Sectarian Violence Is Devastating the Central African Republic

If it hadn’t been drowned out by the ongoing wars in Mali and Syria, you would have heard all about the brutal civil war that broke out in the Central African Republic (CAR) in December of 2012. I guess there's only so much war you can read about at any given time, but the one currently tearing through the bush of the Central African Republic is a significant one. One UN official is even claiming a high threat of genocide in the coming months as Christian and Muslim militias face off in a war of escalating sectarian violence. Things are pretty dire, and international bodies haven’t made any moves towards getting involved and trying to end the bloodshed.

Like other former European colonies in Africa, the CAR is a vast, resource-rich nation with a history of brutal dictators. It gained its independence from France in 1958 but slipped from imperial rule into the hands of despots. Having seen eight coups or mutinies since 1960, its 4.6 million people are accustomed to a type of politics that is less than consensual.

One Jean-Bédel Bokassa, a man who assumed power in 1966, claimed he was an emperor in the mold of Napoleon and was a suspected cannibal who stored human limbs in a freezer. On top of that shaky political history, it lies in a region that is no stranger to conflict: to the south, Congo has been fighting a vicious war that has claimed millions since 1998, while Sudan – which borders the north of the country – has suffered its own episodes of genocide and war since around 2004.

The conflict in the CAR features the northern-based Séléka rebels, who are a union of five rebel groups (Séléka means "union" in Sango), among them the Union of Democratic Forces for Unity (UFDR) and the Convention of Patriots for Justice and Peace (CPJP), with some reported jihadist elements. They’ve all opposed the central government for years, seizing the capital Bangui in March with 5,000 troops and ousting President Francois Bozizé. And he was no peach, either; Bozizé is being accused by rebels of crimes against humanity during his reign.

Michel Djotodia, who was a leader of the Séléka rebel coalition, declared himself president after the rebel coup. Djotodia is a Muslim governing over a majority Christian population and has lost control over Séléka rebel groups now inciting Christians and Muslims against each other. To make matters worse, there’s mounting evidence those same rebels have been responsible for war crimes, among other atrocities.

MSF doctor Erna Erna Rijnierse sharing a moment with a pregnant women at the hospital in Bossangoa, CAR. (Photo courtesy of MSF)

There haven't been any impassioned pleas by celebrities yet, and Obama hasn't sent a tokenistic group of marines to save the day. But other organisations have been busy documenting atrocities and actually helping refugees – most notably Doctors Without Borders (MSF), who have set up in the embattled northern town of Bossangoa to help fleeing citizens.

Tarak Bach Baouab, Humanitarian Affairs Advisor for MSF, recently visited the CAR and says the situation is dangerously unstable. "The main problem is that the fighting has specifically targeted civilians," he said in an emailed statement. "Whereas rural populations had been used to being displaced in the bush because of fighting through the previous so-called ‘Bush War’ [from 2004 to 2007], the latest cycle of violence has been different in that it has increasingly taken on a religious undertone. Civilians are therefore now hiding to avoid being killed for who [and] what they are instead of just avoiding fighting between different rebel groups and the government."

In Bossangoa alone, Bach Baouab says 35,000 displaced people are living on a Catholic missionary compound, "scared stiff" of leaving. Mostly Christians, they’re afraid of retribution and targeted killings by rival Muslim groups. Likewise, Muslims also fear revenge attacks by Christian militias. "People are abandoning their villages, which often end up being burned by both parties to the conflict and are terrified by tit-for-tat killings," Baouab said.

MSF have documented treating individuals with gunshot and machete wounds, hearing firsthand accounts of targeted sectarian executions and witnessing burned villages and "appalling scenes of murder". If you’re looking for historical parallels to those images, refer to the Rwandan Genocide or the recent killings in Sudan by Janjaweed death squads, both instances where Western powers sat back and watched.

As in other conflicts on the continent, the French Army – one that has engaged in at least three known military campaigns in Africa in three years (Libya, Mali and Ivory Coast) – has its footprints in the CAR. Although Francois Hollande ruled out propping up African regimes on the French public’s euros, his intervention in Mali helped reinvent modern French power in the region. Yet recent reports say the French are poised to increase those numbers to between 750 and 1,200 troops.

Rebels in northern CAR (Photo via)

In the summer, Hollande even bandied about terms to his allies that were similar to when he lobbied them to help fight Malian rebels in 2012, saying the CAR risked "Somalization" from militant jihadists looking for a home base. And that theory isn't entirely implausible, given the reports of jihadist militants (like Sudanese Janjaweed fighters) crossing into the CAR, and fears that the Nigerian al-Qaeda affiliates Boko Haram have a clear corridor to enter the CAR from neighbouring Cameroon.

There’s no denying the increasing Western interest in African conflict zones, either: the US recently deployed predator drones in nearby Niger, with an eye to the Sahels. For France, the gaze toward the old colonial playground isn’t anything new; they have key economic interests in Africa and in countries surrounding the CAR, which is especially interesting when you consider that China is encroaching on their traditional turf. It’s worth noting that, before the coup in March, Bozizé had signed significant mining deals with firms from China and South Africa, only for them to be immediately reviewed by Djotodia following the coup – conveniently at the same time he asked for military support from France.

Some military sources I spoke to said that judging the intentions of the French Army in the CAR is impossible as they tend to keep most of their operations self-contained from allies to avoid international criticism. Other sources said the colonial mentality within their military still exists. For example, among French troops the term "crocos" is often used to describe black soldiers.

As it stands, alongside current and future French troop contributions, the African Union is poised to deploy a total of 3,600 soldiers to the CAR, adding to the 1,100 who are already in the country. However, that mission likely won’t be operational until 2014, meaning – besides the various rebel entities and militias wielding machetes and guns – citizens must rely on the 200 police officers nationwide to keep the peace.

In the end, it’s a sad script we’ve all seen before when it comes to Western intervention in Africa: France wonders how to salvage colonial influence as the rest of the international community plays spectator to genocide.

Follow Ben on Twitter: @BMakuch

More stories about conflicts in Africa:

Al Qaeda Wants Africa

What Are the French Really Up to In Mali?

Mali: France Vs. Jihad