The International Crisis Group (ICG) calls the Central African Republic (CAR) a phantom state; meaning that the government no longer has much control of the country. BBC News describes it “as a failed state in permanent crisis, facing mutinies and rebellions.”
These assessments are confirmed by the Central Intelligence Agency in its online World Factbook: “The government still does not fully control the countryside, where pockets of lawlessness persist. Unrest in the neighbouring nations of Chad, Sudan, and the DRC continues to affect stability in the Central African Republic as well.”
Building of Artificial Nations
Trying to develop a national identity in many African countries that were created under European colonialism has proven to be a difficult task. Boundaries were drawn around longstanding enemies, forcing them to live in the same state. In other cases, borders were driven through traditional indigenous homelands, diving tribes and clans between two countries.
The Central African Republic (CAR) is an example of a colonial legacy where, says the U.S. State Department, “There are more than 80 ethnic groups…each with its own language.”
However, French colonial government cannot be held entirely to blame for the problems the CAR now has. As the U.S. State Department points out, other, African-based empires exploited the area and, “various sultanates claimed present-day CAR, using the entire Oubangui region as a slave reservoir, from which slaves were traded north across the Sahara and to West Africa for export by European traders.”
A Long History of Dysfunction
The CAR had been part of French Equatorial Africa, along with Chad and Gabon, and became an independent nation in 1958.
Global Policy Forum describes the CAR as a country that’s never functioned properly: “For more than three decades it was ruled by corrupt and authoritarian rulers backed by Paris. The country’s first democratic elections finally took place under UN pressure in 1993, with UN electoral assistance. The elected president Ange-Félix Patassé was eventually overthrown by French-backed General François Bozizé in 2003. Bozizé then won an election in 2005 and remains in power.”
“Since the summer of 2005,” says an ICG December 2007 report, “the army and particularly the Presidential Guard – essentially a tribal militia – have committed widespread acts of brutality...Hundreds of civilians have been summarily executed and thousands of homes have been burned. At least 100,000 people have fled to forest hideouts, where they are exposed to the elements.”
Conflict Spill over CAR’s Borders
Sharing borders with Chad and Sudan, the CAR is affected by the conflicts in those countries. A UN peacekeeping force is supposed to secure the border with Sudan. Only a handful of aid agencies work in the country.
According to a 2007 Human Rights Watch report entitled “State of Anarchy,” the dead number in the hundreds while more than 200,000 have left their homes to live in the bush.
In addition, rebels from Uganda’s Lord’s Resistance Army have expanded their violence across the border into the CAR. On June 15, 2010, Voice of America reported that 10 Ugandan soldiers had been killed chasing rebels in the CAR.
Peace Process Stumbles
In 2008, peace talks committed two rebel groups to disarm and then create a government of national unity. But a report from News24 in South Africa (July 1, 2010) suggests all is not going well with the peace process.
The political leaders of the rebel groups have disappeared and UN secretary-general Ban Ki-moon is quoted as saying “Despite the efforts of UNDP (the UN Development Program), the disarmament, demobilization, and reintegration process has progressed slowly.” He adds that these events raise concerns about the country’s security.
Rupert Taylor - Rupert Taylor is the editor of a magazine that provides background to current events.
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