Anti-communism+of+Khathu+Mamaila+in+City+Press

City Press, Johannesburg, 18/11/2006 21:21 - (SA)
=We’re prisoners of hope=


 * Khathu Mamaila**

We never learn. We are prisoners of hope. We believe that someone will pity us. We believe that someone will rescue us from the poverty and under-development that have become the defining features of Africa.

We should have listened to Steve Biko – we are on our own. None but ourselves can free ourselves.

Nothing illustrates this more than the Angolan civil war. In that country the warring factions – the MPLA government of José Eduardo dos Santos and the Unita rebel movement of Jonas Savimbi – were pawns in the bigger Cold War between the United States and the ­Soviet Union.

Angola was the battleground of the war between the US, which backed Unita, and the Soviets who supported the MPLA.

It was common for MPLA soldiers to provide armed protection to Chevron, a US oil company, against Unita attacks. What an irony. The MPLA was defending a company that paid taxes to the US government.

These taxes were used to sustain the armed campaign launched by Unita against the MPLA. Bizarre.

For a long time, Africans in Angola failed to see through the sad reality of the common features of American imperialism and Soviet expansionism.

Both countries had one aim in common – to pursue their domestic interests. They both wanted to control the African country and exploit its natural resources.

They were doing it from different political ideologies but the objectives were the same.

The Chinese are the new Soviets. Like the Soviets, they have spread their tentacles throughout Africa.

They are using the same old trick. They position themselves as an alternative to the US and other western countries. Countries that have been expelled from the darlings-of-the-west club, such as Zimbabwe and Sudan, have found a new ally in China.

Unlike the US, China is not fussy about “luxuries” such as democracy and a good human rights record. In any event they know that charity begins at home.

China has opted to adopt that great diplomatic mantra – non-interference in the domestic politics of other countries. It is a perfect cover to assist ruthless despots such as Omar Hassan El-Bashir to remain in power in Sudan.

While everybody with a conscience is calling on the Sudanese government to stop the genocide of the people in Darfur, the Chinese are increasing their investments in that country. By exporting oil from Sudan they are providing real material support for the Sudanese government, which can afford to continue to arm the Janjaweed militia that targets innocent civilians.

On the other end of the spectrum is the US. The US has an impressive human rights record for its citizens but unfortunately does not want to extend this privilege to non-US citizens. Guantanamo is a living testament that the US adheres to the principle that all people are equal but US citizens are more equal than others.

Interestingly, the US has called for a regime change in Sudan. It may be a justified call but it is morally bankrupt. It cannot be supported by other African countries who fear they may be next.

Meantime, African leaders continue to observe their unwritten rule about each other – hear no evil, see no evil, speak no evil.

The recent Africa-China summit should be closely evaluated. African leaders should get out of parasitic relationships with superpowers, hoping that these countries can help them develop.

Development of the continent will only happen if Africans accept that they alone will develop their continent. This means they should spend more money on education than on weapons.

They must reverse the one-way traffic of going around the globe seeking investors who will come to exploit the natural resources and develop capacity for beneficiation. They must see China as a market for African products.

The pawn game must stop.


 * From: http://www.news24.com/City_Press/Columnists/0,7515,186-1695_2032527,00.html**

639 words