The New Africa Magazine/ Dr Filomena Mathins
The New African Magazine with Libya's presidency
The New African Magazine with Libya's presidency
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operation, militants are still a major<br />
problem in the vast Sahel region of West<br />
<strong>Africa</strong>. Moreover, the situation in the<br />
Sahel has deteriorated into a festering<br />
wound. <strong>The</strong> French military presence<br />
fuels an increasingly widespread sense<br />
of grievance across West <strong>Africa</strong>. Despite<br />
a massive and sustained military effort<br />
- with more than 5,000 troops deployed<br />
and more than 50 killed - France has not<br />
been able to decisively overcome the<br />
threat from jihadists, whose attacks on<br />
local communities and security forces<br />
continue.<br />
<strong>The</strong> reasons are complex, both military<br />
and social, environmental and economic.<br />
Yet a significant proportion of local public<br />
opinion feels that France, as a high-tech<br />
Western military power, should have<br />
been able to “sort” the problem and<br />
should now get out of the way if it cannot<br />
do so. Those feelings seem to have<br />
motivated the protesters who blockaded<br />
the French army convoy. And this comes<br />
after earlier causes of resentments,<br />
as Mr Nguessan points out: “<strong>The</strong><br />
speeches of Sarkozy in Dakar, Macron<br />
in Ouagadougou; the war in Ivory Coast;<br />
the discouraging results of the campaign<br />
against terrorism.<br />
“Questions related to the currency, debt,<br />
support for local dictators and ill-chosen<br />
words.”<br />
France is still regarded as a prop for<br />
the old guard establishment - even if<br />
supporting democratic bodies.<br />
But underlying social and communal<br />
factors also shape the attitudes of some.<br />
One senior Sahel military officer says<br />
he sees the French as allies of Tuareg<br />
former separatist rebels in northern<br />
Mali - an allegation fiercely and credibly<br />
denied in Paris.<br />
Similar complexities surround France’s<br />
support for West <strong>Africa</strong> regional body<br />
Ecowas - which is currently trying to<br />
pressure coup leaders in Mali and<br />
Guinea to rapidly return their countries<br />
to civilian constitutional rule.<br />
A growing number of young people<br />
regard the regional bloc as an<br />
incumbent presidents’ club, too slow to<br />
criticise civilian rulers who manipulate<br />
democratic rules and unwilling to<br />
acknowledge the strength of popular<br />
support for military leaders promising<br />
reform. So in backing Ecowas as the<br />
legitimate <strong>Africa</strong>n crisis management<br />
institution, France ends up being<br />
perceived as a prop for the old guard<br />
establishment.