This post provides updated or additional resources for reent posts on these topics:
1) Ivory Coast
2) Libya and the Mideast
3) 1848 and 2011
4) China’s Crackdown
Ivory Coast
BREAKING NEWS: As I write President Gbagbo is still in his bunker in Abidjan–but he will soon be gone. Three of his "generals" (the heads of the armed forces, the police, and the republican guard) are negotiating safe passage for Gbago and his family and judicial and security protection for others in his camp. For those commanding Gbagbo’s army, after strategic attacks by French forces, who were asked by UN to ..., the best option was to stop fighting and ask for a ceasefire–which they did. Though people in are breathing sighs of great relief, they must also be wondering, given the violence and brutality, how soon will the winds of reconciliation begin to blow?
Check any major news agency for this and other news about the transition in Cote d’Ivoire. For example, from the BBC: for text "Ivory Coast; Laurent Gbagbo ‘Negotiating’ surrender," BBC News (April 5, 2011): http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-africa-12975539; for video:
http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-africa-12977830
Last night’s BBC World News (a program available on PBS station’s in the US) led with two segment on Ivory Coast, where reporter Andrew Harding is on the scene. The second of these gives the basics of what brought the country to civil war. View these online (though perhaps they will soon be superseded): 1) http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-africa-12966464 2) http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-africa-12932427
For coverage of UN and French attacks on Gbagbo’s bases and residence–and the UN argument justifying them as necessary to protect civilians, see "Strikes by U.N. and France Corner Leader of Ivory Coast," Bases and Residence," New York Times (April 4): http://www.nytimes.com/2011/04/05/world/africa/05ivory.html?ref=todayspaper
Pundits critical of President Obama’s decision to intervene in Libya have asked, repeatedly, "What about Ivory Coast?" While I give them credit for bringing Cote d’Ivoire into the foreign policy debate, I do sense that in some instances there is a partisan motive lurking in the background. I sense this especially when the correspondent or commentator is clearly ignoring how–from an operational foreign policy perspective--the circumstances in Cote d’Ivoire are/were quite different from those in Libya. In Cote d’Ivoire, in addition to several thousand UN peacekeeping troops, there were already French boots on the ground. No doubt President Obama and Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton knew that at a certain point the French would be willing to step in and help the UN. Of course, the extent to which the French may have ulterior motives is a matter of debate (though the existence of such motives is not up for debate).
Libya and the Middle East
REMINDER: You can go to The Lede (New York Times blog) for extensive coverage. The most recent installment is "Latest Updates on Mideast Protests and Libyan War" (April 4, 2011): http://thelede.blogs.nytimes.com/2011/04/04/latest-updates-on-mideast-protests-and-libyan-war/?ref=africa
- Here you can find 13 embedded videos from various sources! So this is one of the best places to go for visual media. And it’s put into context by a media savvy journalist.
- Scroll to end to find earlier posts ("Updates on Libya War and Mideast Protests") dated March 21, 25, 30, 31, April 1.
Also on the New York Times web site, a SLIDESHOW called "A New Generation Finds Its Voice" (March 20, 2011): http://www.nytimes.com/interactive/2011/03/20/world/middleeast/middle-east-voices.html?ref=africa#
- Each slide consists of a photo of a young person, with his/her name, age, country, and occupation (but some are still students) plus a brief brief statement.
- These statements express a wide variety of views. These POVs reflect not only personal differences but how different circumstances vary from one country to another. For example, Ruba al-Bream, a Jordanian woman thinks that "Democracy will reduce religious radicalism." This may be more likely in Jordan than in other countries. On the other hand, perhaps she is just being overly optimistic.
- Select a few slides to stimulate discussion about what is happening and what the future may bring in a number of countries.
- A great resource to connect American youth with the aspirations of 25 of young adults across the Arab world.
- See the related links at the very end of the slideshow.
- Breaking news and most recent articles
- Clock showing current local time
- Twitter messages
- Link to "Complete Coverage"
Revolutions in 1848 and Uprisings/Revolutions in 2011
There’s been a lot of buzzing about possible parallels between previous eras of rebellion/revolution/transformation and the current upheavals in the Middle East. References to "The Arab Spring" tell us that what’s resonating for some reporters and analysts is the "Prague Spring of 1968," which evokes not only what happened in Prague and elsewhere behind Eastern Europe’ Iron Curtain but protests in the France, Mexico, and the US.
But for those who know something abut the history of the 1848 revolutions in Europe, that year seems a much better fit. I suspect 1848 and 2011 analogies are being examined in many graduate seminar rooms–as well as undergrad survey courses and even high school world history classes.
I find it more than ironic that the events of 1848 are being considered in AP World History–rather than being confined to AP Euro. Many APWH instructors are loath to spend much time on European history topics that seem too "Eurocentric" (e.g. the Reformation), yet here is another instance where we can make a good argument for inclusion rather than exclusion. (DISCLOSURE: When I taught a college-level survey, I too spent little time on 1848–because there is just so much to cover that more than fifty per cent of I wanted to cover had to be turncated. But I did always include it.)
In an earlier post (February 22) I recommended Anne Applebaum’s column, "In the Arab World, It's 1848 - not 1989." Here’s another resource--an exceptionally well-done essay by Leon Neyfakh, "Is This 1848?" that appeared in Boston Globe (March 27, 2011): http://www.boston.com/bostonglobe/ideas/articles/2011/03/27/is_this_1848/
Two aspects of this essay that I especially like:
- The illustrations–Vienna and Paris in 1848, Egypt and Yemen in 2011. (These can be saved for projection in class.)
- The author’s informative but cautious approach to making comparisons. If you use this in class (highly recommended), be sure students pick up on both the plus/minus aspects of trying to make this kind of analogy. What works? And what doesn’t?
China’s Crackdown on Dissidents
In China the government’s paranoia over any possible unrest continues. And so the crackdown on dissidents continues, reaching farther and farther into the ranks of the country’s human rights activists and the attorneys who have represented them. Some dissidents just disappear, others are more formally arrested. For a fascinating look at what Chinese dissidents are up to–despite the repression, visit "2011 Chinese Protest" (under Resources).
The latest of these is the artist Ai Weiwei, arrested just as he was about to board a plane for Hong Kong. Ai Weiwei, highly regarded both in and out of China as the artistic director of China’s Olympic Stadium, the marvelously innovative "Bird’s Nest" structure, had had previous unpleasant run-ins with the authorities. He was badly beaten in 2009, presumably for his out-spoken critiques of the government. On Twitter on February 24th he posted an audacious message: "I didn’t care about jasmine at first, but people who are scared of jasmine sent out infomation about how harmful jasmine is often, which makes me realize that jasmine is what scares them the most. What a jasmine!" (as quoted in the Washington Post, see Resources).
The web is full of material about Ai Weiwei but I saw the PBS Newshour segment last night and strongly recommend it. It lets the artist speak for himself about his motives and predicament (in footage shot before his arrest). It comes from last week’s Frontline but this excerpt is easier to use in class. Also, you can print the transcript
Resources
There is now an extensive list of "2011 Chinese Protests" and information abut them on FilePie: http://www.filepie.us/?title=2011_Chinese_protests
See Keith B. Richburg, "Chinese Artist Ai Weiwei Arrested." Washington Post (April 3, 2011): htp://washingtonpost.com/world/chinese-artist-ai-wei-wei-arrested-in-latest-government-crackdown
"Chinese Artist, Activist Weiwei Arrested." PBS NewsHour (aired April 4, 2011, 4:49 mins):
http://www.pbs.org/newshour/bb/world/jan-june11/china1_04-04.html
"Who’s Afraid of Ai Weiwei?" Frontline. PBS (Aired March/April 2011):
http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/pages/frontline/ai-wei-wei/
- Watch the full program online
- View a slideshow of the artist’s work
- Read an interview with a reporter who profiled Ai Weiwei for The New Yorker
- More good stuff (check all it out)
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