Abayomi Azikiwe, editor of the Pan-African News Wire, covering an immigrant rights rally in Clark Park in southwest Detroit on Oct. 12, 2008. (Photo: Alan Pollock)., a photo by Pan-African News Wire File Photos on Flickr.
'Imperialist states usurp Libya black gold'
Interview with Abayomi Azikiwe, editor of the Pan African News Wire
Thu Mar 31, 2011
presstv.ir
http://www.presstv.ir/detail/172397.html
Interview with Abayomi Azikiwe, editor of the Pan African News Wire
As imperialists and colonial powers set their tentacles on another oil rich nation, one can only speculate the outcome of the violence, death and destruction.
Press TV has interviewed the editor of the Pan African News Wire, Abayomi Azikiwe, in regards to imperialism, the US Fifth Fleet in Bahrain and the Berlin Conference of 1884-1885, which helped to carve up a map for the African continent. The following is a partial transcript of the interview.
Press TV: We are going to look at violence now Mr. Azikiwe. Violence is violence especially when international law is broken. I want to give an example: tear gas that breaks down the immune system used on peaceful protesters, or putting a seize on a hospital while preventing doctors to attend the wounded. I'm talking about Bahrain. Why is Bahrain's case different from Libya?
Azikiwe: Bahrain is the home of the US 5th Fleet, and the Pentagon has strategic interests in that nation. They do not want any type of change in administration there. Whereas in Iraq and whereas in other parts of the world there was oil, governments, and militaries which were not totally under the control of the United States. Therefore, their countries were targeted for regime change. Their countries were targeted for total destruction. If we look at the situation right now developing in Libya, it harkens back to the Berlin conference of 1884 and 1885 where the European imperialist countries actually sat down and carved up a map (geographical outlay) for the African continent, which reigned for nearly a century.
Even today, we are still suffering as a result from the decisions that were made in Berlin in 1884 and 1885. Therefore, I think it's clearly a question of the strategic, monetary and economic interests of the United States as to why they are targeting Libya not only for regime change, but also for seizure of their oil fields, natural gas resources, and to have a beachhead for Africom right in the northern part of Africa on the Mediterranean.
Press TV: The US military supported regimes, when taking the case of Bahrain for example, are stuck with enough .50 caliber rounds to kill Bahrainis five-times over not to mention Yemen. We can also mention Libya. For that matter, we can mention all of the Persian Gulf states. The people that are protesting against these regimes have American made weapons being used on them whether it's tear gas or live fire used on them, and the sentiment on the ground isn't so much for the US when they know this is US made weaponry. So how is that going to damage the US image, and the West's image with the Arabs on the street?
Azikiwe: I think it's going to be very damaging to the image of the United States, and US foreign policy in general to most of the peoples in North Africa and the Middle East. I don't think the Arab masses are that naive. That is why we have to question the political character of the rebels in Libya. Some are portraying themselves as being part of the opposition. They are calling for, have welcomed, the bombing of their country by these former colonial powers and these imperialist countries that are led by the United States. There have been civilians killed in these bombing operations. It has to be taken into consideration that Libya has the largest known reserves of oil on the African continent. They have the highest standard of living of any other country on the African continent.
The government there was the head of the African Union in 2009 when Gaddafi came to the United States to represent the African Union and Libya at the United Nations. So I don't believe for one minute that the people in Africa and the Middle East are welcoming the bombing of their country by all these imperialists, and their allies at least from two different Gulf states. I think it's going to have a damaging impact not only on the ability of the United States to have normal relations with people throughout the region, but it will also have a damaging impact on the Obama Administration Presidency both domestically and internationally.
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