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Syria. All The Games.

Thursday, 1 March 2018 8:00
Written by: Fr.Carmine

Whatever tensions exist between Israel, the USA and Iran, they will play out in Syria first. The strategy will focus on preventing Iran from deploying of missiles in Syria and Lebanon, aimed against Israel.

In effect, Israel will consider any provocation, real or fabricated arising from Syria as being directed from Tehran. In turn, Tel Aviv will seek to further consolidate its occupation of the Golan. The resulting framework is such that anything could escalate tensions with Iran in Syria, which Israel could use to articulate any type of action. Regardless of how aggressive its stance, Tel Aviv will always be able to present it to the world and its American clients/allies as defensive or preventive with limitless abandon.
The scenario represents the culmination of Bernard Lewis’s design, as described earlier. The recent events and ever clearer alignment of Israeli and American objectives in the Middle East, will no doubt deepen the current destabilizing efforts, reaching Iran, using ‘leverage’ from Syria. Of course, the defensive measures that Israel and the U.S. will take could well include a Ukraine, or Arab Spring like (Libya, Egypt, Syria, Yemen) plan to play the ‘democracy’ card, encouraging revolts in Iran to bring down its role as an autonomous power in the Middle East. The Israeli-American alliance considers Iran to be the last obstacle to Israeli supremacy across the region. Such is the scenario that contains within it the seeds of a major conflict. Iran, the United States, Saudi Arabia, Turkey, Russia and of course Israel have been fighting a proxy war in Syria. Indeed, describing the Syrian conflict as a ‘civil war’ misleading.

It’s an international war by proxy, the last of a series of mistakes that can be traced back to 1979 and the Iranian Revolution. The United States lost what was their second most important ally – Iran – after Israel in the Middle East. After trying to play the Islamic Republic and its main Arab enemy, Iraq, against each other in a war that lasted from 1980 to 1988, in 2003 Bush II eliminated Saddam Hussein secular Sunni power, handing power over a new Iraqi government, dominated by Shiite and Kurdish forces. The Americans achieved what seemed impossible in the 1980’s, align Syria and Iraq together with Iran, creating a virtual ‘Shiite crescent’ of political, economic and military influence. Now, Israeli PM Benjamin Netanyahu has brandished like a hunter at an African safari a trophy: the piece of an Iranian reconnaissance drone, which it shot down in the Israeli side of the occupied Golan. It was a Colin Powell moment that is a deja-vu from his infamous Niger yellowcake speech before the UN General Assembly in 2003. That’s when then Secretary of State tried to convince the world that Saddam has weapons of mass destruction (WMD) to build the casus belli against his regime. It’s unlikely the world – except for the U.S. and a handful of others – has swallowed Netanyahu’s Powell ‘impression’. Yet, nobody will have any power to stop Israel from obstructing Iranian ambitions.

Iranian Drones and Israeli Jets

The downing of an Israeli F-16 fighter jet returning from a mission over Syria (and a related incident involving an Iranian drone downed in the Israeli Golan) has raised the stakes for Iran, Syria, Israel and Lebanon. Increased the tension between Israel, the regime Damascus, Iran and other regional allies. Clearly, Israel now would prefer to keep Syria in chaos to allowing Damascus to regain control and restore to stability.
Tel Aviv calculates that this strengthens Hezbollah. Should Iran and Israel end up in a direct clash, the first shots, or the ‘Sarajevo’ moment will occur in Syria.

The evidence from Syria hints that rather than spontaneous, external powers steered and stirred the revolt against the Asad regime. Indications are that Libya and Egypt, if not Tunisia, were also ‘revolts’, planned many miles away from Tripoli or Cairo. Therefore, there’s little doubt that Tehran can expect similar manoeuvrings to fuel an uprising to bring down the Islamic Republic. Such an attempt may have already occurred as thousands of Iranians took to the streets in January 2018 in a similar pattern to what happened in 2009 with the Green Revolution. There’s one problem, however, with such a plan. However flawed, the Islamic Republic of Iran has strong institutions and a budding democracy. In other words, the people can express grievances and aspirations through official channels. And they can vote.
Iran has endured one major revolution and a series of coups and revolts in the 20th century. The Islamic and most important revolution, however, has been gradually turning Iran into a more sophisticated, if complex, country. Few realize, much less Trump, that Iran is closer to achieving democracy than most of its Middle Eastern neighbours. In many ways, Iran even boats greater economic diversity than its Arab neighbours.

Years of sanctions have forced the country to be more self-reliant, developing many import substituting industries. The very fact that the Iranian military air force and airline (Iran Air) have remained operational, despite a ban on imports of spare parts, is but one example. Iran’s universities have continued to provide high quality education. Such is the context against which young Iranians, Iran’s Millennials, took to the streets in late December and early January.
They are not different than their western peers, they are as versed in social media and educated in a wide range of subjects. They are also politically active. That may seem surprising, considering Iran has no political parties per se. Yet, there are budding political currents. The Islamic Revolution was not monolithic; neither is the Islamic Republic. In the crudest terms, the Iranian Parliament features elected officials, espousing views that range from the conservative to the moderate and progressive. But, they can be reduced further to pragmatists and conservatives. President Hassan Rohani can be considered the leader of the pragmatists, those interest in advancing a gradual evolution of the current system toward greater democracy. Although, in a different post, the Supreme Leader, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei (he establishes who can and cannot run for the presidential election) is an arch-conservative. (A.B.)

Ethiopia. A Divided Country.

Thursday, 1 March 2018 8:00
Written by: Fr.Carmine

Ethiopia is passing through a period of turmoil due to ethnic tensions. Prime Minister Hailemariam Desalegn has just resigned. The new prime minster will be elected this month. The role of the Army.

The country has a population of 105,350,000 people. 34.4% of them are Oromos, 27% are Amharas, 6.2% are Somalis, 6.1% are Tigrays; the others belong to smaller ethnic groups. As far as religion is concerned, 43.5% of Ethiopians are Ortodox, 33.9% are Muslim, 18.5% are Protestant and 2.7% belong to traditional religions, 0.7% are Catholics and 0,6% belong to other cults.

The ethnic issue has important consequences, since Ethiopia is a federal parliamentarian republic divided into nine ethnically based states (Afar, Amhara, Binshangul Gumuz, Gambela Hizboch, Harari Hizb, Oromiya, Somali, Tigray, Southern Nations, Nationalities and Peoples) and two self-governing administrations, Addis Ababa (the federal capital) and Dire Dawa.This issue influences even the top levels of public administration. The political life of the country is led by the Ethiopian People’s Revolutionary Democratic Front (EPRDF), a coalition of former rebel forces that in 1991 toppled a military junta (the Derg) that had ruled the country since 1974. In the May 2015 elections EPRDF got 501 out of 547 seats in parliament. Also the EPRDF is divided along ethnic lines since it is composed of four parties with an ethnic characterization.

Within the EPRDF the leading element is the Tigray People’s Liberation Front (TPLF), a group composed of Tigray people which basically controls the security apparatus. The other members of the coalition are the Oromo People’s Democratic Organization (OPDO), the Amhara National Democratic Movement (ANDM) and the South Ethiopian People’s Democratic Front (SEPDF). According to some analyst, TPLF leadership is split between some members that want to keep the control of the state apparatus in the hands of Tigrays and a group that think that prefer a more cooperative style of government.

State of unrest

Since November 2015 Oromo and Amhara political activists have been protesting in their states and in the area of Addis Ababa, which is autonomous but is completely encircled by Oromiya. They contest the discrimination they allegedly suffer from the institutions and in particular the “illegal occupation” of land of the state. The protests in many cases degenerate into clashes, also due to the heavy-handed approach of the security forces. Some government officials have even accused foreign countries (such as Egypt) of supporting the protesters to destabilize Ethiopia. But they have never provided conclusive evidence of that.A state of emergency imposed on 9th October 2016 and lifted on 4th August 2017 succeeded in reducing the strength of protests, but not in stopping them completely. After August 2017, demonstrations regained momentum and a three-day strike was organized in Oromiya and Amhara from 12th to 14th February 2018.

On 15th February 2018 Ethiopian prime minister and EPRDF leader Hailemariam Desalegn resigned from both roles. The reason he gave was that he intended to meet the people’s demand for democracy and development. He will manage current affairs until a new premier is chosen, probably during the annual congress of the EPRDF, scheduled for March 2018. This episode was a sign that the EPRDF leadership is trying to cope with the increasing ethnic tensions and at least a part of it believes that force is probably not the solution. But there are some who thinks differently. On 16th February the government (including OPDO and ANDM) reintroduced the state of emergency for six months, hoping to eliminate the problem of unrest in Oromiya and Amhara states.

Turmoil at the top

Desalegn was in charge since 2012. A member of the Welayta ethnic group and the chief SEPDF, he was apparently accepted as leader by the different factions of EPRDF. But his position was considered by some observers as weak, because he lacked a strong political base. His inability to cope with the popular discontent apparently forced him out after months of speculation. But it can’t be ruled out that he chose to quit to avoid being considered the only one responsible of the situation. In fact, his policies were supported by the coalition.

But this transition is not a guarantee of democratic change. The imposition of a new state of emergency might indicate that within the EPRDF some are not ready for appeasement. In any case, Desalegn’s exit is considered the opening of a phase of uncertainty for the African country by different observers, including EU High Representative for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy Federica Mogherini.
The solution of the ethnic issue is for the most part in the hands of the Ethiopian political leadership. The actual uncertainty might lead to a shift in the sharing of powers within the EPRDF. During the first phase of the protests the Oromo and Amhara components of the coalition were sidelined by grassroots movements such as Querroo (“Youth”). This group apparently has strong support within the Oromo youth. These movements considered OPDO and the institutions in Oromiya (including the police) to be lackeys of the TPLF.

But in October 2016 Lemma Megersa (OPDO) was named president of Oromiya. Megersa and a new wave of leaders seem to have given a new impulse to OPDO political action. The Oromo party distanced itself from TPLF and supported some of the requests of the protesters.
Apparently, within the TPLF leadership the idea of choosing an Oromo premier gained ground. The idea seems to be to share the power to preserve EPRDF rule. In February 2018 OPDO chose a new president: Megersa stepped down (but remained president of Oromiya) and his deputy, Abiy Ahmed, became the new chief of OPDO.
Some analysts think that Ahmed is a more appealing leader and was chosen by Oromo politicians to became the new Ethiopian premier in the EPRDF congress in March 2018. A new sharing of power within the EPRDF could reduce the ongoing ethnic tensions, but it is not a guarantee of democratic development for Ethiopia. In fact, it will not necessarily change the power structure in the African country, centered on the EPRDF and the security forces that support it.

And it is not certain that this new agreement will solve definitively the issue of ethnic tensions. If an Oromo Prime Minister is named and no political compensation is provided for Amharas, the members of this ethnic group could start agitating even more.
Some sort of backlash from Tigray leaders is not to be ruled out. Those Tigrays, especially in the high echelons of the armed forces that do not accept a sharing of power with other ethnic groups could resist the ongoing process, even organizing a coup. The scenarios so far presented do not solve the problem of the mistrust among the different peoples of Ethiopia. At this moment it is difficult to say if the political class will be able to do that.

Andrea Carbonari

Iran And The Conflicts In The Middle East.

Thursday, 1 March 2018 8:00
Written by: Fr.Carmine

Nobody appears to have any clear plans for Syria. Indeed, the ignorance extends to the entirety of the Middle East. But, it’s clear that the reason why U.S. troops remain in Syria is Iran.

The Americans have tried to justify their considerable effort to shape events in the Region since the end of World War II, but they produced more ‘rhyme’ than ‘reason’. They have often repeated the same mistakes; especially, since the 1970’s, when they decided to encourage an Islamic political revival to contain a growing influence of the Soviet Union. This is the prism through to observe the U.S. administrations’ encouragement of the Muslim Brotherhood in Egypt at the expense of socialists and communists in the universities that culminated in the assassination of President Anwar Sadat.

That need to contain the USSR also prompted such experiments as the mujahedin in Afghanistan. It was the trap that became one of the main reasons of the Soviet demise a mere decade later. The Americans’ failure to help their Iranian ally, Shah Mohammed Reza Pahlavi, can also considered a deliberate effort to fuel chaos in the region after the Iranian monarch revealed ambitions that Washington considered too nationalistic for American interests.
In hindsight, of course, the experiments failed miserably. The mujahedin paved the way for the Taliban in Afghanistan.
Egypt and other Arab States were forced to confront a political opposition that exploited the mosque as a base to spread its ideas, while Shiite movements – only partly inspired by the Iranian Revolution – rose against the social and political status-quo in Lebanon.

The Anglo-American invasion, which Washington directed and produced, is the fruit of similar disruptive efforts. What few realize is that Iraq was merely the first target. The ‘intellectuals’ that inspired the administration of George W. Bush, the likes of Bernard Lewis, Richard Perle, William Kristol and even Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu saw the need for a reshaping of the Middle East. The 1996 paper, ‘A Clean Break : A New Strategy for Securing the Realm’ was at the origin of the Iraq invasion of 2003. With communism having been defeated, the goal became to spread western values, ‘democracy’, to the Middle East. The idea was that with more democratic neighbours, Israel could feel more secure. The problem was how to convince the American public to go along with such a plan. The paper outlined the need for a ‘Pearl Harbor’ like event to cement American sentiment against the dictatorships of the Arab world and Muslims in general.
The attacks of September 11 provided that narrative. And Iraq fell accordingly. The destruction came, but democracy has fallen a little short of the target; stability remains a chimera. Nevertheless, Iraq and Syria are bit sideshows to the main event: Iran. Syria’s instability is not an accident. The United States and its main ally, Israel, (and not necessarily in that order) want to sustain the chaos in Syria to block Iran. The Iranian nuclear program is just one of Tel Aviv’s concerns. It’s not even the most important one, but it’s an important pretext around which to engage the United States into a mutual anti-Iranian strategy. Prime Minister Netanyahu has found a willing ally in the White House, who will put Israel’s interests above those of the United States vis-à-vis Iran.

The Iran Nuclear Deal and Its Discontents

Many American corporations praised the 2015 5+1 Nuclear Agreement signed by Tehran and the Five Permanent Members of the UN Security Council (plus Germany). Boeing signed a $30 billion agreement with Iran Air to sell dozens of airliners, while American oil majors like ExxonMobil (whose former CEO is U.S. Secretary of State Rex Tillerson) were eager to help Iran develop its oil fields and petroleum refining capacity. In other words, apart from having found a way to contain Iran’s nuclear ambitions, Washington had opened a lucrative market, which had been off limits for over 35 years. While on January 12, 2018 Trump has reviewed and given the Deal six more months, he warned that when the deal comes up again for renewal he will ‘pull the plug on it’ if the other partners don’t fix its “terrible flaws”. He wasn’t specific, but Iranian media are reporting Trump plans to block the Boeing aircraft sale, which adds authority to his threat about the nuclear deal. The EU, for its part, has no interest in the hard line; and China, which imports much of its hydrocarbons from Iran, will find it difficult to change the terms of the nuclear deal. But, there is a logic to Trump’s madness.

George W. Bush started the process in Iraq (and Afghanistan) and Obama, unwittingly, could extricate the U.S. from the region. Yet, for reasons beyond the scope of this dossier to discuss, Trump is intent on dismantling whatever symmetries were left in the Middle East. He seems to be going about it stages. The declaration concerning the recognition of Jerusalem as the Israeli capital on December 6, 2017 did much to endear the Knesset and Prime Minister Netanyahu’s administration, even at the cost of alienating the Palestinian partners in the ‘peace process’. More importantly, the Jerusalem Declaration has heralded a new Israeli-American security partnership aimed both at blocking Tehran from acquiring atomic weapons and at obstructing Iran’s reach in the region through Hezbollah (in Lebanon) and the government of Bashar al-Asad in Syria. Therefore, as far as Tel Aviv is concerned, Syria, even more so than in the past decades, has become the ‘gateway’ to Iran. (A.B.)

Morocco. Between Islamic Radicalization And Narco-Jihadism.

Thursday, 1 March 2018 8:00
Written by: Fr.Carmine

After the phenomenon of Moroccan foreign fighters joining the ranks of the Islamic State, now the jihadist threat comes mainly from the Sahel, where Al-Qā’ida in the Islamic Maghreb has consolidated its power and where it is exploiting the networks of Moroccan drug trafficking to self-finance.

Morocco is considered one of the main exporters of foreign fighters. Tunisia ranks second as biggest foreign exporter, with a flow of about 1,500 fighters to Syria and Iraq to join the Islamic State between 2012 and 2016, out of a total of 8,000 men from all of North Africa.
Until 2014, the Moroccan authorities ignored the phenomenon of jihadists leaving the country to fight against the Assad regime and defend the ‘Sunni cause’. But, after the defeat of the Islamic State, many Moroccan foreign fighters are now returning home. This could lead to serious repercussions in the country and threaten its political balance that has already been put to the test in recent years. After the entry into force of the anti-terrorism law of 2015, several people have been arrested for joining terrorist organizations inside and outside Morocco.

The attacks in Spain last August, led to the intensification of cooperation between Madrid and Rabat on the management of terrorism and the elaboration of joint policies for the dismantling of terrorist cells.
Rabat is also intensifying the capillary control of mosques and that of Imams’ preachings. Today, the activity of mosques and Imams, as well as the Ulama Council are under the direct control of the king, in line with the policy already started by Hassan II which aimed at the re-establishment of the monarchy’s control over religious issues. Therefore, policies of control of places where indoctrination processes can take place were already implemented before the birth of the Islamic State and its call to jihād.

A strong message against extremism is undoubtedly represented by the decision, taken by the Supreme Council of Ulama, last year in February, to abolish the death penalty for apostasy from Islam. This is the first time in a Muslim country that individuals who leave Islam are not supposed to face the death penalty: a policy against extremism and the massacres of the Islamic State in order to defend a moderate Islam that accepts religious plurality. The decision to make the Department for Prison Administration and Reintegration (DGAPR) independent from the Ministry of Justice was also very important. The DGAPR manages a structure in which 3,600 jihadists are detained and has elaborated a protocol to de-radicalize and monitor the de-radicalization phases of other prisoners, while encouraging their reintegration into society.

Finally, there is a great deal of attention to Moroccans who have emigrated to countries such as France, Spain and Italy, through the creation of Islamic organizations that manage mosques and constitute a point of reference for the community. In 2015, Morocco’s Central Bureau of Judicial Investigation (BCIJ), the main security agency responsible for anti-terrorist operations, was created in order to dismantle terrorist cells. The BCIJ, in these two years, has identified 47 terrorist cells linked to the Islamic State and another 5 linked to Al-Qā’ida in the Islamic Maghreb (AQIM) and to al-Nusra (an affiliation of Al-Qā’ida in Syria). Moreover, from 2015 to date, 698 people have been arrested on charges of participation in terrorist organizations inside or outside the country.
The Islamic State is not the only catalyst for fighters; on the contrary, the number of those who join other terrorist organizations that are gaining ground in North Africa is growing. These terrorist organizations whose self-financing is based on drug and weapon trafficking, are constantly looking for young people to hire. Al-Qā’ida in the Islamic Maghreb (AQIM), is a jihadist terrorist organization founded in 2007 through the merging of Al-Qā’ida and the Salafita Group for Preaching and Combat (GSPC). In line with the principles of Al-Qā’ida, its primary objective is to destabilize governments and establish shari’a as the sole law of the State.

At this time the main jihadist threat, for Morocco and other countries, comes from the Sahel, where AQIM controls territories, such as those in Algeria, Mali, Mauritania, Tunisia, Nigeria, Libya, in that desert space which is no man’s land. The organization is responsible for a series of terrorist attacks, including the one in Mali (November 2015), Burkina Faso (January 2016) and Ivory Coast (March 2016). AQIM in Morocco controls the drug trafficking that stretches from Rif (the northern region of Morocco where half of the world’s hashish is produced, 15 thousand tons, with a $10 billion annual turnover) to the rest of North Africa and Europe. These militias, so-called narco-jihadist, have transformed Ceuta and Melilla (two Spanish enclaves in the north of Morocco) into the jihad gate to Europe and into nerve centers for the recruitment of followers and the export of drugs and weapons. And so, from that, it is clear that Morocco is an integral part of the dynamics of international terrorism, but with a substantial difference compared to other countries: the country is not theatre of attacks but it has become a breeding ground for Europe’s jihadi terrorists, one of the main recruiting places because of increasing youth unemployment and the marginalization of some areas of the country.

Moroccan jihadism, therefore, is based not only on an ideology but also on the ramification of criminal organizations and it exploits the narco-trafficking networks towards the European markets that pass mainly through Spain and Italy. AQIM is the demonstration that Al-Qā’ida, in its principles and tactics, is not dead but has fragmented into regional organizations and Morocco and its network of drug trafficking have become strengths for self-financing and recruiting of followers.

Altea Pericoli

Chad. At The Heart Of The People.

Thursday, 1 March 2018 8:00
Written by: Fr.Carmine

A tiny group of Christians in a predominantly Moslem environment, determined to forge ties of friendship and dialogue in a society that still bears the wounds of thirty years of civil war. A Comboni Missionary community tells its story.

Abéché town is on the doorstep of the desert in eastern Chad. Just l.1% are Christians, Catholics and Protestants, in a Moslem ocean and a score of Catholic communities spread out in six regions. We are three Comboni priests: Father Bernard from the Democratic Republic of Congo, Father David from the United States, and Father Filippo, Italian. We assist a parish of over 400,000 square kilometres. The catholic community furthest to the north, Fada, in the Sahara desert, is 480 kilometres from the one furthest south, Tissi, a place well known in these parts as the meeting-point of three borders: Chad, Sudan and Central African Republic, as well as the tensions between the nomadic groups that move between them. Our territory is so vast that, even four years after our arrival, we are still discovering new places and, more importantly, new Christian communities.

It takes days of travelling to reach the communities; endless kilometres and hours and hours of dirt roads that run between the Sahara desert and the Sahel, the strip of land that goes across the continent, separating it from Maghreb and Sub-Saharan Africa. Journeys are physically hard not only because of the jolting over rough roads but also due to repeatedly digging the jeep out of the sand or pushing it across rivers. When we reach our destination, we are hosted in the homes of the people or in a small room attached to the chapel with a sleeping bag for a bed. We drink tea seated on a mat and talk about life, the families and the community, dreams and disappointments. We organise meetings with the leaders to see the state of the community. We visit the people in their homes to be close to them. Without waiting for an invitation, we simply go to where the people live and soon gain their trust: a glass of water and then we get down to business. After that we pray with the family and continue our mission.

Fruits of the Gospel

All our Christians come from the south and just one small area of the Guera region to the north. None of the original people of this sacred Moslem land are Christian and we are not looking to convert them. We prefer to build bridges of friendship, encounter and collaboration. We are well aware that it is not just numbers that build up the Kingdom of God but the passion and the dreams that, together we have within us as we work among various ethnic groups, cultures and religions.

Among our Christians we find teachers, nurses, doctors, soldiers and students as well as many businessmen. They spend a few years with us and then leave. In an effort to ensure the continuity of our service, we have learned to work as a team. If anyone leaves, others take over the work. On our part, we are often tempted not to be fully committed since we never know how long we can stay. Consequently, we take the opportunity to transmit the message that we are called to give ourselves with passion and without reserve. The fruits ripen when we listen and really commit ourselves: some become catechists or trainers of the youth, others take care of the sick and the imprisoned while others cultivate the community field, act as librarians or prepare the food for meetings, courses or celebrations.We first came to Abéché in September 2013 with Father Abakar, a Comboni priest from South Sudan, to build a bridge across the Moslem ocean and journey together with our small Christian communities. We give one hand to the Moslems, the other to the Christians; like grains of millet called to become salt to the earth and light to the world, bearing the still-open wounds of thirty years of hatred and war. Within this humanity pierced to the heart and divided between Islam and the West, we try to proceed with hope, building bridges of encounter and collaboration.

We have schools and cultural centres run together by Christians and Moslems, literacy classes for women and girls of all ethnic groups and religions, small income-generating projects like sewing, an oil press and a restaurant. Above all, we have friendly and respectful dialogue with our neighbours and collaborators, meetings with religious authorities on festive occasions and the celebration of peaceful cohabitation between young Christians and Moslems.All of this is possible when the Christian communities are accompanied and encouraged to see the interreligious encounter as an opportunity for growth and development, both of the individual and of the community. It also requires confidence in God: confidence and the prayer of others that moves us to pray. This is why we give ourselves to reaching the Christian communities no matter where they are and helping to train their leaders. When they are well trained and accompanied, lay people will carry out wonderful work of catechesis, liturgy, the formation of the youth, schools, cultural centres, justice and peace committees and dialogue with Islam.

Gazing at the one God

When we came here in 2013, we very carefully started to get to know what God had done through the Jesuit missionaries who had been there for the past 60 years, and especially through the lay people who, in very difficult places, live out their confidence in God and organise themselves into vivacious and courageous communities. All of them need to be visited and supported so as to feel part of a family.

Despite the distances and the desert, we are the people of God on a journey, faced with the great challenge of taking in hand our Church at all levels. It is the lay people who organise the communities through meetings and groups of leaders. It is they who organise Sunday prayer and, in some communities, daily prayer. They follow up the youth and the elderly who wish to become Christians, they direct the choirs and readers. Importantly, they collect funds to build chapels and fences, to bring water to difficult places or to build huts for community schools. They also try very hard to support us missionaries who have been sent to them.Each community contributes its quota to help with fuel for our jeep. We may say that, little by little, with pride and dignity, our Christians are meeting the needs of their missionaries. They are also very happy to support their communities. In the past, things were brought from outside and this created beggars. Now, much is provided from within and the people are proud of this and stand on their own two feet. This was how Jesus of Nazareth worked.

Our communities are not composed of people who just stand around like spectators; the Justice and Peace Committee of Abéché is doing everything it can to restore dignity to the young child-shepherds who look after flocks of goats, camels and cows in the desert. These are the slaves of the 21st century, stolen from their families in the south to provide prestige to the powerful in a country where those with the biggest herds are most important among the people. In Chad, we had traffickers of children and migrants going to Libya arrested. We watch the slave routes and rescue children who escape from their tormentors and restore them to their families. We organise awareness meetings and endeavour to let people know their rights.Caritas has taken over the service of prayer and accompaniment for prisoners and families in greatest difficulty, the small income-generating projects and the literacy classes for women. We want to accompany the disabled meet their thirst and search for dignity. In all this we have at heart the dream of lending a hand to the fallen, to help them to their feet again.

The Rewnodji women (the good journey women) have organised a bank of cereal seeds to respond to the times of drought and also a course of professional training for the youth: information technology, electricity and hydraulics.In this way, in eastern Chad the Gospel sits well with the accompaniment of small Christian communities and the encounter with Islam. It is a matter of faces and stories of people who truly want to turn a new page, leaving behind war and divisions to open a new era of peaceful co-existence: the true challenge to Chad both now and for the future.
The longer we stay here, the more we feel we have reached the heart of the people. We feel we are within the heartbeat of a people longing for peace at last, for justice and liberty; a people who have understood that these goals will be reached only by turning our gaze towards the one God. It matters little whether we pray to Him like Jesus or like Mohammed.

Filippo Ivardi

The Threat Of Cybercrime In Africa.

The rapid development of technology improves lives and enables more efficient operations in the private and public sectors. The challenges that have emerged as a direct consequence, however, can also undermine progress and expose users to illicit activities online.

Before 2000, Africa hosted only 4.5 million Internet users. Since then, telecommunications markets have been liberalised and affordable mobile technologies have become increasingly available. Today, there are close to 400 million users online on the continent.

According to a 2016 report by the Global Forum on Cyber Expertise, it is estimated that Africa’s e-commerce industry will be worth US$75 billion by 2025. But while mobile technologies transform African societies by providing a major form of connectivity, they have also turned Africa into both a source and a target of illicit online activities. According to one report, in 2012, the number of targeted cyberattacks in Africa increased by 42% from previous years. As opportunity increases on the continent, so too do the associated risks.
Africa has become more vulnerable to general online security threats, intellectual property infringement and the theft of personal data. Indeed, it is estimated that 80% of all personal computers on the continent are infected with viruses and other malicious software.

Today’s cybercriminals no longer require users’ consent or knowledge to access valuable pieces of personal data. Cybercrime is, across the board, becoming bolder and more advanced; not only in how victims are targeted, but also the amount of money sought. In 2016, Serianu ranked the sectors most vulnerable to cybercrime on the continent, and placed banking and government at the top.
In West Africa, for example, two distinct groups of cybercriminals have emerged, namely the ‘Yahoo Boys’ and the ‘Next-Level Cybercriminals’. The two are distinguished by their structure and type of crimes they commit. While the Yahoo Boys mostly operate traditional advance-fee scams, the Next-Level Cybercriminals engage in more complex attacks against corporations and involve tax scams, with connections both in Africa and outside the continent.

As cybercriminals target victims both inside and outside their national boundaries, African countries have struggled to build the technical and financial capacity needed to target, monitor and thwart illicit online activities. There are simply not enough trained professionals, and historically there is little political will in many countries to tackle the issue. This stems from a combination of factors, including insufficient budgets and a tendency to overlook the ‘invisible’ threat. The cybersecurity infrastructure on the continent is in itself weak, with factors like outdated or pirated software leaving African countries vulnerable to serious security risks.

Cybercrime is a global phenomenon, with certain reports contending that it now surpasses drug trafficking as a criminal revenue source. Its impact is particularly pervasive in Africa, given the lack of cohesive cybersecurity policies and inadequate IT infrastructure.
In 2014, it was reported that cybercrime activities were increasing at a more rapid rate in Africa than anywhere else in the world. Again, this points to criminal networks taking advantage of the continent’s weak IT infrastructure to proliferate threats from ransomware, social media scams and new malware.
In South Africa alone, 73% of adults reported having experienced cybercrime, at an estimated cost of US$337 million to the economy. Of particular concern is the increase of mobile malware, rising in tandem with the continent’s liberalisation of telecommunications markets and widespread availability of mobile technologies.

A fundamental problem in combatting cybercrime – in Africa, and elsewhere – is a general lack of understanding about what cybercrime really is, and of cyber law enforcement mechanisms. This creates a low risk of prosecution, which incentivises criminals and increases the challenge ahead. Nonetheless, the increasing financial impact of cyberattacks has fuelled an acknowledgment among both the private and public sectors that there is a need for effective responses – even if, for now, attempts to tackle the threat of cybercrime remain inadequate.

Mark Shaw, Director and Laura Adal, Senior Research Analyst,
Global Initiative against Transnational Organized Crime

Africa. Beyond Conflict diamonds.

The conflict diamonds issue is dying down, but new challenges are emerging. Will Africa be able to add value to the rough product ? Will the industry be able to cope with the threat of synthetic diamonds ? Should there be a new role for the Kimberley Process ?

Nearly 16 years after the creation of the Kimberley Process, conflict diamonds, whose exploitation and trade, finance rebel groups, have become a marginal problem or the diamond industry at large and for African diamond producers in particular.
A blackspot remains however, as points out the Canadian NGO Impact, formerly known as Partnership Africa Canada (PAC). Indeed, diamonds produced in the rebel areas of the Central African Republic (CAR) are still being smuggled out to Cameroon, or the DRC and Côte d’Ivoire. Yet, even assuming that the entire production of the CAR is being smuggled, it only represents 0.2% of the world production (134 m. carats).

Nevertheless, a number of NGOs including Impact are campaigning to expand the mandate of the Kimberley Process (KP) which bring together producing and consuming countries, the industry and the civil society. At the last Kimberley Process plenary which took place in Brisbane (Australia) between the 9th and the 14th December, consumer countries said they wanted the KP not only to guarantee that diamonds are conflict free but beyond, should contribute to end poverty and achieve SDG. NGOs want also the KP to prevent all forms of human rights violations including when it is perpetrated by governmental forces or private security companies. Beyond, the KP should contribute to greater transparency of revenues and statistics and fight tax evasionClearly, there is a stormy debate between consuming countries such as the EU which took the command of the KP for 2018, which is under the pressure of the ethical lobbies on the one hand and the producing countries, such as Africa, which accounts for the 50% of the world’s production, but also Russia and Australia, which take in consideration the interests of the mining companies, but also of one million alluvial miners in Africa alone.

In the opinion of the chairman of the African Diamond Council and of the African Diamond Producers Association (ADPA), M’Zee Fula Ngenge, in the first place, Non-diamond producing countries should not even lead the Kimberley Process (KP), he told the Rough & Polished newsletter on the sidelines of the De Beers diamond conference in Gaborone, which took place in November 2017. The ADPA chairman voiced his reservation to the U.S. State Department’s proposal to host the Kimberley Process headquarters in America.

Domestic production

The Minister of Mines and Energy of the World’s second largest product in value (after Russia), Botswana, Sadique Kebonang, at the African Diamond Conference held in Brussels on the last November stated that the definitions of human rights violations « unfortunately differ from one country to another »). He also warned against the risks of politizing the problem.

The chairman of the largest diamond trade and expertise hub, the Antwerp World Diamond Centre (AWDC), Stéphane Fischler told SouthWorld, however that in the exceptional event of systematic violations by official forces, there should be a possibility for the KP to act preventively. According to Fischler, the industry’s objective is to make sure consumers cannot say they do not want African diamonds. That would be a catastrophy for the diamond industry in Africa and the millions of people who depend from it. The beneficiation in African countries of their domestic production is another challenge. South Africa, which was represented in Brussels by the Deputy Minister of Mineral Resources, Godfrey Oliphant, is particularly concerned by the issue but also Botswanaa and Namibia which reserve significant quotas of their production to their national polishing industry. In front of the harsh competition of the Indian polishing industry and its very low wages, which employs more than one million people, African producers’ challenge to add value to their gems, is not easy. Yet, under certain conditions, it can succeed, says Stéphane Fischler. There a new elements which didn’t exist before, which can play a positive role, Those include technological innovation and robotics which help to slash the costs, but these require advance technical know how and sizeable investments.

Yet, in Southern Africa, there is a political will to embark in this direction, admits Fischler who mentions that foreign manpower has been recruited in Namibia and Botswana to meet those challenges. Namibia is probably the country which has shown the greatest political will so far.
In 2017, the Namibia Diamond Trading Company (NDTC), the joint venture between the Namibian government and De Beers, decided to allocate a fixed supply of diamonds worth $430 million under a new 10-year deal to eleven sight holders. Moreover, under the deal all gems exceeding 10.8 carats will be processed locally, securing the jobs of 1,000 domestic workers. Indeed, the proportion of labour costs in the final price of a gem, is lower in the case of large diamonds, and thereby reduces the comparative advantage of the Indian industry This means that about 40 percent of the production will be reserved for the local market, as against 10 percent previouslyFinally, African producers are also concerned by the competition of synthetic diamonds such as those produced by General Electric. On that regard, the Botswanaian Minister advocated for a more aggressive marketing of African diamonds. Similar concerns were expressed In October at the Dubai Diamond Conference. Panelists spoke about the large rise in the quantity and quality of lab-grown stones in recent years.

The Geological Institute of America’s Executive Vice President Tom Moses, warned that synthetic diamonds which are being produced in China would not only not going to go away, but production will continue growing. Yet, the GIA like the Antwerp’s HRD, the leading authority in diamond certification have developed equipments and technologies equipment to detect synthetic diamonds and distinguish them from natural ones that is reasonably inexpensive, The World Federation of Diamond Bourses President Ernie Blom says he doesn’t have a problem with synthetics as far as they are disclosed as such and says that the WFDB imposes traders to guaranteed that the gems they sell are natural. In his view, lab diamonds don not compare with natural diamonds, even if they look like. The value of synthetic diamonds which are made by machines is declining whereas natural diamonds formed billions of years ago in the Earth which are finite in number will, therefore, have an ever-increasing value.
Yet, there are indications that fraud can be a problem and a threat. The India’s Gem and Jewellery Export Promotion Council and the Bharat Diamond Bourse have indicated that illegal practices of undisclosed mixing of lab-grown diamonds in packages of natural diamonds with natural ones.

François Misser

Neo Pan-Africanism As An Alternative.

Africa is experiencing an ideological crisis that is expressed by the current adhesion of African governments to either neoliberalism or monetarism that destroy human solidarity, erode the welfare state and increase human suffering.

After the failure of imported ideologies, the future of Africa lies in the adoption of a new unifying ideology of development, Neo Pan-Africanism, which has to do with an approach of supranational and maximalist African unity, in the form of a federation or confederation, a sort of United States of Africa, in order to face the problems of development and security in the continent and the challenges of globalization.

Pan-Africanism, as it exists today, despite its attractive force, remains a nebulous, undefined concept, which each one interprets in their own way. Despite the unanimity over the need for African unity, there are discrepancies in the methods and means for its implementation: some think unity should be reached by proceeding from the foundations (regional unity, national unity, and continental unity). Others, instead, are convinced that the pressing problems faced by Africa require an immediate continental unity in the form of a federation or confederation.

It is up to the enlightened African intellectuals committed to the social causes of their people to take steps towards Neo Pan-Africanism, as an ideology of development and supranational unity of the continent, or simply ‘ideology of the defence of the interests of Africa’. In other words, the policies and the theories of development conceived and elaborated in the ‘north’ should be changed, through the creation of an African think-tank, composed of the political, intellectual and economic elite and the members of civil society who would be in charge of finding ‘African solutions to African problems’, and the promotion of knowledge and endogenous practices.

African unity, as Moussa Konaté rightly points out, does not necessarily have to be inspired by the EU model, but by the new African personality that would be formed by political and social reforms, and by the strengthening of South-South cooperation, in particular with the emerging countries of Asia and Latin America. Basically, a different model of political and economic integration should be adopted, a model more suitable for African realities, and at the same time, different from the current ‘open regionalism’, the goal being to switch from the current African States to the ‘African State’.

The annihilation of the idea of a possible alternative, not only to globalization, but simply to capitalism itself is one of the serious problems generated by globalization. Now it is necessary to reconstruct what the Berlin Conference and the colonization destroyed through the politics of ‘balkanization’, and to promote the political, economic and social development of the African people. A new model must be implemented that is conceived not for the African people, but with them. A self-thought, self-defined and self-financed model which can be an antidote to the State-Nation model that is in crisis.

These objectives are not stated in the OAU charter, and neither in that of the African Union, nor that of NEPAD (the technical body of the African Union). All these organizations have turned into vectors of globalized neoliberalism. The 2063 Agenda of the African Union Commission (which falls on the centennial anniversary of the birth of the OAU), seems to walk, even if feebly, towards the supranational unity of the continent, by giving priority to regional integration and the creation of the United States of Africa.

Mbuyi Kabunda

Pope Francis. Young People, “Important Responsibility Inside The Church”.

In his message for the next World Youth Day, of March 25^th ,the Pope called upon young people not to be closed in the digital rationale and to carry out a “discernment” of their own vocation by showing courage in the present moment. Young people must be given “important responsibilities” inside the Church.

“I want important responsibilities to be given to you within the Church; that there may be the courage to make space for you; and that you may be prepared to take on these responsibilities.” The Pope’s message for the next World Youth Day – to be celebrated at diocesan level on March 25, Palm Sunday, on the theme, “Do not be afraid, Mary, for you have found favour with God” – is under the banner of mutual trust between Francis and young people.

“Courage” is the key word for “discernment” on one’s vocation, in the present moment, and thus prepare for the two events with the Synod in October and the WYD in Panama: “Mary walks with us.” It’s important to avert the risk of being absorbed by digital rationale, spending one’s life facing the screen of a smartphone or a computer.

When we are faced with the fundamental choices on which depend who we will be and what we will do in this world we feel a “shudder”, said the Pope mentioning the “underlying fear” of many young people of not being accepted for who they are. Continuous “photo-shops” of their images almost make them become “fake-selves”, obsessed by receiving as many “likes” as possible. Not to mention emotional insecurity, the fear of remaining alone and the uncertainty of work. In the face of these doubts and fears – Francis went on – discernment becomes necessary “to bring order to the confusion of our thoughts and feelings, to act in a just and prudent way.” The first step to overcome fears is to name them, looking within ourselves, for in many cases the obstacle to faith is not scepticism but fear.

“For us Christians in particular, fear must never have the last word but rather should be an occasion to make an act of faith in God… and in life! Never close yourself in! In the Sacred Scriptures the expression “do not be afraid” is repeated 365 times with different variations, as if to tell us that the Lord wants us to be free from fear, every day of the year”, Francis said.

When searching for one’s vocation in life discernment should not be seen as “an individual effort at introspection”: it is “a call from above.” God knocks at the door of our hearts, as he did with Mary. The answer consists in not only prayer, in the Sacred Scriptures, in the Sacrament of Reconciliation and the Eucharist. It is also important to dialogue with and encounter those who have more experience, for they help us to see better and to choose wisely from the various possibilities. “In your doubts know that you can rely on the Church”, writes the Pope mentioning the many “good priests”, consecrated men and woman, who can give support like older brothers and sisters in the faith.

“Dear young people, do not allow the spark of youth to be extinguished in the darkness of a closed room in which the only window to the outside world is a computer and smartphone. Open wide the doors of your life! May your time and space be filled with meaningful relationships, real people, with whom to share your authentic and concrete experiences of daily life”, is the message’s central invitation.

“Create spaces in our cities and communities to grow, to dream and to look at new horizons!”, is the Pope’s appeal, along with “the courage to disentangle ourselves from the pressure of being shaped by conforming patterns”, for God calls each one of us by name we do not have to earn His closeness and help by presenting a “Curriculum Vitae of excellence.” “WYD is for the courageous!”, concluded Francis, calling upon young people to have courage in the present moment. (M.M.Nicholais)

The Unaccepted Advocacy Precursors.

The tenure of agricultural land is at the core of many disputes and advocacy actions nowadays.

The common lands tenure is foreseen as the only way to counteract land grabbing. Such a common tenure, however, was put aside when Roman law Act introduced the concept of dominium and exploded in our modern times with the Enclosures Act in 19^th Century England.
As Alanna Hartzok writes, “Over several hundred years 4,000 Private Acts of Enclosure were passed covering some 7,000,000 acres. Probably the same sized area was enclosed without application to Parliament. About two thirds involved fields belonging to cottagers while one third involved commons such as woodland and heath. In the census of 1086, more than half the arable land belonged to the villagers. By 1876, only 2,225 people owned half the agricultural land in England and Wales and that 0.6 per cent of population owned 98.5 per cent of it.
As newer agricultural methods and technologies were applied, landowners could raise the rents of their lands by phenomenal amounts. As the cash economy developed, the rent money accumulated into the hands of the landholders and the plight of the people worsened. To survive, they sometimes were forced to borrow money from the handholds at high rates of interest.” (The Earth Belongs to Everyone, 2008, p. 36)
Enclosure was the legal – it does not mean just – process in England of enclosing a number of small landholdings to create one larger farm. Once enclosed, use of the land became restricted to the owner, and it ceased to be common land for communal use. The Enclosures were introduced after the signing of the Magna Carta in 1215 and marked “the violent direct suppression of the indigenous people of Europe. Between the thirteenth and seventeenth centuries, masses of peasants were evicted from their holding or saw their common land fenced off for sheep” (ib. p. 31). In the other part of England, Ireland’s story was an anticipation of modern land grabbing, i.e. “of many in the Third World today.
In 1801, Britain made Ireland part of its empire and dissolved the Irish Parliament. By now, the Protestants had the upper hand and were given a voice in the British Parliament while the Catholic majority had none. Heavy taxation was placed on Irish goods, and the British controlled almost all of Ireland’s farmland. Tenant farmers had to give their entire crops to the landlords as rent. When their subsistence potato crops failed from blight, there was nothing to fall back on. Some three million people died of starvation and disease between 1845 and 1849, while one million fled to US and Canada. Ireland’s population of eight million was cut in half. During the famine Ireland exported to England enough grain, cattle, pigs, butter and eggs “To feed the Irish people twice over” (Elisabeth Ward, When Ireland was Europe’s Ethiopia, quoted p. 36).
Nevertheless, this coming reality encountered opposition from advocacy precursor leaders before time. In 17^th century England, there appeared the Diggers who “were sounding a lot like land-rights prophets.” The Diggers were a group of Protestant radicals, sometimes seen as forerunners of modern anarchism, and associated with agrarian socialism. Gerrard Winstanley‘s followers, they were known as True Levellers, because they wanted (by “levelling” land) to reform the existing social order with an agrarian lifestyle based on the ideas of small egalitarian rural communities with economic equality based upon the Book of Acts. Later they became known as Diggers. Gerrard Winstanley, in his “New Law of Righteousness,” clearly saw the forces at play when he said, “The rich, in their enclosure saying ‘this is mine’ and the poor upon the common saying ‘this is ours, the earth and its fruits are common.’ Leave off dominion and lordship one over another for the whole bulk of mankind are but one living earth!”
Even before Diggers, Thomas More (1478-1535), Chancellor of England, “made passionate pleas against the cruel injustices when whole villages were being pulled down to make way for the more profitable industry of sheep farming and families were turned adrift onto the roads to starve. His plan for a better England was based upon a thorough Common Ownership. More was murdered as a martyr. The root meaning of this word martyr is one who remembers and cares.” (Ib. p. 35)
“What has been will be again, what has been done will be done again; there is nothing new under the sun” (Eccl. 1:9) – why then is human kind is so slow to learn from its own history? Maybe because “Human kind cannot bear very much reality” (T.S. Eliot)

How The Stars Were Born.

One day, two friends named Ebopp and Mbaw went off in search of a good site to establish a farm with fine fields of grain
and peanuts. They looked here and they looked there until they
finally found the right place.

They immediately began to fell trees and break up the soil. They worded for two days and two nights without stopping; on the third day they rested. Then at daybreak on the fourth day, they went back to work, and each of them built his own little house. And once again they worked for two days and two nights without a break, and on the third day they rested. But at daybreak on the fourth day, they took up their tools again and built a little temple in the middle of the farm. In two days, the little temple was finished, and on the third day they rested.
So, following the same pattern, barns, kitchens, granaries, and a well arose. When the farm was almost ready, they went to summon their wives who had remained behind in the old village, and they made merry all day to celebrate the fruits of their labour.
With their wives ‘help, they planted the banana seedlings, and sowed the grain and peanuts. It was long, hard work, but finally Ebopp said: “I’m finished and so is my wife.” “I’m finished, too, and so is my wife,” Mbaw echoed. “Now all we have to do is wait for the harvest. May it be a success and may we live in comfort!” concluded Ebopp.
Nevertheless, things did not all go smoothly. One evening, when Ebopp was sitting at the table with his wife, Anwan, with the soup steaming in their bowls, someone knocked at the door. It was a messenger sent by Obassi Osaw, the leader of Anwant village. Panting, the messenger said: “Ebopp, I have to speak to you alone!” So his wife left the room, and the messenger spoke: “Be strong, Ebopp. I bring you word that your sister-in-law is dead.”
Ebopp wept tears of sorrow not only for his sister-in-law; whom he loved very much, but especially for his wife, the dead woman’ sister. Then he sent for his friend Mbaw to get some comfort and advice. “I am sorry for you and for your wife, Ebopp . . . but have you thought about how we are going to bear the costs of the funeral? The farm has just been set up and the harvest is still far off.” “But, dear Mbaw, we must do everything we can, because it is my duty as a relative. How will I be able to look Chief Obassi Osaw in the face again if I don’t at least have a funeral banquet?” “You’re right – said Mbaw – we must do what is required.”
Ebopp thanked his friend and told the messenger, “Go back to Obassi Osaw and tell him that I will come to his village in six days.” Then he said good-bye to his friend, arranging to meet him the next day, and went to break the news to his wife.
It would take too long to describe the woman’s despair at the news of her sister’s death. For the next six days Anwan did not stop crying and grieving for an instant. Nonetheless, the next day the two friends, having scraped together the few pennies in their mutual coffers, went to the city and spent all that they had to arrange the funeral banquet. Then they went back to the farm and figured out where they stood.
“So, – said Ebopp – we’ve spent it all and we still lack the two most important things: The palm wine and the rum for the ceremony. What are we going to do without any money?” “Why don’t you try going back to the city and making the rounds of your relatives and acquaintances? Maybe you can get a loan,” Mbaw advised him.
“I will try,” replied Ebopp, and he began to travel around the city, from this one’s house to that one’ house, asking all his relatives and friends for loans. But with a variety of excuses, they all refused to help him. It was already night time when Ebopp, frustrated, began to retrace his steps. He had just left the city and was slowly walking along the river when, in a fit of depression, he sat down on a rock, rested his chin on his hand, and began to complain. A firefly casually alighted on his knee and Ebopp, seeking some relief began to talk to it as if the pretty little light could actually hear him.
“My dear firefly – he said – if you only knew how cruel the world of man is! When you’re successful, everybody’ your friend; but beware if things change. You lucky animals! You don’t even know what falseness is!” And he carried on in this fashion for quite some time until, to his great astonishment, he heard the firefly answer him: “Ah, in truth, I am very sorry for you!” “Oh river gods! – exclaimed Ebopp. – That’s it. Sorrow has gone to my brain and, as if I didn’t have enough problems, now I’ve also gone crazy. I’m hearing voices!” “What do you mean crazy?” the firefly went on. “It really is me who’s talking! Listen Ebopp, I am the spirit of one of your ancestors, and it has been your great good fortune to meet me.” Ebopp rejoiced greatly at this news, and asked the firefly how he could properly honour her.
“You have an upright and generous heart, Ebopp, – said the firefly -. Even in your distress, you have not forgotten the respect you owe to your ancestors. For this reason, I will give you the help that your fellow men have denied you.”
The firefly’s light dimmed a bit, and she handed Ebopp a sparkling little stone, saying:
“Take this. You will be able to buy all that you need and much, much more with it”. And this is why, from that day forward, only half of the firefly’s body shines (excluding the head, which did not glitter even then).Touched and happy, Ebopp clutched the little stone in his fist and ran to the farm, though not without first trying to thank the luminous little insect. But she had already taken flight. When he got back home, he summoned his wife and friend and showed them the stone. Now their worries were over.
The following day they set off for the village of Obassi Osaw, with each of them carrying a share of the supplies that they had purchased in the city for the banquet. When they reached the entrance to the village, they separated. Anwan ran off to weep at her sister’s grave, while Ebopp and Mbaw went to appear before Obassi and the elders of the tribe. “Have you brought everything necessary for the banquet in honour of your sister-in-law?” they immediately asked.
“I only have the food with me. I will buy everything else I need here in your village,” replied Ebopp. The elders didn’t say anything, but they looked at one another doubtfully. The village, and all the surrounding area, had been stricken by a grievous famine. It was almost impossible to find anything to ear or drink.
“Don’t lose heart, – said Mbaw to his friend – I believe that at the sight of this beautiful little stone, the supplies will spring forth. Better still, try this: Put the stone in a mortar and crush it up really well. You will have more of it and you will be in a position to buy more stuff.”
So Ebopp followed his friend’s advice. He put the stone in a mortar and crushed it until it was reduced to a powder, and he saw that the result was truly extraordinary. Their eyes could scarcely tolerate the brilliant twinkling! Mbaw got his friend a little black sack, and they put the powder inside of it. Together they went off in search of everything else they needed to worthily mark the occasion.
They walked and walked until they found themselves at the edge of town in front of Effion’s fine hut. Effion was one of the richest warriors in the tribe and, therefore, as always happens in times of famine, he also had one of the largest supplies of food. Ebopp said to him: “Sell me the goatskins of wine and the barrels of rum that you have hidden away, and in exchange I will give you something that will make you so rich and powerful that all of your peers will have to bow down before you”.
Effion thought about it for a minute and then replied: “All right. But you will only get half of what you’re asking, since I have to live myself, you know!”
“Agreed, – said Ebopp with a hint of a smile -. Half will be enough for the funeral banquet. But listen: Don’t open up the sack I’m going to give you until I have returned to my farm. And rest assured: When you open it, your fellow citizens will have to bow down before you.”
And so the funeral service and the banquet took place according to custom, and everyone was pleased because absolutely nothing was lacking. When the ceremony was over, the tribal chieftain, Obassi Osaw, went up to Ebopp and thanked him in the name of his people and begged him to stay the night. But Ebopp politely declined the invitation, and with his friend Mbaw and his wife, Anwan, he headed back home.
When they got back to their farm, Ebopp sent a messenger to Effion, the rich big shot, with the following message:” I am back home again, and you can open the sack now”. As soon as he received the message, Effion, despite the fact that it was starting to get dark, summoned all of his fellow citizens by shouting at the top of his lungs: “Come quick! I have something extraordinary to show you.” “Here we are, Effion – an old warrior replied for all of them-. Now show us what you are talking about.” “I have in my possession,” Effion went on, – make you fall on your knees before me, whether you want to or not”.Everybody looked at him with suspicion. But he swiftly took the sack out of his pocket and emptied it at their feet.
They saw a stream of brilliant light and a general ‘ahhh’ of astonishment escaped their throats; but at that instant, a gust of wind blew. The powder flew everywhere – down the streets, onto the roofs, into the trees-covering everything with its sparkle.
Effion was very disappointed even though his fellow citizens did bow down before him. They had all thrown themselves to the ground in an attempt to catch some of the miraculous powder. Only Effion remained standing straight as an arrow, struck dumb with amazement.
The children in particular distinguished themselves in picking up the shiny powder because they were faster and more nimble. Every evening, since during the day it was impossible to see the powder’s twinkling, the children ran about, gradually gathering up those tiny little stars. When they caught them, they put them in a box.
Over the course of a month, the box grew to full that they had trouble closing it. But the wind brought an end to that frenzied chase. One day it blew harder than usual, knocking the box wide open, and scattering the sparkling particles into the air. They flew upward and came to a stop in the vault of the heavens, where until that time there had been nothing but darkness. (A.Ceni)

Folktale from Ekoi people. Cameroon

DR Congo. How Long Can Kabila Resist To The Catholic-Led Mobilization For Democracy ?

Despite the bloody repression of the pro-democracy marches organised by roman catholic organizations and the profanation of churches on the last 31 December, the number of demonstrators was even larger on the 21 following January. And they are increasingly joined by other christians and moslems.

At least 12 people were killed by the police and the military on the 31 December, according to the Catholic Secular Coordination Committee (CLC) during the demonstrations it organised throughout the country on that day. They were calling for the resignation of President Joseph Kabila, whose mandate expired on the 19 December 2016 and for free and fair election before end 2018, without his participation since the constitution does not allow the incumbent to run for a third mandate. According to the U.N., at least six people also died on the following 21 January.

From the start, the authorities were prepared for the clash. On the dawn of the 31 December, the premises of 134 parishes were besieged by the army and police. Five masses were interrupted by the police who used teargases against the faithful. In some of them, the police and the military shot with real bullets on faithful who were praying, holding rosaries and crucifixes. At the end of that day, 88 arrests were reported in Kinshasa and Kananga, including six priests and altar boys. The authorities justified the repression, arguing without providing evidence that the demonstrations were part of a «terrorist plot».

Three weeks later, about a thousand faithful who were praying on their knees, near the Notre Dame du Congo cathedral were shot at by National Legion of Intervention policemen, told SouthWorld a UN source who saw several bodies lying on the ground. In the Bandalungwa populous area of Kinshasa, Kabila’s Republican guards arrested hundred people including priests fromt the St Christophe parish and tore their clerical clothings. The mobilisation was strong as well in the provinces, namely in Kisangani.
One of the keys of the success of the mobilisation is that it came as a new hope after the loss of impetus of earlier protests which had been organised bythe pro-democracy youth movements Lucha and Filimbi.
At the beginning, the regime had been caught by surprise, but then it clamped down on these activists, arresting some and disrupting internet connectivity which was crucial to coordinate the protestors’ movements.
Since the death of its charismatic leader, Etienne Tshisekedi on the 1st February 2017 in Brussels, the political opposition attempts to organize stay away protests were not successful, partly because of its divisions.

The trigger of the mobilization of roman catholic secular organisations such as the CLC, was Kabila’s refusal to abide by the agreement sealed on the 31 December 2016, between his supporters and the political opposition, under the aegis of the Congo’s National Episcopal Conference (CENCO), for a transition to the elections before end 2017. Besides, many Congolese think that if the CLC managed to mobilize huge crowds, it is because the Roman Catholic Church which gathers more than half of the Congolese population, is one the last institution which Congolese do still trust.
Its clinics and schools are much appreciated in a country where public health and education are in shambles. Through its various structures, such as the Justice and Peace Commission, the Church is one of the few entities which still dares to speak against human rights violations, and the plunder of natural resources by transnationals by the complicity of the local elite. In 2011, CENCO with its 3,000 observers on the ground, was instrumental to expose the massive fraud of the presidential and parliament elections.

Elders remember as well that the Roman Catholic Church was the main focus of resistance during Mobutu’s dictatorship. At the beginning of the 1970s Cardinal Joseph Malula opposed Mobutu’s so-called authenticity policies which forced his compatriots to abandon their christian names. In 1990, roman catholic bishops plaid an instrumental role during the transition from the one party state to pluralism. The then bishop of Kisangani, Mgr Laurent Monsengwo Pasinyia, who is now archbishop of Kinshasa and cardinal, chaired the National Sovereign Conference which led the path to democratization. Mobutu’s attempt to stop the momentum by closing the Conference, led to the Christians’ March of the 16 February 1992. which was brutally repressed. by Mobutu’s police. The death toll was estimated at 49 by Médecins Sans Frontières.
Twenty six years later, the mobilisation continues. On the 2 January, Cardinal Monsengwo condemned the «police brutality,” and likened its victims to the martyrs of the country’s independence. “It’s time that truth won out over systematic lies, that mediocre figures stand down and that peace and justice reign in DRC,” he declared. The CLC called for « resistance and perseverance » while every thursday evening, throughout the country, priests ring the bells to demand the respect of the 31 December agreement and Joseph Kabila’s departure.

Other christians are increasingly joining the protests. On the 31 December, members of the protestant and kimbanguist churches could be seen among the demonstrators. On the 20 January, the Congolese Islamic Community leader, cheikh Ali Mwinyi N’Kuu urged the authorities to avoid to repress the roman catholic marches.
But the reaction of the regime has only been to intensify the intimidations of church leaders. On the 31 January, at 5 am, security guards found a suspect military in the premises of the Kinshasa archbishop’s residence. This context prompted the Vatican to appoint the chairman of the Justice and Peace Commission, Mgr Fridolin Ambongo as coadjutor bishop to assist 78 year old Mgr Monsengwo who is particularly targeted by the regime. Priests speak of a climate of fear and intimidations by the ANR state security. On the 4 February a Kinshasa priest was kidnapped then released by unidentified men after the mass. Three days later, the protestant Church of Christ in the Congo released a communiqué expressing concern for Rev François Ekofo’s disappeance since the 4 February. Rev. Ekofo who is the chaplain of the Presidential family, had urged Kabila to step down in a sermon on the 16 January. He was living in clandestinity since that day. There is still a long way to go before the churches manage to lead the flock to the promised of democracy.

François Misser

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