African politics is a weird mixture of ancient tribal mentalities and
democratic ideals imported from the West. It's proven to be a pretty
volatile combination on the continent and one that spurs much of its
political strife. One country that's had to deal with the consequences
of that unique approach to governance recently is the landlocked Central
African Republic (CAR), home to a violent upheaval that's been going on
since late last year.
In January 2013, South Africa's ruling ANC party sent 400 troops to the CAR. Ostensibly, they were there to help the country's president, Francois
Bozizé, fight Séléka, the coalition of rebel groups revolting against
Bozizé and his government (they allege that Bozizé isn't honoring peace
agreements made after the 2004-2007 Central African Republic Bush War). The thing is, the Central African Republic had been suspended
from the African Union because of the uprising, which—in theory—should
have disqualified them from receiving external military aid.
A rebel in the Central African Republic.
There is much speculation over why South African President Jacob Zuma
deployed his forces to support the CAR's clearly failing and dictatorial
government. The theory picking up the most steam is that both the ANC and a number of its individual members have private mineral and natural resource interests in the CAR
that they wish to protect. There are many South African companies
exploiting the oil the CAR has to offer, with most of them linked to
powerful political figures in South Africa and arguably fueling the
coffers that drive the ANC's political machine.
One such company is DIG Oil, a company prospecting in the southeast of the CAR. Zuma's nephew sits on the board
of DIG Oil—something that suggests Zuma might have more than a passing
business interest in the company. It also suggests—if you're a fan of
linking pretty blatant points—that Zuma may well be using the South
African military as a private security service to protect his and his
cronies' international business interests.
South Africa's dubious involvement was highlighted when, on the 23rd of March, the Séléka rebels marched on the capital, Bangui, and seized control, killing at least 13 South African soldiers
in the process. It was a one-sided massacre. The South African forces
had few supplies, fewer numbers, and little to no intelligence. After
reports emerged that the CAR government had never formally requested
to have South African troops deployed to help them out, people—namely
the ANC's domestic political opposition, the DA—have started to push for
Zuma's reasoning.
The South African presidency claimed
that the troops were sent in order to “assist with the capacity
building of the CAR defence force and would assist the CAR with the
planning and implementation of the disarmament, demobilization and
reintegration processes."
Which, if you untangle it, suggests that the official line is that the
troops were there to help train the CAR army. But that begs the
question: What were they fighting for if they were only there to train?
Public outcry, both from South Africa and abroad, forced Zuma to
withdraw his troops from the region, but that hasn't stopped the
questions from rolling in.
At a memorial service for the soldiers, Zuma swatted any allegations of wrongdoing aside, saying,
"The problem in South Africa is that everybody wants to run the
country. Government must be given the space to do its work of running
the country to implement the policies of the ruling party that was voted
into office by millions of our people. There must also be an
appreciation that military matters and decisions are not matters that
are discussed in public, other than to share broader policy… Those who
are engaging in this game should be careful not to endanger both the
national interest and the security of the republic."
This dismissive attitude hasn't sat well with the press, which has
spent two years fighting the Protection of Information Bill that allows
the government to jail journalists for up to 25 years
for publishing something they don't want published. And the opposition
is trying to discredit the ANC, which isn't a particularly hard job at
the moment.
A child soldier in the Central African Republic
Parliament has called for an ad-hoc committee to gain answers to
questions raised by the DA’s Shadow Minister of Defence and Military
Veterans, David Maynier. Those questions being: Did the president
intentionally mislead parliament to the role of the troops in the CAR?
Why were the troops deployed based on an understanding between South
Africa and the CAR rather than a mandate from the United Nations or the
African Union? And why was there so little support for the troops that
had been deployed?
Questions are also being raised about the South African National
Defense Force’s (SANDF) ability to act as peacekeepers on the African
continent. Many SANDF troops aren't sufficiently trained, and budget
constraints allow for only one brigade of 3,000 soldiers to be deployed
at any given time, over half of whom
are medically unfit to serve, chronically ill, or too old to be
effective in a conflict scenario. So yeah, not ideal for a continent
with a population of approximately 1 billion, and a problem that the
South African troops in the CAR faced before they even left their home
country.
As for the CAR, well, the streets of Bangui are now stained in blood. Riots, looting, child soldiers, and rape are all daily occurrences
and the prolonged fighting has delayed the planting of crops for the
rainy season, so there are expected food shortages on the horizon in a
country that ranks among the poorest in the world. It's not looking
good, basically. And it looks unlikely that Zuma—even with the help of
his private security firm, the SANDF—will have much say over what
happens to his assets in the Central African Republic.
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