section_path: Implications
section_name: Implications
paragraph_text: Implications
  
  The protests may signal a wider shift in public attitudes towards the Goïta regime. Prominent activists and resistance figures have claimed this marks a return by Mali to the era of dictatorship under Moussa Traoré. Organizational watchdogs have noted that many Malians remain committed to civil resistance in the event that the regime attempted to seize power indefinitely. Other observers have noted that the patterns of public resistance noted in and precedent set by the brutality of the July 2020 protests indicates the potential for broader violence, though this will depend on the scale of the protest movement's reach. The current administration has also shown a willingness to violate the civil liberties and, often, human rights of civilians, as evidenced by the alleged deliberate mass killings of more than 30 people by Wagner and Malian forces loyal to Goïta in 2024.
  
  A historical pattern of violence against civilian populations outside of major population centers, particularly the Fulani and Dogon peoples, indicates the potential for broader violence against opponents of the regime. Regardless, the tightening of political and administrative restrictions in the country is said by experts to be felt most acutely by groups far from the country's political center.
  
  Despite the rigid enforcement by security forces of measures enacted by the regime, there are signs that the regime is losing ground in its efforts to stabilize the country. The crackdown occurs amid an already worsening security situation in Mali, as attacks by Jihadist militant groups have increased across nearly all of its regions over the past several years, particularly in the country's north.