CAR’s reputation of ‘mad dogs’

Aliyu Musa

The Central African Republic is a notoriously fragile country. Its fragility dates back to its colonial history under the watch of France. And, like most unstable African countries, the CAR has seen nearly a dozen successful and unsuccessful military coup d’états.

In March 1959 Barthelemy Boganda, its charismatic nationalistic leader died in a mysterious plane crash whose architects were curiously never found out despite initial investigations pointing to traces of explosives. A year later the country regained its independence and with Boganda safely out of the way a submissive David Dacko, enjoying the backing of foreign interests over an equally patriotic and nationalistic Abel Goumba, became the CAR’s first elected president. In my estimation the death of Boganda and Dacko’s contrived ascension to power were the first coup against the people and country.

Dacko’s regime was predictably smudged by subservience to foreign interests, corruption and dictatorship, which culminated in the transformation of the country into a one-party state, while he precariously held on to power until January 1, 1966 when the contagion of coup d’états in neighbouring countries permeated and his cousin Jean-Bedel Bokassa overthrew him. Bokassa, too, eventually became such a monumental embarrassment even to his foreign backers that by 1979 they eagerly eased him out and reinstated Dacko.

The drift continued with army chief Andre Kolingba ousting Dacko in 1981 but Kolingba was himself blown out of the corridors of power when the winds of western democracy blew through his country in 1993, compelling him to allow multiparty elections in which he contested and suffered a humbling defeat. Nonetheless that election was the only semblance of sanity in the country’s entire post-colonial history; it ended 12 years of military rule and ushered in President Ange-Felix Patasse’s regime. Patasse limped through his first term largely with the help of foreign troops and rebels from Libya, Chad and the Democratic Republic of Congo. But he was booted out midway into his second term as the country increasingly came under rebel control.

It suffices to say that rebellions, either engineered by disgruntled military officers in collusion with imperial financiers or local irredentists using religion as a tool of convenience, are widespread in the CAR. The consequences are often huge and felt most by the people. For example Patasse’s desperate SOS to foreign mercenaries only opened the floodgates to rebels loyal to Jean-Pierre Bemba to carry out mass murder and rape.

Also, General Francois Bozize, who was implicated in the foiled coup of May 2001 against Patasse, successfully evaded arrest, mutated into a rebel leader and finally overthrew the regime after a third attempt. Not unexpectedly though Bozize’s rule was not trouble-free. It was under his nose the notoriously ruthless Joseph Kony’s Lord’s Resistance Army found a safe haven in the country, which they used as a lunch pad from 2008 onwards.

While the world watches as the CAR further slips to the brink it is worthwhile to note that the trend is a product of a well-choreographed anarchy from which dividends are shared between warlords and their foreign backers. It is particularly irritating that the populace is spilt on religious grounds and some have found solace in cannibalism.

The story of one Ouandja Magloire who serially kills Muslims and eats their flesh is totally miffing. Magloire calls himself ‘Mad Dog’ and claims he is avenging the killing of his pregnant wife, sister-in-law and baby by the Seleka Muslim rebels. Every Muslim, by his logic, must pay for the sin of the rebels. And the media have continued to gratuitously play up the ‘provoked victim’s’ case on his behalf.

If the country’s newly chosen interim leader Catherine Samba-Panza takes seriously her vow to end the violence and bring back sanity to the CAR and wants the world to believe her she must stop the kind of madness Magloire and those that provoked him are exhibiting. She must as a matter of urgency begin the process of taming such ‘Mad Dogs’ even if it means bringing them within the bounds of the law. It is only after there is a clear attempt to bring to justice the perpetrators of crimes against humanity that talks about the healing process could begin.

In the meantime the CAR needs our prayers and support. The least the media can do is to not take advantage of the situation.