(New York) – The arrest and indictment by the Malian authorities of a coach for alleged sexual harassment and assault of adolescent basketball players is an important step to protect boys, girls and female athletes from abuse, Human Rights Watch said today.
Following complaints in June 2021 of alleged sexual abuse by Mali’s U-18 women’s national basketball team, on July 26, judicial authorities arrested, charged and imprisoned the coach, Amadou Bamba. He is awaiting trial for “pedophilia, attempted rape and sexual abuse”.
“With the Tokyo Olympics underway, the Malian government has taken a vital step to remove a basketball coach who has been credibly accused of sexually assaulting teenage basketball players,” said Minky Worden, Director of Initiatives. Human Rights Watch Global Reports. “The leaders of the basketball federation knew or should have known about the abuses and did not fulfill their duty to take care of the young players.”
Bamba, 51, a coach for the U-18 women’s national basketball team since 2016, allegedly sexually assaulted or harassed at least three players and thwarted their careers when they refused to have sex with him, according to survivors, parents and witnesses to Human Rights Watch.
A June report from Human Rights Watch and a letter to the International Basketball Federation (FIBA), the world’s basketball governing body, documented a pattern of sexual abuse that basketball officials covered up, allowing it to continue.
On July 27, the Malian government released a statement affirming its commitment to children’s rights under its obligations under international treaties, noting the arrest of Bamba and the suspension by FIBA of its president. Malian Hamane Niang and the president of the Mali Basketball Federation, Harouna Maiga.
Mali’s under-19 women’s team plans to compete in the FIBA Basketball World Cup in Hungary from August 7.
Human rights groups have pressured FIBA to adopt reforms, including ensuring the inclusion of women and athletes’ representatives in its management team, which until now has been exclusively male.
In a published letter July 29 by the alliance Sport & Rights AllianceTogether with the National Basketball Players Association (WNBPA), it is stated that FIBA must tackle sexual abuse in Mali with urgent governance reforms. FIBA should put in place protections for children from the top down in basketball, the alliance said, including “establishing systemic reforms to prevent and respond to abuse cases in the future, a FIBA governance structure that include women at senior management levels and ensure the existence of reporting mechanisms for abuse at the national and global level ”, and ensure that all players“ have a seat at the table and a meaningful voice in the decisions that make them concern ”.
Human Rights Watch has investigated child sexual abuse on national women’s sports teams in Afghanistan, Japan, Haiti, and Mali and has partnered with athletes, parents, and coaches in Japan and around the world ahead of the Tokyo Games in a campaign to end sexual and other abuse in sport called “#AthletesAgainstAbuse”.
“The Mali U19 women’s basketball team is one of the best in the world,” said Worden. “Not just Malians, but people around the world should be deeply proud of these female players who risked their careers, mental health and safety to speak out about abuse and protect the next generation of athletes. They are not only high-level athletes, but also heroes in the global fight against sexual abuse of minors ”.
