Democratic Double Standards?

Read this very short post from this blog.

My Best Poster from the Demonstrations In Egypt

"A Simple Solution"
End of movie. Brief.
I got the picture from here.

Going South: The Protests Go To Sudan

See videos here and here. Will anything come of it? See These Aljazeera video reports on the matter.

Egyptian Army: Lesson For Cameroon's Army

Having overwhelmed the hated Egytian police force in their call for the ouster of Mubarak, Mubarak sent in the army, perhaps believing that the army would overwhelm the people and so bring the demonstrations under control. Tanks were brought onto the streets of Cairo, Alexandria, Suez, among other cities. When the tanks came I thought that would be the end of the demonstrations. My experience in Cameroon during the early 1990s when I was in the Unviversity of Yaounde taught me that soldiers only kill, injure and humiliate people when they are called to control a demonstration. But what I saw in Egypt was different. Civilians were talking freely with the soldiers. Young men and old ladies were kissing the soldiers as their tanks sat by. In fact, a child even sat on one of the tanks and the soldiers asked the people to demonstrate peacefully, noting that they were there to protect the people from those who would want to take advantage of the chaos to commit crimes. This was an army that knew that its purpose was to protect the people rather than injure or humiliate them. The Cameroon army would do well to learn this very important lesson. Soldiers should not be against the people; they should rather protect the people. If the demands of the demonstrators in Egypt succeed, it would in part be because the soldiers understood that the people are their brothers and sisters. The soldiers knew that the destiny of their country is far more important than the lust for power of one dictator. When next Paul Biya sends the soldiers or gerdames to injure the people in order to protect his lust for power, they should do well to remember this lesson. In fact, it will be important for soldiers all over Africa to learn this lesson. They are there to protect the people rather than kill or injure them.

How Much Is Paul Biya's Salary?

The salary of Paul Biya, the president of Cameroon, has been an eternal mystery. In spite of numerous calls that have been made for him to reveal what he earns, he has consistently remained silent. There is a tradition in Cameroon that workers hardly reveal how much money they are paid even to members of their families. This could be given as a reason why Paul Biya has not revealed how much his monthly or yearly salary is. However, given that Biya holds a prominent position that demands transparency, he must disclose how much money the state of Cameroon pays him in a month/year for the work he does for the country. This is especially important given that he has often been accused of variousl levels of financial impropriety. If he has nothing to hide, he must reveal his salary. In fact, even if he has nothing to hide, he must reveal his salary because Cameroonians have a right to know. This is the point to begin investigating all the financial improprieties of which he has been accused. He cannot be living extravagantly and unaccountably while most Cameroonians pine in penury.

Towards Africa's Second Liberation

I find it quite intriguing that the independence of Africa from colonial domination began in northern African countries that achieved their independence in the 1950s. With the exception of Ghana that achieved its independence in 1957, many countries in sub-Saharan Africa achieved their independence in the 1960s. I find it quite intriguing that current events in northern Africa may be a portent for the second liberation of the continent from post-independence dictatorship. This assessment rejects the claim that there has been so-called second liberation of Africa in the 1990s. But that is a different matter.

Gbagbo Gets His Wish

Such is the nature of politics in Africa. Laurent Gbagbo, who stole the elections in Ivory Coast, is now being offered negotiatitions by African leaders. The earlier stance that he should step down from power because he lost the elections has now been abandoned by the African Union (AU). The AU is now talking of finding "an African solution to an African problem." That is code for the pursuit of aberrant policies that usually endanger the lives of Africans. African leaders have often looked for African solutions to what they see as African problems, but it has not carried the continent much further. It is true that Africa largely suffeers from the problem of bad leadership but the problem of bad leadership is understood by most people in the world. And most people in the world try to overcome this problem by encouraging transparency and accountability. African leaders instead sublimate the problem and make it seem intractable. Although the problem of bad leadership is mostly an African problem, there are universal methods of addressing the problem. There is no particularly African way to address such a problem. African leaders should stop compounding the problems of the continent by inventing strange ways of doing things that threaten the lives of their people. Gbagbo stole an election. The best way to handle the problem is to find a means to remove him from office. Period. It is time to abandon the cliche of looking for an African solution to an African problem.

How Western Lobbyists Screw Africans

Many reports on how Western lobbyists connive with African dictators to undermine the well-being of Africans have recently surfaced. This is the invisible hand that contribute in wrecking havoc on the people of the continent.

Uganda: Where Barbarism Passes For Biblical Values

The drive to cause physical harm to homosexuals has led to the brutal murder of a Ugandan homosexual, David Kato. It is sad that rather than condemning this barbaric act, Christian preachers  and some opinion leaders in Uganda see it as a just punishment for a life poorly lived. It is strange that the widespread corruption and thievery notwithstanding, many Ugandans, especially opinion leaders, come to claim a moral high ground when it comes to savaging homosexuals. The fundamentalistic reading of the Bible in Uganda has led to a situation where even Joseph Kony, the terrorist who is terrorizing much of central Africa, claims to have received his call from God. Preachers of the Bible have read the Bible to claim that homosexuals be slain. Those who urge the killing of homosexuals must see themselves for the accessory to murder that they are, rather than people who speak in the name of God. It is possible to chellenge homosexuality without inciting people to murder homosexuals. It is possible to disagree without being disagreeable. Opinion leaders in Uganda have chosen not to take this route. They have chosen to hide their own rut by victimizing homosexuals. All people of conscience and goodwill must cry out against this barbarism that is passing for biblical values in Uganda. It is disgusting!

The Tunisia Syndrome Has Reached Gabon

The revolt that began in Tunisia has reached Gabon. A new thing is happening in Africa.

What To Watch For In Africa In the Coming Days And Weeks And . . . .

1. What is happening to Nelson Mandela? Update: Mandela out of hospital.

2. What is happening in Egypt and Tunisia?

3. What is happening in Ivory Coast, Gabon, and Sudan?

4. Will the revolts in the north spread to other regions of the continent as already seems to be the case?

5. Is this the decade of Africa's second liberation (liberation from strong men?)

These are exciting times!

"Our Generation Has Failed Africa"- Mo Ibrahim

Mo Ibrahim is the Sudanese billionaire and founder of the Mo Ibrahim Foundation that concerns itself with promoting good governance in Africa. He can, however, not help but be disappointed by the setbacks that this endeavor is experiencing. This frustration is experienced in a recent interview given to The Guardian of Nigerian.

Excerpts:
According to Ibrahim, “When Europeans started handing over independence to African countries about 50 years, it was clear that we were not ready, as we failed to build the institutions, we failed to institutionalize good governance, the results of which are instances of military rule and other forms of dictatorship in the continent. Today we could see the incredible picture of misrule and bad governance throughout the continent.
“Unfortunately, this is the legacy which our generation is leaving for the younger generation. But you have your job really cut out for you and it is important to see how far you can go to ensure that you make the best out of the very bad situation so that Africa can be better than you are meeting it. I hope the legacy you will leave for your children will be better than what we have left for you.”

According to him, “When some African countries were busy celebrating I asked one basic question for which they nearly crucified me. The question I asked was, what are we really celebrating? Because 50 years ago, to this day after independence, most African countries had higher income per head than China, India, South Korea, Malaysia, Singapore, but today those countries have everything in abundance than the income per head, is that something to be proud of? You ought to cover your heads in shame rather than dancing and celebrating, we have failed, that is the unfortunate failure in governance.
“There is no other reason why we should experience such mass failure because I always believe Africans are very capable as individuals. Though I lived most of my life actually in the west, I watched the Africans in all aspects of life, sciences, engineering, telecoms, software, but the question is why is it that whenever they are at home they cannot perform, but when they go to Europe and America, they become excellent products. How can an African go and teach people in Princeton and yet is not recognized at home?”

According to Ibrahim, a Sudanese, the idea of blaming the white man for all the problems of the continent was no longer tenable. He said: “I find it really disgusting when I listen to some African politicians blaming our problems on the English people, the French and other guys. Don’t give me that excuse because those left more than 50 years ago, how could they still be responsible for our problems today? Do they remember that America was a British colony? Why is America not like Africa? Everybody was colonized by somebody else but they have made progress, so African leaders should face their challenges,” he said.

Birds of the Same Feathers . . .

Yoweri Museveni of Uganda has been president of that country for 25 years. He knows a thing or two about sticking to power because he plans to run for re-election. Little wonder that he is the first significant African leader to openly question why Laurent Gbagbo should not be left in power even though he lost the Ivorian presidential election. Gbagbo seems to know that African leaders hardly have clean hands in this matter and will ultimately come around to let him stay in power. Museveni's laudable Pan-Africanist vision is marred by his messianic postures. I have repeatedly said on this blog that Africans do not need a messiah; they need ordinary people who serve their people and leave the stage for others to continue the work.

Bank Robbery in Ivory Coast

In Book IV, Chapter IV of City of God, St. Augustine of Algeria, that ancient wise man of Africa, described a kingdom as a larger version of armed robbery. He was speaking about the Roman Empire. Today, his words could fit well in the contexts of many African countries, especially given the fact that many of the leaders of these countries have taken to blatantly robbing their peoples. This news story that Laurent Gbagbo, the guy forcing himself on Ivory Coast as president, has seized some banks in that country, reminds me of St. Augustine's claim about what a country or an empire is.

Dying to Dream in Egypt

In Egypt today three people died in a violent protest. The people are protesting against many things, ranging from the authoritarianism of Hosni Mubarak to the rise in the cost of food and prevalent corruption. However, what caught my attention in all the reports about the protest is this BBC video report where the reporter says that people are protesting partly because Egypt has no dream, no vision. They want Egypt to dream again, to have a vision of greatness, like in the times of the Pharaohs.
The Egyptian story is a quintessential African story. Africa has been led for a very long time by people who have no dream for the continent. This lack of vision has made it difficult for anything of significance to be achieved. It is heartening to see that people are struggling to dream again and that some African countries such as Ghana, are struggling to inspire dreams in the minds of their people. I suppose nothing inspires a people more than a dream. It has been the stuff by which societies are transformed. Perhaps it is worth dying so that people may dream again!

Excerpts:
People are disgruntled about everything - about politics, economics, their lives, the state of the country. One could talk about the unemployment, and the poverty, and the corruption. People feel they are being treated with contempt by the government.
But the discontent is also wider than that. Egyptians will tell you that this country needs a dream, a vision. They had a dream under President Nasser, they had a dream under President Sadat, they had a dream under the pharaohs.
In the 30-year rule of President Mubarak, there has been no dream - it's been mundane, it's been about numbers, and even on those numbers, many will say they haven't delivered on simple things like education, sanitation, and so forth. So people are really seeing a government and a country in decline.

Ranking African Presidents

An interesting ranking of the leadership of African presidents by The East African Magazine.

Who Wants To Buy A Black South African Woman?

A bad interpretation of a well narrated process. Even though the payment of a bride price is controversial to some Africans, most Africans do not consider that they are buying a woman when they pay a bride price. That is how marriage happens in many African societies; it is not a trade but the establishment of a relationship. The sense of humor in the narrative still fails to mask this bad interpretation of the process.

The Language Question in Africa

Since the encounter with the West, Africans have never stopped lamenting the marginalization of their indigenous languages, epitomized especially by the famous debate between two of Africa's foremost men of letters - the Nigerian Chinua Achebe and the Kenyan Ngugi wa Thiong'o. The question has been raised again in this recent article from The Economist with the concern coming from South Africa.

However, one of the major issues which is often forgotten in these debates is that language survival is also connected to influence and power. The language situation in America may be taken as an example: even though many Americans regularly interact with those who speak Spanish, the current craze is to learn Mandarin Chinese. Why is this so? It is so because China is becoming influential and powerful. Many now believe that it would be necessary to know Mandarin if one hopes to advance in the future. Whether this is true or not remains to be seen. However, what is clear in the South African case is that English and Afrikaans are the languages that carry influence and power, for obvious historical reasons. Other languages cannot just become important to everyone because the South African government says so. People must come to see that it is advantageous to learn a language before they may be committed to it. Departments of African languages will continue to close in South African universities and elsewhere if students do not see that it is important to learn them. Given that these languages do not carry power and influence, there is hardly any motivation to learn them. All this means that power and influence have an intricate connection with the spread of language. Any discussion of the language question in Africa that fails to see this connection but rather concentrates on lamenting the decline of African languages is merely playing the Ostrich. Perhaps the world historical perception of the emergence and decline of language has something going for it: in interaction of various peoples in the world, some languages survive and others don't. Those that survive are the ones that are useful. Period.

Church and State in Southern Sudan

The church is seen as a force for stability in Southern Sudan in this short blog post from The Economist: "Government leaders are jealous of the stability of the church. It is the only organisation that survived decades of civil war intact. In fact, it has thrived, in part because it alone could offer steady, non-violent employment to the educated."

A Wise Muslim

"It's better to live in a small country in peace than a large country at war," a wise Sudanese Sufi Muslim says of the potential breakup of Southern Sudan. Watch this video.

Ayuba Suleiman Diallo, Free!

This is the intriguing story of a former West African slave whose life is now partially caught up in art diplomacy between Britain and Qatar. Ayub Suleiman Diallo a.k.a Job Ben Solomon was apparently the first African to be cast in an oil portrait in Britain "as an individual and equal." The painting appears to be very important to British history as this news story purports but it also appears that the British government was not even aware that the painting was with an auction company, Christie's, until the painting was sold to the Qatar Museums Authority. It was apparently after the sale that its importance was noticed and a ban placed on its being removed from the country. The story begs several questions? How did the painting reach Christie's. Why did British authorities wait until after it was sold before placing a ban on its export? Is such a ban legal? Why does the painting have to stay in Britain after it has been purchased by the Qatar Museums Authority? There is much to this story than meets the eye and more explanation is needed.

Bad For Us, Good For Them

An interesting article on how tobacco companies cave to regulations in the US but take their goods to developing countries. Excerpts:

But as tobacco use declines in the United States, it is on the rise in low- and middle-income countries, spurred by higher incomes, trade liberalization, and intensive industry marketing. There are 1.2 billion smokers in the world, roughly one-third of the world's adult population. Seven-hundred million children -- approximately 40 percent of the world's youth population -- are exposed to second hand tobacco smoke at home. According to the World Health Organization (WHO), tobacco use already kills more people annually than HIV/AIDS, malaria, and tuberculosis combined. Unless urgent action is taken, it is expected to kill hundreds of millions more in the coming decades, mostly in developing countries. The World Economic Forum's 2010 global risk report ranked non-communicable diseases, for which tobacco use is a leading risk factor, as a greater threat to global economic development than fiscal crises, natural disasters, transnational crime and corruption, and infectious disease.

In the world's poorest countries, where tobacco has not been consumed historically, multinational cigarette companies use investments in local tobacco production and corporate social responsibility programs to win new friends and future customers. These tactics have increased tobacco use throughout Asia, Eastern Europe, and Latin America. Many expect Africa will be next. Tobacco use is currently relatively low in Africa -- 20 percent for men and much less forewomen -- but there will be dire consequences if it increases: Many African governments lack the ability to implement effective national tobacco-control programs and the health-care resources to cope with a pandemic of tobacco-related diseases.

Some policymakers in Washington make the argument that American jobs depend on tobacco companies' free access to developing countries. But that's a false choice: Doing more for international tobacco control would not put U.S. jobs at risk. The United States currently exports significant volumes of high-quality tobacco leaf and premium cigarettes to Japan, Europe, and affluent Middle Eastern countries, but hardly anything at all to cost-sensitive developing-country markets. Moreover, cigarette production has largely shifted to overseas factories. With domestic consumption declining, the tobacco industry now provides less than 2 percent of the jobs in the six southeastern U.S. states most associated with tobacco growing and product manufacturing.

In Somalia Pirates Are Heroes

While the rest of the world is concerned about the growing piracy problem off the coast of Somalia and the Gulf of Aden, some Somali MPs see the pirates as heroes. Why is this so? The pirates are seen as keeping away foreign trawlers who are accused of over-fishing off the coast of Somalia. Over-fishing depletes the fish in the area and reduces the incomes of the fishermen in the area. Because foreign trawlers are scared of the priates, the MPs reason, they don't dare fish in Somalia's waters. This lets the fish to multiply, giving opportunity of native fishermen to earn some income. This may well be a rationalization of the lucrativeness of piracy, but the reasoning is impressive.

Culture and Economic Development

Max Weber argued long ago that Protestantism contributed to the development of capitalism. The impact which the Enlightenmnent had in the development of modern science can hardly be gainsaid. Current studies appear to provide further proves that culture is relevant to issues of economic development. This is a lesson that still has to be learnt in African studies.

A Short, Recent History of the DRC

This video from The Economist gives a very short, recent history of the DRC, beginning in the 1990s to present. The site also contains short, clear videos of other areas of conflict in Africa, such as Sudan. It clearly states the players in the conflict. It would have been excellent if the presenter had gone back to the period of independence to trace some of the issues that contribute to the current story.

France In Africa

WikiLeaks helps us understand France's neo-colonial role in Africa. Read this brief article from a Cameroon newspaper, The Post.

Remembering Patrice Lumumba

An important NYT article on the 50th anniversary of the assassination of the Congolese visionary, Patrice Lumumba. What his legacy might have been can only be conjectured.

The Problems With Prof. Achebe's Analysis of the African Condition

There is hardly anyone more familiar with the story of why Africa is where it is today than the Nigerian man of letters Prof. Chinua Achebe. His novels may be read as historical records of the developments that have taken place in the cultural life of the continent in at least the last one hundred years. He is well known as a major influence on the development of African literature, especially the novel. He has also been described as a political scientist. Prof. Achebe is so well known around the world, especially for his novel, Things Fall Apart, that when he talks many listen. I call him the wise man of Africa.

That is why Prof. Achebe's today's NYT op-ed titled "Nigeria's Promise, Africa's Hope," is so important. In the piece, Prof Achebe correctly touch on the nagging issues of corruption and ethnic politics that have bedevilled the well-being of the continent and point out some concrete actions that need to be taken in Nigeria if that country is to see a better day. There were however a couple of problems with his general analysis of the African condition. The first is the standard narrative he gives: Africa's problems stem from the historical interaction between the continent and the West, from the age of discovery to the slave trade and colonization. Decolonization put people who were not prepared for leadership in charge of whole countries. Without wanting to undermine the fact that the period of the slave trade exploited African resources for the benefit of the West, this standard narrative tend to portray Africans mostly as victims rather than as perpetrators of their own sufferings. Prof. Henry Louis Gates of Harvard's department of African and African American Studies has argued that African leaders should also be held responsible for the slave trade. From this it can be argued that the fact that African leaders messed up the nation-state could not be accounted for mostly by incompetence but also as a manifestation of their normal tendency to undermine the well-being of their own people when it suits their interests. In fact, that is the political thing to do - politicians all over the world mostly do things which suits their interests. What makes Africa different from other regions that have prospered is that while the interests of politicians in other places sometimes coincides with the interests of their people, the interests of African politicians hardly coincide with that of their people. The claim that at independence the leaders of African countries were incompetent should therefore be abandoned.

The second problem with Achebe's analysis is his claim that the West should be part of finding a solution to the African crisis because it contributed significantly in creating this condition. This claim fails to consider a basic tenet in international politics - national interest. Nations do not help others because it is the right thing to do but because it is of their national interest to do so. Now, given the story of Africa's encounter with the West which Prof. Achebe recounts well, it may be doubtful that Western nations have the well-being of Africa at heart. Unless, of course, the well-being of the continent coincides with the well being of the West. Currently, that is not the case. In August of 2010, some young Africans were invited to the White House for a forum with President Obama. One of them asked him if he were prepared to defend the interests of Africa but he honestly replied that his primary job is to defend American interests. There you have it. Power in international politics is not given, it must be taken. Africa must forge its way forward even without any contribution from the West. In fact, history suggests that seeing a flourishing Africa has not been a top priority of any Western nation - it will never be. All this is to say that the future of Africa is in the hands of Africans. When the West or Asians or Latin Americans come in, it should not be to help but to acknowledge and participate in the future which Africa is already crafting. One of the major problems of contemporary Africa is that it still depends on the West, and now Asia. None of these outside forces have the interest of Africa at heart. Period. Honest political scientists and economists know this. I suppose Prof. Achebe also knows this.

Africa and the New York Times

I have been an avid reader of the NYT for just over two years now but never have I seen multiple stories, not directly dealing with war and refugees, about Africa on the front page of the paper. But today's online version of the paper had three articles about the continent. One has to do with the situation in Tunisia, the other deals with the referandum in Sudan and the third is an op-ed from Africa's foremost man of letters, Chinua Achebe, reflecting, with particular attention on Nigerian, on why Africa is where it is today and how it can get out of the situation. It may well be that I am reading too much into the matter but it seems to me that the attention which is being paid to the continent, attention not necessitated by situations of war and refugees but by signs of a flourishing continent, is a sign of the increasing importance which that continent is beginning to have.

Recovered From Crisis?

The World Bank is saying that the economies of most developing countries, including African countries, have recovered from "the crisis." It is not clear which crisis the World Bank is talking about but it appears that the crisis to which the World Bank is referring is the financial crisis that struck the world in 2008. It is good to know that developing countries have recovered from this crisis. However, it must not be forgotten that before the 2008 financial crisis, many African countries had been in economic crisis for at least thirty years. This means that whatever recovery they have made from the 2008 crisis, they have merely returned to the level of crisis they experienced before 2008. While it is good that sub-Saharan Africa saw over 4% growth in 2010 while north Africa made over 3%, more than twice those levels of growth will be needed if the economies of these countries expect to move past crisis mode. As far as Africa is concerned, the World Bank report has to be read from the perspective of an economic crisis that began long before 2008.

The Fall of Ben Ali: Lessons for Africa

If there is any one lesson that the fall of Ben Ali has for Africa, it is that the strength of a people who rise together to remove a dictator can not be easily overcome. Some have argued that one of the reasons why dictators of all stripes lord it over Africans for so long is that Africans themselve let these dictators to lord it over them. The case of Tunisia shows that the brutal treatment Africans receive at the hands of their leaders does not have to be tolerated for so long. Perhaps this is the beginning of new things to come in African politics. The fall of Ben Ali should also awaken other African leaders of his stripe, such as Robert Mugabe, Paul Biya, Laurent Gbagbo, etc., to the fact that their people will also wake up soon. This wind that has begun in the north of the continent will proceed to the south and a new day will emerge. The lessons to be drawn from this even does not only apply to the Arab world as this NY Times piece suggests, they apply first and foremost to the continent to which Tunisia is a part - Africa. A new day is dawning.

Update:  Power changes hands again in Tunisia.

Fixing Bad Money In DRC

The Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) has been using the US dollar as its national currency for about seven years now. This policy was put in place to counteract galloping inflation. Having stabilized the economy and and wanting to stand on its own feet, the leaders of the country are now introducing the Congo Franc as their new currency.

It is in fact needful that the DRC stands on its own feet but the currency issue it is trying to fix is probably the least of its problems. Not that this issue should not be fixed; it should. The basic problem with the DRC is that it is currently viewed as a place that is not safe for investment. Only the very daring and those who want to profit from the loots that emanate from its chaotic economy struggle to invest there. That country would be a paradise if the empty spaces in which rebels roam free and brutalise ordinary people, especially the rape of women, are made secure. Vast areas of the country have been abandoned by the government to rebels and the infamous Joseph Kony from Uganda. Changing the currency of the country would do very little to render confidence in a place where the people live in fear for their lives and sometimes depend on the UN peacekeeping force (which often does not show up) to protect them. It is good to change the currency but that should be the least of the worries of the government. The government should be focused on how to bring about lasting peace in a region that has been brutalized by so many for so long.

Once Upon A Time . . .

The West, especially France, could easily decide who becomes president in Ivory Coast - not so anymore, apparently. The impotence of the international community in the current impasse in the country speaks volumes. How the world turns.

Looking Back, Looking Forward

Views of some major events that happened in Africa in 2010 and guesses of what might happen in 2011. Do the lists measure up to what has so far happened in the continent this year? The rioting in north Africa appears to have taken many, even Tunisian dictator, Ben Ali, by surprise. What else may we be looking forward to?

CAR: The Worst of the Worst

While the leaders of some African countries have been busy figuring out how to make the living standards of their people better, those of Central African Republic (CAR), a wretched, landlocked country in central Africa and a former French colony, have instead been aggrandizing themselves in political denial. This is seen in the recent rehabilitation, by a presidential decree, of its infamous former president and one of the most notorious dictators in the world, Jean-Bedel Bokassa. A creature of the French colonialists, Bokassa enriched himself through the sweat of his people and after he was overthrown, lived in this recently auctioned château in France.

Yet, the current president of the country, Francois Bozize, who came to power through a coup, recently passed a presidential decree declaring the deceased president a "builder" (there is a strange understanding of what it means to build a country over there in CAR!) who must be honored. Such a move is in itself unsurprising given that Bozize has himself run the country into the ground and has no vision to revitalize its economy which ranks 178 on 179 in the 2008 United Nations Human Development Index (HDI). This unreasonable ideological move may suit the propaganda of the ruling elite who do not care about the harm which they or Bokassa have brought on their people. The insanity which drove Bokassa to declare himself "emperor" of I-don't-know-what is the same thing that seems to be motivating the current ruthless leaders who feast on the suffering of their people. Central African Republic is an African tragedy and a blot on the continent's desire to move toward a better future.

A Matter of Fairness

The San, problematically referred to as "Bushmen" of the Kalahari, like peoples in lands which various African governments consider to be reserves, have been fighting a running battle with the government of Botswana for a while now. The government has been forcing them to leave the Central Kalahari Game Reserve. However, some have been resisting the government's demand, insisting that they cannot abandon their ancestral land. The government, in turn, has refused to provide social amenities to those who remain in the Reserve. A question that arises is whether a government has the right to remove an indigenous people from their ancestral land for the purpose of turning the land into a reserve. Whose interest does it serve to remove these people from their ancestral land? In other words, does removing the people from the reserve benefit the people in question more than any other stakeholder?

Ben Ali, The Dictator of Tunisia

The rioting of young people in the streets of Tunisia and Algeria marks the way these two countries entered the new year. However, the way these young people who are seeking better standards of living are being treated is appalling. Ben Ali, Tunisia's dictator, is using classic dictatorial language and force to suppress the aspirations of these young people. He describes them as "gangs" and "terrorists" in order to smear them with bad name and make his brutal killing of his own people look reasonable. Instead of appealing for calm and outlining what is being done to create jobs for these young people, Ben Ali is rather crushing their aspirations. Having been in power for 23 years, he now feels, like all other dictators of Africa, that he now owns the country. Ben Ali is the kind of African leader who does not dream of a better future for his people. But the era of the Ben Alis of Africa is giving way. A better day is dawning.

Update: Ben Ali to retire. After massive demonstrations, Ben Ali finally agrees to retire, but not until after three years. This does not appear to be good enough. He needs to go now for the country to see a new day!

Update: Ben Ali is gone!

World Heritage Site and the Problem of Development in Mali

This is an interesting article on some of the problems the modernization of Africa is experiencing. Here is an excerpt from the article:

The problem, said N’Diaye Bah, Mali’s tourism minister, is modernizing the town without wrecking its ambiance. “If you destroy the heritage which people come to see, if you destroy 2,000 years of history, then the town loses its soul,” he said.

Djenné residents take pride in their heritage and recognize that the Unesco list helped make their city famous. Yet they wonder aloud about the point of staying on it, given the lack of tangible gains, if they are forced to live literally in mud.

Many homeowners want to keep the distinctive facades, but alter the interiors. Unesco guidelines prohibit the sweeping alterations they would like, however.

Mahamame Bamoye Traoré, the leader of the powerful mason’s guild, surveyed the cramped rooms of the retired river boat captain’s house, naming all the things he would change if the World Heritage rules were more flexible.
“If you want to help someone, you have to help him in a way that he wants; to force him to live in a certain way is not right,” he said, before lying on the mud floor of a windowless room that measured about 6 feet by 3 feet.

“This is not a room,” he said. “It might as well be a grave.”

Southern Sudan

Is a new country that needs a new name emerging or are we speaking too soon? Judging from the commnents so far, it seems that most believe that a new country is in the offing.

Muslims and Christians Celebrate Christmas . . .

After the recent violence between Muslims and Christians in Egypt, the two groups join to celebrate Christmas in a Coptic Church. Hope the rapproachment lasts.

Young People Are Not Happy

In Tunisia and Algeria, the young people are not happy because of their economic conditions. Given that the youth make up a significant part of the population in many African countries, making their economic  condititions better should be paramount. Else, the instability in Tunisia and Algeria may be only the beginning.

Ten Fastest Growing Economies in the World

Current and projected ten fastest growing economies in the world, according to The Economist. Take note of how many of them are in Africa.

Extreme Makeover - Nigeria

Having been given the bad name of being a haven for scammers, Nigeria now boasts the world's best central banker. It is a sign of more promising things to come

Evil Days In Microlendingland

The practice of microlending, according to the vision of its founder, Mohammad Yunus, was intended to pull the poorest of the poor out of poverty through the practice of small scale capitalism. However, huge banks have evolved from the practice, making enormous profits and growing on the backs of the people it was supposed to help. The altruistic slant that the phenomenon was supposed to have immediately turned to vicious capitalistic venture as the poor became stuck in debt rather than seeing prosperity. Today microlending, which had the vision of helping "small" people out of poverty, instead makes the rich richer. The prevalent critique of microlending therefore forces the question as to whether its vision can actually pull the poorest of the poor out of poverty. Perhaps the most important quesition that besets the practice of microlending is the vision of well-being it has for the poor. There seems to be something wrong when an industry which was supposed to help people grow, grow faster than the people it was supposed to help. Apart from the fact that the microlending vibe has gone to Africa, its current regime seems eerily similar to the aid regime which has been trenchantly critiqued for its failure to enable development.

Julian Assange, Person of the Year

A Nigerian newspaper, The Guardian, named Julian Assange of WikiLeaks notoriety, as Person of the Year. This is interesting although it should probably be no surprise given that he was considered for this honor by Time Magazine whose Person of the Year is often much trumpeted.

Women Are Not The Answer

A thought-provoking response to the recent claims that the education of women in developing countries will aid development efforts. What do you think?

How Nigeria Is Similar To Egypt

Nigeria and Egypt entered the New Year with a very eerie similarity - deadly violence connected to religion. The violence in both of these countries clearly show the inability of the governments to effectively protect their people. Even more, it shows the dramatic interaction that religion and politics have in these countries and that some elements are prepared to exploit the volatile situation to promote their own agenda. However one looks at the situation, the governments of these countries ultimately have to be held responsible for allowing empty spaces in their countries that put the lives of their peoples at risk.

Open Wide the Border: Gaddafi's Hypocrisy

Muammar Gaddafi of Libya has been one of the recent dominant voices in the African quest for unity. In fact, the recent deadly demonstrations in Tunisia spurred by youth unemployment led him to ask Libyan authorities to throw the borders open for Tunisians to come and work in Libya. This is a very laudable move that augurs well for his call for African unity. The problem, however, is that this open border policy is being enacted only in the case of Tunisian unemployment crisis. The conditions south of his border, in Niger and Chad, have been precarious for a very long time but I am not aware of Gaddafi calling for the borders to be thrown open for these people to come and make a living in Libya. This selective open border policy speaks of discrimination at the heart of Gaddafi's vision of African unity and may justify the suspicion with which he is held in some quarters of the debate on African unity.