This is the unfortunate introduction to an otherwise excellent and very long piece on Chinese economic expansion in Africa:
The No. 2 killer in Africa by parasite, after malaria, is an organism called Entamoeba histolytica — or “Eh” for short. It was discovered in 1873, the year it took the life of missionary-explorer David Livingstone, that great champion of British imperialism on what his countrymen called the Dark Continent. I know this because, when I returned home from reporting in the sub-Sahara, the same pathogen was drilling through the walls of my gut. It would colonize there for months, unbeknownst to me, absorbing my nutrients and spewing its toxins, as I grew weak and emaciated.
A skillful intruder, Eh can produce a population explosion in a very short time. While its plan of attack is complex and still not entirely understood, it seems to trick human defense mechanisms into thinking all is well in the homeland. (It achieves that by killing local immune cells, then hiding the evidence by eating the cells’ corpses.) Unfortunately, the more virulent the strain, the more the parasite risks killing the host — sometimes by invading the brain — rendering everyone homeless. Nonetheless, the more I’ve learned about Eh, the more I admire its resourcefulness, its work ethic (talk about intestinal fortitude!), and its resolve to survive and propagate. It’s a shame we couldn’t just get along, that my ecosystem couldn’t sustain us both.
… During my recovery, I had time to dwell on parasites, how they invade and deplete their hosts, much as successive colonial powers have done over the centuries in places such as Africa. Anyone who thinks that kind of ravenous acquisition of resources is a thing of the past should take a close look at the suction China is applying in the sub-Sahara. The region is now the scene of one of the most sweeping, bare-knuckled, and ingenious resource grabs the world has ever seen.
Very interesting post.
This kind of yello fear nonsense is tiring. Why do western jounalists always come across as if they want democracy and good governance in Africa more than Africans themselves? South Africa spent 50 billion (and counting) buying arms from Europe, that don’t get mention, though the author did his best to speak to every white pseudo-analyst. What you read is :African is the “perfect” place for China, they don’t have morals. China supported the libearation movements of many African countries, this don’t get mention. In Maputo I’ve met Chinsese traders who speak shagaan fluently – and ordinary Mozambicans telling me they can afford their goods, however “fake”, in Luanda, Angolans told me they didn’t see the white man when they were struggling, except for the SAn army (supported by Tatcher and Reagan) who came to bom their towns, the same towns China is rebuilding…Poor Europeans, poor Americans…we don’t even know howmuch they love us
I’m also trying to understand what the Chinese involvement will mean. Brendan O’Neill wrote a very interesting piece on this theme here:
http://www.thoughtleader.co.za/brendanoneill/2008/04/24/bring-on-the-chinese/
I may be wrong but I liked what O’Neill said, and at the moment I much prefer Chinese to British and US involvement.