The African Food Crisis: Lessons from the Asian Green Revolution Book

A solid commentary on the role of the African soldier moving from being a selfless stabilizing force in society to that of being a tool of big men and bigots. The author also notes the possibility of a reversal of this as the African Big Man, hopefully, goes the way of the dinosaur.

I was intrigued by a paragraph on page 214 of this book and an almost identical paragraph on page 246 of Michela Wrong's In the Footsteps of Mr. Kurtz. The paragraphs refer to the Hutu refugee camps in eastern Zaire following the genocide in Rwanda.

Edgerton: "By this time, the refugee camps had become thriving, even pleasant towns. A UN survey listed 82,000 business enterprises in these camps including over 2,000 bars, 450 restaurants, some 600 general stores, 62 hairdressers, 51 pharmacies, and 25 butchers. There were cinemas, photographic studios, and tailors. Markets were well stocked and there was bus service between the camps and the city of Goma. The refugees in these "camps" enjoyed a far higher standard of living than local Zaireans."

Wrong: "In 1995, A UNHCR survey listed nearly 82,000 thriving enteprises in the camps, including 2324 bars, 450 restaurants, 589 general shops, 62 hairdressers, 51 pharmacies and 25 butchers. Cinemas rubbed shoulders with photographic studios. It was possible to down a Primus in one of the many cafes, while waiting for a local tailor to run up a suit. Markets in the camps were so well stocked with vegetables, grown on tiny refugee plots, Zaireans sometimes headed to the settlements to do there shopping. The refugees even ran there own transport service between the camps and Goma, using buses Japan had once donated to the Rwandan government. While hardly luxurious, life was certainly tolerable. With their vaccinations, regular diet and medical check-ups, the Rwanadan enjoyed a higher standard of living than local Zairean peasants."

Each author gives us a glimpse of the camps but neither really takes us as readers inside the camps. These camps were made up of Hutu civilians and Hutu militia who fled Rwanda for fear of reprisals for their part in the Tutsi genocide. Said camps were a central character in the drama in which soldiers from five other African countries fought in Zaire. I think that a little more exposition is warranted.