U.S. Military Aid to Somalia

Some Americans might find it strange to know that many Africans are skeptical about any sort of American military presence in Somalia.

Remember the then-Belgian Congo? Remember the bloody civil war in that central African country after the Belgians left in 1960? Remember 1965 when a heavy U.S. military presence under the U.N. flag brought to power a villain known as Mobutu Sese Seko? As late as 1987, then-President Reagan called Mobutu an “all-season friend.” Mobutu was the same man who has turned this African country, so rich in natural resources, into a nation with one of the lowest per-capita incomes in the world. Some of the worst human rights violations on the African continent have been committed against the Zairean people since Mobutu was whisked to the helm of present-day Zaire under the shield of the U.N. and U.S. military influence.

There has to be a way to end the suffering of innocent people in Somalia. However, every precaution has to be taken to avoid the deprivation of human rights in Somalia two decades down the road simply because some dictator took advantage of American military power to establish an unbreakable stronghold.

HENRY PHIRI

Los Angeles