Politic?

This is a blog dedicated to a personal interpretation of political news of the day. I attempt to be as knowledgeable as possible before commenting and committing my thoughts to a day's communication.

Thursday, February 07, 2013

The Reliability of UN Blue Helmets

France responded when it felt its interests in Mali were being threatened. A once-stable African democracy had descended unto chaos, with a military coup removing a democratically elected government that had the support of the Western countries whose funding and assistance aided its goals. But as usual when the West becomes involves in less advanced societies with unstable economies, the government, though democratic, was too weak to handle a rebellion.

The segment of the Malian military that ousted the democratically elected president of Mali, to the dismay of his Western backers, was infuriated at its ineffective response to the Tuareg rebels fighting for separation. And then found themselves that they too were incapable of defending themselves against the Tauregs well armed by weapons brought back from Libya where they were employed as mercenaries.

The al-Queda-in-the-Islamic-Maghreb with whom the Tuaregs made common cause to rout the Malian military from Northern Mali, in their turn routed the Tuareg rebels, leaving themselves in sole possession of ancient towns like Timbuktu. And they set about destroying ancient monuments and manuscripts, and instituting fundamentalist Sharia. Which is when the United Nations became alarmed enough to recommend a unified African response.

AQIM held the region for almost a year before becoming restless and self-indulgently bold enough to feel they could ambitiously march toward the capital. The Malian army had proved itself no match for the Islamists whose aspirations were greater than just part of Mali. And that's when the French stepped in with their aerial bombardments, and their military boots on the ground, joined eventually by African troops.

Now France plans its departure, and has asked for UN peacekeepers to take up position in Mali to ensure that the AQIM Islamists who have withdrawn for the time being (a traditional Muslim hudna, to await the opportunity that will surely present itself when they will feel confident enough that they will not meet stiff resistance, and can return, sufficiently re-armed) will be met with a force capable of deterring them.

Mali itself is comfortable with the presence of the FISMA African-led force, along with their liberating French. The African Union and the West African regional bloc ECOWAS, prefer the UN option. "This will not be a hybrid force but a force under (UN) blue helmets with a chain of command leading to the Security Council", explained French ambassador to the UN, Gerard Araud.

The Malian government is yet to be convinced. This is of course, a Malian government that has resulted from the military coup, it is not a democratically elected government. "It is normal that there be questions and objections in Bamako. We need to have a dialogue with the Malian authorities", pressed Mr. Araud. For understandably, France would like ideally to leave this costly war in others' capable hands.

As for a UN blue helmets force.  If they are as effective as their counterparts on the Lebanese/Israel border, discharged to ensure that no advanced weapons fall into the hands of the Islamist terror group Hezbollah, their usefulness can be quite legitimately questioned.

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