'Missionary' Blair's African crusade
Prime minister risks cynicism and failure as he tries to 'heal' luckless
continent

Lucy Ward, political correspondent
Friday February 1, 2002
The Guardian

In 10 Downing Street the suitcases, only lately emptied after the prime
minister's frenetic shuttling to build a global coalition against terrorism,
are being packed again. Next week Tony Blair will embark on another mission
with potentially even greater scope for failure, as he sets out to honour
his pledge to address the "scar on the conscience of the world" that - in
his own phrase - is the plight of Africa.

The four day trip to west Africa with the development secretary, Clare
Short, scheduled to take in Nigeria, Ghana, Senegal and possibly Sierra
Leone, is billed as only the start of a long term British commitment -
underlined by the prime minister at last autumn's Labour party conference -
to help tackle the myriad problems facing the continent.

Yet Blair has barely caught his breath after his post-September 11
diplomatic endeavours, and the foreign secretary, Jack Straw, returned only
last week from his own mission to Africa's troubled Great Lakes region. Why
would a prime minister, particularly one already facing criticism for
wanting to save the world when his own trains do not run on time, seek to
take on such extreme challenges as the conflict in the Congo, whose civil
war has dragged in surrounding states and killed over 2.5m in the past three
years?

A commitment to try to "heal" Africa is high risk, as officials have
cautioned. He has brushed aside any suggestion that he subdue his rhetoric,
just as he will reject any tabloid grumbling over next week's trip.

The visit is in fact only the most visible manifestation of a determination
to focus on Africa proclaimed as a second-term priority by Mr Blair in the
run-up to last year's general election, and developing more quietly for at
least a year before that. At the G8 summit in Genoa last July he - with
Canadian support - press-ganged fellow members to back a so-called "Marshall
plan" for Africa, and in September hosted a meeting with six African leaders
at Chequers to discuss partnership between the continent and developed
nations. "The message to engage with Africa has gone out clearly from the
top," says one Foreign Office source.

But even close observers struggle to identify exactly what first sparked the
prime minister's personal interest in the continent. "It is something of a
mystery," admits a government insider. "Blair does have a strong
admiration - even hero worship - for Mandela, who is a rare symbol of what
is achievable in Africa, so that may be part of it."

Another notes that Mr Blair's father, Leo, visited Sierra Leone University
several times in the 1960s as a law lecturer - possibly laying the
foundations for his son's later determination to intervene in the troubled
state, while others point to his friendship at university with several
African students who went on to involvement in politics in their home
continent.

The real spark for Mr Blair's determination to add Africa to his growing
list of personal causes, however, seems likelier to have been his experience
of government itself. A veteran of military interventions in the Gulf,
Kosovo and now Afghanistan, the prime minister has increasingly taken a
global perspective, insisting that the troubles of one country not only
impact on others but imply a responsibility on fellow states to help or
intervene.

September 11 served only to confirm this borderless world view, prompting a
conference speech focusing on a new world order of interdependence which
enthralled and infuriated in equal measure. For some his unashamedly moral
tone - particularly when directed at the problems of Africa - prompted
furious accusations of a new, deluded, colonialism driven by a missionary's
desire to make "them" like "us". Critics and supporters alike detected the
influence ofMr Blair's Christian beliefs in his determination to venture
into Africa.

Those who have dealt directly with Mr Blair over Africa incline away from
such ready interpretations. Oona King, the forthright Labour MP, campaigner
for the continent and self-declared atheist, insists: "It has nothing to do
with religion. Obviously religion says you should try to help those in need;
well, so does socialism."

Fresh from a meeting with Mr Blair over the Great Lakes conflict, she offers
a simpler explanation. "It's like the Spike Lee film says - it's a question
of 'do the right thing'. It's a very simple fact that we have some
responsibility, as a responsible society, to a continent which has more
problems than any other."

The influence of Ms Short, who has overseen a shift in development focus
towards Africa, and Britain's efforts to chivvy the international community
over aid and debt, are also regarded by many as important in shaping Blair's
African crusade.

A nation grown cynical by a culture of spin and by a prime minister striking
increasingly presidential poses may be less than ready to credit Mr Blair
with such worthy motives. The suspicion is of glory-hunting, or of pandering
to Labour's bleeding heartland vote, while Britain's public services slide
into further decay.

Diplomats, conventionally wary of venturing into others' apparently
intractable conflicts, point out that intervention in Africa is a far from
easy route to international glory. Mr Blair could fail in his mission to
persuade the international community to take Africa seriously, or the
instability spread by countries such as Zimbabwe could tip further out of
control. "He is prepared to go out on a limb," says one present at the Genoa
summit. "He is taking a big risk - fixing Africa is incredibly difficult to
do."

The Chequers summit last September, which Mr Blair held as planned just days
after the World Trade Centre attacks when almost every other engagement was
cancelled, is seen as evidence of real prime ministerial commitment to
Africa.

An observer who was present sees Blair's African focus as a product of his
conviction that globalisation, though highly problematic, offers the most
promising route for developing countries to move forward. "He feels
globalisation is an energy, a way of bringing prosperity. But he recognises
that this simply isn't going to work for Africa and so he is determined to
engage the international community and African leaders to try to ensure it
can experience those benefits."

By next week the prime minister will be moving beyond the question of
motives and into the phase of delivery. Cynicism may be dispelled if he
makes progress, but it will be increased if his deeds are not seen to match
his rhetoric.

Focusing on 'a moral challenge'

"The state of Africa is a scar on the conscience of the world. But if the
world as a community focused on it, we could heal it. And if we don't, it
will become deeper and angrier."

Tony Blair, October 2001

"The lasting legacy of the summit will be in respect of Africa where, in
effect, the leading countries of the world and the African leaders have come
together and agreed a plan ... for the future of Africa ... I think that is
a very important and a very significant step forward."

Mr Blair at G8 summit, July 2001

"The Labour party stood shoulder to shoulder with the African National
Congress in its fight against apartheid. Now both our parties are in
government that bond is strengthened by a common commitment to unite our
nations in pursuit of a better life. We both believe the fight against
poverty in Africa is the most pressing moral challenge of our time."

Tony Blair and Thabo Mbeki, Guardian, June 2001

"When people say 'run an ethical foreign policy', I say Sierra Leone was an
example of that, not an example of not doing it. It is up in the high
ground."

Mr Blair on arms to Africa, May 1998


Guardian Unlimited © Guardian Newspapers Limited 2002

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