Lamenting the lack of attention Arabs pay to Africa, Mustafa El-Feki* outlines the basis of common cause and reasons for tension between the two It comes as something of a surprise that although two-thirds of the population of the Arab world live in Africa, the history of African-Arab relations is a story of missed opportunities and short sightedness. This is not to belittle the African awakenings of such countries as Egypt, Algeria and especially Libya in recent years, which have opened new and vital contacts between the Arabs of North Africa and the sub-Saharan peoples of the continent. Still, the relationship is far from what it should be, which would seem to call for a more systematic approach to stimulating it. Closer examination of the following 10 aspects of the relationship, which go deep into the nature of its "Arab" and "African" components, would go a long way towards helping to identify factors that give rise to intermittent tensions, and possible means to overcome the current stagnancy. 1) The past, especially the colonial era, has left a bitter residue in Arab-African relations. Western colonialists portrayed Arabs as slave traders with a history of raiding the downtrodden continent for human merchandise. Clearly, efforts should be made to counter this erroneous conception that has tarnished the image of Arabs and created a source of latent resentment that resurfaces in the Arab-African relationship from time to time. 2) By contrast, the Arab role in the spread of Islam in Africa has worked to strengthen the bond between Arabs and Africans. At the same time, although Western Christian evangelists have also campaigned actively throughout Africa, I maintain that the African church has retained its own distinct identity. Perhaps the presence of the Coptic Church in Ethiopia, Sudan, Eritrea and elsewhere best testifies to this. I should add here that to use Islam as an avenue for strengthening our relations with some African countries is a double-edged sword. It could work to aggravate sectarian tensions or fuel extremist tendencies in parts of the continent. 3) Egypt's support for African liberation movements in the 1950s and 1960s merits a contemplative pause, for this was undoubtedly the springtime of Arab-African relations. Indeed, the name Abdel-Nasser remains a symbol of hope and pride in some political regimes. For example, I personally heard the legendary freedom fighter Nelson Mandela pay tribute to the Egyptian leader and his support for the national liberation movements in the continent and his fight against the racist policies of the colonialist powers. In fact, Mandela was arrested after having left Cairo several decades ago. He was supposed to have returned a week later, but ended up spending more than 27 years in the prisons of South Africa's apartheid regime. One also recalls the African Centre, in Cairo's Zamalek district, from which many an African national liberation leader would emerge to become the president of their country in the wake of the success of their national liberation movement. 4) The Egyptian role in Africa is also epitomised by two other famous individuals: Mohammed Fayeq, minister of African affairs under Nasser, and former UN Secretary-General Boutros Boutros Ghali when he served as minister of foreign affairs. If the former is still commemorated in the annals of the African liberation movement as the policy architect of Egypt's championship of this cause, the latter is associated with Egypt's drive to promote modernisation and development in Africa following the death of Abdel Nasser. Since then, however, Egypt's role in this regard has declined sharply and although Algeria tried to fill the void it was held back by its own disastrous circumstances over the past two decades. 5) On the negative side, again, African leaders have complained vociferously against the tendency of Arab leaders to export their problems to sub-Saharan African countries, which they maintained impeded the work of the Organisation for African Unity. Moreover, the late Zairian President Mobuto Sese Seko called for the creation of a separate organisation for the countries south of the Sahara so that they could focus on the real problems of Africa instead of having to concentrate their efforts on Arab problems which they regard as having overshadowed the agendas of their pan- African organisations and conferences. 6) The liberation of Sinai, following the conclusion of the Camp David Accords and the Egyptian-Israeli peace treaty, brought the restoration of diplomatic relations between Israel and many African countries. These countries had severed their relations with Israel following the June 1967 war. Now that Egypt, the only African country to have been occupied by Israel, had its land back, they no longer felt impediments to reviving their relations with Israel. Thus, whereas the Arabs, under Egypt's leadership, had once succeeded in beating the Israeli influence out of Africa, they now had to stand by and watch the rebirth of this influence. That this coincided with the dwindling Arab role in Africa makes one all the more wistful for those great international "Arab-African Meeting" conferences, such as that held in Cairo in 1964, which characterised the heyday of relations between Arabs and the countries of the black continent. 7) One must admit that because of the assassination attempt against him in Addis Ababa in 1995, President Mubarak has significantly reduced his attendance of African summits. This in conjunction with Boutros Ghali's move to the international arena has considerably diminished Egypt's profile in African affairs. Now Egypt's voice is rarely heard beyond the Nile Basin countries, which is of no small significance in view of expectations that water will be the focal point of conflict in the 21st century as the 20th was characterised by conflicts over oil. 8) One of the most glaring illustrations of our negligence is to be found in Sudan, the largest African country and a potential "breadbasket" for both the Africa and the Arab world. This great Arab-African nation is crossroads between the Arabs and Africa, both geographically and at the level of its own demographic division between north and south. Several years ago I had the opportunity to visit several cities of the south where I could not help but to notice how palpably absent was economic and developmental support from Arabs. Yet we wail at the prospect of the secession of the south and the partition of Sudan and curse our misfortune, even though we are to blame. What kept Arab investment from being poured into that precious area at the edge of the Arab world, our gateway to Africa and rich in latent wealth? That question will continue to plague us for some time. 9) Darfur is another product of the crisis of confidence between the tribes of African and Arab origin, for the problem there has escalated far beyond a confrontation between pastoral and agricultural modes of life. There can be no doubt that the Darfur crisis, the dimensions of which are far deeper than what appears on the surface, continues to threaten the stability and territorial integrity of Sudan, in spite of Arab diplomatic efforts, especially on the part of Sudan's immediate Arab neighbours, Egypt and Libya. 10) The Libyan role in Africa over recent years merits our highest regard and serves as a model for the type of effort Arabs should be making in this continent that is overridden with poverty, disease, ethnic tensions and border disputes. Although some maintain that Colonel Gaddafi's focus on Africa comes at the expense of the role he and his country have played in the Arab-Israeli conflict, I believe that his African role is fundamental, especially in view of the absence of other channels for the much needed drive to promote Arab-African relations. The foregoing points are intended to alert other Arab nations to need to devote greater attention to Africa. True, the Arab League has been increasingly involved in African concerns. However, this does not dispense with the vital task of reviewing Arab policy towards this continent, which has been a huge regional and international diplomatic asset for the Arabs and will remain so if they devote appropriate effort to improving their relations with Africa and supporting African causes. * The writer is chairman of the Foreign Affairs Committee at the People's Assembly.
