African Voice Critical for Syria

Republic of Zimbabwe President Robert Mugabe addressing the United Nations General Assembly in New York City on September 26, 2012. Mugabe condemned the imperialist war against Libya and the assassination of its leader Col. Muammar Gaddafi., a photo by Pan-African News Wire File Photos on Flickr.

African voice critical for Syria

Thursday, 11 October 2012 00:00
DayAfrica.com
Moses Chareka

President Mugabe has largely been a voice for many voiceless Africans on the international forum. Love or hate him, President Mugabe has been a reinforced pillar, very strong and equally articulate so much that if the world had ears, it would have learnt from him. His campaign for fair treatment of small nations and his campaign for a fair world where the United Nations is not manipulated by superpowers, is not mere rhetoric but a real issue that brings the much-needed peace to the world.

So many things that African leaders fear to say are eventually said by this courageous statesman and one day the world will see how crucial the man has been in the political dynamics of Africa and the world.

His speech at the just-ended UN General Assembly added the cherry on the cake of his stance on matters that are largely humane and African.

The death of Libyan leader Colonel Maummar Gaddafi is as cruel and that of the American Ambassador to Libya, Stevens.

Both were cruel murders!

Africa has been demanding reforms on the UN Security Council and since Africa is the harbour of the world’s largely untapped natural resources, its power to direct international peace is equally important.

Africa’s voice in international politics should be as important as are its vast untapped natural resources.

For instance, Africa cannot ignore the conflict in Syria, inasmuch as the rest of the world is interested in one way or the other. Events there will have serious repercussions on Africa’s stability.

Africa can only treat the conflict in Syria as distant at its own peril. In African proverbs, a small distant fire eventually gets to your own doorstep as a huge inferno too difficult to put out.

African leaders like President Mugabe should take the lead in saying “no” to military intervention in Syria.

They should say “yes” to a peaceful solution and that solution should be found soon rather than later.

Critical to the whole world is the fact that military intervention in Syria is connected with great risk, even much more serious than what happened in Libya.

The Syrian army is stronger than Libya’s and has a more advanced air defence system. The situation is also aggravated by conflicts in neighbouring Lebanon, Iraq, Israel and Palestine.

According to international experts, foreign military invasion in Syria can destabilise the entire region.

The United States, which faced difficulties in Iraq and Afghanistan, does not want to take responsibility for the difficult situation in Syria.

The US prefers to act stealthily by strengthening opposition groups and simultaneously increasing economic and political pressure on Damascus.

At the same time fearing that Mohammed Assad may soon take the situation in the country under control.

Americans don’t stop to seek a possibility of using military methods against Syria, bypassing the UN Security Council.

This reinforces President Mugabe’s push for fairness and reforms in the UN Security Council.

The US has been feeding its allies on unfounded messages, received from anonymous sources, about the supposedly growing threat of chemical war in Syria.

As a result, France has already threatened Damascus in the case government forces use chemical weapons against rebels.

This situation is very similar to the Iraqi scenario in which Washington used unverified information about weapons of mass destruction in Iraq as a pretext for the invasion of Baghdad.

Co-operation of some countries from the “Friends of Syria” with the West, often against their own interest, makes us think about large “compensation” possibly promised to them by Americans after the overthrow of the Assad regime.

In particular, Turkey should clearly understand that by supporting the US it risks complicating the situation in the country where the Kurd minority maintained close contacts with the Kurds in Syria, Iraq and Iran.

Don’t also forget about the role of Saudi Arabia in the Syrian crisis, and the fact that after the end of the Syrian events, Wahhabism may appear in Turkey.

Unlike in other countries, the situation in Syria is different because there is no national discontent and strong opposition.

Armed groups controlled by foreign countries which supply arms, money and mercenaries do not value the lives of people.

In particular, one of the arrested mercenaries admitted that for every severed head of a soldier, they received 50 000 Syrian liras.

The so-called “Friends of Syria are not interested in a peaceful settlement of the conflict.

Evidently hoping to get their share after collapse of Assad regime, they actively support the Syrian opposition.

In particular, Qatar was accused of supplying weapons, ammunition, communications and money to Syrian rebels. Switzerland stopped supplying arms to the UAE after Swiss-made grenades were found in the Syrian opposition by foreign journalists.

At the end of the day, we shall all say President Mugabe was right. The time to reform the UN is now and the time to find a peaceful solution in Syria is now.

Africa must strongly participate in advocating a peaceful solution in Syria.

After Syria, the pendulum of regime change will swing back to Africa and who knows which African leader will be targetted? —

DayAfrica.com

Dr Moses Chareka is a political scientist based in Malawi.