Colonialism has left huge insecurity behind, multipolarity provides a way out.
Colonialism has left huge insecurity behind, multipolarity provides a way out.
By Halim Gençoğlu
Halim Gençoğlu, a scholar of African studies and colonial history and a researcher at the Faculty of Social Sciences at the University of Cape Town, has recently published his latest book “Batı’nın Afrika Talanı” (The West’s Plunder in Africa) in Turkish.
We spoke with Gençoğlu about his book. Gençoğlu shared his views on the Africa–West relations, alongside the growing presence of Türkiye, Russia, and China on the continent.
The West still not trusted
In your book you examine Africa-West relations in a historical perspective. Today, generally speaking, how do African people view the West with the heritage of that history?
France, the UK and the US are still not trusted. Even they are seen as a threat. Why? The most important reason is that from the Second World War to 1960s, even in the last phase of colonialism, they left in Africa a huge destruction, in other words, genocide. There are still people living who saw these with their own eyes. For example, the UK paid compensation in 2020s to those killed in the Mau-Mau uprising in Kenya. So, these are things that happened not long ago. The wounds left by the West are still traumatizing Africa. This is why France was kicked out of Niger and Burkina Faso. And they still don’t trust the Western world.
Alongside the former colonial Western powers, Türkiye, Russia and China are gaining influence across the continent. How do you see this?
Erdoğan has visited about 30 African countries during his political career, and this has borne much economic outcome. Türkiye needs new markets, and Africa is interested in cheap drones and energy. It is clear that the US, the UK and France see Türkiye as a threat in the continent. China has entered Africa with completely different intentions and has a different history. Now Russia is also becoming influential in certain regions.
Difference between the two approaches
At this point, anyone who knows anything about Africa can see the difference between the approaches of Türkiye, China and Russia on the one side, and the Western countries on the other. What have the French and British left behind but statues of their leaders that are erected to show their power? Is there a school or a bridge, or anything for the use of the people? I have been in Africa for fifteen years and there is no place that I haven’t visited but have never seen such a thing.
To the contrary, I had to travel to some cities for research, Borno for example, with armed bodyguards and jeeps to protect. Why? Because of the French. In Nigeria, there is a so-called “Islamic organization” called Boko Haram. What kind of Islam is this! Who is behind this organization? It has nothing to do with Islam and the Nigerian people.
Take Eritrea as another example. (Eritrea was defended by Özdemir Pasha against the Portuguese once). Today you can’t travel safely there. This is the case almost everywhere in Africa. The West, not Africans, has turned the continent to such an insecure place. In my books, I wrote these facts based on the documents of the Western countries themselves.