While we continue to focus on events in the United States, open rebellion comes to Chad. One of Africa's central countries, Chad, has long been a crossroads for Europe, Arabian, and African culture. Christianity, Islam, and many other religions have passed through Chad. Chad, arguably the center of northern Africa, has been torn in many directions in the past. Now, once again, the center cannot hold itself together and things are indeed falling apart.
I generally try to pay equal amounts of attention to American politics as I do to world affairs. If you don't keep your eyes open wide enough, things halfway across the world can come at you unprepared.
Now, in Chad, the government is being overthrown.
For those of you who haven't followed the situation there, the current president, Idriss Deby, recently rewrote the constitution so he could have a third term in office. Prior to this, Chad had been somewhat stable, but its geographical location next to war-ravaged Sudan (and Darfur) kept life in turmoil for many.
Back in the 1960's oil was discovered in Chad. Only recently, though, has oil been extracted, and Mr. Deby and his political cronies have taken to securing the wealth generated by the profits. This has generated a great deal of ill will towards the government by many of Chad's citizens. Last year, the Council on Foreign Relations has noted that the disruption of oil from Chad would be almost insignificant to world output. However, to the people of Chad, the money from oil revenues would have made a significant difference in their lives had it been spent wisely.
Adding to the awkward situation the West has been in dealing with Chad was the recent fiasco of the French aid workers from Zoe's Ark who had been accused of child kidnapping. Deby took the opportunity to publicly denounc the French, in what many believed was a shallow attempt to galvanize the people of Chad to support his sinking popularity. Prior to this, France had always had generally positive diplomatic relations with Deby's government.
Now that Chad seems on the verge of a popular revolution against the Deby government by rebels, how will the people of Chad react? No less important is how this will affect the genocidal warfare in Darfur. It's still too early to say, but for certain the situation is going to be much more difficult to follow.