Africa unite: The world will not favour the weak

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OPINION

By Faruk Kirunda

After a period of threats, counter-threats, peace overtures and failed attempts, the Middle East is up in flames. US and Israeli forces last week launched strikes against Iran, which promptly responded in the same currency.

Iran’s supreme leader, Ayatollah Khamenei, is dead, and so are hundreds, if not thousands, in a fight that has affected several countries directly — Bahrain, Saudi Arabia, Iraq, Kuwait, Qatar, UAE, Yemen, Lebanon and Oman. As always, war is not good (news). We hope and pray it ends fast. Peace-seeking efforts and negotiations should be the priority. The more we seek combative solutions to the world’s problems, the closer we get to the prospect of nuclear war.

As this conflict broke out, the immediate concern for many of us was the fate of Ugandans caught up in the Arabian Peninsula, including in Iran itself. Ugandans are globetrotters, to be found almost anywhere on the face of the earth. In recent years, we have seen the largest influx of young people heading over to the Middle East for work. The Middle East is also a transit area for those heading over to the far East, Europe, the US and Australia. As we talk, many Ugandans are ‘trapped’ over there with no certainty about what is coming next.

During such times, home countries must closely keep tabs on what is happening and monitor the safety and welfare of their citizens. In the time leading up to the conflict, there was notable laxity in communicating advisories and guidance to our people on what to do when caught up in the theatre of war. The first countries to issue public calls, incidentally, were those involved — the US and Israel — then the powerful ones — China and Europe. Africa was largely quiet until missiles started flying. If anyone was caught unawares, our diaspora came first. Survival was by luck and the grace of God.

There is a missing link between Africa and its diaspora, which creates a communication and trust gap. If there is a time to fix this, it is now. African countries should bring their diaspora closer, not just for purposes of monitoring their safety during emergency times, but for much more.

The diaspora sends billions of money back home, represents us in the global job and service market, and they accumulate knowledge which they bring back to help develop our nations. The taxman has set out to collect a coin from them in a boost to the national economy, while there is a prospect of them increasingly participating in local politics. By all means, the diaspora is an extension of the homeland. What happens with and around them is of much concern to home governments. The Middle East is of deep interest as a cradle of Islam, Christianity and Judaism.

There is a lot of traffic in religious pilgrimage, without which diverse rites of faith are not complete. I have been there myself. I can imagine what it would be like to be caught away from home in a tense exchange of powerful weaponry while seeking to right oneself with the creator or seeking earning to send back home to deeply anxious relations. It would feel lonely and desperate, with no contingency measures.

This is aggravated by the fact that Africa still refuses to unite and co-operate as a single bloc in global affairs. Each country is on its own, citizens only united by skin colour out in the field, unable to raise a single voice that could provide a buffer against getting caught up in situations that we do not have a direct hand in, but which affect us directly.

By the time of penning this, I had not seen a clear statement with a collective standpoint on how the African diaspora is assured of protection and, if need be, evacuation in case of a prolonged escalation. Everything is left to chance. Our own Ministry of Foreign Affairs issued a statement over the weekend when the missiles had already started raining down. Good effort, but late in coming!

The writer is the special presidential assistant — press & mobilisation/deputy presidential spokesperson