daniel chigunwe
Isdore Guvamombe
Reflections
Very interesting things have been happening in the world, since the beginning of the year.
Forget about Donald John Trump’s second coming and the entire hullabaloo around his policies. If it was football, we would call it an off-the-ball incident. For Africa the ball is being played elsewhere.
We said it before, and we continue saying it again and again. Again, and again. Again! The USAID was a strategic regime change cockpit for US, disguised as humanitarian trinket or benevolent mistress for Washington. Trump saw it, as an off-the ball incident. He simply decided to stop it. No red card.
Like I said, the ball is not there. The ball for Africa and the Global South is continued liberation, for, independence and liberation are two different things.
Independence is a once of thing, liberation is a continuous process.
Recently at the United Nations General Assembly, Russia stood up clear and recommended that December 14 be declared the International Day of the Struggle Against Colonialism.
This is very important. You see and imagine UN has a day for this and that, for little everything else but does not have a day for us, the victims of colonialism.
Our struggles are real but our struggles are always wished away by the former colonial master and in many times, they turn against us and insult us with words like poor governance, corruption, dictatorship etc. They are very dismissive.
Thanks to Russian President Vladimir Putin for bringing, it out, loud and clear. Men like Mr Putin are few in modern politics. They are a rare breed.
But you see, again it comes in the form of Russia. It is fact not fiction, that under the Soviet era, Russia helped many countries in the world liberate themselves. Russia will forever be remembered in history for its thought process, its commitment, its practical approach and its investment in liberating colonized countries in Africa and the Global South.
But December 14 has its history as well and is therefore befitting on this one. On December 14 1960, the United Nations adopted the declaration of the granting of independence to countries and peoples from colonial masters.
But most importantly, Russia’s push for recognition of the struggle against colonialism come at a time when the former colonial masters are looking at new and subtle ways of colonising African countries and the Global South.
Our biggest global problem is that the Western countries and their ally the US, have not forgotten about their colonial past. They pretend to have gone past their colonial mentality, yet in actual fact they are finding new and more subtle ways of recolonises their former colonies.
Day in day out, they bring in new trucks to keep the former colonies under their wings and hate Russia for opening up the apertures and making the down trodden always remember to keep watching their space.
Russia under the Soviet era armed many liberation movements in Africa. Russia that time training liberation fighters in all aspects of the struggle. Russia that time spent fortunes, investing in the future of and independent and liberated Africa. And, today, Russia has shown that it has not forgotten former colonies of the West.
Russia armed our liberation struggle. Russia trained our cadres. In 2026 Russia has announced that is it opening six new embassies in Africa. This is unprecedented within a year. The embassies will be in the Gambia, Comoros, Liberia, Sierra Leone, Niger and South Sudan.
This is a major political and soci0-econmic statement that Russia is up to serious business in Africa.
The proposal by Russia at the UN is a good standing point for us.
There is now wonder why Russia’s footprints in Africa are spreading with bit is bring out real issues, issues that we relate to as former colonised people.
Africa and the Global South should there rally behind Russia and make the UN adopt December 4 as the day for the struggle of formerly colonized people.
We should also leverage on Russia for a permanent seat on the UN security council. Russia understand Africa’s potential and how Africa cab contribute to the global village in real terms.
But there are too many impediments on the thrust Russia is taking in that the former colonial masters and their friends, want to maintain hegemony on the natural resources of Africa and the Global South. They want cheap raw material, they want cheap labour and they want weak governments.
So, as a deterrent measure the US and its allies have come up with a cocktail of measures, among them unreasonable sanctions on Russia and its companies.
They know that the strength of many progressive thinking African countries is with Russia and they wish to bring Russia down to its knees.
African countries and those in the global south must rally behind Russia because in Russia lies our dream to become respected nations; In Russia is our dream for a UN Security Council permanent seat and in Russia is BRICS Bank, a very strong alternative to colonial-linked multilateral banking systems.
Under Russia’s influence, more and more council from the global south are seeing sense in joining BRICS (Brazil, Russia, India, China and South Africa.
We should be grateful that on February 4, at the inauguration of the Russian Foreign Ministry’s new Department of Partnership with Africa, Lavrov reaffirmed Russia’s commitment to “strengthening Africa’s position in a multipolar world,” aligning with the principles of the UN charter
We all know how illegal sanctions have been imposed on Russia in a desperate attempt to stop in from doing its good work for the small and poor countries of the world.
Sanction of Russian diamonds, are illegal. Sanction of Russian goods are illegal.
The world cannot be safe with US alone calling the shots; with US alone making decisions; with US along abrogating itself the right to be the biggest moralist.
Online Reporter