by Mwange Kauseni, Botswana, 19 May 1997
THEME = NORTH-SOUTH
"The moment the European Nations realized that they were going to lose their empires, they decided to come together in order to continue their grip on international affairs. Today, the European Union is a powerful force which tries to impose its will on the rest of the world".
These words, spoken by Malaysia's Prime Minister, Dr. Mahathir Bin Mohammed, reverberated in the conference hall in Kasane, Botswana, the venue for the recently-held "First Southern Africa International Dialogue" (SAID), whose objective was to introduce a new but dynamic concept known as "Smart Partnerships". The conference took place in the first week of May, and had the blessing of the Commonwealth Partnership for Technology Management (CPTM).
The conference was jointly organized by Botswana, Namibia and Zimbabwe, and attracted participants from 26 countries, from both governments and the private sector. The aim was to find practical and mutually profitable ways, for forging cooperation between governments and the private sectors of their respective countries.
Dr.Mohammed, whose country, Malaysia, boasts an annual 8% economic growth, is the initiator of the Smart Partnership philosophy and practice, and was invited to help launch his philosophy in Africa. Admitting that direct occupation of countries and political control over other countries has ended in most parts of the world, Dr.Mohammed argued that today, there are more insidious forms of colonisation, in which many former colonies have found that they are more dependent now, than when they were colonies. He said: "Our policies, economy, social and behaviourial systems, are all still under the direct or indirect control of the old colonial masters and the great powers. Our struggle for independence is far from over".
The new scenario is more subtle than the previous one, Dr. Mohammed told his audience. "Colonisation is over, but now comes globalisation". He warned that while free and open competition are great, they are concepts tailored to benefit the big and the powerful nations of the north. He lamented the fact that "every time we compete, we lose. Why is this? It is a result of a deliberate effort by the rich north to maintain the status quo. I would like to warn developing countries, here and elsewhere, that developed nations' actions, do not always benefit us".
By way of example, Dr.Mohammed said: "When Japan flooded the international market with their cheap, yet high quality goods, the rest of the G7 pushed up the value of the Yen, in order to make the Japanese less competitive, and to regain their markets".
Dr. Mohammed then spoke about Aid: "Developed nations, in order to continue manipulating poorer nations, corrupt our governments with aid. Very often, developing countries are forced to support the stand of developed countries, or face loss of aid. This is tantamount to blackmail".
Dr.Mohammed made specific reference to the machinations of the World Bank and the International Monetary Fund (IMF), likening them to tools of oppression and enslavement. He said: "In the early years of the IMF, developing countries were persuaded to borrow money for development. This they did with a great deal of hope. But today, most developing countries which borrowed from the World Bank, are deeply in debt. In some cases, 80% of their meagre foreign exchange earnings, go towards paying debts, thus leaving these countries totally unable to pay the salaries of government employees".
Dr.Mohammed accused the G7 of being "snooty" and pointed out that they do not talk with people outside their club, except Russia. "In a modern-day liberal, international democracy, only the rich can have a say, the poor remain voiceless".
He bitterly pointed out that the situation has now been reversed, in that the World Bank receives more in loan payments, than the loans they give out.
Aware that the problem is real and cannot be side-stepped, Dr.Mohammed called on nations of the poorer south, to brace themselves to meet the challenge. "We live in an international jungle. There is no law and order in international relations. There is very little justice. The high and the mighty rule. The weak and the poor just have to lump it. With all these threats and obstructive actions, we must now face the challenge of globalisation".
But how is this challenge to be met? In Dr. Mohammed's view, the only thing to do, is to present a united front. Better still, to form a "Smart Partnership," which he described as a "win-win situation".
"When faced with damaging proposals from the developed north, regional organizations can take a common stand. This we did at the World Trade Organisation WTO meeting in Singapore. And we prevailed.
Opening the conference, Botswana's President, Ketumile Masire, was optimistic that "Smart Partnership" was a viable way towards the creation of wealth within the southern African region. "We hope that this initiative based on networking for wealth creation, will establish a southern African hub, to parallel and interact with the already existing hub in South East Asia", said the President.
The general criticism, however, is whether there will be any practical follow-up to the conference, as many such gatherings in Africa often begin with a bang and end with a whimper. Maybe Africa's leaders should have preceded this conference with a conference on how to change the continent's approach, from too much talking, to actual implementation of agreed policies and resolutions. As has been pointed out in the past, Africa ought to move from "talk-shops" to Workshops, if it has to make any notable progress in any field.
END