Mali readmitted into African Union

African Union (A.U.) readmitted Mali after a meeting of the A.U. Peace and Security Council [AUPSC].

Why Mali’s membership was annulled? 

 Mali’s membership was suspended by the African Union after a coup in the country in March 2012 when a military junta seized power even as two thirds of Mali slipped into the control of a coalition of armed groups and organized gangs.

The military junta behind the power seize had claimed that the existing dispensation was unable to tackle the insurgents in the north.

 Since then, the junta has allowed for a transitional all-party government and has urged for pan-African assistance to re-establish control of its territory.

What is the stand of AUPSC?

The African Union Peace and Security Council (AUPSC)backed a comprehensive plan to stabilize Mali using an African-led international force to end the conflict, and to re-establish a democratic government by holding free and transparent elections in the first quarter of 2013.

What is the problem in Northern Mali?

 Northern Mali has continuously slipped into disorder since late 2011, when gangs involved in smuggling and drug trafficking struck up alliances with a variety of armed groups such asTuareg combatants, some from Libyan Army of the Qadhafi regime, al-Qaeda in the Islamic Maghreb (AQIM).

As per to A.U. reports, the hard-line Islamist groups, supported by drug traffickers, like the Movement for Oneness and Jihad in West Africa (MUJAO), appear to have dominance in the region.

§  The conflict has led to the displacement of hundreds of thousands of civilians.