Françafrique: Pan-Africanists accused of being Anti-French; don’t Africans have the right to defend their interests?

Nowadays, Pan-Africanists who are committed to raising awareness and fighting for the liberation of the African continent, particularly in so-called Francophone countries, are labeled as anti-French. This viewpoint is shared by French authorities, diplomats, and high-ranking officials. At the same time, there are many French people who also criticize French policies in Africa.

These critics are not worried in any way. So why should it be different for Africans who denounce Western imperialism and French neo-colonialism in Africa ? Once again, there is a double standard where Africans are considered inferior and Westerners are seen as the super intelligent masters of the world.

The French president has loudly proclaimed that they are not in Africa to work on behalf of Africans but to defend their own interests. Why can’t Africans do the same? Now that they want to detoxify minds, particularly those manipulated and polluted by Westerners, notably French authorities and their propagandist media, these detractors of Africa see it as an anti-French issue.

Africans have long been kept in captivity and prevented from fully enjoying their mineral resources, having their own culture, gaining sovereignty and independence, and even thinking for themselves because everything has been imposed on them. Today, as African elites awaken from their long sleep and stand up, united in their struggle to move forward, they are being fought against.

It is well known that nowadays, apart from the revolutionary leaders at the helm of Burkina Faso, Mali, and Niger, who are openly attacked by those we know, many Pan-Africanists face daily threats. They are threatened with arrest or death. They risk their lives in this fight for sovereignty, dignity, and freedom for Africans.

For this fight to succeed in the 21st century, all Africans must embrace a spirit of solidarity and unity to push back French domination and external interference in Africa.

Sadia