Saturday, January 26, 2013

Photos of French troops in Mali


French troops at Bamako air base, Mali                                                                              Photo: Bate Felix

An Antonov Plane taxi for takeoff after delivering French military supplies in Mali                         Photo: Bate Felix

French soldiers test their gears at a Bamako air base before deployment in the north                   Photo: Bate Felix

A French soldier laces his boots at a Bamako air base                                                    Photo: Bate Felix

A French Mirage Jet sits on the tarmac of a Bamako air base                                         Photo: Bate Felix

French soldiers testing their weapons at a Bamako air base                                            Photo: Bate Felix












A French military convoy leaving Bamako for Segou

Photo: Bate Felix












Two French Mirage Jets return to Bamako air base after in mission in north Mali           Photo: Bate Felix













 A convoy for French Special Forces heading towards northern Mali
Photo: Bate Felix


















A French attack helicopter being delivered at a Bamako air base
Photo: Bate Felix














Nigeria's Major-Genral SU Abdulkadir
Head of African Forces in Mali presented to ECOWAS Chief of Defence Staffs in Mali
Photo: Bate Felix

 A Malian woman walk past a rebel machine gun mounted vehicle destroyed by French air strike in Diabaly
Photo: Bate Felix











People walk past three Islamist rebels vehicles destroyed by French laser guided missiles in Diabaly, Mali
Photo: Bate Felix

 A cache of 12.7mm artillery cartridges abandoned my Mali rebels in their flight from Diabaly  Photo: Bate Felix













 A Reuters cameraman films the scene of a French air strike on Mali rebel vehicles in Diabaly, Mali
Photo: Bate Felix

Sunday, July 01, 2012

Niamey meat market 





Saturday, October 22, 2011

France's not so enthusiastic acknowledgement of Biya's win




MINISTÈRE DES AFFAIRES ÉTRANGÈRES ET EUROPÉENNES


___________________________________________________________
Paris, 22 octobre 2011
DECLARATION DU PORTE-PAROLE
DU MINISTERE DES AFFAIRES ETRANGERES ET EUROPEENNES


CAMEROUN – ELECTIONS PRESIDENTIELLES

La France prend acte du résultat proclamé par la Cour suprême du Cameroun.

Le 11 octobre, deux jours seulement après le scrutin, la France a relevé que l'Organisation internationale de la francophonie et le Commonwealth, chargés de l'observation électorale, considéraient que le vote s'était globalement déroulé dans le calme. La France a appelé le même jour à ce que la lumière soit faite sur les différents incidents qui avaient eu lieu.

Parallèlement, lors du scrutin, de nombreuses défaillances et irrégularités ont été constatées. La France souhaite que des mesures soient prises pour que celles-ci ne se reproduisent pas lors des scrutins (législatifs et municipaux) de 2012.

La France appelle tous les acteurs de la vie politique camerounaise à contribuer à l'après-scrutin dans un esprit responsable et constructif.

De même, la France espère que les autorités sauront prendre rapidement les réformes permettant de répondre aux aspirations légitimes du peuple camerounais et qu'elles s'engageront en particulier dans la mise en place de toutes les institutions prévues par la Constitution.

Wednesday, October 12, 2011

Commonwealth statement on Cameroon Election



COMMONWEALTH EXPERT TEAM
CAMEROON PRESIDENTIAL ELECTION
9th October 2011

PRESS RELEASE
by
Mr. Frederick A. Mitchell MP
Chair of the Commonwealth Expert Team

A peaceful election: some benchmarks for democratic elections have been met, although the playing field needs to be leveled to increase confidence in the electoral process
The Commonwealth was invited by the Ministry of External Relations to observe the 9th October Presidential Election, and the Secretary-General of the Commonwealth constituted a six person Expert Team supported by a professional staff team from the Secretariat in London.  I am honoured to have been invited to Chair the Team which has been present in the country since 3 October 2011.
This statement is our initial view of the election.  It reflects largely our observations in the run up to the election, the polling day itself and the counting process. The Commonwealth Expert Teams were based in five regions in the country. We exchanged our findings with a number of other international and domestic observers, as well as the diplomatic community.  These exchanges corroborated most of the impressions which we formed during the course of our observations.
The election, thus far, has met some democratic benchmarks such as freedom of association, expression, as well as universal suffrage and the right to vote.
This is an interim statement and it is issued prior to the formal declaration of the election results.  We will issue a final report containing our conclusion and recommendations on the entire process at a later stage.

KEY FINDINGS
ELECAM must affirm its independence and must be supported to do so
We laud the establishment of ELECAM as a significant first step.
This election is the first one organised by an independent election management body. We commend ELECAM’s efforts in establishing key structures at the local level in a relatively short period of time; in collaborating with political parties and other stakeholders; and, in the organisation of Diaspora Voting, for the first time in the country’s history.
It was, however, our impression that public confidence in ELECAM was limited.  We noted serious concerns raised that ELECAM was not wholly independent of the government.  We felt that this was due, in part, to the past political affiliations of some of the Electoral Board Members. ELECAM needs to do more to demonstrate its neutrality and inspire the confidence of the electorate in future elections. In this connection, it would be helpful if steps are taken in earnest to enhance the institutional autonomy of ELECAM.
ELECAM was constrained in its performance by the prevailing legal framework: we had the opportunity to discuss some of these constraints - such as the use of multiple ballot papers rather than a single ballot - with some of its board members. In this technical matter, as in others we will highlight in our final report, we are of the view that as the body mandated to manage and supervise elections, ELECAM must influence and drive the process of reform through the legislature and other relevant institutions. It must be supported and encouraged to do so.
The Voter register needs to be refined
In the polling stations we visited, we observed that some voters had their voter identification cards, or receipts evidencing their application for voter cards, and in some cases, their National identification cards. However, their names were absent from the register and therefore they were unable to vote.
We also observed that while at some polling stations, provision was made for the collection of voter cards, many remained unclaimed.
In our assessment, the current voter register requires substantial refinement. We recognize the efforts made by ELECAM to this end, but would strongly encourage ELECAM to consider measures to significantly improve the voter register ahead of the 2012 legislative elections.
The election campaign: separating the role of party and state
We commend the provision of state funding for political parties’ activities during elections.
However, we noted repeated complaints from some stakeholders and members of the opposition about the lack of distinction between the state and the ruling party when it came to the use of state resources for campaigning. An example highlighted was the disproportionate coverage accorded to the ruling party’s campaign by the state media as compared to that of the Opposition.
We appreciate the natural advantages that accrue to an incumbent government. However, the magnitude of resources that appeared to us to have been deployed by the ruling CPDM party and its overwhelming advantage of incumbency challenged the notion of a level playing field in the entire process.
It is therefore important that the existing laws on election campaign financing, and media coverage during the campaign period be reviewed with the aim of strengthening accountability and transparency.
In the Commonwealth’s election observation reports of 2004 and 2007 the pervasive influence of the ruling party in all aspects of the electoral process was highlighted as a major area of concern. If Cameroon is to further progress in the consolidation of its democracy, reforms in this area should be of top priority.
We also heard allegations from the main Opposition leader of the SDF, Mr John Fru Ndi at a political rally on Saturday 8th October, that he was prevented on two occasions from moving about the country to campaign because the ruling party’s candidate had already been granted precedence to campaign in those particular areas. 
The campaign of the ruling party’s candidate should not be conducted to the detriment of other candidates. For future elections equitable arrangements should be put in place for election campaigns.
Polling Day
On the whole, the election was peaceful.  We note an improvement to preparations for these elections, as compared to previous ones.  Voters who could vote expressed their will freely.  The process was generally transparent.  We commend the inclusion of large numbers of women in the local polling commissions.  
We regret, however, that turnout appears to have been low in the areas that we observed.  This, in our view, reinforces the repeated complaints about a pervasive sense of public apathy. We wish to highlight the following observations which will be further elaborated upon in our Final Report.
Generally polls opened on time, though we received some reports that in a number of areas there were delays. In some instances, this was attributed to a lack of preparedness on the part of election officials. In another case, the delay was caused by preparations being made for senior government officials and other personalities to vote.
The use of multiple ballots interfered with the smooth flow of the voting process and led to different procedures from station to station on how voters collected the ballot and disposed of them.
There were complaints about the ink and the inconsistent manner of its application. We also observed instances where the ink was washed off soon after its application. We would encourage the use of, and consistent application of indelible ink for future elections to safeguard the integrity of the process.
We also wish to underscore that it is considered best practice to apply the ink immediately upon issuance of a ballot paper to a voter.
The Commonwealth’s partnership with Cameroon
In some cases, ordinary citizens approached the Team to express various concerns regarding the overall management of the electoral process, the campaign period and seemed to suggest that the Commonwealth and other international organisations could resolve these issues.
The Commonwealth has engaged with Cameroon to deepen its democracy since it joined the organisation in 1995. We will continue to engage by making constructive recommendations and assisting the people and government of Cameroon to implement them. However, the people of Cameroon must play a central role in this process.
We believe that this country has to examine in the future how the issues that were brought to our attention, and those we have highlighted can be addressed to enhance the democratic credentials of Cameroon.
It is our hope that improvements will be effected in time for the next elections.
In the meantime, it is our fervent hope that the results process will be managed in a transparent manner and without undue delay.

Sunday, September 04, 2011

Wikileaks explosive cables could spice Cameroon Oct. 9 election


Wikileaks release last week of never before seen unredacted cache of explosive U.S diplomatic cables on Cameroon and Biya's regime could potentially spice Cameroon's October 9 presidential election.

The cables confirms some suspicions Cameroonians have been having on how the country has been governed for nearly three decades by Biya.  They provide an interesting insight into the sad state of Cameroon politics. Examples such as how and why Biya orchestrated the constitutional tweak in 2008 to remove presidential term limits and jostling by potential successors, are detailed in the cables.

Biya meeting U.S. Ambassador Garvey  Source: Cameroononline
A cursory read of the documents could be an emotional roller-coaster for Cameroonians who normally know little or nothing about what is going on in the corridors of power. From sadness and shame on how a misguided group led by an even clueless individual have manage to highjack the destiny of a nation, precipitating it towards an inevitable catastrophic outcome, to sheer incredulity and disgust at the arrogance of some the utterances by top barons of the regime as recorded by U.S. diplomats.

One of the cables succinctly summarised what is wrong in and with Cameroon in a report of the Cameroon government's handling of the Kenyan Airways crash in May 2007 that killed 114.

The cabel, marked confidential and titled  "Keyan Air Crash puts Cameroon's governance problems in stark relief" said:

 "Although the event (the plane crash) would have challenged even a capable government, Cameroon's response was hampered by many of the same factors that impede progress on development and reforms: an aversion to public communication, a stifling regard for hierarchy and protocol, a crippling regard for style over substance, and an inability to react to events in a timely manner.  For the few days when the world's attention was focused on Cameroon, the Government was left looking lost, uncaring, and incompetent," it said.

Under a subheading, Who is in charge? the cable said:

"The GRC's (Government of the Republic of Cameroon) efforts were further crippled before they began by the lack of an effective government spokesperson and the complete absence of the Minister of Transportation."


"President Biya, off in his village, was entirely absent from the public eye (and, as far as we can tell, from internal deliberations as well) for the duration of the crisis and he never made any public statement of condolence (though he did call a day or mourning two weeks later).  Biya's silence appeared even worse as he did find time to congratulate the French and Nigerian presidents-elect."

Prime Minister Inoni wearily recounted having left numerous unanswered messages on Dakole's  (Transport Minister Dakole Diassala) voice mail over the 10 days since the crash informing him of the plane crash and the need for his presence. Given his incompetence, it is unlikely that Dakole's presence would have helped as all levels of the GRC appeared unable to adapt its strict hierarchical style to allow for the necessary decentralized, rapid decision-making for a proper response.  Nonetheless, his evident absence only served to highlight his irrelevance and had Cameroonians -- not to mention foreigners -- openly asking what purpose he serves.

It concluded: The GRC's handling of the Kenya Airways crash is a metaphor for the problems that plague Cameroon's governance more generally and stymie even the best efforts for reform. Even observers steeped in the peccadilloes of African governments professed incredulity at what they perceived to be the GRC's complete disinterest and incompetence in the face of a terrible and enduring disaster.  The characteristics that manifested themselves so starkly in this episode -- an inwardly focused ruling elite, a President who takes all key decisions despite being out of touch, excessive deference to hierarchy and protocol, no sense of urgency.

Perhaps, the cable with a potential to be explosive especially within the ruling CPDM party ahead of the October election and the jockeying to succeed Biya, is the one recounting Vice-Prime Minister Amadou Ali, a northern baron of the regime's candid but frightening admission to the U.S. ambassador what the northerners would do post-Biya. 


Vice PM Amadou Ali
"The struggle for Cameroon's future, including President Paul Biya's succession, should be viewed through ethnic and regional lenses, according to Amadou Ali, 
Vice Prime Minister and Minister of Justice.  In a recent, wide-ranging and frank discussion with the Ambassador, Ali said the foundation of Cameroon's stability is the detente between Biya's Beti/Bulu ethnic group, which predominates in Cameroon's South Region, and the populations of Cameroon's three Northern Regions, known as the Septentrion, which are ethnically and culturally distinct from the rest of the 
country," the cable said.

Ali's view augurs a worrisome outlook for Cameroon, which so far has managed a semblance of peaceful cohesion. It is clear that post-Biya's Cameroon holds a lot of danger and could become the latest theatre of bloody succession conflict just like many others that have mired other post-independent African nations.

Monday, August 08, 2011

Missing president notice: where the hell is Paul Biya?

On July 17, Cameroon's president Paul Biya, left the country for three-day state visit to China. While there, China promised more money, Biya promised more resources and contracts were signed. Then Biya disappeared.
Missing President.  Photo. Finbarr O'Reilly/Reuters
It should be said that this is not Biya's first or last fugue. Among African or one could dare say world leaders, Biya is easily the one who spends the least time actually running his country. In a year, it is reported that he spends about 150 to 200 days outside the country, mostly in Geneva, Switzerland, where is young children school and where he seems to have a permanent residence at the Geneva Intercontinental.  It reached a point early this year when a group of Cameroonian activists in the video below, staged a protest at the hotel.


After every trip abroad, Biya rarely goes home directly. There's always a Geneva stopover for a couple of weeks, but never over 40 days. After a 40-day absence, there is a risk of the presidency being declared vacant and fresh elections called. The state-controlled media describes the trips as "brief short visit" or "brief private visit". However, it is not like him being in Cameroon will make a difference. A resources and manpower-rich nation, which was suppose to be the economic motor of the Central African region has slumped into a miasma of corruption, fainéantisme, state-sponsored sycophancy and economic decay with millions of youths reduced to paupers. In a recent book an AFP colleague, Fanny Pigeaud writes of Cameroon's government under Biya as an authoritative but lax regime that has plunged Cameroon to the bottom of every economic and social indicator since Biya came to power in 1982.
"While maintaining and deepening former president Ahidjo's dictatorial style of governance, Biya has introduced other trends and features such as neglect, inertia, and criminality within state structures. Together, all these has resulted to an unproductive and paradoxical system. For nearly 30 years, Cameroonians are subjected to power wielded by their leaders who are doing everything to stay in power without governing the country," she writes.
"Cameroon is a country where two years could go by without the president presiding a cabinet meeting, where the head of the police can imprison an innocent person for murder to cover a guilty one; or where a citizen could call police emergency to report that they have just witnessed a woman being assaulted and want to make a statement, only to told: "But let the woman come and complain herself! What is your business in it?" before getting hung up on; where the president pays with suitcases stuffed with cash when he buys jet fuel for his plane; ...where it takes two days to find the remains of a Boeing 737-800 that crashed, with 114 passengers, thirty seconds after take-off," Pigeaud added.
Cameroon is expected to hold presidential elections in October, yes in about two months. Though 78-year-old Biya has not said whether he would be seeking another mandate, his sycophantic crowd have been on overdrive in the past months, printing books, pamphlets and holding rallies, urging him to run. Biya had somewhat shown his intentions in 2008 when he orchestrated a constitutional reform which removed presidential term limits, effectively, according to their calculations, clearing the way for him to run again if he wanted. So, two months to elections, there are no campaigning, no primaries. Cameroonians are in suspense, waiting for Biya to decide whether elections will be held and if he would run. Even his own political party is stuck in the limbo. Potential successors cannot openly challenge him or even been seen to be vying for the throne because they'll find themselves in jail so fast on corruption charges, like others before them.

Meanwhile Biya is holed up somewhere in Geneva, no explanations, nothing, nada, while a nation awaits, as it has always done. But for how long? Egypt? Tunisia? Libya? Syria?

Thursday, August 04, 2011

Senegal Holiday in pix - Dakar - St. Louis - Dakar

On the road. The drive from Dakar to St. Louis was pretty easy on a very good road. The landscape is breathtaking if you have the time to stop and admire the baobab trees that dot the semi-Sahel vegetation.


Baobab dotted landscape en route to St. Louis   photo. BF



Semi-Sahel vegetation





Passengers perch atop a bus

Sometimes you do have some ghastly accidents
St. Louis: Former the capital of Senegal during French colonisation, has gradually lost some of its lustre. Though endowed with some very attractive sights, St. Louis or Ndar as the locals call it in Wolof, seems to have stood still since the colonial era. In the main section of the town, you'll hardly find new constructions, partly because most of the colonial houses are somewhat national treasures. However, most of them are in dire need of renovation. Also, the city and the river Senegal, whose two branches cut across the city from north to south, leaving a narrow island of just over 2km long and about 400 metres wide,  is heavily polluted. But it is worth the trip. 

A stray dog catches a beautiful sunrise in St. Louis

The city's landmark  Faidherbe bridge under renovation

All kinds  of rubbish 

A horse-drawn cart rides past colonial building along the old quay

A woman walk past a row of colonial houses along the quay

 




Snap Shadow
Mboro: Senegal's garden belt. 



All around the camp are thousands of gardens

About 3km away from the city and the camp is the Mboro beach
Trying to eat a Mango 

  Back in Dakar: Senegal traditional wrestling, the national sport.
 The this is huge in Senegal. The fans love it. The big fights bring the nation to a standstill.
Fans trashtalk before the big fight
 
Mouhamed Ndao, aka Tyson's marabout prepares his gris-gris

A wrestling awash himself with magic potions before the bout



Tyson warms up before the big fight against Balla Gaye 2
The Demba Diop stadium is packed to the rafters
Balla Gaye 2 fans celebrate his win over Tyson