By Michael Ruhindayo Rumanda
An impending but now inevitable Theresa May exit is not good for the future of 21st-century International relations and global peace.
Anarchical Movements, Conservative rightists and closed thinking parties are slowly creeping in on the world. Britain, good old Britain has not been spared from this recent wave.
Once again Europe has swallowed yet another British Prime Minister, Thatcher, Major, Cameroon, and now May falling to the old European axe and while they conspicuously tend to be of the Conservative persuasion.
The attrition rate of centre rightists, centre Leftists, in the world today is high. Australia-‘Down under' provides us with a recent example in a change of government.
The world as it is now is no place for the lukewarm or un-skewed actors. You must be able to ‘put your best foot forward' much like Cinderella, and fit the (‘slipper') conservative sentiments that the new age demands. If you do not fit, the system will vomit you. This just happened in Britain.
Ms May wanted a BREXIT albeit on soft terms. She has failed miserably in achieving this. The sponsors of BREXIT had no illusions of what it would cost them to achieve BREXIT. Sugar coating it was never in the perspective for them. In my opinion, the worst has already happened, economically, and this need not be prolonged. Let BREXIT be as it may.
The exit of Ms May will usher in an Ultra-Rightist conservative and I have no doubt, He/She will deliver the desired, call it dreaded BREXIT. This will be in tandem with the emergence of ultra-right leaders all over Europe.
The trend spells doom for a world of global harmony and peace we envisage for our children. We seem to have slipped back to Post World War 1 scenarios that facilitated the rise of fascists like Mussolini and Hitler.
Europe once again provides a platform for fascism and closed thinking to emerge and re-surface on the international arena. It is, therefore, no surprise that the world is increasingly looking east for sobriety and calmness. These dubbed- ‘emerging' economies seem to be providing the necessary leadership for a world lost in an apparent lack of polarisation that has characterised the post-cold war years. The ‘Savages' of yesterday have got their act together and given a few more years of sustained economic growth they will make Europe and North America inconsequential in the later years of the 21st century.
European states have been reduced to chest thumpers and war drum beaters basking in yesterday's dominance of international affairs. Recent trends point to a European civilisation that has lost significance in world polarity.
The followers; Africa, South Asia and Latin America have not allowed the leadership vacuum occasioned on them by an inept European civilisation, and are increasingly aligning themselves to previously less significant Iran, North Korea, South Africa, Brazil, United Arab Emirates, Nigeria and Saudi Arabia.
These are the major influencers of global international relations today. A multipolar world is at hand. This is the age of multipolar international relations.
I personally do not believe in the emergence of a uni-polar China. Their recent history and actions on the global scene have taught them better than engage in fancy imperial projects outside their region.
China will keep its perspective close to its borders. Yet, the rest of the world is for the taking. Who will Africa follow? Who will Latin America/ Caribbean follow? South-Asia and the Pacific?
The Iranians have for example laid their stake in the middle-east. Hezbollah, the Intifada and Syrian resistance are all examples of the future of Iranian regional engagements. The United Arab Emirates is active in the Maghreb, while the Saudis are active on the Arabian Peninsula.
We can now see the new actors in the region- not France, nor imperial Britain, forget ‘Lawrence of Arabia', we now have new protagonists. Watch this space, the Arab world is not sorted out yet.
An increasingly divided Europe with only small conservative closed minded entities to show is bad for the world. The rise of conservatism in the United Kingdom and an ever increasing disdain for tolerance, compromise and middle thinking spells doom for global stability.
The Conservative party has an opportunity to avoid the Ultra-rightist trend sweeping Europe and provide Britain and the world with leadership that is commensurate with facing the tasks and challenges facing the world today and not primarily inward looking towards Britain and Britain alone.
The world is now faced with the emergence of another closed mind- Boris Johnson. I shudder.
The writer is an organisation development specialist