Posted on 02/16/2005 8:43:49 AM PST by srm913
Why is it that a democratic Western country that prides itself on being a model of civilization and a champion of liberty can support dictators and oppression in what we used to call backward countries? No, I am not talking about the foreign policy of the United States. I am speaking of France, which has long used a double standard in dealing with its former African colonies.
The latest events in Togo are a reminder that four decades after the winds of independence swept through Africa, the French government still pulls the strings in French-speaking Africa.
The world may not have paid much notice to the sudden death of Gnassingbe Eyadema, the longtime dictator of Togo. But France certainly did. President Jacques Chirac of France paid warm tribute to him as "a friend of France and a personal friend of mine." Being a "friend of France" covers a multitude of sins.
President General Eyadema — a former sergeant in the French Foreign Legion — ruled Togo with an iron hand ever since he seized power 34 years ago. That was Africa's first military coup, and established a trend that was quickly copied elsewhere on the black continent.
Eyadema was shrewd enough to recognize the French "sphere of influence" in Africa, and France was cynical enough to overlook his excesses. French advisors ran the country, and made sure he stayed in power. In recent years, as most foreign aid donors began to get squeamish about giving money to a dictator, Eyadema went through the motions of holding elections, but they were shams. The General President — who styled himself as "the Guide" — brutally eliminated any opposition.
(Excerpt) Read more at cbsnews.com ...
Ping
Its a colonial mindset that the French government has never really shed. I'm sure there is a full measure of racism in there also.
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