The 14th of February is a big day (and I am not taking about the celebration of Saint Valentine), it's when the Central African Republic (CAR) elects a new President. Anicet-Georges Dologuélé and Faustin-Archange Touadéra ("household names") came out on top after the first round of voting on December 30, 2015. Incidentally, a total of 30 candidates ran for the Presidency (many of them independents), which instills some confidence in a nation ravaged by a shocking sectarian civil war.
For two years Central Africans have been embroiled in a conflict between Christian and Muslim militias. It might have gained the English-speaking world's attention, if it had an actual coastline littered with oil refineries. France has come to the rescue giving it much-needed air time, but that is mostly done through having guilt from its colonial ruling days over the CAR. It's a minor miracle that the CAR is about to elect its 13th regime since gaining independence from France in 1960.
As we get bogged down in our petty lives, let's take a moment on Sunday to think about our human family in the CAR. Let's all hope the new President can actually broker reconciliation and string together a harmonious society. The gruesome stories of religious in-fighting are endless, you would think after hearing about examples of mass exodus the word would act. Two years have passed since the capital Bangui went from having 150,000 Muslims to less than a thousand, as people fled for their lives and were systematically slaughtered by Christian militias (in some instances, decapitated heads were used for sporting purposes).
Imagine the superficial media coverage if a blue-eyed person (of Caucasian descent) were to be kidnapped by "strange-looking" African folk, it would be like a KKK meeting (or what is commonly referred to by Americans as a Donald J. Trump rally). Even when Christians fell victim's to Muslim militias, those boasting warmonger credentials never offered to send war planes to assist their brethren in the CAR. Where you are placed on the map matters, no one cares about a landlocked country with little resources for wealthy nations to pillage - it's simply not sexy!
The world came together to instill peace among the many Bosnians who were ravaged by sectarian tragedy (granted, they looked more appealing to the Western media's camera lenses), but we can also do the same for the CAR. If these elections cannot harbor stability for the CAR, then our good friends in Dayton, Ohio should be called upon to host another peace summit.
For two years Central Africans have been embroiled in a conflict between Christian and Muslim militias. It might have gained the English-speaking world's attention, if it had an actual coastline littered with oil refineries. France has come to the rescue giving it much-needed air time, but that is mostly done through having guilt from its colonial ruling days over the CAR. It's a minor miracle that the CAR is about to elect its 13th regime since gaining independence from France in 1960.
As we get bogged down in our petty lives, let's take a moment on Sunday to think about our human family in the CAR. Let's all hope the new President can actually broker reconciliation and string together a harmonious society. The gruesome stories of religious in-fighting are endless, you would think after hearing about examples of mass exodus the word would act. Two years have passed since the capital Bangui went from having 150,000 Muslims to less than a thousand, as people fled for their lives and were systematically slaughtered by Christian militias (in some instances, decapitated heads were used for sporting purposes).
Imagine the superficial media coverage if a blue-eyed person (of Caucasian descent) were to be kidnapped by "strange-looking" African folk, it would be like a KKK meeting (or what is commonly referred to by Americans as a Donald J. Trump rally). Even when Christians fell victim's to Muslim militias, those boasting warmonger credentials never offered to send war planes to assist their brethren in the CAR. Where you are placed on the map matters, no one cares about a landlocked country with little resources for wealthy nations to pillage - it's simply not sexy!
The world came together to instill peace among the many Bosnians who were ravaged by sectarian tragedy (granted, they looked more appealing to the Western media's camera lenses), but we can also do the same for the CAR. If these elections cannot harbor stability for the CAR, then our good friends in Dayton, Ohio should be called upon to host another peace summit.
