A mercenary coup plot in the Congo?
I don't really know what to make of this at this point, but BBC is reporting that 30 foreigners have been arrested in the Congo for an alleged coup plot, at least one, possibly three, of them American.
I don't know if this is anything, but with the recent history of the Mark Thatcher coup plot in Equatorial Guinea, and recent US special forces action in NE Africa, Djibouti and Somalia, this article caught my eye.
(The Congo's main resources are mining interests, diamonds, and there have long been allegations of mining companies funding and backing the various factions in the decades long civil war.)
I don't know if this is anything, but with the recent history of the Mark Thatcher coup plot in Equatorial Guinea, and recent US special forces action in NE Africa, Djibouti and Somalia, this article caught my eye.
(The Congo's main resources are mining interests, diamonds, and there have long been allegations of mining companies funding and backing the various factions in the decades long civil war.)
posted by mikevotes at
7:50 AM
4 Comments:
yikes, deja vu!
keep up the good work.
down with anonyms!
By
Justin, at 10:02 AM
I doubt the South African based mercenary movement has ever forgotten the treatment of ‘Mad’ Mick Hoare, from a Congo coup attempt in the 60s.
Colonel Tim Spicer is the latter day Hoare. It seems he has no shortage of willing recruits from discharged warriors around the world. It is a great way for respectable big business to get their dirty work done.
Omega Risk Solutions or Sandline and others operate as security companies. I never did trust any organization with security in their name.
These operations are nothing more than big business sponsored terrorist organizations. Their doctrine is money, pure and simple.
By
Cartledge, at 10:11 AM
Cartledge, you're right, and your detail is far better than mine, but it does appear in recent years that the merc/paramilitary/spec ops activities in Africa around the resource centers has heated up a bit. And we should probably include Shell in Nigeria, because although it's officially government action, Shell pretty much pays for the government.
I think it's beyond the obvious effort to secure resources, but it reflects a greater effort to put an early stop to movements similar to those in South America.
If you're ever in a mood to look into US history on this, look for information from the 50's on Guatemala and United Fruit. It was one of the very first US sponsored campaigns to topple a government for the interests of one country. They've gotten alot better at it since then, but because of the temporal distance, we have a far better picture of all the things that went on.
Or Mossadeq in Iran.
Mike
By
mikevotes, at 10:23 AM
50's on Guatemala and United Fruit I will, thanks.
I think, in the end, we'll find the same thing. Big business and government is so intertwined that interests and actions blur.
Britain and the US have a long history of using private armies for government backed (albeit often secret) corporate advantage.
It makes the whole concept of self determination for former colonies, or resource rich developing economies, a sad joke.
By
Cartledge, at 12:41 PM
Post a Comment
<< Home