Most Malian nationals who spoke to Xinhua on Thursday termed a coup d'etat in their country as a dangerous drawback and unnecessary for Mali, especially now that the country was just a few weeks from holding the presidential election to choose a new president.

These are the opinions of a number of Malians who were interviewed from the political class, the civil society and the intellectuals.

At the moment, most people have refused to come out and speak openly as they await to know "who is holding the real power."

Some people want to "interrupt our exemplary democratic process through an unnecessary digression and take us to a political impasse with unimaginable consequences," said Kader Toe, a political analyst.

"It's true that the president did not handle the crisis in the north very well, but should that make us kill our democracy? I say NO. A coup d'etat will be a big drawback on Mali's democracy. Mali does not need a coup d'etat with just one month before the presidential elections," said Rose Toure, a Malian communication expert living in France.

According to Professor Aboubacrine Assadeck of the Bamako Science and Technology University, "ATT (president Amadou Toumani Toure) may have committed some strategic, political, military and communication mistakes. But, he remains our President...with his imperfections! That is an undeniable fact."

"He was elected by the majority of the voters, let us leave him to complete his term if at all we respect democracy. No one has a right to prematurely end the term of a given republican institution. More than 300 people lost their lives so that we can become more mature, more dignified and more respectful of our institutions during the 1991 revolution! Not agreeing with the president does not mean that we should destroy our democracy with everything that is associated with it," he continued.

Other groups that were interviewed who included teachers, doctors, engineers, managers, businessmen and students, equally noted that Mali does not need a military coup d'etat with just a month before the presidential elections.

Sources within the army told Xinhua that not the entire army is supporting the mutinous soldiers and some military officers are preparing to end the mutiny.

The mutinous soldiers, who took over control of the state owned television station on Wednesday, declared on Thursday the closure of Mali's terrestrial and aerial borders.

On the part of international reaction following the coup, France, the United States, the United Nations, the European Union and the regional body ECOWAS have condemned the use of force to attain power in the west African nation and called for the restoration of the "constitutional order" in the shortest possible time.