Lawyer and former Malian minister Mountaga Tall has been held for six months after being taken from his home during the night of May 2 to 3 by masked State Security agents, according to his former colleague Mamadou Ismaïla Konaté. Tall’s son, Cheick Mamadou Tall, was also abducted days later and remains in an unknown location, the account says. Neither has been presented in a legal proceeding, and the authorities have not disclosed their whereabouts.

Speaking to RFI, Konaté said the family is seeking verifiable proof that Tall is alive, access for his lawyers and an independent medical examination. He said the family must be told where Tall is and that any necessary medical care must be provided. Konaté also said the circumstances raise the question of enforced disappearance if state agents, or people acting with state consent, deny or conceal a person’s detention.

Konaté described Tall as a prominent lawyer and political figure who helped advance democracy in Mali and opposed what he saw as the uncertain and dangerous nature of the country’s open-ended military transition. He said he knew of no political activity or public opposition by Tall’s son, and characterized his detention as linked to his family relationship.

The family’s lawyers have appealed to Mali’s judiciary and the United Nations Committee on Enforced Disappearances, but, Konaté said, the authorities have provided no information. He criticized prosecutors for failing to respond and said official silence makes it harder for the family to understand the case and for the defense to act. “Silence does not erase the competence of the Justice system or the obligations of the state,” he said.

Konaté also addressed four other pro-democracy activists who had disappeared since May and were transferred on October 20 to an anti-cybercrime judicial unit. They are now officially facing charges including “undermining the credibility of the state.” While their families may be reassured that their whereabouts are known, Konaté argued that their transfer into judicial custody does not resolve concerns about how they were initially detained.

He called for Mountaga Tall and his son to be released immediately, saying they had not been charged with any offense and were being held unlawfully.

Sources: RFI.