Sean Sinclair-Day's Blog
Posted by Sean Sinclair-Day
Blood Diamond offers a fascinating window into the realm of bush rebels and corrupt governments dealing in 'conflict diamonds,' a practice which still occurs in some African nations. This is the world of illicit trade and the fake certification of gems which has led to civil wars that have uprooted millions, killed hundreds of thousands, torn apart families and robbed children of their youth as they are indoctrinated and forced to become soldiers. This was how Charles 'Pappy' Taylor mismanaged his nation as he sat at the helm of Liberia's kleptocracy.
Leonardo Di Caprio's portrayal of Danny Archer, a cutthroat 'Rhodesian' smuggler desperate for the great prize, is surprisingly believable, abrasive accent and all. His co-star, however, former Parisian model, Djimon Hounsou from Benin, delivers the movie's most compelling performance as Solomon Vandy, a simple African fisherman in search of his abducted son. Vandy is a constant reminder of the plight suffered by innocent Africans who are displaced and dispossessed because of the blind gluttony of immoral commerce.
The horrors of war
Director Edward Zwick and his crew have captured the verisimilitude of swelling refugee camps, the darkness of the bush and the unpredictability of rebel and military onslaughts against the sanguine canvas of civil war. The recreation of the madness and despair of warfare is as impressive as scenes from Hotel Rwanda and the forgettable film, Harrison's Flowers, starring Adrian Brody and Andy McDowell set in war-torn Yugoslavia. For anyone lacking the imagination to consider what millions of Africans have had to endure, this film would serve as a plausible seed to plant in any fertile mind. Although the moral is somewhat predictable and the subplot a little too sugary, it is an important movie that exposes some of Africa's grimmest realities.
Posted by Sean Sinclair-Day
Until last week, Robert Mugabe had been scheduled to retire in 2008 but his ruling Zimbabwe African National Union - Patriotic Front (ZANU-PF) party has proposed adding another two years to the 82 year-old "president's" dictatorship. Clearly, ZANU-PF has no clear idea who will succeed Mugabe, who has already warned his angry critics, most notably the main opposition leader Morgan Tsvangirai, not to stir up any dissent or "anarchy." Tsvangirai, leader of the Movement for Democratic Change (MDC), remained adamant that his country "cannot afford three more years of suffering" and vowed resistance to ZANU-PF's anticipated tenure extension in the form of legal street protests, and job and work boycotts. Mugabe's detractors have long blamed his incompetence for ruining what was once one of Africa's most thriving economies.
Mugabe has been Zimbabwe's only ruler since its independence in 1980. Although life expectancy in the 1970s was not impressive at 56 years old, this figure - according to the World Health Organization (WHO) - is now 34 years in 2006, despite the Zimbabwean Health Minister's claims that the WHO report was "not true of course." But a look at some other facts and figures shows that, while numbers may not be precise, they still tell a story about the sad state of affairs under Mugabe's tyranny.
Numbers
Zimbabwe's current state of disrepair is rivaled by few countries. 80% of Zimbabweans live below the poverty line and 80% of the population is unemployed. Inflation has steadily been at 1,000 percent. Zimbabweans also ranked second last in the world in Life Satisfaction, according to the 2004 World Happiness Database report. Outrageous "clearing" campaigns such as Operation Murambatsvina (literally, "Operation Drive Out the Trash" in Zimbabwe's native Shona language) can't do much to elevate patriotic spirits or inspire presidential fealty.
Lastly, and perhaps most telling about the country's next generation, Zimbabwe has the highest rate of children living with AIDS at approximately 20 per 1,000 (the actual number is 240,000 - third highest in the world). AIDS-stricken Zimbabweans are still waiting for the free antiretroviral drugs that Mr. Mugabe promised in 2004 would be available for 200,000 of his plagued citizens. According to The Independent, 3,500 people die each week from an AIDS-related illness and, in November, the cemeteries of Zimbabwe's capital, Harare, were declared full. Now even the gravediggers must be counted amongst the jobless due to overproduction.
Posted by Sean Sinclair-Day
For anyone looking to expand their knowledge of African art, The Independent has provided an outstanding list of "the 50 greatest cultural figures shaping a continent." The panel creating the list was composed of several authorities on contemporary African affairs including Senegalese singer, "The Nightingale," Baaba Maal. Each of the artists selected remains active in their work so it does not include any of the late greats like afrobeat pioneer, Fela Kuti or the Egyptian Nobel laureate, Naguib Mahfouz.
This compilation provides an exceptional introduction for those, like myself, hoping to discover artists who innovatively combine the rich traditions of their own cultures with the influences of a modern, global society. Many of these auteurs enjoyed some level of success internationally and have often studied or lived in Western nations, which probably accounts for their originality.
While the majority of the artists mentioned in the top 50 are musicians and writers, the list runs the gamut of mediums to includes talents from the world of architecture, choreography, film, photography, visual arts, theatre and fashion. The article appears in a special "Red" edition of The Independent in order to observe World AIDS Day.
Posted by Sean Sinclair-Day
The humanitarian crisis in Darfur, which Washington has called a 'genocide,' has had disastrous consequences that continue to stretch beyond its own territory. The fighting in Darfur has forced people to spill neighbouring Chad, to the west, and the Central African Republic (CAR), to the south. In fact, the Darfur-Chad-CAR triangle has been referred to as a 'crucible of violence,' and even an 'abyss.'
Up to 17,000 United Nations blue helmets could be dispatched to Darfur depending upon what Sudan's president decides. Last week in Addis Ababa, Khartoum finally agreed - at least in principle - to allow a hybrid of United Nations and African Union forces into the region who will try to prevent continued attacks, rape and murder in Darfur. Khartoum has long resisted UN presence in their country. Before they make an official decision, the Sudanese say they have a few questions regarding the proposal that they need to discuss, including the size of the deployment and who would command the joint peacekeeping forces. The UN's Secretary-General, Kofi Annan, asserted that "Darfurians can not wait another day" but they will have to. Mr. Annan said it could take several months to deploy troops to the region, even if the plan is approved.
The numbers are swelling and even bursting in some places. At least 200,000 lives have already been lost since the conflict involving the government, militias and rebels began to escalate in 2003. 2 million people are living in refugee camps near the Sudan-Chad border, another 218,000 have fled into Chad and recent unrest that has pushed another 90,000 people from their homes in eastern Chad. Idriss Déby, Chad's president, blames Khartoum for rousing regional turmoil and links some of the rebel attacks that have occurred in his country to ties in Sudan. CAR's president, François Bozizé, has also claimed that insurgencies on his soil originated in Darfur. Khartoum denies these claims but no matter who is responsible for the chaos, it is clear that the region needs assistance to direct it toward a respectable level of stability.
Posted by Sean Sinclair-Day
In August, the Ugandan government and the Lord's Resistance Army (LRA) agreed to a truce in Juba, Sudan which was seen as the first step towards a peace agreement that will put an end to two decades of conflict. As part of the cessation of hostilities, LRA fighters were to assemble at two Sudanese camps as the peace talks continued. But the LRA's leader, Joseph Kony, has made it clear that he and his fighters refuse to sign any accord until the outstanding International Criminal Court (ICC) warrants on five LRA members are dropped. Uganda's president, Yoweri Museveni, has said that he does not want to discuss the ICC warrants until Kony signs a peace deal. Barely a year after being issued, many view the ICC warrants as the greatest obstacle to peace in northern Uganda.
Last weekend, Jan Egeland, the U.N.'s humanitarian chief, held a 10-minute meeting in the jungle with Kony hoping to convince him to release women and children belonging to the LRA. Kony would not comply but told Egeland that he does not feel secure in his jungle hideout, constantly fearing attacks from the Ugandan army. As long as Kony does not feel secure, the whole of Acholiland in northern Uganda remains insecure and the truce will always be tenuous. Meanwhile, there are 1.4 million people still living in cramped and sordid Internally Displaced Persons (IDP) camps - a security measure established by the Ugandan government to protect Acholis from the brutal exploits of the LRA during their frequent raids.
The Juba peace talks may be the last chance for these two sides to reach any agreement that will lead to peace. While Kony refuses to cooperate, while the ICC stands firm on their indictments and while Yoweri Museveni postpones decisions, the 1.4 million IDPs can try to guess whether or not their government and the ICC care more about their humanitarian crisis or about how to mete justice out to Joseph Kony et al. If peace and security are the ends, it should not matter that a murderous madman and four of his henchmen are allowed to go free. This may sound like an appalling suggestion but when the indictments are the only things preventing further misery for 1.4 million people crowded into makeshift living conditions (and further bloodshed, almost certainly), it may be worth strong consideration. But that depends on whether or not the ICC's definition of justice is what a man deserves for his past crimes or what a community deserves for their future.
