Dissent about Live 8
In an op-ed piece in the liberal New York Times today, an African writer rants against the Live 8 performances, which he sees as an invidious way of appeasing the consciences of the performers. (Subscription is required to view it--go to BugMeNot to get a log-in in 2 seconds.) Here are some money quotes:
"We Africans know what the problem is, and no one else should speak in our name. Africa has men of letters and science, great thinkers and stifled geniuses who at the risk of torture rise up to declare the truth and demand liberty...Don't insult Africa, this continent so rich yet so badly led. Instead, insult its leaders, who have ruined everything. Our anger is all the greater because despite all the presidents for life, despite all the evidence of genocide, we didn't hear anyone at Live 8 raise a cry for democracy in Africa.
Neither debt relief nor huge amounts of food aid nor an invasion of experts will change anything. Those will merely prop up the continent's dictators. It's up to each nation to liberate itself and to help itself. When there is a problem in the United States, in Britain, in France, the citizens vote to change their leaders. And those times when it wasn't possible to freely vote to change those leaders, the people revolted.
What is at issue is an Africa where dictators kill, steal and usurp power yet are treated like heroes at meetings of the African Union. What is at issue is rulers like François Bozizé, the coup leader running the Central Africa Republic, and Faure Gnassingbé, who just succeeded his father as president of Togo, free to trample universal suffrage and muzzle their people with no danger that they'll lose their seats at the United Nations. Who here wants a concert against poverty when an African is born, lives and dies without ever being able to vote freely?
But the truth is that it was not for us, for Africa, that the musicians at Live 8 were singing; it was to amuse the crowds and to clear their own consciences, and whether they realized it or not, to reinforce dictatorships. They still believe us to be like children that they must save, as if we don't realize ourselves what the source of our problems is."
Thoughts?
posted by CharlesPeirce @ 8:10 AM
7 comments
7 Comments:
I think this article is excellent. It points out well that the problems in Africa go much deeper than hunger or poverty to a lack of freedom. While that sounds like a buzz-phrase, I think it's true in their case. Their restrictive and oppressive totalitarian dictatorships cause the hunger and disease our plethora of aid organizations are trying to solve. We're treating the symptoms while doing little to end the cause.
Maybe the African writer is using antagonism towards the musicians as a means to get his message across, but I take issue with his implication that the musicians performing at Live8 have any idea how things work in Africa. They don't. They're doing the only thing they know how to do - perform - in an effort to raise support and awareness for combatting the symptoms of broken societies. What's so bad about that? That support is supposed to lead towards citizens of democracies pressing their governments to act in favor of African Freedom, which itself might result in limiting those dictators a little. Again, where's the problem here?
What does he want? Bono to grab a tank and invade Kenya? Gwen Stefani to lead a peaceful protest of platinum blonde wannbes through the streets of Darfur?
I agree that Live 8 itself won't solve any of Africa's problems. But it's the only way our entertainment industry can possibly contribute, and while it might take needed attention away from Africa's bigger and underlying problems, I doubt it could do much to make westerners more oblivious than they already are.
I think the biggest problem, and I believe what the writer was getting at, is that we are treating symptoms, not problems. The problem in Africa is not a shortage of food, intelligence, or capital. It is that the dictators are keeping all the resources from the people. So, if we really want to fix the problem we need to push for the dictators to step down, not just feed the people and give the dictators more money. Raising money and awareness to fight poverty, AIDS, and starvation in Africa is a great thing to do, but we also need to push for democracy there if we want to make a lasting difference.
yes, that's a good synopsis.
why is charles posting on this blog when he has his own???
He posts here if he finds something to blog about that fits a topic I've already started.
There is a fine line between giving aid to a country and being an outside bully trying to set up a puppet regime. (Latin America, anyone?)
I am wholeheartedly behind the mission of the G8 conference, and I agree with you all that it's not enough. Yet, pushing for a series of corrupt politicians to step down too fast creates a power vacuum in nations, like Kenya, that desperately need at least a semblance of governmental leadership.
Regardless of how you feel about Iraq, I think most would agree that it's a long, difficult process to set up a democracy. Even when the nation is ready and willing, the democratic president runs the risk of losing his credence if he's viewed as a tool of the West. (Luckily, Victor Yushchenko is proving me wrong in the Ukraine.)
And isn't it just a little ironic to force a country into a democracy?
That's true. Still, I think the author makes a good point - all the aid in the world won't prevent these problems from continuing in Africa if their society and governments aren't fixed. I'm not even saying we're the ones to fix it or that there's a good and easy answer about how to do the fixing - just that when people talk about Africa, the problems are always disease, hunger and poverty. Some attention should be given to the fact that the dictators in charge are keeping things that way.
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