Dictatorland: The Men Who Stole Africa

In the 19th century, European countries built their empires that included countries in Africa, but by the mid-twentieth century it became time for them to get out and let them have independence. This book is an account of the disastrous behaviour of some Africans who, like scum, rose to the top of these countries, together with that of these European countries and the US. What the West wanted was to control the vast riches of gold, diamonds, copper, oil, cocoa, and whatever that Africa had, and to do that they closed their eyes and helped facilitate corruption and the removal of human rights of the so-called "liberated" people on a scale that is almost unbelievable. They facilitated the return of slavery, and while it was not called that locally, it might as well have been. Political ends also required meddling. In the Congo, Lumumba was elected President in what was one of the few democratically legitimate elections. But Lumumba had talked to Moscow, so he had to be removed. The CIA assisted the rise of Mobutu, which led to the execution of Lumumba. After all, we could not have Communism in the Congo, with its big mineral resources. In São Tomé and Princípe, the West needed its cocoa; the fact the workers were essentially slaves was overlooked. The corruption of and the total ignoring of environmental issues in Nigeria and some other west coast African countries makes for awful reading. The book runs through the history of a number of countries, and how a small number of dictators, with the collusion of the West turned what could have been a paradise into a hell for the average African. A well-written well-researched history. Also a depressing history, but that was what happened.