Sidibeh,
The point was not questioning sovereignty, but rather the brand of leadership that political independence bred, which accounts for the misery caused by the failures in policies that both yourself and Ndey cited. I equally believe in the role of the nation state in uplifting the lives of its people. Unfortunatley, this has not been the case in many countries today and what you hav is a high degree of abject poverty and outright marginaltisation. I concur too that the global economic order makes the level of deprivation even more pronounced. Joseph Stiglizt`s "Globalisation and Its Discontents" speaks volumes on this. I will recommend it incase you have not read it before.
That said, "SunuGaal" I hope will serve as a rude awakening to the plight of the poor and a challenge for a more sincere and committed leadership in Africa.
regards,
Omar
> From: Momodou S Sidibeh [[log in to unmask]]
> Sent: 2006-10-07 04:12:25 CEST
> To: [log in to unmask]
> Subject: Re: "SunuGaal"/ Behind this trade there are Europeans involved and well paid.
>
> Omar,
>
> Faulting our misery on the failure of political independence indirectly
> questions the values of sovereignty.
>
> What we instead have to look at is the complex of internal political
> failures and their attendant distorted economic consequences and how these
> are further impacted by brutally exploitative western economic policies, in
> the case of West Africa. But the plight of our brothers in these deadly
> waters is simply a heavily dramatic case of a global phenomenon: Chinese and
> Vietnamese workers and peasants smuggled aboard ships bound for the U.S
> pacific coast; central Americans forcing the border into the U.S. from
> Mexico; former east Europeans (especially Poles) flooding the U.K labour
> market (many now turning up as beggars on the streets of London); hundreds
> of thousands of Phillipinos and other south Asians doing the menial and
> skilled jobs in the Gulf States, and so on...
>
> That it mostly is young west Africans we see now is largely an accident of
> geography. Just a month ago a boat filled with some 200 Pakistanis left
> Dakar for the Canary Islands. Now and again loads of Eritreans and other
> North Africans are also forcibly disembarked on these Spanish islands or in
> Malta.
>
> Here is a West African case in point:
> Italy, like all EU countries, heavily subsidise agricultural production of
> its farmers. So they are able to sell paste tomato relatively cheaply to
> retailers in Ghanain towns. Ghanain tomato farmers are unable to sell their
> products in the same market since they cannot compete with the lower prices
> of imported italian tomatoes.
> Young Ghanains then migrate to the urban areas in search of work since
> farming no longer remains a vaible souce of income. Unemployment in the
> cities grow exponentially and many youing men therefore, risk their lives on
> open fishing boats leaving the Gambia and Senegalese coasts for the nearest
> European ports, again in search of work.
>
> To help their farmers, many African governments protest by trying to raise
> tariffs on imported agricultural goods (such as cheap, tatseless, frozen
> chicken all over Gambia and Senegal). But then the Europeans threaten that
> they will cut funds and aid they provide as subsidies to national budgets.
> So no schools and clinics will be built and teachers' salaries may be unpaid
> for months.
> (A senior Ghanain representative illustrated this graphic arm-twisting by
> the EU last year at the global forum at Davos).
> This, plus the corruption and stupid economic policies of African
> governments are what lie at the roots of the lamentations of "sunugaal".
>
> cheers,
> modou s sidibeh
>
>
>
>
>
> Subject: SV: "SunuGaal"/ Behind this trade there are Europeans involved
> and well paid.
>
>
>
> Sidibeh/Oko/Bailo,
>
> I hope the SOPI Coalition is listening. The song is pregnant with meaning
> giving a vivid picture of the harsh realities not only in Senegal but in
> many African countries. We don`t have to look far away to see that. The
> level of deprivation is alarming and having to take such a risk on those
> rickety fishing boats on such a perilous route shows how desperate the bulk
> of the people are.
>
> Bailo pointed out the valid point of the failure of political independence
> and it makes me wonder whether this mass exodus of African migrants is not a
> form of reverse colonisation; the coloniser being colonised by its former
> subjects. Is it a case of the chicken coming home to roost? And the
> situation is made worsening with the level of organised crime as Oku cited.
>
> Happy weekend.
>
> regards,
> Omar
>
>
>
>
>
>
>
> > From: oko drammeh [[log in to unmask]]
> > Sent: 2006-10-06 14:32:06 CEST
> > To: [log in to unmask]
> > Subject: Re: "SunuGaal"/ Behind this trade there are Europeans involved
> and well paid.
> >
> > This is prophecy/ not an overstatement.
> >
> > If you need what Africa has,
> > and you can't do without it
> > and don't want to pay for it.
> >
> > You will create problems for thoes people only to make them weak and
> maintaining them in the clutches and machenary of exploitation and inhuman
> treatment.
> >
> > It seems like Africans are still under the conspiration theory of the
> CURSE OF HAM (decendants of black race) by his father prophet Noah in the
> Abrahamic religions.
> >
> > RELIGION RULE THE WORLD
> > That Denial of peace and prospertity to the Black Africans and the
> punishment sent to them said by most religions is an order of god. This has
> cause poverty, wars, deaths and an unsettled Africa. This is the root of all
> our problems. It is holy.
> >
> > Be wise Africa,
> > you are the richest continent
> > but yet with the poorest people.
> >
> > You have been duped !
> >
> > Oko
> >
> >
> > bailo jallow <[log in to unmask]> wrote:
> > Omar,
> >
> > Thanks for sharing this moving clip of a song that is spot on for the
> reasons of the desperate quest of young able bodied Africans to reach the
> shores of the promised land. As reflected by the song, it is primarily
> because political independence from the yoke of colonialism have thus so far
> failed to fulfil the hopes and aspirations of Africans. In other terms, we,
> Africans have been failed by our political class, i.e both those in civvies
> and uniforms. They seem to only take care of themselves.
> >
> > Very sad indeed!
> >
> > Bailo
> >
> > bailo jallow wrote:
> > Testing, testing, just testing.
> >
> > Bailo
> >
> > OMAR DRAMMEH wrote:
> > Fols,
> >
> > Thought this might be of interest. It portrays the plight of the African
> migrant including Gambians in their journey to the "Promise Land".
> >
> >
> > http://www.studiosankara.com/sunugaal.html
> >
> > Regards,
> > Omar
> >
> >
> >
> >
> >
> > いいいいいいいいいいいいいいいいいいいいいいいいいいいいい
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