The Big Bang?
Calls for a reversion to normality have been heard all week. President Bush wants American citizens to do their patriotic duty by shopping, flying and eating kebabs. Meanwhile, from Swaziland comes a lesson in how to carry on as normal through global upheaval.
The decision of King Mswati III to take a 17-year-old schoolgirl as his eighth wife has managed to simultaneously stun his country and offer us all a lesson in carrying on as normal.
The dashing 33-year-old king picked his latest bride during the annual reed dance. But his marriage has left him wide open to charges of hypocrisy. Only two weeks ago he imposed a five-year sex ban on all single women in an effort to preserve the virginity of teenage girls. This chastity ban prevents all young women under 19 years from shaking hands with men or, even more oddly, wearing trousers. Men caught out breaking the ban, are immediately fined an animal, such as a cow. The Kings new wife, La Massango, will no doubt provide a stern test of the new ban. One assumes he can afford to offload the odd cow now and then.
And the law seems to have done nothing to lessen Mswatis appetite: a ninth wife (another schoolgirl) is already being groomed in the Royal palace.
More Trouble in the Hills
While the attention of the Western press has been focused on Afghanistan and America, the worlds other former superpower has been experiencing its worst setback in months in its own conflict with Islamic guerillas.
On 17 September, some 300 Chechen separatist fighters seized practically the entire city of Gudermes in one hour of fighting, according to Reuters, via the Russian newspaper Kommersant . At the same time, a surface-to-air missile fired from the Chechen capital shot down a large military helicopter carrying two Russian generals and eight colonels.The heavy fighting sparked a renewed mass exodus of Chechen refugees.
So, no to full spectrum dominance
Many of you have now looked at Scilla Elworthys powerful diagram of the cycle of violence on our site. The Pentagons equivalent is a straight line leading to full spectrum dominance available on the web (who says we dont have open government?). Those of you who have Bill Gatess PowerPoint software can find it here: www.dtic.mil. The full presentation is also available.
Ragged Philanthropy
In the 1830s, the Cherokee nation were expelled from their Georgian and Carolinas homeland and embarked on their epic westwards trail of tears. On hearing news of the Irish famine a decade later, the survivors collected money to send to the victims. More recently, farmers in Mozambique one of the poorest countries in the world offered aid to flooded residents of North Yorkshire.
Now, following the American atrocity, among the $500 million dollars in aid being offered to victims, generous sums are coming in from India, the Philippines, Bangladesh, and many other countries whose citizens died in the blasts. Humanity, especially at times of crisis or disaster, knows no boundaries. People have been offered the chance of moving beyond the imprisoning categories of rich/poor, philanthropist/victim.
It will not last. Politics will return and bombs will start falling. But the thousands of bereaved and needy will not go away. If you want to help, here are some suggestions:
- Charities Aid Foundation appeal in the UK for aid to the US
- Christian Aid's campaign to help Afghan people, including refugees
Youthful idealism
Organisations representing young people around the world, are trying to spread awareness of an International Youth Declaration for a Non-Violent Response see www.iyoco.org. They are inviting representatives of youth organisations worldwide to sign a letter to President Bush, which both expresses condolences and supports non-violent responses to the atrocity. So far, 234 organisations representing nearly half a million people have added their names. The statement can also be signed by individuals.
Meanwhile, in Nigeria
The Muslim-vs-Christian tension is hardly lessened by the America-vs-Bin Laden showdown. Conflicting reports are coming in about its impact. There are worries that the country could collapse into a religious civil war. The Muslim north harbours some support for Bin Laden, and in the wake of September 11 there were celebrations in Zamfara.
Nevertheless, one expert source has told openDemocracy that in much of Africa, Bin Laden is the equivalent of the Che Guevara factor in the west: romanticised, but not necessarily something to support and fight for. Religion is only one of the factors that divide the nation. It is less important than ethnicity (1500 dead in recent clashes in Jos and Kaduna), or the oil money from the southern delta.
Still, two factors remain. Firstly, there has been a resumption of fighting in many areas since September 11, as all sides have sought to exploit the events in America for maximum political advantage.
Secondly, Silvio Berlusconis trumpeting of western superiority is likely to cause many in northern Nigeria to throw their lot in with the Muslim cause. During the Gulf War (despite the liberation of Kuwait and support from countries like Egypt), the allied assault in Iraq was seen in much of northern Nigeria as a Christian attack on the Muslim world. The arrival of American troops in Afghanistan may have the same effect. Watch this space.
NGOs at Ground Zero
In a punishing schedule, President Bush has found time to be less than generous about the role of non-governmental organizations. Yet away from the headlines, many of the maligned NGOs are quietly getting on with the necessary work of helping and healing.
There are 15,000 NGOs in New York alone. NPower NY is a technology assistance provider which serves this enormous non-profit sector in the city by offering IT resources, training, support services and consulting at reduced rates.
In the aftermath of September 11, the organization is operating a major disaster relief effort. This is working intensively at ground zero to mobilise support, equipment and money to help the many NGOs affected by the disaster. If you would like to help their efforts, you can do so via (New York) 212-677-9622 or September11@NPowerNY.org.
Meanwhile Major news is in
Ordinary people should, as Im sure they soon will do, go about their ordinary lives and their ordinary business in the way they have always done, declares former British Prime Minister John Major in a passionate appeal to his fellow countrymen.
Contact the Diary editor: dominic.hilton@opendemocracy.net
