Two Steps Forward, One Step Back
A lot of things have been going on in Africa, much of it good, but there is always some bad along the way.
In Sudan it appears that decades of conflict may have reached a final solution as the referendum on spitting the nation appears to have passed and Southern Sudan will enter the community of nations.
Other than some lines on maps drawn by Europeans, the two halves of Sudan have almost nothing in common, not ecosystems, not religion, not ethnicity. This might not have been a problem if the North had done something other than take from the South. The taking led to a civil war that has lasted more than 20 years. Hopefully people can put the violence behind them, and build their own nations.
In Tunisia mounting opposition to the regime of the Ben Ali clan that has been sucking the wealth out of the country has resulted in their fleeing the country, and a interim “national unity” government being installed. The understanding is that there will be elections soon to install a permanent new government. Corruption was rampant with a limited group of families controlling almost everything in the country.
Both Egypt and Algeria are very nervous about this, as it might signal the creation of popular movements to change in their governments.
On a negative note, especially if you are fond of chocolate, Ivory Coast is still in gridlock after its elections. Ivory Coast’s incumbent President Laurent Gbagbo “is refusing to hand power to Alassane Ouattara, seen internationally as the winner of November’s elections.”
Everyone outside of Ivory Coast agrees that Ouattara won the election, but Gbabgo refuses to accept reality, and seems ready to use force to retain his office. This will very likely end badly.
4 comments
That Ivory Coast situation decidedly has people worried at my office. We’re all a buncha chocoholics. The only thing that could be worse would be if some plague hit the coffee bean plantations of the world, I think the whole Silicon Valley would grind to a halt at that point ;).
– Badtux the Chocoholic Penguin
Let’s not even consider a threat to coffee until I finished by first quart of the day.
Americans don’t have any idea where things come from, other than a vague concept that oil comes from “Arab countries”, which isn’t very accurate as the majority of the oil we use comes from the Americas.
They are barely out of their last troubles, and now this.
The turn of affairs in Tunisia came as a huge surprise to me. But a pleasant surprise. I really do bet that other countries in the region and further afield are feeling nervous now. I am sure it gives hope to my friends in Iran too
It apparently has a core of the college-educated unemployed youth and the middle class, which makes it somewhat unusual, and it is driven from the bottom up with no obvious leader. I think Europe needs to look at what is happening and consider how it will affect the comfortable sitting on top and calling for the “little people” to sacrifice, while the banks continue to prosper with their ill-gotten gains. France is beginning to look like Tunisia with the financial sector playing the role of the ruling clans.
You don’t put all of the time and money into getting a degree to be reduced to selling “sausage on bun” in the streets to survive.