Taimur Rahman | Mazdoor Kissan Party (Pakistan)
Dear comrades,
On behalf of Mazdoor Kissan Party, Pakistan, I greet all the comrades assembled in Dakar Senegal who share the aspiration of resisting imperialism and the legacies of colonialism.
Western powers such as France have long had their hands dipped in blood through the violence and exploitation perpetrated upon the states of Africa. When I visited Dakar Senegal some years ago, I saw first hand the reminders of the slave trade in Goree Island. When humans beings were shipped like cargo for the profits of the capitalist system. Everywhere I not only saw the reminders of the Atlantic slave trade that took 13 million of Africa‘s young people and enslaved them to the capitalist machine. In Africa’s poverty, I saw how Europe became rich.
Now in the post-colonial era these very powers seek to continue to dictate its policies under the guise of partnership and development. But today, their ability to subjugate Africa continues to weaken, and the people are on the march towards exercising sovereignty, dignity, and control over their own destinies. The expulsion of Western troops across the Sahel is collapsing their control like dominoes and may just be the tip of the iceberg in terms of Africa’s emergence as a collective great power.
In recent years, we have observed a substantial shift in the sentiments of people and their leaderships in West African states, such as Mali, Burkina Faso, Niger and also Senegal. These states are treading now in a different direction, diverging from the influence of Western imperialism, not just politically, but also economically speaking.
For much of the previous and present century, African states have been kept in poverty through Western-imposed structures like the CFA franc, a colonial relic that bound them to the economic policies of France. The fishing agreements with Europe for example, devastated local industries while enriching foreign companies. These are not partnerships; they are tools of oppression. They kept Africa weak, dependent, and vulnerable to the ambitions of Western capital.
A key change that can expedite the economic and political independence of African states is the emergence of an alternative block for trade, diplomacy, and security. This is being recognised by not just Africa, but virtually the majority of underdeveloped countries of the world, including Pakistan.
However, the narrative we hear from the West is that this new block is itself an imperialist block. But it seems that this perspective comes from those who fear losing their neocolonial privileges and possessions. They publish critiques of Chinese investments and loans, while conveniently forgetting the debt traps and economic destruction they imposed via the IMF and decades long exploitation of the continent. They conveniently forget that their financial involvement has always deepened the very relationships that keep Third World countries in a model of dependent development.
• China cancelled approximately $9 billion of debt
• Rescheduled or deferred $40 billion of debt
• And modified loan terms for $24 billion of debt in the overall Belt and Road Program.
That is why most African states themselves welcome these new opportunities. More and more states are searching for an alternative path of development. The struggle for economic independence has become the quintessential question of the 21st century for all national liberation movements in former colonial states. If the 20th century was the century of the end of colonial empires and the emergence of our political independence. The 21st century will be the end of economic imperialism and the rise of our economic independence.
We salute all Left leaning activists and fighters who are contributing to the anti-imperialist struggle in terms of theory and practice. We wish you every success.
In Solidarity