Thank you for the kind words you addressed to my country, my people and myself.
As for the ongoing dialogue, I have brought you the road map, which you can keep. Perhaps it could be photocopied and distributed to all members.
In northern Mali, or even in Mali's history, there was no issue between white people and black people. We were totally united. Historically speaking, that is the land of civilization, as its said in Africa. All races were welcome. We have lived together until recently. We were marrying Tuaregs. Some women were married to black people from the south, and Malian women from the south were married to Tuaregs from the north. That was never an issue.
Mali has agreed to hold a dialogue with the Tuaregs—or the rebels. They actually represent a small minority. As the Nigerian president said the other day in his speech on the RFI, the MNLA does not represent all Malian Tuaregs; it represents only a minority. The dialogue has already begun.
The Malian government said it would have a dialogue with anyone who does not have blood on their hands, who has not committed murder. In Aguelhoc, the throats of about one hundred soldiers were cut while their hands were tied behind their back. The case has been referred to the International Criminal Court. The government wants to hold a dialogue with anyone who is not part of that group.
I read to you part of my president's speech, but I can now discuss it further. Anyone whose hands are not bloodstained will be welcome to participate in that dialogue.
As for those cases, they have already been referred. That is now out of Mali's hands. The International Criminal Court will now rule on that. That is no longer in our hands. We have passed on the cases involving people who have cut throats or killed people, raped nine-year-old girls, whipped people, committed extortions or disabled young people forever. Those cases will be referred to the International Criminal Court.
The dialogue is open to the rest of northerners whose hands are not bloodstained, who were with us, who were Mali's prime ministers or ministers. There have been many Tuareg ministers and presidents of associations who have always benefited from positive discrimination. In Mali, people have to go through a competition to become members of the public service. Tuaregs can join the public service where they wish. They look for services that suit them, advantageous services where they can make money. They choose where they want to go, and that is where they are sent.
If they are lieutenants in the rebellion, they enter the Malian army with the same rank, without any training or anything like that. The Malian government has accepted all this.
They have been ambassadors. I have a friend, who is now part of the rebellion, who was a government minister in the past, while I was a simple analyst in charge of records within foreign affairs. She was already a government minister. She was neither more highly educated nor stronger than me. I was in charge of records and she was appointed minister simply because she was a Tuareg. All that has been accepted in the past.
The dialogue will continue. According to some rumours, international organizations have apparently said that extortion has been committed. Even the Malian president and the minister of defence have talked about this. All Malians are aware of this. It is part of the road map, a copy of which I will leave you. They said that anyone caught committing extortion against northern nationals will be taken to court in Mali. The army has already been informed of that, and it is taken for granted.
As for the Tuaregs, the positive discrimination they....