I remember discussing on these pages the Chinese infiltration of Africa under their Belt & Road program — whereby the CCP could drain minerals and resources while using cheap labor from a country in return for investment in local infrastructure — and how it was never going to work because Africa. Thanks to Longtime Reader Mike S., I see just one recent example of how this whole enterprise is, and always was, doomed to fail.
This is no small thing, because there are apparently 300,000 Chinese nationals currently colonizing living in Angola (see map below for location).
Angola is 1.3x the size of Texas, with about the same oil reserves, and a huge depository of strategic minerals. Hence the CCP’s interest in the place.
It’s also a Communist-run country, so one would think that this soul-brother nation would be quite friendly towards their political cousins. Ahem:
Angola’s government may look favorably on the Belt & Road colonization initiative; the people, not so much.
Because Africa.
I hate to say “I told you so”, but…
Mr. Du Toit:
My main problem with any “news” coming out of Africa is that it usually completely ignores the primary cause of any conflict: Tribal issues.
My experience, limited though it may be, is that every country in sub-Saharan Africa is usually dominated by members of one of the many tribes within that country…and that literally ALL of the other tribes hate and resent them. Any attempt to attribute economic motives (capitalism vs. Marxism) or global political motives (US-support vs. Russian-support) is essentially a cover-up of the actual motives, tribal hatred. It doesn’t seem to matter if they’ve been living in apparent peace for decades, once it breaks out and goes tribal it doesn’t end until people are hacking up their former neighbors with farm implements (see “Rwanda, Tutsi and Hutu” as an example).
It would appear from what this article is describing is that the various tribes within Angola (and I have no idea who they are any more, after their massive Cuba/Russian-supported “civil war” in the 70’s) are now treating the Chinese just exactly as though they were another tribe competing for dominance.
What’s your take on my view of this?
Mr. BW,
I agree 100% with your basic premise. Tribalism isn’t a major socio-political force in Africa; it’s pretty much the ONLY socio-political force, all the more so when you venture into the sub-Sahara countries.
It’s all about the moolah. The Chinese are making money, and the Africans resent this.
An earlier historical example should suffice: when Idi Amin came to power, one of the first things he did was toss out all the Indian businessmen and hand their businesses over to local Africans. (I leave it to you to guess what happened to said businesses thereafter.)
It’s tribalism, just practiced on the national- rather than internecine (e.g. Huti/Tutsi, as you pointed out) scale.
Xenophobia is a bigger issue in Africa than most people realize. What makes it more interesting is how the Africans deal with it.
“I hate to say “I told you so”, but…”
Sooo, just *how much* do you hate to say it?
Asking for a friend…
My knowledge of Africa is close to nil, other than second hand through this page, a couple of books, some documentaries, and I am a member of a Church that supports various missionaries.
It seems like its a place that never gets it shit together, no matter who is trying to bring the magic in. Capstick wrote about a successful hunter & guide that worked out of Angola, and barely made it out alive. Seffrica and Rhodesia are quickly killing the Geese that laid golden eggs.
Overall “God made Africa for the Africans, it is a mistake for us to have ever had anything to do with it.” I guess the ChiComs are welcome to find out the hard way, there ain’t enough money in the world to fix Africa.
“Watch sloth and heathen folly, bring it all to nought”. Kipling still has much to teach us.
The locals are rather easily stirred into a violent state, remember how it took less than a year for a popular Rwanda radio station to trigger genocide?
Africa always manages to destroy itself.
The same day you posted this, Insty had a link to an article about Japan reaching an agreement with 4 african nations, to allow their citizens to live a d work in Japan. Nigeria was the only one I can recall at the moment. The others were more or less sane ones too, but I am picturing them colliding with the tribalistic, closed in Japanese cultures