Hi to ya Mr. Samateh!

Thanks for forwarding the article. I just could not argue better.

Mr. Lumumba:
Thanks a lot for the good piece. In line with your arguments, i do
believe that the West do not have any genuine interest in the
development of Africa,
or anywhere else, for that matter, other than the West. The West has a
history of exploiting other countries. As you rightly pointed out,
Western imperialism cooperates with the worst of dictators so far as
such cooperation serves their interest - Mobutu, Agustu Pinochet are
examples. Yes, even Saddam Hussein had been an ally of the US for much
the 80's.

It is therefore safe, in my view, to say that the "aid" given to
Africa by the West is nothing more than a tool to destroy Africa -
most especially the infant and fragile industries of the receiving
countries. In this regard you may like to read an interview given by
one Kenyan economist to the German paper 'der spiegel' (spelling may
be wrong. I'm not good with these german names) on this very topic.

See   http://www.spiegel.de/international/spiegel/0,1518,363663,00.html

Alieu S.K Cham
Oslo




On 7/13/05, Fye Samateh <[log in to unmask]> wrote:
> From: "nkrumah lumumba" <[log in to unmask]>
>
>
> > WHEN THEY SAY "AID", THEY MEAN "RAID"
> > =====================================
> > [Col. Writ. 6/13/05] Copyright 2005 Mumia Abu-Jamal
> >
> >   Recently, the news columns were full of a supposed
> > dispute between the Americans and the British about
> > foreign aid relief to Africa.  If the news reports are
> > to be believed, the British wish to push the Americans
> > further, to provide more debt relief for countries
> > staggering under their economic burdens.
> >
> >   The media image that arises is one of the rich,
> > Western, White nations caring about the lives and
> > conditions of starving Black Africa.  And like many
> > media images, it simply isn't true.
> >
> >   What is often lost in this angelic imagery is the
> > truth behind the so-called aid.  That 'aid' that was
> > given years ago, was given to military dictatorships,
> > and it was often military aid meant to strengthen
> > dictatorships, against, not foreign attacks, but
> > popular resistance, from their own people!
> >
> >   Indeed, in a 1960 meeting of the U.S. National
> > Security Council, American spies and diplomats spoke
> > rather openly about U.S. support for military regimes.
> > The minutes of the meeting record them saying:
> >
> >
> >      We must recognize, although we cannot say it
> > publicly, that we need the strong men of Africa on our
> > side.  It is important to understand that most of
> > Africa will soon be independent and that it would be
> > naive of the U.S. to hope that Africa will be
> > democratic ... Since we must have the strong men of
> > Africa on our side, perhaps we should in some cases
> > develop military strong men as an offset to Communist
> > development of the labor unions.  The President agreed
> > that it might be desirable for us to try to 'reach'
> > the strong men of Africa ...
> >      [Fr. NSA mtg., 1/14/60 as published in *Foreign
> > Relations, 1958-1960, Vol. XIV*, pp. 73-78.]
> >
> >
> >   From meetings such as this, came US 'aid' to such
> > dictators as Zaire's late Mobutu, who was among one of
> > the wealthiest men in Africa, if not the world.
> > Through 'African strong men' such as he, the U.S. ran
> > many countries as neocolonies, through which they
> > could further exploit the people of the continent.
> >
> >   The late U.S. President, Richard Nixon, spoke a
> > powerful political truth when he said: "Let us
> > remember that the main purpose of aid is *not to help
> > other nations* but to help ourselves." [Fr. Graham
> > Hancock, *Lords of Poverty* (New York: Atlantic
> > Monthly Press, 1989, p. 71].
> >
> >   Think about it this way: when millions of dollars
> > in military aid is given to a dictatorship, where does
> > the money go?  To the receiving country, or to the
> > arms dealers and defense contractors which makes the
> > weapons?  So, how is this 'aid'?
> >
> >   It's aid to ourselves to arm forces that keep their
> > own people in line.  Also, since at least the 1970s,
> > U.S. food aid has been tied to the myth of population
> > control.  In order to receive 'aid' from the nice,
> > White, West -- African, Latin American and Asian
> > countries have had to pledge they would reduce their
> > populations.
> >
> >   Why would countries that are agricultural gardens
> > of Eden even need food aid?  That's because, after
> > formal colonialism, Western powers often installed
> > military dictators who spent the nation's resources on
> > weapons used to break and destroy labor unions!  A
> > 1986 study by the National Academy of Sciences found
> > that the single country of Zaire, alone, could feed
> > it's own population -- 62 times over!  Indeed, that
> > one country, with high agricultural outputs, could
> > feed the entire continent of Africa!
> >
> >   But, under the rapacious U.S. -supported military
> > dictatorship of Mobutu, much of that agricultural
> > potential, and it's vast wealth of resources, was
> > squandered, and sent into Belgian and European banks.
> >
> >   The late, great Kwame Nkrumah said 'political
> > independence, without economic independence, is but a
> > mirage.'
> >
> >   The sweet words of 'aid' muttered by British and
> > American officials to Africa is to lull the people
> > asleep with promises.
> >
> >   It is, in truth, yet another plan to exploit people
> > who have been exploited by outsiders for millennia.
> >
> >   True 'aid' is reparations, for the crimes of
> > colonialism.
> >
> >   Real 'aid' would be an end to the support of
> > military regimes.
> >
> >   Real 'aid' would be an end to political, economic,
> > and social interference in the social, cultural and
> > familial affairs of African people.
> >
> >   Real 'aid' would be an end to imperialism!
> >
> >
> > Copyright 2005 Mumia Abu-Jamal
> >
> > _________________________________________________________________
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> >
> >
> >
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> >
> >
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