A tip: if you couldn’t locate Mali on a map with ease a week ago, making policy prescriptions about it now is probably a bad idea.
That is from Laura Seay (@texasinafrica).
She points me to the Bridges from Bamako blog, who writes:
Since the French military intervention in Mali, known as Operation Serval, began last week, the internet has been buzzing with talk about its motives. Is France really only trying to contain a terrorist threat, as it claims? Or do major world powers have other, more sinister interests at stake? At its root, what is the conflict in Mali about?
This discourse, generated largely by journalists, analysts and activists unfamiliar with Mali, has been far too speculative for my tastes. Let’s consider what we do and don’t know about the causes and effects of international interest in Mali.
Worth reading. I suspect enjoying more attention than ever expected.
7 Responses
Is that really news? Didn’t we see the same behaviour during the so called Arab Spring? People speculating and making assumptions without real knowledge ? I happen to be in west Africa from March 2012 to August 2012 , in 6 months we had 2 coup in the region. Concerning Mali, as well as any other African country I believe, socio political history always tells us more about the present, so how would you expect good sound political analysis from people who are not interested into knowing the socio political past of a country?
The danish minister of foreign affairs, Villy Søvndal, said on national tv: “In Somalia – a neighbouring country – was it possible to push back the terrorist”.
Neighbouring country?
@cblatts After the past decade you really dont think objections to use of force need to be taken seriously by proponents?
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RT @cblatts: Quote of the day: Mali edition http://t.co/MWY6AG0R
RT @cblatts: Quote of the day: Mali edition http://t.co/MWY6AG0R