Re - "Only Ugandans can decide the path they want their nation to follow"
Cornelius Hamelberg
How true is “Only Ugandans can decide the path they want their nation to follow" when for example the country is under a government that is backed by a clientele military that squashes any possibility of overthrowing the government it backs via the ballot box through which Ugandans would normally “decide the path they want their nation to follow” ? From time to time African countries find themselves facing such impasses. The politicization of the military and police at the expense of the people, or as Gaddafi used to babble in Broken English, “ di bebble”
This is one of the conscientious Pan-African fora where Burke’s “All that is necessary for the triumph of evil is that good men do nothing” is often invoked/ parroted in response to all kinds of calamities, human rights transgression by either terrorists or elite power demons who in many instances with their undue use of force act exactly like terrorists, flouting every known democratic principle in order to play their best card : state-empowered terrorism against their own people.
I use the word conscientious very consciously, have in mind Kwame Nkrumah’s Consciencism. I wish that my old buddy Professor Arthur Abraham ( in our student days, one of Nkrumah’s early disciples), I wish that he was an active member of this forum – to sometimes lend support to the argument.
About Uganda, the question still is, “Which African leaders are not going to congratulate him?” Which African leaders dare to condemn him?
In my humble view ( really not so humble) it’s most disturbing that it is mainly through the connivance and the tacit support of other African states and the Africa Union that people like Museveni can continue with criminal impunity, beating up Kizza Besigye one of the leaders of the opposition and throwing him in jail - just as Mugabe used to beat up Morgan Tsvangirai making life impossible for the opposition - opposition politicians living life wisely and if lucky, surviving but only as endangered species, Wafula Oguttu Uganda’s official leader of the opposition in the Ugandan Parliament actually “ losing” his seat in the last election. Nonsense !
So it’s the connivance, the tacit support and the hypocrisy that keeps people like Museveni in power forever. Can you imagine (God forbid) if Goodluck Jonathan had got some thugs to beat up our Muhammadu Buhari ? Even in this USA Africa Dialogue series there would be eruptions of - at the very minimum - of verbal counter -violence - no connivance, no tacit support and certainly no hypocrisy - such action by Goodluck Jonathan would have been roundly condemned by even his most ardent supporters (and some of the sycophants) in this forum. I said “at the very minimum” in this forum in cyberspace: Nigeria has its own dynamics: if General Buhari had been ( God forbid) been badly beaten up in Port Harcourt for example - on the ground that would have led to the third Nigerian Crisis…
So, whatever happened with the Brothers’ Keepers philosophy of Pan- Africanism ? What is the cause of the inertia and why are Museveni and 92 year old Mugabe not brought to order by e.g. the Africa Union ?
Unfortunately , it’s not only African countries that continue to give legitimacy to rulers like Museveni , to a great extent so does the international community as business goes on as usual.
Understandably, on 3-4th July this year Israel and Uganda will be celebrating the 40th anniversary of Entebbe
Question remains: PRACTICALLY, what can be done?
Same question : What should be done?
Only asking,
Cornelius
kenneth harrow
i agree completely.
frankly i fear a trump election in this country as also resulting in calamity
as for the african state, in senegal, in nigeria, elections were held and the opposition candidate won. that is a small victory: it should be normal. but it is a great victory, by two influential states.
my fears of the opposite, rwanda, burundi, drc, where the presidents have all pushed aside constitutional bars, and are or have gotten themselves elected for a 3d term (kabila on track to join the other two)
kagame, with a virtual police state
burundi, nkurunziza, using the muscle of the army and police and youth movement to kill opposing voices, increasingly tutsis.
not pretty.
i truly hope others on the list will pay attention to what happens in the great lakes region, and now especially burundi. its impact is widely felt. there are 200,000 refugees from burundi now. imagine life in a refugee camp; imagine kagame starting to rearm the youth in those camps, as has been reported.
ken
--
Listserv moderated by Toyin Falola, University of Texas at Austin
To post to this group, send an email to USAAfric...@googlegroups.com
To subscribe to this group, send an email to USAAfricaDial...@googlegroups.com
Current archives at http://groups.google.com/group/USAAfricaDialogue
Early archives at http://www.utexas.edu/conferences/africa/ads/index.html
---
You received this message because you are subscribed to the Google Groups "USA Africa Dialogue Series" group.
To unsubscribe from this group and stop receiving emails from it, send an email to usaafricadialo...@googlegroups.com.
For more options, visit https://groups.google.com/d/optout.
-- kenneth w. harrow professor of english michigan state university department of english 619 red cedar road room C-614 wells hall east lansing, mi 48824 ph. 517 803 8839 har...@msu.edu
Cornelius Hamelberg
Professor Harrow,
Of course it’s not only in Africa; this news came in earlier in the day that a leader of a Georgian opposition party has been shot in an attack in the capital, Tbilisi
Keeping it nice and sweet:
Honestly, I don’t know why you should lack faith in the American electoral process and in the American people to make the right choices – to the extent that you believe that if would be a “calamity” if Mr. Trump is elected president and by a landslide too. Unless you can convince me about the contrary, I will continue to believe that it would be a calamity if Bill Clinton got back into the Oval Office through the back door and that it would be an absolute disaster for American foreign and domestic policy in theory and action if Hillary ever became US president. Mr. Trump has described her as “the worst secretary of state in American history” adding that “hundreds of thousands of people have been killed because of her stupidity”. Now, if you don’t think so, then please enumerate for us, any outstanding accomplishments to boast of, compared to John Kerry or any of her predecessors. When it comes to successful domestic policies, of course, the less said the better. I remember how horrible she was towards Brother Obama when she was fighting him for the nomination in 2008. I will not forget.
Surely the US can do better than her and it’s not as if there is a hurry about choosing her instead of choosing the right lady to be the First Lady President. At this point I would even much prefer Condoleezza Rice ( Republican) and many other female Democrats who carry much less baggage than Old Bill’s former First lady - and who I’m sure are capable of doing a better job.
Wishing you a pleasant weekend.
Cornelius
kenneth harrow
trump is the closest to a fascist we've had in this country. his hatred of muslims is such that he condones attacks, expulsions, most of the horrors hitler visited on jews before wwII trump incites--incites--against them in his words, and in the actions of his supporters. his hatred of immigrants incites people to attack them, threatening to expel 11 million mexicans. his embracing of torture is beyond incredible. he has stated he would do more and more than waterboarding, and boldly stated he'd welcome torture.
i could go on. he wants to reduce taxes on the wealthy when we have the most unjust economic since probably since the roaring 20s.
he is truly monstrous. he would welcome all out wars in the middle east.
no matter how bad bush has been; nothing compares with his threats. and hillary or bill clinton have never engaged overseas wars to the extent bush did or trump threatens.
he is incredibly vulgar and stupid in the demogogic manner in which he frames his arguments, so there is nothing really in substance to engage. he represents the ugliest aspect of demogagic populism immaginable, and in that is like musolini, hitler, or the mccarthys and father coughlins of our own fanatical past.
other than that, he's a great guy
oh, and hillary. a pretty moderate liberal, sometimes stronger liberal. not much more i could say about her. liberals have supported the "war on terrorism," but not like bush, and retreated from the initial panic after some time. the right wing in our country is now by far the worst in my lifetime. the left, too cowardly, has moved to the central.
i settle for what i can: clinton or sanders would represent a positive face compared with any republican, as i see it
ken
Cornelius Hamelberg
Just like you, I have faith in the American people, some values, and in the electoral process. Since the majority of the American people are by no means fascists or capable of becoming fascist they would not knowingly vote for one.
An explanation is that a great many Americans are disenchanted with Washington / the establishment , “political correctness” poverty, being marginalised, and that accounts for Trump’s popularity, head and shoulders above his Republican rivals - his ability to feed on people’s discontent and to appeal to some of the other baser instincts, scapegoating is sometimes effective ( foreigners are taking our jobs and raping our women etc.) The fear is that that could be enough to make him the Republican nominee and if so , the next president of the United States - should Bernie or Hillary prove to be no match for him, right?
Doesn’t Bernie stand a better chance of tapping into those main areas of people’s discontent – with the answers provided by what some people call his “ socialist” agenda?
You have already answered my question, is Trump that bad – and if so, will he become better if and when he becomes president? The US presidency after all is not a dictatorship ?
A spectacular terrorist attack or two in the US before or after he wins the nomination could increase the likelihood of his becoming the 45th president as even just one terrorist attack would give him opportunity to at least talk tough - in that new atmosphere of fear that would be demanding a very tough response - especially if it’s terrorism by the Boko Haram type of Muslims , from wherever
Since you feel so strongly about Mr. Trump , I suppose that you are exerting more energy campaigning against him and drumming up more support for e.g. Bernie – because everyone ( almost everyone) including Trump says that Hillary is “a loser “ ( “she can’t satisfy her husband “ etc.)
I’m now going to check on how it’s been going in South Carolina.
Cornelius
...