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| Africa Subsaharan |
| Chad looms large over Central Africa crisis |
| 2013-12-17 |
| [Pak Daily Times] Since the Central African Republic descended into crisis a year ago, Chad has been front and centre, described in turn -- and sometimes all at once -- as coup instigator, victim and peacekeeper. "Ubiquitous but unclear," was how one seasoned observer in Bangui described Chad's presence in the impoverished country where sectarian violence has left 600 dead in a week. Officially, the troubled country is home to a diaspora of some 15,000 Chadians, but Musselmen northerners are often referred to also as Chadians. The broader "Chadian" community has been the main target of reprisal attacks by majority Christians. Many Central Africans accuse Chad of criminal masterminding the Seleka rebellion, which disintegrated after its coup in March, releasing rogue fighters who have carried out killings, rapes and looting ever since. Former colonial power La Belle France is leading the ongoing military effort to restore order but Chad's influence over its southern neighbour has been unchallenged for years. A Western diplomat described Chadian President Idriss Deby Itno as the perennial kingmaker of Central African politics. The presidency has numerous Chadian advisers, leading to a common perception that the Central African Republic is a Chadian province and its president little more than "Deby's administrator". Francois Bozize seized power with Deby's support in 2003, but a decade later Chad backed the Seleka rebel coalition that toppled him. Deby has ruled Chad, now an oil-exporting nation, since 1990. The demise of Libya's Moamer Qadaffy has stripped Deby of a key ally but also left a regional power vacuum that he appears keen to fill. Deby this year attempted to revive the moribund Community of Sahel-Saharan States that Qadaffy founded. The Chadian leader also hosted a regional summit on sustainable development. Chad currently holds the rotating chair of the Economic Community of Central African States (ECCAS), whose mission in the Central African Republic was blended into the broader 3,000-strong MISCA force. Chad is one of the force's largest contributors with 650 men, and its most active, but the contingent, operating under the FOMAC (Multinational Force of Central Africa) banner, has largely pursued its own agenda. "We all act as if the Chadians actually take their orders from the Gabonese command, but we all know that the Chadian soldiers answer first and foremost to Chad," a MISCA officer said on condition of anonymity. "We all pretend because otherwise it's too much of a headache." |
| Posted by:Fred |