Wars ‘far from over’ OUT IN THE COLD
INSURGENCIES: RENEWED POWER STRUGGLES ‘COMPLICATE THINGS’
Africa ‘remains on the first rungs of that ladder’, says expert.
War-ravaged and conflict-plagued Africa – Sudan, Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC), Chad, Mali, Somalia, Niger, Mozambique, Burkina Faso, Nigeria and Somalia – may take decades to silence the guns, due to governments and some businesses serving particular interests.
According to defence expert Helmoed-Römer Heitman, Europe continued to suffer the impact of wars – unable to shake itself off after the demise of the Roman colonial power – while Africa “still remains on the first rungs of that ladder”.
“I would hope we do not take that long, but things are complicated by renewed major power competition,” said Heitman.
“In the DRC, you have three provinces affected by the war. Compare them to Bosnia and what it took to stop the war there.”
President Cyril Ramaphosa this week announced the beefing up of the Southern African Development Community Mission in the DRC with 2 900 deployed SA National Defence Force (SANDF) soldiers – facing the Rwanda-backed M23 insurgents.
Heitman conceded that “economic interests of newer powers, large corporations, neighbours, rapacious government and local warlords”, were among factors at stake in the DRC – further prolonging the conflict.
He said the DRC situation mirrored actions of the Wagner Group – a Russian paramilitary contractor, which established presence in several politically unstable African nations, including the Central African Republic, Libya, Mali and Sudan.
South African Defence and Aerospace company Milkor marketing communications director Daniel du Plessis said African wars have, for the past two decades, mainly consisted of “a growing number of insurgencies and rebel forces within specific regions”.
“Diplomacy and political alliances have resolved direct and open conflicts between two countries,” said Du Plessis.
“In an objective view, many African states are now fighting a common enemy – taking different shapes in their respective countries.
“Africa has always been vital for trading in minerals and resources – now threatened due to the increase in insurgencies.
“This has led to a hampered economic growth, seen across many countries within the continent and will continue to grow if not addressed.”
The intervention of regional forces was “vital to ensuring that regional peace can be established and is something all African countries must prioritise”.
South Africa had “the potential to be a major role player in conducting these operations – resolving conflicts and restoring peace across the continent”.
“The potential end to insurgencies in Africa is in sight but will remain discussion points in boardroom meetings and parliaments, if not prioritised by governments,” said Du Plessis.
Political analyst Sandile Swana said terrorism in Africa was driven by economic interests.
“People who are interested in minerals which are in Africa may sponsor terrorist groups who have nothing to do with African politics, but have to do with business interests of Western powers,” said Swana.
Jasmine Opperman, a military intelligence analyst with the Armed Conflict Location and Event Data project, said: “For as long as we have governments serving certain interests, obsessed with sovereignty, lack of social cohesion in African states – there will be no end in insurgencies.”