A man reacts as he holds up a sign that reads "vote no in the referendum" during a march against the new constitution organized by the Association of Imams, in Bamako, on June 16, 2023. (PHOTO / AFP)

UNITED NATIONS - A Chinese envoy on Friday called on parties in Mali to resolve their differences through dialogue and create favorable conditions for Sunday's constitutional referendum.

The constitutional referendum is an important step for Mali to advance the transition process and maintain lasting stability. China welcomes the progress in Mali in drafting the constitution, preparing for the referendum, and building electoral institutions, said Zhang Jun, China's permanent representative to the United Nations.

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"We encourage all parties concerned in Mali to resolve differences through dialogue and create favorable conditions for the constitutional referendum," he told the Security Council.

Zhang Jun said the international community should give full recognition to Mali's efforts to curb the spread of terrorism, and step up efforts in funding, equipment, intelligence, and logistics to support Mali in strengthening capacity-building in its security sector

The constitutional referendum is an internal affair of Mali. The international community should respect Mali's sovereignty and ownership. China encourages relevant regional organizations to strengthen communication with the Malian government and play a constructive role in supporting Mali's political transition, he said.

Mali is at the forefront of counterterrorism in the Sahel and West Africa, and has made considerable efforts to curb the spread of terrorism. The international community should give full recognition to these efforts and step up efforts in funding, equipment, intelligence, and logistics to support Mali in strengthening capacity-building in its security sector, said Zhang.

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Without a doubt, human rights need to be protected in counterterrorism operations. But China has consistently opposed the politicization of human rights issues in counterterrorism. There should not be double standards on counterterrorism. More importantly, there is a need to avoid stigmatization of counterterrorism operations, which would only play into the hands of terrorist forces, he said.

The UN peacekeeping mission in Mali, known as MINUSMA, has been deployed for 10 years with a lot of investment. In June 2022, the Security Council adopted Resolution 2640, which requests an internal review of the mission to analyze new developments and optimize and streamline the mandate. 

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The current mandate of the mission expires at the end of this month. China hopes members of the council will fully listen to Mali's views and concerns, have constructive and responsible discussions on the future arrangements for the mission, and make decisions grounded in broad consensus.