Mali: Living with relatives from a war zone
Last updated 8 hours ago By Alex Duval Smith BBC News, Bamako, Mali The conflict in Mali has seen many people flee their homes in northern cities like Timbuktu to seek refuge in the capital, Bamako, in the south. But accommodating these refugees has had its difficulties. Before the military coup a year ago my neighbourhood was popular with retired ministers, diplomats and expats. L'Hippodrome was known for its quiet, leafy streets and being handy for the French school. Many residents had quite a payroll of staff - guards, gardeners, cleaners and cooks. My Malian neighbour, Oumou, a single professional woman in her 50s, lived alone in a four-bedroom villa inherited from her parents. Oumou has two brothers living in France. A feminist and staunch defender of Mali's status as a secular republic, she prefers Bamako, because there are still battles to be fought here - for freedom of speech and for women's rights. Oumou is like me. She smokes, drinks beer and