Advertisement
Political Violence and Coup D’etats Loose Luster in African Politics
12/01/2014
Michel Djotodia, leader of Seleka rebels, who later became president of Central African Repuclic and his Prime Minister Nicolas Tiangaye quit on Friday under intense international pressure after they failed to halt cycles of violence that have killed thousands and driven a million people, a quarter of the country's population, from their homes.
Seleka rebels seized the capital Bangui and overthrew leader Francois Bozize in March 2013 using a band of fighters, many of whom are gunmen from neighbouring Chad and Sudan called Janjaweeds. Abuses by Seleka forces had led to the creation of Christian self-defense militia and killings that evoked memories of Rwanda's genocide two decades ago.
The 10-nation Economic Community of Central African States (ECCAS) pressure on Djotodia and Tiangaye to relinquish power is not an isolated phenomenon.
Last year, a coup d’etat in Mali was reversed by international and African political pressure on the generals, and subsequently Ibrahim Boubacar Keita was elected to the presidency in August by a landslide.
Observers hope the defeat of M23 rebels in the Democratic Republic of Congo could be a first step towards ending two decades of conflict in the east fuelled by ethnic tensions and rivalry for control of rich deposits of precious metals and minerals in which millions of people died.
The defeat was made possible by the United Nations deployment of a new 3,000-strong Intervention Brigade with a mandate to hunt down armed groups, in a break from normal peacekeeping policy, with its South African Rooivalk attack helicopters playing a role in taking M23's hilltop strongholds. Another helpful factor was the concerted diplomatic pressure which ensured Rwanda did not support rebels as government troops advanced.
Recently, Uganda's president said East African nations had agreed to unite to defeat South Sudanese rebel leader and ex-vice president Riek Machar if he rejected a ceasefire offer. Although there was no immediate confirmation of the pact from other countries, including economic powerhouses Kenya and Ethiopia, others have joined the call to end the bloodbath including President Barack Obama of the United States, Ban Ki-moon of the United Nations and Chinese leaders.
President of South Sudan Salva Kiir sacked Machar in July and later accused him of starting fighting in a bid to seize power, a charge denied by Machar. He has since retreated into the bush and acknowledged he is leading rebel fighters.
The fighting, which erupted in the capital Juba in mid December, triggered further clashes in half of South Sudan's ten states mostly along ethnic lines, between Machar's tribe, the Nuer, and President Kiir's Dinka.
The United Nations said more than 1,000 people have died in the conflict. But some observers, including Casie Copeland, South Sudan analyst for International Crisis Group, estimates nearly 10,000 have died. Hundreds of thousands of civilians are internally displaced. An untold amount of destruction of property has also plagued the nation.
Machar should not be allowed to seize power by force whether by regional or international players.
The constitution of The Republic of South Sudan does not obligate President Kiir, or any other president in the country for that matter, to create or maintain a coalition administration to successfully govern the country.
The president clearly has the discretion to remove members and sympathizers of his political rivals from his administration. Like other prudent presidential democracies around the world, Kiir is compelled by common sense to form an administration that furthers the goals and objectives of his government and party.
Machar and others who seek political power have the constitutional right to run for the presidency next year thereby guaranteeing a peaceful transfer of power in the youngest African country, and perhaps creating a culture of democracy in a country that suffered from political oppression for more than half a century.
Allowing Machar or any other African politician to seize power by force will take the continent back to the twentieth century and a return to the ilk of Colonel Muammar Gaddafi, General Omar Hassan El Bashir, Hosni Mubarak, Yoweri Museveni, who each clung onto presidential power for decades.
Machar should not be rewarded with political goodies after he brought such raw violence upon the people.
Add new comment