I’ve never been an aficionado of war neither do I enjoy playing war games on XBox despite “The Godfather” being my favourite gangster film of all time alongside “Good Fellas”. It seems weird but not, it’s about the storyline and lessons learnt that keeps me closer to these films not their violent nature. I’m not a politician neither do I intend to be one another day but I’ve watched and followed events unfolding on the current Libyan crisis. This conflict raised a lot of questions with wider implications.
My wrong perception of Gaddafi (when I was a kid)
For the past 41 years, Muammar Gaddafi has been viewed as “The Godfather” of Libya. He built an empire of patronage, indoctrination, aggression, fear and repression. Without any doubt, he was the untouchable, the invincible and “Don Vito Corleone” of Libya – remember that he came to power through a coup when he was aged just 27. When I was growing up, he was one of my idols – I don’t actually know why? Maybe it’s because of my senile mind you never know? Well, I only remember a bit of it. Imagine an African leader who lived in a tent (his birth place) instead of a pushy mansion with swimming pool, tennis and basketball court, and a golf course close to it. A man who used to prefer walking to taking a Cadillac or Mercedes Benz CLK-GTR – you can name it. I used to associate these little things with the view that Gaddafi was the only African leader with the poor people at heart. Was I correct? I regret my bloody wrong perception of the guy. Yes, (it seems) I was WRONG! I was a kid though. I know I’m not the only one here – maybe we’re many if not uncountable. The guy had a taste for bling bling for real.
Despite being one of the richest countries with oil which is in demand across the whole world, why is Libya has poor infrastructure, poor communities, etc? Imagine a population of 6.4 million owning 3% of the word resources with an income of around £60 billion a year (assuming my figures are correct). This country was supposed to be the Abu Dhabi of Africa without any reasonable doubt. I’m not talking about democracy and human rights here but the standard of living, and quality of life of the general population. I personally don’t get it. Gaddafi could have ruled that country for a century without any major problems if there was equal distribution of wealth. When you sing and preach anti-western and anti-American mantra whilst investing billions of dollars in the same countries under the family or your name then there is a serious problem. When you can’t improve the living standards of your own people then there is a serious problem. When you suppress your own people and butchering them there is a serious problem. Moreover, practicing the same double standards against your political message and ideology is ludicrous. Why don’t you just walk the talk?
What went wrong that ignite the current crisis?
I saw it coming, maybe you didn’t. The Arab intifada was the tip of the iceberg for the current crisis in Libya. The Libyan regime’s responds to democratic protests was predictable given that Gaddafi had ruled the country for more than 40 years. This was a moment of madness and a lost opportunity for the regime. How do you justify an assault against your own people? Is it logical to suppress the views of your own people? This moment of denial by Gaddafi was regrettable at best. I used to believe that he was a real strategist – I was wrong again. The responds by the Security Council was justified given the responds from Gaddafi. Don’t misquote me here; I’m not supporting every action taken against Gaddafi. For instance, the Security Council was swift to react on Libya but not in Syria say. Surely, these double standards are worrying and raise serious questions of personal interests within members of the Security Council. Despite the limitation of the Security Council resolution to “No fly zone” with “necessary measures” to protect civilians, the objective was very clear even before the resolution. Cameron, Sarkozy and Obama (among other leaders) called for him to go beforehand and their stance remained the same even after the resolution. Were they correct to take that stance? I guess not! This is because I don’t like war and I believe leaders have a responsibility to act in a reasonable human manner against its own people without the dictation of other countries. Nevertheless, this shouldn’t distract us from the real issues. I was hoping for a national dialog initiated by Gaddafi himself with the help of the African Union. But to my regret Gaddafi acted like a mad man under the influence of a horse tranquiliser. When you call your own people rats and promise to wipe them out instead of initiating a national dialogue then you don’t deserve respect as a leader. He lost it again and the later initiative by the AU was just a waste of time. His egoism and the NATO bombing undermined the role of the AU in resolving the conflict. Did the AU have the leverage to force Gaddafi into dialogue with the rebels? It’s hard to tell given the weak relationships between Gaddafi and most African leaders. I doubt! Personal EGO is in the blood and DNA of Gaddafi. I may be wrong but unfortunately, we don’t have the opportunity to test that hypothesis it anymore. It’s a shame really.
Does the Western and American intervention linked to democracy and human rights?
I’m anti-war and don’t advocate for one. The costs and consequences are too much but what do you do when a leader becomes mad and start butchering its own people? Someone has to step in to prevent a massacre. Some say “two wrongs don’t make it right” – is it a fallacy? The oppressor and oppressed will view it differently form the same angle. I don’t want to be drawn into religion here – it will be an endless debate. My main concerns are the double standards by the West and Americans. Their actions are not consistent and seem to be driven by greediness and strategic interests. Is it surprising? I don’t think so. The killing of civilians being reported in Syria for instance is alarming but no one is willing to take any necessary actions similar to the ones in Libya. Is this being driven by oil and strategic interests under the pretext of democracy and human rights?
All these nations leading this operation in Libya have sizeable investments there (Spain’s Repsol, France’s Total, Italy’s Eni and Britain’s BP just to name a few). They are investing in war in anticipation of long term oil contracts. That’s a fact! Do you believe that any country can squander tax payer’s money and resources enforcing the UN resolution just for democracy and human rights alone? NO – it’s dirty business! Furthermore, the UN mandate was clear and meant to protect civilians. The current NATO operation is not about that but regime change through direct support of the rebels and NTC. This is not surprising at all because it was made very clear to the whole world that Gaddafi should go before the UN resolution. This was just a vehicle to justify war against a tyrant. Those countries that voted for the resolution or abstained who are complaining about NATO overstepping its mandate should shut up. This was anticipated by any layman person and you wonder how these diplomats didn’t see it coming.
The scandal surrounding London School of Economics and Gaddafi donations linked to the Saif al-Islam Muammar al-Gaddafi’s PhD raised a lot of questions than answers. Honestly, accepting the donation from a dictator and tyrant in exchange of favours in scandalous. When you advocate for democracy and human rights whilst involved in such malpractices is regrettable. The release of Lockerbie bomber is another scandal yet to be told – was this linked to BP contracts in Libya? Maybe the truth will come out some day.
What have we learnt so far especially from African perspective?
I blame nobody for our problems except ourselves. We are the masters of our own distraction and down fall. Firstly, we don’t have a platform for national dialogue in our political systems. This is a disgrace. Great nations today are a result of national building by involving all citizens on board. You don’t build a nation by creating divisions and marginalising societies; you don’t build a nation by classifying other citizens as third class citizens. That is retrogressive and against national progression. The consequences are so grave – it creates a leeway for interference. The sense of national belonging is paramount to any citizen.
Secondly, let’s not take people for granted. Gone are the days when politics used to be a game of promising heaven while delivering dust to people. Let’s walk the talk and be accountable to our own actions. Adapting to change is one of the pillars of progression otherwise you’ll be stagnant or even going backwards.
Thirdly, the culture of tolerance should be an integral part of our society at all levels. The use of force to silence the voices of people is just utterly shameful and unacceptable. That doesn’t mean that people shouldn’t respect the institutions in place in the name of freedom of speech, democracy and human rights. Why should people preach hatred and violence against your own brothers and sisters because of political views? It’s sickening. The solution is simple – a political will where those involved in such practices must be held to account without any favour is required
Fourthly, accountability-accountability-accountability! We have systems where accountability is not in our dictionary and vocabulary. It’s not part of our DNA at political level. This directly fuels high degree corruption with perpetrators getting away with it. Our politics should change. A bottom down approach is the only way forward. Are our leaders accountable to the people they are serving?
Fifth, why should we be taught about democracy and human rights? Don’t we know what is wrong and right for our own societies? Our societies are exposed and clamouring to be heard. Who doesn’t know killing or burning someone’s property for whatever reasons is wrong? Our failure in this respect makes our people view international voices on democracy and human rights as saviours. I don’t blame them at all; it’s their only option at their disposal. People want to live in peace with freedom of association and speech. Living in fear is retrogressive and we need to change.
Sixth, are we really poor to depend on international aid? NAY-we have plenty of natural resources but I believe our priories are wrong and there is no accountability on how the resources are distributed across the population. No one is against empowerment, even a lunatic but the question is “are we empowering those in need or it’s just for patronage?” My heart bleeds!
Last but not least, we are the masters of our destiny! Blaming foreign interference alone is utterly nonsense. Let’s remove our blinkers and look at issues in a bird’s eye view. We seem to be short sighted, dwell much on the past and don’t have a plan for the next generation after us. It’s a sickening syndrome that will leave us begging forever with fragmented society.
You can be in touch with Munya Dimairo on email: mdimairo@gmail.com
