In the midst of revolutionary transformations sweeping the “Middle East,” be careful not to overlook a conjoined protest movement stretching across the African continent. In addition to “pro-democracy protests” in Saudi Arabia, Jordan, Yemen, Oman, Bahrain, Tunisia, Egypt, and Libya, there have been mass demonstrations calling for major democratic reforms in Senegal, Morocco, Algeria, Mauritania, Nigeria, Burkina Faso, Gabon, Benin, Sudan, Swaziland, Uganda and Djibouti. In fact, you could argue that this “season” of uprisings kicked off in November 2010, when protests against Morocco’s continuing occupation of neighboring Western Sahara reached a fever pitch. Not all of these struggles have been deemed newsworthy, which is a problem. Let’s not let it be our problem.
*For more on the relationship between protest movements in Africa and the Middle East, see this interview with Firoze Manji, Editor-in-Chief of Pambazuka News, a weekly on-line journal that provides media coverage and political analysis of African Politics.
Graphics by Duane Lawrence
