all know Baba, and know that he is a person of integrity. So, if Baba supports ADEMA, then they will too!
When the truck pulled up, a ragged bunch of about 10 ADEMA campaigners got out, led by Baba. It was 2pm, and this was their 10th stop of the day, going from rural hamlet to hamlet, spreading the good ADEMA word. It was incredibly hot, and believe me, there was no ice water on this campaign stop! In fact, there was no electricity within probably 30 kms, so no chance for raucus campaign music either! After they piled out of the car, they came up respectfully to the "che koroba" (head of the family), greeted the family, and were offered food and water by the mamas. After a quick few handfulls of "toe" (millet poridge), they said thanks and shared some blessings for the family. Then, they went into their campaign spiel, telling the family of the benefits of voting for ADEMA.
It was all pretty straightforward, since Baba was the man with credibility, and Baba was with ADEMA. So, after listening to the perfunctory promises, the "che-koroba" eventually nodded his approval, and said that he would encourage all of his extended family members to support ADEMA. (And in this land of patriarchal authority, that means all the votes from the village were just locked up! I guess the "che-koroba" was the kind of person that the Democratic party would have called "a bundler.") The ADEMA folks then gave him one of their red&white posters, and asked him to put it up on the wall of his mud hut, just so that everyone who goes by (yes, ALL the traffic on the donkey-cart path between Tourourkoro and Genguan...) will know that they are an ADEMA bougou (village). The "che koroba" held the poster admiringly, handed it to his first wife, with pride, who also looked admiringly and proudly at the poster, and said, "we'll definitely put this up on our wall, so everyone can see that we are ADEMA-people!" At this point, Meme, the 8th grade son of the che- koroba, subtly came over to his mother and gently took the poster from her hands, turning it right-side-up, and then giving it back to her. Clearly, Meme was the only one of the twenty-some family members who could have noticed that everybody had been admiring the poster upside-down! Yes, the birth of democracy in a land of strong patriarchal authority, with a very low level of literacy, is a slow process indeed.Election Day
Sunday April 26 was election day. I got to join the Diarra-Keita family in Kati on their trip to the voting station at the local elementary school. Everyone got dressed up, almost as if going to a social event. We first ran into Maria's son Sam, who proudly showed us his purple-dyed finger, sure sign that he had done his civic duty and voted. Then, at the voting station we found hundreds of people milling about, some having just voted, others about to vote, and still others making tea for the dozens of folks who were "witnesses" at each polling station. In each classroom there was one voting booth, where the voters hid themselves to mark the ballot. Then,
in the center of the room was a plastic box, where the voter would put his ballot. And next to the box, with their eyes peeled, were a group of 6-8 people, all watching the ballot box to make sure that nothing fishy took place. It was quite an amazing site. No "hanging chad" problems. No electronic computer malfunctions to worry about. Just enough eyes on the box, making sure that each person only put one ballot in! (And oh yes, the all important "inker," who made sure that immediately after putting the box in the ballot, the person who have their finger inked! (Clearly, this was not like Chicago. No voting "early and often" here!).Toward the end of the day, mini-bus taxi cabs were cruising all over the backstreets, picking up people who had yet to vote, and helping them get to the voting stations. Surely, these taxis are being paid for by the parties in power, a slight variation on the "vote early and often theme." the taxis kept buzzing till 6:05, when a loud siren went off, signifying that the voting period had officially ended. Later that evening, I saw a very strange parade of sorts in Kati. Each ballot box was being carried back to City Hall, surrounded by an entourage of a dozen "body guards" of sorts. It was a rather incredible sight to see: the future of Malian democracy in the hands of so many people...
And the Results are...
Well, it is now over 2 weeks since election day in Mali. And you probably didn't hear it on CNN, but, Ibrahim's party did not win in Kati. So, Ibrahim's dream of being mayor are put on hold for a few years. But, Baba's party ADEMA swept the region of Banamba, including all the tiny farming hamlets of Madina Sacko, Boron, and Touba. So, Baba is now officially a member of the "commun council," and will get to participate in the development decisions of the region. He was one proud guy! I gave him enough money to buy himself a new suit!
It was a pretty amazing event to see such a traditional society, with such low levels of technology, struggle with this thing called "democracy," and the principle of "one person, one vote." In a place of such strong traditional patriarchal authority, where not everyone feels like they are worthy of having an opinion about public affairs, this is an amazing transformation that is just beginning to take place. Quite the change from 22 years ago, when the ballot was either "yes" or "no" for the military party in power, and somehow, 99.8% of the votes cast were "YES." Democracy: the newest game in town!
Blog ya later.
Seth./.
