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51-562: Bagayoko was born in Goundam , Tombouctou Region , Mali on July 19, 1937, as the son of Moussa Bagayoko and Mata Sadji Kossa, ethnic Bambara . He spent his childhood in Goundam, where his father served, later moving to Kayes and then Bamako with his family in the 1950s. Bagayoko attended a top military school in Kati . After graduating from the school at the rank of sergeant in 1958, Bagayoko fought in

102-436: A Malian politician and professor, called Bagayoko "short, but bursting with health, with confidence turning into arrogance" in an essay after meeting with Bagayoko in 1970. Bagayoko personally did not express remorse for his actions as head of security services, saying "You actually know that I did not steal anything. I did not do anything and I did not squander anything." I reflect on the certain fatality of my circumstances, on

153-410: A combat group led by First Lieutenant Moussa Camara was dispatched to Taoudenni. Upon Camara's arrival, his group immediately killed several prisoners, and everyone else's work was tightened. The prisoners were now forced to carry salt to Nyantao Camp, another half a kilometer away, for an extra hour. For three days, Bagayoko refused to do the work, and told Sungalo Samaka "Never tell my children I died on

204-542: A common sight in Malian classrooms. Bagayoko was nicknamed Django or more commonly Hawk , and he personally called his opponents salopards , French for bitch or whore. Under Bagayoko's rule, the Malian state increasingly became a police state, with prisons being uniquely tortuous. The students who protested were sent to work camps run by the military, where many died. Members of the Sudanese Union were left in prisons without

255-465: A funeral team including Diawara and Samaka was brought to inter Bagayoko's body. N'Die claimed the body had signs of torture, but Abdoulaye Maiga, who led the team, claimed there were no signs of strangulation. The prisoners were unable to buy him in a deep hole, so he was laid to rest in a hole under a pile of sand mixed with salt. A metal plaque was installed on the grave, which states "Ici repose Tiecoro Bagayoko 1937 - 26.8.83" During his time as head of

306-584: A generous gift of 47 kg of gold. In 1586 a small Saadian force of 200 musketeers again occupied Taghaza and the Tuareg moved to yet another site – probably Taoudeni . Finally, a new demand by Ahmad al-Mansur in 1589–90 was met with defiance by Askiya Ishak II . This provided the pretext for Ahmad al-Mansur to send an army of 4,000 mercenaries across the Sahara led by the Spaniard Judar Pasha . The defeat of

357-465: A large caravan that included 1,400 camels transporting slaves, gold, ivory, gum and ostrich feathers. At that date the ruins of houses constructed of salt bricks were still clearly visible. At Taghaza there are ruins of two different settlements, one on either side of the ancient salt lake (or sabkha ). They are separated by a distance of 3 km. The larger more westerly settlement extended over an area of approximately 400 m by 200 m. All

408-479: A political expulsion and was tortured to death in the mines prior to Bagayoko's arrival. Simultaneously, many of the 1969 putschists, including Sangare, were at the camps at the same time Bagayoko arrived. Sangare mentioned that while Bagayoko and the putschists did meet, the former was left to his own devices for the most part. Bagayoko occasionally complained about the work camp, equating the prisoners with "bandits and thieves", to which prison guards pointed out that he

459-568: A population of 16,253. The main ethnic groups are Songhay , Tuareg and Fulani . The town is located on the Tassakan channel which runs west along the southern edge of the town center, draining from the Niger River (between October and January when it is in flood) towards the nearby Lac Télé which is approximately 4 metres below the level of the Niger. The Niger river town of Diré lies 35 km to

510-418: A refutation by Traore, stated in 1990 that Bagayoko's statement was a myth. In 2007, Sungalo Samake, who witnessed the arrest of Keita, affirmed Bagayoko stating those words. Malian journalist Sauti Haidara later stated Bagayoko "turned out to be the only man who, without blinking an eye, dared to tell the creator of Mali's independence that he was no longer president." Bagayoko, as one of the leading members of

561-630: A return to civilian rule. When students from educational institutions in Bamako protested against the MCNL in 1979, Bagayoko sent paratroopers to arbitrarily beat and whip students in Bamako schools. At a protest at the Higher Normal School on Badalabugu Hill, Bagayoko herded all of the students onto the roof and stated the protesters would be "shaved dry with broken bottles at public expense." The student protests were quickly suppressed, and police officers became

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612-564: A town in the Draa valley as a warning and demonstration of Songhai power. In 1556-7 Sultan Muhammed al-Shaykh briefly occupied Taghaza and killed the Askia's representative. However the Tuareg shifted the production to another mine called Taghaza al-ghizlan (Taghaza of the gazelles). On his succession in 1578 Ahmad al-Mansur asked for the tax revenues from Taghaza but Askiya Dawud responded instead with

663-508: A trial, and many died there as well. The deserted Malian north became notorious for the work camps of Taoudenni and Taghaza . Along with the military camps at Kidal, the camps received new convicts every day. Samba Sangare , a plotter from the 1969 coup who later became a writer, called the torture under Bagayoko worthy of the Nazi Gestapo , illustrating the unique use of cutting prisoners by broken bottles and electric shocks. When prisoners in

714-473: Is an abandoned salt -mining centre located in a salt pan in the desert region of northern Mali . It was an important source of rock salt for West Africa up to the end of the 16th century when it was abandoned and replaced by the salt-pan at Taoudenni which lies 150 km (93 mi) to the southeast. Salt from the Taghaza mines formed an important part of the long distance trans-Saharan trade . The salt pan

765-410: Is for the living, since only they can suffer. For us non-believers, this is exactly the case, we think so. Death is an eternal world. Where is Divine justice seen in this? I am not a believer, but for believers it may be there. Contemporary accounts of Bagayoko are largely critical. Malian journalist Sauti Haidara called Bagayoko a key figure of the "military-fascist dictatorship." He also called Bagayoko

816-611: Is located 857 km (533 mi) south of Sijilmasa (in Morocco), 787 km (489 mi) north-northwest of Timbuktu (in Mali) and 731 km (454 mi) north-northeast of Oualata (in Mauritania). The Taghaza mines are first mentioned by name (as Taghara) in around 1275 by the geographer al Qazwini who spent most of his life in Iraq but obtained information from a traveller who had visited

867-620: Is possible these were the same mines. In 1352 the Moroccan traveller Ibn Battuta arrived in Taghaza after a 25-day journey from Sijilmasa on his way across the Sahara to Oualata to visit the Mali Empire . According to Ibn Battuta, there were no trees, only sand and the salt mines. Nobody lived in the village other than the Musafa slaves who dug for the salt and lived on dates imported from Sijilmasa and

918-684: The Algerian War on the side of the French, where he was awarded the French Army Rescue Cross. Bagayoko returned to Mali in 1960 following Malian independence. He was sent to study in the USSR, and became one of the first Malian pilots after graduating from a military aviation school. Bagayoko returned to Mali and participated in the creation of the Malian Air Force , and then completed an internship in

969-499: The Dar'a valley , camel meat and millet imported from the Sudan . The buildings were constructed from slabs of salt and roofed with camel skins. The salt was dug from the ground and cut into thick slabs, two of which were loaded onto each camel. The salt was taken south across the desert to Oualata and sold. The value of the salt was chiefly determined by the transport costs. Ibn Battuta mentions that

1020-594: The Sudan . He wrote that the town was situated south of the Maghreb near the ocean and that the ramparts, walls and roofs of the buildings were made of salt which was mined by slaves of the Masufa, a Berber tribe, and exported to the Sudan by a caravan that came once a year. A similar description had been given earlier by Al-Bakri in 1068 for the salt mines at a place that he called Tantatal, situated twenty days from Sijilmasa . It

1071-835: The Djoliba jersey. He also founded a band at the Motel of Bamako, called Les Ambassadeurs du Motel. However, he used his influence as head of the security services to expel other musicians and lead singers, along with push his band into the National Orchestra of Mali. Bagayoko was married in 1962 to Aïssata Keletigui Doumbia ^ His first two children, Moussa and Mama, were with her. He then married Tenimba Diallo in 1970, with whom he gave birth to Mata Sadji, Fatouma, Aissata, and Mohamed. In 1976, Bagayoko married Néné Bayaba Sy, with whom he had Caty Assetou, who became famous for supporting Modibo Sidibé 's 2011 election campaign. Pascal Baba Coulibaly,

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1122-678: The Keita government, members of the ruling Sudanese Union party, members of the Union of Malian Youth, trade union leaders, and rivals from the People's Militia. In August 1969, just a few months into his tenure, Bagayoko discovered a coup plot from Captain Dibi Silas Diarra, who planned to overthrow the MCNL and return Mali to civilian rule. The main opposition during Bagayoko's tenure were trade unionists and students, who shared pro-democratic views and desired

1173-476: The MCNL to stop presenting the idea of civilian rule. Bagayoko reiterated these ideas in a second meeting at the police headquarters in February 1978. On February 28, Bagayoko, Doukara, and Dembele were all arrested on charges of plotting a coup. Moussa Traore, on a radio broadcast, accused the "gang of three" of treason, disclosure of state secrets, slander, and speculation. Traore characterized Bagayoko with, "As for

1224-642: The Military Committee of National Liberation, I ask you to climb into this armored vehicle." became famous in Mali. During the trial of Diarra and thirty-two other conspirators on December 10–14, 1969, Bagayoko came to personally send off the first batch of prisoners to the newly opened hard labor camp in Taoudenni . Bagayoko shouted after the convicts "Goodbye, gentlemen, tourists!" (French: Au revoir messieurs les touristes!) Malian historian Bintou Sanankoua , relying on

1275-504: The Songhai in 1591 at the Battle of Tondibi led to the collapse of their empire. After the conquest Taghaza was abandoned and Taoudenni , situated 150 km (93 mi) to the southeast and thus nearer to Timbuktu, took its place as the region's key salt producer. In 1828 the French explorer René Caillié stopped at Taghaza on his journey across the Sahara from Timbuktu. He was travelling with

1326-544: The United States in 1965. Following the evacuation of French Air Force Base No. 162 in Bamako, the first squadron of the Malian Air Force was stationed at Seine, in what is now Modibo Keita International Airport . Together with Filifingam Sissoko, a fellow pilot, Bagayoko contacted Moussa Traoré and Yoro Diakité in planning the coup against Modibo Keita. Bagayoko and Sissoko brought the paratropper Sungalo Samake from

1377-436: The camp at Djicoroni into the plot and, on the night of November 19, 1968, led groups of paratroopers intended to establish zones of control at key areas in Bamako. Bagayoko led the capture of the People's Militia, and afterwards set off towards Koulikoro with Sissoko and Amadou Baba Diarra to arrest Keita. When the president's convoy was stopped at Massala, Bagayoko was the one who announced his capture. His words, "On behalf of

1428-482: The camps complained, guards allegedly stated that the bottle cuts and electric shocks were not the only way; they could be run over instead, as "accidents as very common." Those who did not serve long stints at Taoudenni were often intentionally humiliated by Bagayoko. Businessmen who interfered with Bagayoko's interests were sent to Taoudenni, where they were beaten, drowned, humiliated, had their heads shaved with random combs of hair left, and then returned home. Bagayoko

1479-532: The city of Gao on the Niger River 970 km (600 mi) across the Sahara. Al-Sadi in his Tarikh al-Sudan chronicles the efforts of the Moroccan rulers of the Saadi dynasty to wrestle control of the mines from the Songhai during the 16th century. In around 1540 the Saadian Sultan Ahmad al-Araj asked the Songhai leader Askia Ishaq I to cede the Taghaza mines. The Askia responded by sending men to raid

1530-465: The coup, became Director of National Security Services of the Military Committee for National Liberation , commanding the state security services and police. In a twist of irony, Bagayoko, who had previously reprimanded Keita for the massacre of opposition leaders, began his own crackdown on opposition leaders. Bagayoko's first actions when he took the post in 1969 were mass arrests of ministers from

1581-476: The cruel fate meted out to those who fight for great ideas. […] One must know how to die in order to have the honor of living according to such ethics. A military man, a politician - a candidate for the dead. He who killed will be killed (emphasis added by the author) […] I ask myself if I was not devoid of reason. I made a mountain out of a grain of sand. I chose the army, I did everything to come to power, and this power sentenced me to death. […] I often say that hell

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1632-515: The end of 1977, there were persistent rumors that Traore's idea of returning to civilian rule was controversial within the MCNL, and that the committee no longer held planned meetings. In January 1978, a leaflet titled "Mali, the government under the MCNL / An administration led by the Empress" was distributed throughout the country, criticizing Traore and his wife Miriam. The leadership of the Bamako police demanded an investigation from Bagayoko, who urged

1683-569: The fabled city prior to the Lt. Col's arrival on 10 January 1894. That day, after arresting his subordinate, Bonnier marched out towards Goundam with a small number African troops. They took the town 14 January, but on the way they had seized 500 sheep at a Tuareg encampment, and fought Tuareg raiders at nearby Tacoubao. In the early hours of 15 January, Tuareg warriors attacked Bonnier's camp, killing him, 11 officers, two French NCOs, 68 African Tirailleurs , and their interpreter. A rescue column, commanded by

1734-518: The former Lieutenant Colonel Bagayoko, in his case criticism seems useless, his machinations are known to everyone. He personified horror and slander ... [his] reign of abuse and terror has come to an end." Bagayoko's arrest led to a slew of arrests of those under him, including Mamadou Belko N'Die. All police chiefs were arrested and sent to the Djicoroni prison as well. On April 30, close relatives of Bagayoko were also sentenced to hard labor. The trial of

1785-448: The future Marshal of France Joseph Jacques Joffre , recaptured Goundam on 8 February and Timbuktu four days later. In the period following the Sahel droughts of the 1970s, and again following the 1990s Tuareg Rebellion , Goundam became a major relocation center for Tuareg and other refugees from the north of Mali. Many still remain around Goundam town. Among the landmarks in Goundam is

1836-470: The gang of three (consisting of Bagayoko, Kissima Doukara, and Karim Dembele ), and Traore's government over the political development of Mali. If the country were to hold elections, the only opposition would be the remains of the Sudanese Union. All of the parties banned under Keita, with the exception of the Regrouping Party, were Marxist , a position increasingly attractive to the Malian population. By

1887-479: The gang of three took place between October 18 and 21, 1978. Supporters of the group equated the trial to the gang of four in China. Bagayoko was sentenced to death, and demoted to second class soldier. Under pressure from France, his execution was postponed and he was instead sent to work in the labor camps at Taoudenni. The prison at Taoudenni was designed by Diakite and Bagayoko, and opened in 1969. Diakite had suffered

1938-493: The historic mud brick Goundam-Tokossel Mosque. The seasonal wetlands near Goundam are, due to desertification and a low annual rainfall of 150-200mm, one of the few opportunities local farmers have for food cultivation. The staple here is mostly rice. With highly variable year-to-year rain, the Goundam area has often an unpredictable extents of fertile lands around seasonally flooded river branches, ponds and lakes. Taghaza Taghaza ( Arabic : تاغزة ) (also Teghaza )

1989-442: The houses, except the mosque, were aligned in a northwest to southeast direction, perpendicular to the prevailing wind. The houses in the more easterly settlement were aligned in the same manner and occupied an area of 200 m by 180 m. The reason for the dual settlements is not known but could be connected with Taghaza's service both as a salt mine and as a stopping point on an important trans-Saharan trade route. Taghaza has

2040-468: The mines, 20 days journey from a source of food, meant that there was a risk of starvation. At the time of Leo's visit, Oualata was no longer an important terminus for the trans-Saharan trade and salt was instead taken south to Timbuktu. Like Ibn Battuta before him, Leo complained about the brackish well water. At some point Taghaza came under the control of the Songhai Empire which had its capital at

2091-509: The right-hand man of Traore, and a leading figure of the MCNL. However, Bagayoko is also seen as both the despot and the victim of a regime that did not respect human rights. Goundam Goundam is a commune and town in north central Mali , in the Tombouctou Region . It is the capital of Goundam Cercle , one of five subdivisions of the Region. In the 2009 census the commune had

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2142-509: The security services, Bagayoko was also head of the Djoliba Athletic Club . Mali was banned form inter-African matches for a year due to corruption between Bagayoko and Malian referees. Bagayoko was also accused of making each match a "symbolic confrontation between two ideologies", and for forcing senior employees in the security services in participating in football matches. As a prisoner, Bagayoko insisted on his cellmates burying him in

2193-520: The semi-nomadic Fula , Tuareg and Maure peoples. Goundam was a city of the Songhai Empire , fell to the Moroccan invasion in 1591, and was later seized by Tuareg confederations from the northeast and the Fula of the delta region. Most powerful of these Fula states was the Macina Empire , centered to the southwest. The Toucouleur Empire conquered the area in the mid 19th century, and the French captured

2244-545: The southeast, while Timbuktu is connected by highway 97 km to the east-northeast. Lac Fatil and Lac Oro lie to the southwest, near the Goundam Airport . Further north lies Lake Faguibine and to the south and west is the vast Niger inland delta , seasonal marshlands which feed the local lakes and rivers along this edge of the Sahara desert . The town has a long history as a center for Songhay farmers and Bozo fishing communities, as well as settled elements of

2295-476: The start of salt mining twelve kilometers from the camp. The prisoners woke up at 4:00 am, left at 4:30 am, and arrived at the mine at 6:30am. From 7:00 am to 6:00pm, the workers mined with only a half hour break. In 1983, Traore decided to execute the gang of three. Malian politician Amadou Tall suggested that the reason he waited so long was that the execution of Bagayoko only became possible after François Mitterrand became President of France. In mid-August 1983,

2346-564: The town in 1894. Goundam was the site of a major reverse in the French drive to Timbuktu, known at the time as the " Goundam Massacre ". In December 1893 French lieutenant colonel Eugène Bonnier took a small company of troops downriver from the French outpost at Segou to conquer Timbuktu on his own initiative. His advance guard, an even smaller force of two gunboats commanded by Lieutenant H. Gaston Boiteaux, went ahead, but contrary to their orders advanced to Timbuktu themselves, beating out Bonnier. Bonnier pursued him, finding Boiteaux had taken

2397-491: The value increased fourfold when transported between Oualata and the Malian capital. In spite of the meanness of the village, it was awash in Malian gold. Ibn Battuta did not enjoy his visit; he found the water brackish and the village full of flies. He goes on to say, "For all its squalor, qintars of qintars of gold dust are traded in Taghaza." The salt mines became known in Europe not long after Ibn Battuta's visit as Taghaza

2448-572: The way to get bricks." On the morning of August 19, 1983, two soldiers approached Bagayoko and told him Camara was summoning him. Bagayoko told his cellmate Belko N'Die about this and, assuming his imminent death, dressed in the uniform of Djoliba AC , which he had previously run. His last words, according to Belko N'Die, were "The good lord will meet me. He will tell me 'Since you were born, what good did you do?' He will kick me, 'Bang!', and I will go to heaven. If I die, then you don't need to pray for me, because I don't pray for myself." After his death,

2499-576: Was also accused of the death of Keita in May 1977. Rumors around Keita's death arose since it happened, and in 2007, former prison guard Sungalo Samaka accused the prison doctor Faran Samake of poisoning Keita. This was disputed by Faran's family (as he committed suicide after Bagayoko's arrest), which was never proven in court. Officials under Bagayoko occasionally told him that people felt terrorized by him. In response, he stated "I'm not evil. It's just that Malians are afraid of me." By 1977, tensions arose between

2550-434: Was not the first high-ranking official to be sent there. The gang of three and former Army Quartermaster-General Noun Diawara returned to Bamako in 1980 facing charges of embezzlement. They were convicted, and received another five years of hard labor. When returning to Taoudenni, the gang of three was under guard Njadi Ould Boyda. Boyda believed that the conditions Bagayoko created at the camp were too comfortable, and ordered

2601-456: Was shown on the Catalan Atlas of 1375 on the trans-Saharan trade route linking Sijilmasa and Timbuktu . Alvise Cadamosto learned in 1455 that Taghaza salt was taken to Timbuktu and then on to Mali . It was then carried "a great distance" to be bartered for gold. In around 1510 Leo Africanus spent 3 days in Taghaza. In his Descrittione dell’Africa he mentions that the location of

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