On May 14th, the Nigerian Joint Military Task Force (JTF), laid siege to towns along the coast, attacking from air, land, and sea. Although the Nigerian government maintains that the attack was targeting militant groups that obstruct oil flows, what transpired was a massive assault on the communities and villages of Gbaramatu kingdom. Thousands of lives have been lost and upwards of 20,000 persons displaced in the ongoing military offensive. This is an inexcusable abuse of military power, carried out only to gain greater access to the region’s oil.
“The helicopter gunships hovered low over a crowded street, where people had gathered to celebrate an annual festival, and opened fire with machine guns and rockets, according to several accounts.”
The persistence and the complication of wars in Africa are partially due to small arms proliferation. The consequences of small arms on African people due to international conflicts within Africa, rebel group activities, mercenary groups, and armed gang activities have yet to be fully measured. The International Action Network on Small Arms, Saferworld, and Oxfam International put it in perspective when they reported that armed conflict cost Africa $18 billion each year and about US$300 billion between 1990-2005. During this period, 23 African nations experienced war: Algeria, Angola, Burundi, Central Africa Republic, Chad, Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC), Republic of Congo, Cote d’Ivoire, Djibouti, Eritrea, Ethiopia, Ghana, Guinea, Guinea-Bissau, Liberia, Niger, Nigeria, Rwanda, Senegal, Sierra Leone, South Africa, Sudan, and Uganda.
This article was originally published in Foreign Policy In Focus (FPIF) on April 20th, 2009.
In early February, The New York Times released
information detailing the involvement of the U.S. military in the
bungled Ugandan mission to oust the rebel Lord's Resistance Army (LRA)
from northeastern DR Congo. Seventeen military advisors from AFRICOM
worked closely with the Ugandan People's Defense Forces (UPDF) to plan
the attack, which the United States further subsidized through the
donation of satellite phones and $1 million worth of fuel. Although the
United States has been training the Ugandan military for years, this is
the first time it has directly assisted in carrying out an operation.
Just when we thought the situation in Somalia couldn’t possibly get any worse, recent
weeks have shown that Somalia
will likely deteriorate further before stabilizing. From piracy to militancy to
displacement and starvation of the local population, Somalia needs international
attention more than ever before. Ethiopian troops who have been occupying
Somalia since the U.S.-backed invasion in 2006 have finally given up their
efforts at nation-building and will likely pull troops out by the end of the
year, according to a recent BBC report . It is unclear what will happen when Ethiopia
leaves, though it is likely that the growing al-Shabab forces will take control
of the capital.
