Seriously I have no idea what is going on or why. Because of my situation at home I have not been watching the news for the past two months or so. But I keep catching glimpses about some sort of French war in Africa. Have we been transported back to nineteenth century colonialism or what? And Britain wants to get involved too? Truly baffling.
Why is France fighting in the middle of Africa?
by slimboyfat 17 Replies latest social current
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TheOldHippie
France has "always" been there, in the shadows, and there has scarcely been any attempted coup during the last decades in any of the earlier French colonies, where the ruling dictator has not asked the French forces to help in defeating the rebels. And they have "helped" the dictators, again and again. You probably have read about the diamonds given by Congo ruler Mobutu to the then French president some years ago. The good old boys' network in action. France is a nasty colonial power thru the Legion.
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Phizzy
Probably to take attention away from troubles at home, like Thatcher did.
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princecharmant
Mali has been in the news for well over a year - and not always for the good reasons. The declaration of the "Republic of Azawad" in Northern Mali by Touareg nationalists after an armed uprising that practically divided the country into two, and the alliance between the armed rebel group(s) and Al Quaida in the Islamic Maghreb (AQMI) has inflicted untold suffering on the non-Touareg (i.e. black) population. The introduction of full Sh'aria law (including stoning to death of at least two unmarried couples and amputation of the arms and legs of petty thieves), the gathering of jihadists drawn to the vast untamed band of the sahara desert running from Mauritania to Somalia, the emergence of sheikhdoms, the explosive combination of religious fanatics, drug and people traffickers, etc., poses a major challenge not only to all countries bordering the Sahara, but also to Europe and even to the United States. This is another "Afghanistan" in the making and will be far more difficult to subdue.
France is Mali's former colonial master. The jihadists were moving southwards at lightening speed and the rag-tag Malian army was in no position to halt them. Had France not intervened, they would have overrun the capital (Bamako) by now. The outcome would have been horrendous.
For once, African nations have welcomed "foreign" intervention and are falling over one another to praise France for its assistance.
This war is far from fought in my view. The islamists have simply gone underground. At the end of the "war", counter-insurgency must take over and remain on the ground for years to come. This is more than a Malian or French problem. The army of obscurantists (jihadists) are out to destroy everything and everybody who practices any other religion except their strict interpretation of Islam. Atheists, agnostics, philosophers, etc. are not spared either.
During their short reign of terror in Northern Mali, the islamists banned music of all sorts, women were forced to wear the full head-to-toe garb, cigarette and alcohol were no-go areas, etc. Before fleeing Timbuktu five days ago, the jihadists set fire to tons of manuscripts dating as far back as the eleventh century (Timbuktu was for centuries a highly respected centre of learning, and is recognized by UNESCO as a World Heritage Site).
We are all concerned.
pc
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J. Hofer
they're helping the mali government against islamic extremists. good thing.
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TheOldHippie
In Mali it might be a good thing - but then, the Islamic extremists did not gain a certain support in a void - but when the Mali government for years have done nothing but making themselves rich and not doing anything for the people, there is bound to come a reaction. And in some of the other countries where the French have "helped", who knows if the rebels were not the if not "good" then at least the "better" guys than the corrupt governments they tried to topple? Africa is a tragedy, is THE tragedy. The other parts of the world are slowly moving towards a slightly better and more even distribution of what wealth there might be and even more a slightly improved democracy - but Africa? 1 % is still corrupt and suppressing the 99 %. But then those trying to overthrow turn out to be equally bad as soon as they come to power. And behind it all lurks China, giving no thought to human rights at all. Rich Chinese being the reason why the slaughtering of rhinos and elephants has now reached new heights. China + France + African elite = shit shit shit.
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princecharmant
TheOldHippie,
If only it were that simple! I understand the Afropessimism - but Africa as a continent happens to have grown economically over the past decade- and there are enough facts and data to back that up. Unfortunately, the only news that makes the headlines are the negatives. A lot of positive things do happen, albeit not on the scale that one would wish.
As for China's involvement in Africa, that is a totally different kettle of fish! The wanton destruction of natural resources in either weak or failed states is so terrible it is hard even to start describing it. But then, China is only borrowing a leaf from the West that has despoiled the continent, especially sub-saharan Africa, for centuries.
If, as you stated, Africa is the Tragedy, someone somewhere wrote the scripts of the play.
pc
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cedars
slimboyfat - most of these mid-African countries speak French, or use languages derived from French due to France's collonial history down there. I think they're just taking the initiative because Islamic militancy has reared its ugly head down there, and they want to snuff it out quickly rather than leave it to fester. Maybe the French government perceives a terrorist threat to their country in particular if they don't take swift action.
For a change, it doesn't look like we can blame this conflict on oil!
Cedars
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designs
prince- nice overview. One corrupt government fearing an even worse situation, how many times have we seen this in the past century with the colonial powers forced to give up their holdings and supporting dictators against communists.
Where was the outrage over the open slavery in Mali or that the majority live on less than $1.25 per day. Millions in Foreign Aid goes into a few families hands. Jihadists ideologies were no solution either.
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blondie
I do believe that Mali was once a French colony like Algeria. In fact, Africa was carved up into various colonies administered by France, Germany, etc. There still remains a relationship between the colony and that European country
