Forestalling Genocide in the Central African Republic

The Central African Republic, a former French colony, is impoverished and endured years of poor governance, mostly under the military rule, and more recently with flawed elections. A rebellion that began in March collapsed into ruthless battle between Muslims and Christians that approaches genocide. Independent journalist Gwynne Dyer reports that rebel leader Michel Djotodia, a Muslim, had recruited foreign mercenaries, essentially giving them license to loot in the Christian-majority nation, and then couldn’t control the makeshift militias of his Seleka alliance: “the majority of Seleka’s fighters have broken up into bands of marauders who plunder, rape, and burn their way around the country. Many of the country’s villages now lie abandoned, while their former inhabitants hide from the bandits in the fields or the woods.” Tens of thousands have died. Despite inconsistent foreign policies on Djotodia, who claims to be president, France has moved rapidly to secure United Nations and African Union approval to dispatch troops, disarm militants and restore stability. – YaleGlobal