>From: alaji ndure <[log in to unmask]>
>Reply-To: The Gambia and related-issues mailing list
><[log in to unmask]>
>To: [log in to unmask]
>Subject: Re: Mauritania Coup...(This Day Lagos)...
>Date: Wed, 10 Aug 2005 12:28:30 +0000
>
>Chei! Joe, you are indeed one of the most truthful Gambians/Africans I have
>ever came across. How could anyone of us ,your classmates at Saint
>Therese's
>primary have guessed that in you, we were going to have such a no-nonesense
>and conscientious being!!
>
>Keep the good work and always stay the course.
>Mod Ndure.
>
>
>
>
>>As long as the AU cuddles the monsters in Africa, someone, some where will
>>take them out to end up doing the same thing if not checked by the
>>citizens.
>> While the AU is quick to blame coupists, they should be stealthy to
>>prevent the events that bring them about, such as, rigging of elections;
>>tweak their charter to intervene when tyrants are loose with the law; and
>>I
>>dare say that they begin to put pressure or force dictators out. If not,
>>then we can waste our time, because those that put on the sue knows where
>>it
>>pinches. What choice do Africans have if a dictator wants to preserve
>>their
>>tyranny for the rest of their natural lives and at any cost, like we have
>>in
>>the Gambia currently? Are Africans to wait for them to die naturally? I
>>think not. I do not have a problem with the military forcing the Yaya
>>Jammeh's out and the AU and the citizens pressure them to handover to
>>civilian order. If it was good for Patrick Henry to demand Liberty or
>>Death, to stop the British from collecting taxes without representation in
>>the US, why should it be different for Africans? The US government has
>>forced out some of the freaks they helped groom, like Saddam, Noriega,
>>Taliban, etc, and the rest of the civilized world clapped for a just and
>>liberating act. So, why demand different from Africans.? If Yaya Jammeh
>>attempts to rig or steal the elections in 06, the AU better be ready to
>>deal
>>with more crisis in the ECOWAS. Gambians are not going to tolerate that
>>and
>>we would not want any to come after the fact to preach "accept the
>>results".
>> If the AU was not sleeping at the switch, the stalemate in Guinea Bissau
>>would not have happened. To send few people to monitor and have a rigged
>>or
>>manipulated situation, is also a thing of the past for Africans.
>>
>>The coupists know that the AU does not have teeth, just like the club
>>member
>>tyrants know they can do anything and the AU will look the other way.
>>Was
>>Obasanjo not aware of the heavy handedness of the deposed leader? What
>>did
>>the the AU do during that time? Zilch. The AU knows that the only
>>defense
>>the people have against a life long tyrant is to get rid of them by any
>>means necessary, yet they stark the deck on the citizens and put them in
>>an
>>arena with a beast and referee the fight by tying the peoples' hand, and
>>in
>>some cases both - tyrant rigs elections, and AU calls for only voting as a
>>means to get rid of the tyrant. The tyrant is also a member of the club
>>(AU) and the people are not. The end result is a coup at some point,
>>because something will have to give. The AU must change their rules if
>>they
>>want to stop coups - they need to start reigning in on their fellow club
>>members. That is how you stop the cycle. You do not break a fight by
>>wrapping your arms around the person without a weapon and let loose the
>>other with their arsenal.
>>
>>Chi Jaama
>>
>>Joe
>>
>>>From: Last-Card <[log in to unmask]>
>>>Reply-To: The Gambia and related-issues mailing list
>>><[log in to unmask]>
>>>To: [log in to unmask]
>>>Subject: Mauritania Coup...(This Day Lagos)...
>>>Date: Mon, 8 Aug 2005 12:28:45 -0700
>>>
>>>The following article from allafrica.com is a good one.This is a lesson
>>>for
>>>both the coupists and the deposed.Its timely! The AU is not only thinking
>>>about those who overthrow as the burden.Those being overthrown are infact
>>>in most cases the real cause.
>>>As Bob Marley sang some decades ago.."Chances are!"
>>>What chances do we have ahead...Alpha Oumar Konare has a big lump to
>>>fry,grill,prepare and then serve. Its much more wiser for him and those
>>>in
>>>the kitchen of the mighty AU to avoid being mild lambs of simple
>>>idealism.The deposed and the coupists is Africa free from both
>>>"negligence"?
>>>
>>>Read on....
>>>The Mauritanian Coup
>>>
>>>
>>>Email This Page
>>>
>>>Print This Page
>>>
>>>Visit The Publisher's Site
>>>
>>>This Day (Lagos)
>>>
>>>EDITORIAL
>>>August 7, 2005
>>>Posted to the web August 8, 2005
>>>
>>>Lagos
>>>
>>>The Islamic Republic of Mauritania has been a by-word for coups and
>>>counter-coups since it became independent in 1960. The overthrow of
>>>President Ould Taya on Wednesday last week would not have raised
>>>eye-brows,
>>>but for the fact that military coups have become loathsome to the
>>>globalised village. So the volume and vehemence of world-wide
>>>denunciation
>>>of the Mauritanian putschists was hardly surprising.
>>>
>>>Still, it doesn't appear that the coup-makers are about to budge.
>>>Instead,
>>>they have proceeded to dig in, promising, as usual, to bring democracy to
>>>the troubled West African country in a brief period of two years. In the
>>>meantime, President Taya who was overthrown in a bloodless palace coup
>>>while attending the funeral of King Fahd in Saudi Arabia has holed up in
>>>the Republic of Niger. He is apparently at a loss on what to do next.
>>>
>>>If Taya is confused, the rest of the world shouldn't be. There is no
>>>doubt
>>>at all that the Mauritanian coup, like that of Sao Tome and Principe,
>>>must
>>>not be allowed to stand. Time and again, military dictatorship has proved
>>>conclusively that no matter the reasons for its emergence, it is not a
>>>better alternative to civil rule, not the least, a democratic one.
>>>Africa,
>>>Latin America and some parts of Asia have learnt that bitter lesson at
>>>great cost. Highlighting the ills of the ancien regime and promising a
>>>quick restoration of democracy is usually the handy ruse of the
>>>coup-maker
>>>to confer nobility on his political adventurism. No sooner he
>>>consolidates
>>>his hold on power than he bares his rapacious fangs and proceeds to
>>>poison
>>>the society he ostensibly came to save. Africa is dog-tired of this
>>>repetitive evil and it must spearhead a global coalition to transform the
>>>effusive condemnations into concrete measures to kick out the military
>>>scoundrels, masquerading as saviours, from the
>>> presidential palace in Nouakchott.
>>>
>>>All said, however, we believe that it will serve some useful purpose to
>>>go
>>>beyond merely preventing the Mauritanian pretenders from holding onto
>>>power. We need to examine the stated reasons for the coup for what they
>>>may
>>>be worth. Here, we would readily concede that leaders like Taya represent
>>>the ugly face of democracy in Africa. A former chief of army staff, Taya
>>>upstaged another military dictatorship to come to power in 1984. He
>>>approved a constitution in 1991, purportedly anchored on political
>>>pluralism, providing for a multiparty system.
>>>
>>>Under this constitution, Taya organised and predictably won the
>>>presidential election in 1992. He was re-elected in 1997 amid allegations
>>>of massive rigging. After surviving a coup attempt in June 2003, he was
>>>again elected for a third term in November that year, with even more
>>>glaring electoral fraud that awarded him 66.7 percent of the votes. His
>>>main challenger, Heydalla, who rejected the results was promptly charged
>>>for coup-plotting, tried and sentenced to a five-year suspended jail term
>>>and banned from contesting elections.
>>>
>>>Besides electoral manipulation, Taya has proved particularly inept at
>>>economic and political management. Economically, he ran the country's
>>>once
>>>thriving agricultural and mining sector aground. Today, Mauritania is
>>>faced
>>>with serious problems of famine.
>>>
>>>On the political front, Taya has equally proved that he is incapable of
>>>holding the country together. His policy of virtual extermination of the
>>>tiny minority tribe of Black Sonninkes has forced many of them to flee
>>>Mauritania, an action that infuriated the United States into suspending
>>>aid
>>>to the country in 1993.
>>>Relevant LinksWest Africa
>>>Arms and Military Affairs
>>>Nigeria
>>>Mauritania
>>>
>>>Against Taya's miserable rule in the past two decades, there is something
>>>to say for the claims by the coup-makers that they have come to "put an
>>>end
>>>to the totalitarian practices of the regime from which our people have
>>>suffered so much in the last years."
>>>
>>>Unfortunately, the military cannot pretend to be in position to undertake
>>>this task of national redemption. But what the coup has demonstrated
>>>clearly is the urgent need for the African Union to begin to give
>>>practical
>>>expression to democracy on the continent. Africa's peer review mechanism,
>>>for instance, must be bolstered to begin to address the issue of
>>>dictators,
>>>especially of the military brand, who conduct and win sham elections and
>>>thereafter proceed to preside over inept and autocratic governments, all
>>>in
>>>the name of democracy. Putting an end to this sort of democratic charade
>>>is
>>>the surest way to stopping a resurgence of coups on the continent.
>>>
>>>
>>>---------------------------------
>>>Make allAfrica.com your home page | RSS Feed
>>>---------------------------------
>>>Top | Site Français | Site Guide | Who We Are | Advertising | Search |
>>>Subscribe
>>>---------------------------------
>>>Copyright © 2005 This Day. All rights reserved. Distributed by AllAfrica
>>>Global Media (allAfrica.com). Click here to contact the copyright holder
>>>directly for corrections -- or for permission to republish or make other
>>>authorized use of this material.
>>>---------------------------------
>>>Questions or Comments? Contact us. Read our Privacy Statement.
>>>---------------------------------
>>>
>>>---------------------------------
>>>var bnum=new Number(Math.floor(99999999 *
>>>Math.random())+1);document.write("");
>>>The Mauritanian Coup
>>>
>>>
>>>Email This Page
>>>
>>>Print This Page
>>>
>>>Visit The Publisher's Site
>>>
>>>This Day (Lagos)
>>>
>>>EDITORIAL
>>>August 7, 2005
>>>Posted to the web August 8, 2005
>>>
>>>Lagos
>>>
>>>The Islamic Republic of Mauritania has been a by-word for coups and
>>>counter-coups since it became independent in 1960. The overthrow of
>>>President Ould Taya on Wednesday last week would not have raised
>>>eye-brows,
>>>but for the fact that military coups have become loathsome to the
>>>globalised village. So the volume and vehemence of world-wide
>>>denunciation
>>>of the Mauritanian putschists was hardly surprising.
>>>
>>>Still, it doesn't appear that the coup-makers are about to budge.
>>>Instead,
>>>they have proceeded to dig in, promising, as usual, to bring democracy to
>>>the troubled West African country in a brief period of two years. In the
>>>meantime, President Taya who was overthrown in a bloodless palace coup
>>>while attending the funeral of King Fahd in Saudi Arabia has holed up in
>>>the Republic of Niger. He is apparently at a loss on what to do next.
>>>
>>>If Taya is confused, the rest of the world shouldn't be. There is no
>>>doubt
>>>at all that the Mauritanian coup, like that of Sao Tome and Principe,
>>>must
>>>not be allowed to stand. Time and again, military dictatorship has proved
>>>conclusively that no matter the reasons for its emergence, it is not a
>>>better alternative to civil rule, not the least, a democratic one.
>>>Africa,
>>>Latin America and some parts of Asia have learnt that bitter lesson at
>>>great cost. Highlighting the ills of the ancien regime and promising a
>>>quick restoration of democracy is usually the handy ruse of the
>>>coup-maker
>>>to confer nobility on his political adventurism. No sooner he
>>>consolidates
>>>his hold on power than he bares his rapacious fangs and proceeds to
>>>poison
>>>the society he ostensibly came to save. Africa is dog-tired of this
>>>repetitive evil and it must spearhead a global coalition to transform the
>>>effusive condemnations into concrete measures to kick out the military
>>>scoundrels, masquerading as saviours, from the
>>> presidential palace in Nouakchott.
>>>
>>>All said, however, we believe that it will serve some useful purpose to
>>>go
>>>beyond merely preventing the Mauritanian pretenders from holding onto
>>>power. We need to examine the stated reasons for the coup for what they
>>>may
>>>be worth. Here, we would readily concede that leaders like Taya represent
>>>the ugly face of democracy in Africa. A former chief of army staff, Taya
>>>upstaged another military dictatorship to come to power in 1984. He
>>>approved a constitution in 1991, purportedly anchored on political
>>>pluralism, providing for a multiparty system.
>>>
>>>Under this constitution, Taya organised and predictably won the
>>>presidential election in 1992. He was re-elected in 1997 amid allegations
>>>of massive rigging. After surviving a coup attempt in June 2003, he was
>>>again elected for a third term in November that year, with even more
>>>glaring electoral fraud that awarded him 66.7 percent of the votes. His
>>>main challenger, Heydalla, who rejected the results was promptly charged
>>>for coup-plotting, tried and sentenced to a five-year suspended jail term
>>>and banned from contesting elections.
>>>
>>>Besides electoral manipulation, Taya has proved particularly inept at
>>>economic and political management. Economically, he ran the country's
>>>once
>>>thriving agricultural and mining sector aground. Today, Mauritania is
>>>faced
>>>with serious problems of famine.
>>>
>>>On the political front, Taya has equally proved that he is incapable of
>>>holding the country together. His policy of virtual extermination of the
>>>tiny minority tribe of Black Sonninkes has forced many of them to flee
>>>Mauritania, an action that infuriated the United States into suspending
>>>aid
>>>to the country in 1993.
>>>Relevant LinksWest Africa
>>>Arms and Military Affairs
>>>Nigeria
>>>Mauritania
>>>
>>>Against Taya's miserable rule in the past two decades, there is something
>>>to say for the claims by the coup-makers that they have come to "put an
>>>end
>>>to the totalitarian practices of the regime from which our people have
>>>suffered so much in the last years."
>>>
>>>Unfortunately, the military cannot pretend to be in position to undertake
>>>this task of national redemption. But what the coup has demonstrated
>>>clearly is the urgent need for the African Union to begin to give
>>>practical
>>>expression to democracy on the continent. Africa's peer review mechanism,
>>>for instance, must be bolstered to begin to address the issue of
>>>dictators,
>>>especially of the military brand, who conduct and win sham elections and
>>>thereafter proceed to preside over inept and autocratic governments, all
>>>in
>>>the name of democracy. Putting an end to this sort of democratic charade
>>>is
>>>the surest way to stopping a resurgence of coups on the continent.
>>>
>>>
>>>---------------------------------
>>>Make allAfrica.com your home page | RSS Feed
>>>---------------------------------
>>>Top | Site Français | Site Guide | Who We Are | Advertising | Search |
>>>Subscribe
>>>---------------------------------
>>>Copyright © 2005 This Day. All rights reserved. Distributed by AllAfrica
>>>Global Media (allAfrica.com). Click here to contact the copyright holder
>>>directly for corrections -- or for permission to republish or make other
>>>authorized use of this material.
>>>---------------------------------
>>>Questions or Comments? Contact us. Read our Privacy Statement.
>>>---------------------------------
>>>
>>>---------------------------------
>>>var bnum=new Number(Math.floor(99999999 *
>>>Math.random())+1);document.write("");
>>>The Mauritanian Coup
>>>
>>>
>>>Email This Page
>>>
>>>Print This Page
>>>
>>>Visit The Publisher's Site
>>>
>>>This Day (Lagos)
>>>
>>>EDITORIAL
>>>August 7, 2005
>>>Posted to the web August 8, 2005
>>>
>>>Lagos
>>>
>>>The Islamic Republic of Mauritania has been a by-word for coups and
>>>counter-coups since it became independent in 1960. The overthrow of
>>>President Ould Taya on Wednesday last week would not have raised
>>>eye-brows,
>>>but for the fact that military coups have become loathsome to the
>>>globalised village. So the volume and vehemence of world-wide
>>>denunciation
>>>of the Mauritanian putschists was hardly surprising.
>>>
>>>Still, it doesn't appear that the coup-makers are about to budge.
>>>Instead,
>>>they have proceeded to dig in, promising, as usual, to bring democracy to
>>>the troubled West African country in a brief period of two years. In the
>>>meantime, President Taya who was overthrown in a bloodless palace coup
>>>while attending the funeral of King Fahd in Saudi Arabia has holed up in
>>>the Republic of Niger. He is apparently at a loss on what to do next.
>>>
>>>If Taya is confused, the rest of the world shouldn't be. There is no
>>>doubt
>>>at all that the Mauritanian coup, like that of Sao Tome and Principe,
>>>must
>>>not be allowed to stand. Time and again, military dictatorship has proved
>>>conclusively that no matter the reasons for its emergence, it is not a
>>>better alternative to civil rule, not the least, a democratic one.
>>>Africa,
>>>Latin America and some parts of Asia have learnt that bitter lesson at
>>>great cost. Highlighting the ills of the ancien regime and promising a
>>>quick restoration of democracy is usually the handy ruse of the
>>>coup-maker
>>>to confer nobility on his political adventurism. No sooner he
>>>consolidates
>>>his hold on power than he bares his rapacious fangs and proceeds to
>>>poison
>>>the society he ostensibly came to save. Africa is dog-tired of this
>>>repetitive evil and it must spearhead a global coalition to transform the
>>>effusive condemnations into concrete measures to kick out the military
>>>scoundrels, masquerading as saviours, from the
>>> presidential palace in Nouakchott.
>>>
>>>All said, however, we believe that it will serve some useful purpose to
>>>go
>>>beyond merely preventing the Mauritanian pretenders from holding onto
>>>power. We need to examine the stated reasons for the coup for what they
>>>may
>>>be worth. Here, we would readily concede that leaders like Taya represent
>>>the ugly face of democracy in Africa. A former chief of army staff, Taya
>>>upstaged another military dictatorship to come to power in 1984. He
>>>approved a constitution in 1991, purportedly anchored on political
>>>pluralism, providing for a multiparty system.
>>>
>>>Under this constitution, Taya organised and predictably won the
>>>presidential election in 1992. He was re-elected in 1997 amid allegations
>>>of massive rigging. After surviving a coup attempt in June 2003, he was
>>>again elected for a third term in November that year, with even more
>>>glaring electoral fraud that awarded him 66.7 percent of the votes. His
>>>main challenger, Heydalla, who rejected the results was promptly charged
>>>for coup-plotting, tried and sentenced to a five-year suspended jail term
>>>and banned from contesting elections.
>>>
>>>Besides electoral manipulation, Taya has proved particularly inept at
>>>economic and political management. Economically, he ran the country's
>>>once
>>>thriving agricultural and mining sector aground. Today, Mauritania is
>>>faced
>>>with serious problems of famine.
>>>
>>>On the political front, Taya has equally proved that he is incapable of
>>>holding the country together. His policy of virtual extermination of the
>>>tiny minority tribe of Black Sonninkes has forced many of them to flee
>>>Mauritania, an action that infuriated the United States into suspending
>>>aid
>>>to the country in 1993.
>>>Relevant LinksWest Africa
>>>Arms and Military Affairs
>>>Nigeria
>>>Mauritania
>>>
>>>Against Taya's miserable rule in the past two decades, there is something
>>>to say for the claims by the coup-makers that they have come to "put an
>>>end
>>>to the totalitarian practices of the regime from which our people have
>>>suffered so much in the last years."
>>>
>>>Unfortunately, the military cannot pretend to be in position to undertake
>>>this task of national redemption. But what the coup has demonstrated
>>>clearly is the urgent need for the African Union to begin to give
>>>practical
>>>expression to democracy on the continent. Africa's peer review mechanism,
>>>for instance, must be bolstered to begin to address the issue of
>>>dictators,
>>>especially of the military brand, who conduct and win sham elections and
>>>thereafter proceed to preside over inept and autocratic governments, all
>>>in
>>>the name of democracy. Putting an end to this sort of democratic charade
>>>is
>>>the surest way to stopping a resurgence of coups on the continent.
>>>
>>>
>>>---------------------------------
>>>Make allAfrica.com your home page | RSS Feed
>>>---------------------------------
>>>Top | Site Français | Site Guide | Who We Are | Advertising | Search |
>>>Subscribe
>>>---------------------------------
>>>Copyright © 2005 This Day. All rights reserved. Distributed by AllAfrica
>>>Global Media (allAfrica.com). Click here to contact the copyright holder
>>>directly for corrections -- or for permission to republish or make other
>>>authorized use of this material.
>>>---------------------------------
>>>Questions or Comments? Contact us. Read our Privacy Statement.
>>>---------------------------------
>>>
>>>---------------------------------
>>>var bnum=new Number(Math.floor(99999999 *
>>>Math.random())+1);document.write("");
>>>The Mauritanian Coup
>>>
>>>
>>>Email This Page
>>>
>>>Print This Page
>>>
>>>Visit The Publisher's Site
>>>
>>>This Day (Lagos)
>>>
>>>EDITORIAL
>>>August 7, 2005
>>>Posted to the web August 8, 2005
>>>
>>>Lagos
>>>
>>>The Islamic Republic of Mauritania has been a by-word for coups and
>>>counter-coups since it became independent in 1960. The overthrow of
>>>President Ould Taya on Wednesday last week would not have raised
>>>eye-brows,
>>>but for the fact that military coups have become loathsome to the
>>>globalised village. So the volume and vehemence of world-wide
>>>denunciation
>>>of the Mauritanian putschists was hardly surprising.
>>>
>>>Still, it doesn't appear that the coup-makers are about to budge.
>>>Instead,
>>>they have proceeded to dig in, promising, as usual, to bring democracy to
>>>the troubled West African country in a brief period of two years. In the
>>>meantime, President Taya who was overthrown in a bloodless palace coup
>>>while attending the funeral of King Fahd in Saudi Arabia has holed up in
>>>the Republic of Niger. He is apparently at a loss on what to do next.
>>>
>>>If Taya is confused, the rest of the world shouldn't be. There is no
>>>doubt
>>>at all that the Mauritanian coup, like that of Sao Tome and Principe,
>>>must
>>>not be allowed to stand. Time and again, military dictatorship has proved
>>>conclusively that no matter the reasons for its emergence, it is not a
>>>better alternative to civil rule, not the least, a democratic one.
>>>Africa,
>>>Latin America and some parts of Asia have learnt that bitter lesson at
>>>great cost. Highlighting the ills of the ancien regime and promising a
>>>quick restoration of democracy is usually the handy ruse of the
>>>coup-maker
>>>to confer nobility on his political adventurism. No sooner he
>>>consolidates
>>>his hold on power than he bares his rapacious fangs and proceeds to
>>>poison
>>>the society he ostensibly came to save. Africa is dog-tired of this
>>>repetitive evil and it must spearhead a global coalition to transform the
>>>effusive condemnations into concrete measures to kick out the military
>>>scoundrels, masquerading as saviours, from the
>>> presidential palace in Nouakchott.
>>>
>>>All said, however, we believe that it will serve some useful purpose to
>>>go
>>>beyond merely preventing the Mauritanian pretenders from holding onto
>>>power. We need to examine the stated reasons for the coup for what they
>>>may
>>>be worth. Here, we would readily concede that leaders like Taya represent
>>>the ugly face of democracy in Africa. A former chief of army staff, Taya
>>>upstaged another military dictatorship to come to power in 1984. He
>>>approved a constitution in 1991, purportedly anchored on political
>>>pluralism, providing for a multiparty system.
>>>
>>>Under this constitution, Taya organised and predictably won the
>>>presidential election in 1992. He was re-elected in 1997 amid allegations
>>>of massive rigging. After surviving a coup attempt in June 2003, he was
>>>again elected for a third term in November that year, with even more
>>>glaring electoral fraud that awarded him 66.7 percent of the votes. His
>>>main challenger, Heydalla, who rejected the results was promptly charged
>>>for coup-plotting, tried and sentenced to a five-year suspended jail term
>>>and banned from contesting elections.
>>>
>>>Besides electoral manipulation, Taya has proved particularly inept at
>>>economic and political management. Economically, he ran the country's
>>>once
>>>thriving agricultural and mining sector aground. Today, Mauritania is
>>>faced
>>>with serious problems of famine.
>>>
>>>On the political front, Taya has equally proved that he is incapable of
>>>holding the country together. His policy of virtual extermination of the
>>>tiny minority tribe of Black Sonninkes has forced many of them to flee
>>>Mauritania, an action that infuriated the United States into suspending
>>>aid
>>>to the country in 1993.
>>>Relevant LinksWest Africa
>>>Arms and Military Affairs
>>>Nigeria
>>>Mauritania
>>>
>>>Against Taya's miserable rule in the past two decades, there is something
>>>to say for the claims by the coup-makers that they have come to "put an
>>>end
>>>to the totalitarian practices of the regime from which our people have
>>>suffered so much in the last years."
>>>
>>>Unfortunately, the military cannot pretend to be in position to undertake
>>>this task of national redemption. But what the coup has demonstrated
>>>clearly is the urgent need for the African Union to begin to give
>>>practical
>>>expression to democracy on the continent. Africa's peer review mechanism,
>>>for instance, must be bolstered to begin to address the issue of
>>>dictators,
>>>especially of the military brand, who conduct and win sham elections and
>>>thereafter proceed to preside over inept and autocratic governments, all
>>>in
>>>the name of democracy. Putting an end to this sort of democratic charade
>>>is
>>>the surest way to stopping a resurgence of coups on the continent.
>>>
>>>
>>>---------------------------------
>>>Make allAfrica.com your home page | RSS Feed
>>>---------------------------------
>>>Top | Site Français | Site Guide | Who We Are | Advertising | Search |
>>>Subscribe
>>>---------------------------------
>>>Copyright © 2005 This Day. All rights reserved. Distributed by AllAfrica
>>>Global Media (allAfrica.com). Click here to contact the copyright holder
>>>directly for corrections -- or for permission to republish or make other
>>>authorized use of this material.
>>>---------------------------------
>>>Questions or Comments? Contact us. Read our Privacy Statement.
>>>---------------------------------
>>>
>>>---------------------------------
>>>var bnum=new Number(Math.floor(99999999 *
>>>Math.random())+1);document.write("");
>>>The Mauritanian Coup
>>>
>>>
>>>Email This Page
>>>
>>>Print This Page
>>>
>>>Visit The Publisher's Site
>>>
>>>This Day (Lagos)
>>>
>>>EDITORIAL
>>>August 7, 2005
>>>Posted to the web August 8, 2005
>>>
>>>Lagos
>>>
>>>The Islamic Republic of Mauritania has been a by-word for coups and
>>>counter-coups since it became independent in 1960. The overthrow of
>>>President Ould Taya on Wednesday last week would not have raised
>>>eye-brows,
>>>but for the fact that military coups have become loathsome to the
>>>globalised village. So the volume and vehemence of world-wide
>>>denunciation
>>>of the Mauritanian putschists was hardly surprising.
>>>
>>>Still, it doesn't appear that the coup-makers are about to budge.
>>>Instead,
>>>they have proceeded to dig in, promising, as usual, to bring democracy to
>>>the troubled West African country in a brief period of two years. In the
>>>meantime, President Taya who was overthrown in a bloodless palace coup
>>>while attending the funeral of King Fahd in Saudi Arabia has holed up in
>>>the Republic of Niger. He is apparently at a loss on what to do next.
>>>
>>>If Taya is confused, the rest of the world shouldn't be. There is no
>>>doubt
>>>at all that the Mauritanian coup, like that of Sao Tome and Principe,
>>>must
>>>not be allowed to stand. Time and again, military dictatorship has proved
>>>conclusively that no matter the reasons for its emergence, it is not a
>>>better alternative to civil rule, not the least, a democratic one.
>>>Africa,
>>>Latin America and some parts of Asia have learnt that bitter lesson at
>>>great cost. Highlighting the ills of the ancien regime and promising a
>>>quick restoration of democracy is usually the handy ruse of the
>>>coup-maker
>>>to confer nobility on his political adventurism. No sooner he
>>>consolidates
>>>his hold on power than he bares his rapacious fangs and proceeds to
>>>poison
>>>the society he ostensibly came to save. Africa is dog-tired of this
>>>repetitive evil and it must spearhead a global coalition to transform the
>>>effusive condemnations into concrete measures to kick out the military
>>>scoundrels, masquerading as saviours, from the
>>> presidential palace in Nouakchott.
>>>
>>>All said, however, we believe that it will serve some useful purpose to
>>>go
>>>beyond merely preventing the Mauritanian pretenders from holding onto
>>>power. We need to examine the stated reasons for the coup for what they
>>>may
>>>be worth. Here, we would readily concede that leaders like Taya represent
>>>the ugly face of democracy in Africa. A former chief of army staff, Taya
>>>upstaged another military dictatorship to come to power in 1984. He
>>>approved a constitution in 1991, purportedly anchored on political
>>>pluralism, providing for a multiparty system.
>>>
>>>Under this constitution, Taya organised and predictably won the
>>>presidential election in 1992. He was re-elected in 1997 amid allegations
>>>of massive rigging. After surviving a coup attempt in June 2003, he was
>>>again elected for a third term in November that year, with even more
>>>glaring electoral fraud that awarded him 66.7 percent of the votes. His
>>>main challenger, Heydalla, who rejected the results was promptly charged
>>>for coup-plotting, tried and sentenced to a five-year suspended jail term
>>>and banned from contesting elections.
>>>
>>>Besides electoral manipulation, Taya has proved particularly inept at
>>>economic and political management. Economically, he ran the country's
>>>once
>>>thriving agricultural and mining sector aground. Today, Mauritania is
>>>faced
>>>with serious problems of famine.
>>>
>>>On the political front, Taya has equally proved that he is incapable of
>>>holding the country together. His policy of virtual extermination of the
>>>tiny minority tribe of Black Sonninkes has forced many of them to flee
>>>Mauritania, an action that infuriated the United States into suspending
>>>aid
>>>to the country in 1993.
>>>Relevant LinksWest Africa
>>>Arms and Military Affairs
>>>Nigeria
>>>Mauritania
>>>
>>>Against Taya's miserable rule in the past two decades, there is something
>>>to say for the claims by the coup-makers that they have come to "put an
>>>end
>>>to the totalitarian practices of the regime from which our people have
>>>suffered so much in the last years."
>>>
>>>Unfortunately, the military cannot pretend to be in position to undertake
>>>this task of national redemption. But what the coup has demonstrated
>>>clearly is the urgent need for the African Union to begin to give
>>>practical
>>>expression to democracy on the continent. Africa's peer review mechanism,
>>>for instance, must be bolstered to begin to address the issue of
>>>dictators,
>>>especially of the military brand, who conduct and win sham elections and
>>>thereafter proceed to preside over inept and autocratic governments, all
>>>in
>>>the name of democracy. Putting an end to this sort of democratic charade
>>>is
>>>the surest way to stopping a resurgence of coups on the continent.
>>>
>>>
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