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NEWS & LETTERS, October 2002
Letter from Africa: struggles continue
by Ba Karang Gambia--There are many new developments in the struggles
of the African people against both their local dictators and international
capital. In a word, Africa is in a serious situation. It has been so for many
decades, but now it faces war, internal crisis, famine, and AIDS. Famine in the whole of Southern Africa is happening at a
time when world leaders are gathering in South Africa to discuss problems they
themselves have created (see page 9)--hunger, environmental disaster, poverty,
unfair trade relationships, and political instability. Many other African
countries are facing the same situation, like Zimbabwe and Gambia. The problem leading to this situation is not just the
poor rainy season; there is food to buy in most of these countries including
Gambia. The fact is that the purchasing power of the people has seriously
declined and stands among other reasons why hunger in Africa is no longer just a
village phenomenon but appears also right in the heart of the towns. Agriculture is still being encouraged as an
export-oriented activity, affecting the continent as well. Ecological disaster
is occurring as forests are cleared for more and bigger farm lands. Without a
change in this attitude, the problem with hunger will not be solved easily. There are still many wars in the continent, just and
unjust. The war in Congo ceased to be a just war the very day Mobutu was
defeated. We insisted from the start that the defeat of Mobutu was revolutionary
but that it will not lead to the liberation of the people of Congo. Even after
the signing of a regional peace treaty, the war still continues as if nothing
had happened. Mugabe of Zimbabwe says he is prepared to withdraw his
forces under the pretext of the so-called peace treaty. But it is very clear
that the internal crisis in Zimbabwe will not allow Mugabe to concentrate on an
outside crisis. It is no accident that he declared his new cabinet to be a
"War Cabinet." Mugabe, who promised to give Black farmers land during
his election campaign, knew very well that fanning the fire of nationalism will
be the only way to hold on to power. Some of us have been questioning why it has
taken so long a time to address the land question since it was very fundamental
in the liberation struggle. In light of his promises to return the land without
any economic possibilities to help Black farmers to take over the big farms and
run them, if Mugabe uses the courts to maintain ownership by some of the white
farmers, we should not be surprised. The formation of the African Union (AU) is not
surprising at this stage of both the political and economic development of the
continent. The warring in the continent, the poverty, and the hunger had
been used as a pretext for the formation of the AU, but the very day this union
was born, it refused to recognise the struggle and victory of the people of
Madagascar. We might better see such dictatorial behaviour as one of the central
reasons for the formation of the AU. Comrades, in the struggles of the African continent
there have been small victories that are very important in moving the struggle
to new levels. They must continue to be defended. There are still nations
fighting for their independence. The struggles of these nations and peoples must
not be dismissed as mere power struggles or having the desire to split Africa
into small entities. Perhaps this dismissiveness is why the struggle of the
people of the Western Sahara is not recognised and supported by many of the
African Left. We have the Black Sudanese and Mauritanians fighting against their
Arab racist leaders. They are humiliated, enslaved, and denied the most basic of
human rights. No one is demanding sanctions against these regimes. It is perhaps among the issues that makes many Africans see the reaction of the West against Mugabe to be nothing other than hypocrisy. It is the duty of the Left to defend the struggles of these peoples. |
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