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African leaders must not depend on G8, only they can deliver
By Krzys Wasilewski
Posted: July 15, 2006
It is a year since powerful world leaders, gathered at the G8 Summit in Gleneagles, pledged to improve
conditions of the world's most miserable countries. According to the promises made, debts were to be
canceled, money was to be distributed more wisely and ordinary people were to feel a significant
change for the first time in their lives. In the middle of July, the Eight Powers are meeting again, this
time in St. Petersburg, Russia, to discuss what has been done.
The year 2005 was dubbed the year of Africa. Great Britain's double presidency of the European Union
and G8, as some politicians put it, “hoped to bring a major change in our approach towards the
continent.” To show that it were not empty words, Prime Minister Tony Blair established an
international commission which assembled a colorful mosaic of politicians, intellectuals and moral
authorities from Africa and Europe.
“Act, don't talk,” was its motto. Among the commissioners were a former rock star, Bob Geldof, Ralph
Goodale, Canada's Minister of Finances, and Meles Zenawi, the Prime Minister of Ethiopia. Zenawi as
a young, successful politician with no dictatorship past, was labeled as Africa's rising star who could
lead the entire continent to progress and development.
The commission's report, called Our Common Interest, was published in March 2005 and, as many
similar works, displayed a long list of must-dos. Cancel debts, invest more money in Africa, allow its
businessmen to work freely in Europe and the USA – such were the most important clues for the
Western World. But as soon as the commission was dissolved, the brutal reality of daily life cast a
shadow on the lofty ideas.
Firstly, the European Union refused to cancel multi-billion dollar subsidies programs for its farmers.
The United States followed the example. Secondly, from the promises of debt cancellation remained
only beautiful words written down in hundreds of similar documents. That some poor countries had
their debts canceled is true. But it soon turned out that the lucky ones were also the most corrupt states
which simply wasted grants on private villas, Mercedes or little wars across the continent.
Honest countries like Ghana or Uganda where natural disasters made them unable to pay high
interest rates, were left on their own.
Of course, the fault is mutual. The world's richest countries had their share in a year of Africa's failure
as much as Africa is responsible for its own problems. The commission's star Meles Zenawi who so
brilliantly highlighted the importance of democratization on the continent needed only four months to
tarnish his reputation. In July 2005 Ethiopia was to hold its first free elections in many years and
choose true representatives of the nation. Neither happened. The prime minister, no other than Zenawi
himself, ordered the police to arrest opposition leaders, banned the media, and announced his party
victory hours before the voting had ended.
According to the BBC World Service, dozens of people were killed and hundreds jailed being accused
of “treason and incitement to tribal hatred.” Now, they are awaiting trial and face the possibility of death
sentence. Elsewhere, the situation is no better. In neighboring Kenya President Mwai Kibaki rules the
country as though it was his private farm, closing newspapers whenever he finds them too
independent and expelling those who dare to disagree.
Africa's world war, as people describe the 12-year conflict in the Democratic Republic of Congo, has
cost 10 million innocent lives. Although the EU has sent its contingents to secure August elections,
only small part of the country remains free of violence. About Zimbabwe one could write many fat
books; it is enough to say that inflation runs at over 400 percent, one half of the population is
unemployed and those who work, earn less than two dollars a day. Only a decade ago it was, apart
from South Africa, the richest country of sub-Saharan Africa.
The last ten years of Robert Mugabe's rule brought Zimbabwe on the verge of collapse. Unfortunately,
good examples are rare exceptions. Ghana is one of the few countries where free elections do take
place and do not end up in constant rebellion. Liberia -- Africa's oldest democracy -- after 20 years of
civil wars with hundreds of thousands of dead, elected the first female president in Africa and, what is
more important, the opposition accepted the result.
These few positive changes, however, Africans owe themselves rather than Western generosity.
“We have failed,” should admit the world's most powerful leaders in St. Petersburg. But will they?
Previous G8 summits proved that politicians used them to voice their own policies without looking
back. With this year's energy policy topic, Africa with its problems and successes has a little chance to
appear on the agenda, again.
### ### ###
krzys Wasilewski is a Global Affairs Intern, The Atlantic Affairs.
By Krzys Wasilewski
Posted: July 15, 2006
It is a year since powerful world leaders, gathered at the G8 Summit in Gleneagles, pledged to improve
conditions of the world's most miserable countries. According to the promises made, debts were to be
canceled, money was to be distributed more wisely and ordinary people were to feel a significant
change for the first time in their lives. In the middle of July, the Eight Powers are meeting again, this
time in St. Petersburg, Russia, to discuss what has been done.
The year 2005 was dubbed the year of Africa. Great Britain's double presidency of the European Union
and G8, as some politicians put it, “hoped to bring a major change in our approach towards the
continent.” To show that it were not empty words, Prime Minister Tony Blair established an
international commission which assembled a colorful mosaic of politicians, intellectuals and moral
authorities from Africa and Europe.
“Act, don't talk,” was its motto. Among the commissioners were a former rock star, Bob Geldof, Ralph
Goodale, Canada's Minister of Finances, and Meles Zenawi, the Prime Minister of Ethiopia. Zenawi as
a young, successful politician with no dictatorship past, was labeled as Africa's rising star who could
lead the entire continent to progress and development.
The commission's report, called Our Common Interest, was published in March 2005 and, as many
similar works, displayed a long list of must-dos. Cancel debts, invest more money in Africa, allow its
businessmen to work freely in Europe and the USA – such were the most important clues for the
Western World. But as soon as the commission was dissolved, the brutal reality of daily life cast a
shadow on the lofty ideas.
Firstly, the European Union refused to cancel multi-billion dollar subsidies programs for its farmers.
The United States followed the example. Secondly, from the promises of debt cancellation remained
only beautiful words written down in hundreds of similar documents. That some poor countries had
their debts canceled is true. But it soon turned out that the lucky ones were also the most corrupt states
which simply wasted grants on private villas, Mercedes or little wars across the continent.
Honest countries like Ghana or Uganda where natural disasters made them unable to pay high
interest rates, were left on their own.
Of course, the fault is mutual. The world's richest countries had their share in a year of Africa's failure
as much as Africa is responsible for its own problems. The commission's star Meles Zenawi who so
brilliantly highlighted the importance of democratization on the continent needed only four months to
tarnish his reputation. In July 2005 Ethiopia was to hold its first free elections in many years and
choose true representatives of the nation. Neither happened. The prime minister, no other than Zenawi
himself, ordered the police to arrest opposition leaders, banned the media, and announced his party
victory hours before the voting had ended.
According to the BBC World Service, dozens of people were killed and hundreds jailed being accused
of “treason and incitement to tribal hatred.” Now, they are awaiting trial and face the possibility of death
sentence. Elsewhere, the situation is no better. In neighboring Kenya President Mwai Kibaki rules the
country as though it was his private farm, closing newspapers whenever he finds them too
independent and expelling those who dare to disagree.
Africa's world war, as people describe the 12-year conflict in the Democratic Republic of Congo, has
cost 10 million innocent lives. Although the EU has sent its contingents to secure August elections,
only small part of the country remains free of violence. About Zimbabwe one could write many fat
books; it is enough to say that inflation runs at over 400 percent, one half of the population is
unemployed and those who work, earn less than two dollars a day. Only a decade ago it was, apart
from South Africa, the richest country of sub-Saharan Africa.
The last ten years of Robert Mugabe's rule brought Zimbabwe on the verge of collapse. Unfortunately,
good examples are rare exceptions. Ghana is one of the few countries where free elections do take
place and do not end up in constant rebellion. Liberia -- Africa's oldest democracy -- after 20 years of
civil wars with hundreds of thousands of dead, elected the first female president in Africa and, what is
more important, the opposition accepted the result.
These few positive changes, however, Africans owe themselves rather than Western generosity.
“We have failed,” should admit the world's most powerful leaders in St. Petersburg. But will they?
Previous G8 summits proved that politicians used them to voice their own policies without looking
back. With this year's energy policy topic, Africa with its problems and successes has a little chance to
appear on the agenda, again.
### ### ###
krzys Wasilewski is a Global Affairs Intern, The Atlantic Affairs.
| (c) 2006 New Criterion Foundation, London |
| Security. Ideologies. Multiculturalism. |