Oil addictions make for the strangest bedfellows

I'm not quite sure how we decide which murderous regimes should be
overthrown (Saddam/Iraq) and which murderous regimes are led by "our kind of guy" (Suharto/Indonesia). Regardless, it appears as though America has renewed ties with the murderous regime of Equatorial Guinea:

Equatorial Guinea's president had his opponents imprisoned
and tortured, had his presidential predecessor executed by firing
squad, helped himself to the state treasury at will. State radio recently declared him "like God."
Teodoro Obiang might seem an unlikely candidate for warmer relations
with Washington, except for one thing - his tiny West African country's
got a tremendous amount of oil.
With America looking increasingly for alternatives to oil from the
Middle East, West Africa - and dictators like Obiang - aren't looking
so bad.
To the dismay of human rights activists, Washington reopened its
embassy on the tropical country's island capital of Malabo last month
after an eight-year shutdown.
Although no U.S. ambassador is serving in Malabo, Obiang's critics say
reopening of the embassy gives tacit approval to a repressive regime
that lets little of the country's newfound oil wealth trickle down to
its 500,000 people, who are among the poorest on Earth.

This is what the United Nations Human Rights Internet (HRI) report had to say about Equatorial Guinea in 1999:

"...In commentary on the economic and social situation, the
report notes that there was no change in relation to the extreme
poverty; no perceptible improvement in the quality of life of the
people had resulted from the large fiscal revenues derived from oil
production and exports. There had been no major investment in health, education, housing or public works"
"...On the status of women and the situation of girls, the report
notes: women separated from their husbands are kept in prison for
unspecified periods because their families have not paid restitution to
their former husbands."
"...A communication was sent to the government related to the arrest,
detention and provisional release of a lawyer. The actions were
reportedly taken because of the lawyer�s efforts to prevent the
admission, as evidence, of statements made under torture by detainees
on trial for alleged involvement in an attack on a military barracks on
Bioko Island in January 1998. Information also indicated that the same
lawyer, and one other involved in the case, had received death threats
after they informed the court of systematic torture of those detainees.
[The case involved] the arrest of some 500 persons on the island of
Bioko, most of whom belong to the Bubi tribe � including a teacher
and his spouse, an MP for the Partido Democr�tio de Guinea Ecuatorial
and a former Director of the Prime Minister�s office. The methods of
torture included beating (some with a high voltage cable all over the
body and on the feet), suspension by the arms, cuts, sexual abuse and
rape."

That said, let's continue on with the aforementioned AP News brief:

These days, [President] Obiang speaks of his nation
becoming "the Kuwait of Africa," and he's not far off the mark.
West Africa's Gulf of Guinea already supplies the United States with 15
percent of its oil imports, and analysts say that share could grow to
25 percent by 2015.
Obiang keeps state oil proceeds a secret, and critics accuse him and
other top officials of funneling hundreds of millions of dollars of oil
money into private accounts in foreign banks.
"The regime's lack of financial capacity and control and preference for
cash up front means effectively that the population is not getting its
fair share of the oil wealth," Wykes said. "And U.S. oil companies are
benefiting from this situation."
She estimates oil revenues in Equatorial Guinea this year could reach
$700 million.
In July, state radio announced that Obiang, "in permanent
contact with the Almighty," was "like God in heaven" who has "all power
over men and things," according to the British Broadcasting
Corp.
An American spokesman for the U.S. Embassy, speaking on condition he
not be identified further, acknowledged there are problems in
Equatorial Guinea, but said the best way to effect change is to have a
presence on the ground, not to watch events unfold from afar.
"There's really so many Americans there now and there are so many
interests," the official said. "There's a lot more that we have now in common."

What could he possibly be referring to? Perhaps the fact that both
America and Equatorial Guinea are led by greedy, delusional men who
think they've been anointed by God? Or maybe to the fact that both are
led by regimes which funnel the vast majority of public wealth back
into the pockets of the rich instead of providing even basic care for
the broadest sectors of their populations?
Aw hell, who cares? Just keep that sweet oil coming!!

Posted by flow Frazao on November 18, 2003 at 04:55 PM | Permalink