The death of Mohammed Bouazizi in Tunisia in January 2011 gave birth to the series of protests and uprisings now globally referred to as the “Arab Spring”. The 26-year-old street vendor set fire to himself in protest following the confiscation of his wares and harassment allegedly suffered at the hands of Tunisian authorities. Mr Bouazizi suffered severe burns to over 90% of his body and later succumbed to the injuries sustained a few weeks later.
It is perhaps certain that no one, not even Mohammed Bouazizi, expected the magnitude of seismic waves which was generated following that one significant act of expression of frustration. It is also no exaggeration to proffer that Mr Bouazizi’s actions have resulted in a permanent shift of the tectonic plates constituting the foundation of the history of the Arab world. The demonstrations and protests which ensued in the aftermath of the death have led to the overthrow of the Tunisian President, Zine El Abidine Ben Ali, and the Egyptian President, Hosni Mubarak. Elsewhere in the Arab world, Muammar Gaddafi’s attempts to violently contain peaceful protests in Libya eventually resulted in his overthrow by a group of heavily backed western-assisted rebels who are at present, in the process of forming a transitional government. The uprising does not end there as the leaders of Syria, Yemen and Bahrain are still in the process of containing their own revolutions.
Certainly, the circumstances which were and still are present at the time, and which led to the revolution - economic deprivation, unemployment, poverty, human rights violations and dictatorships - also exist in Sub-Saharan Africa. For instance, Teodoro Obiang Nguema Mbagogo of Equatorial Guinea has been in charge since 1979 after coming to power by way of a coup. Aside the country making a presence in the top 12 of the Transparency International compiled list of most corrupt countries, the United Nations (UN) have reported that less than half of the population has access to clean drinking water and that 20 percent of children in the country die before the age of five.
The Republic of Chad in the Western part of Africa has fared no better. According to the BBC, the country, which is Africa’s fifth-largest nation, suffers from inadequate infrastructure and internal conflict. The country which has been ruled by Idriss Deby for 21 years and his reign has coincided with unprecedented levels of poverty and poor health, as well as debilitating social and economic conditions. The poor standard of living present in the Republic of Chad is identical to the conditions which have festered in Eritrea during the course of President Isaias Afeweki’s 18 year reign and in Yahya Jammeh’s Gambia during his 17 year term.
Following the overthrow of Ben Ali of Tunisia, Hosni Mubarak of Egypt and Libya’s Muammar Gaddafi, there remain 17 African leaders who have served terms of between 11 to 32 years in power. These leaders can also hardly be said to have assumed power by way of free and fair democratic elections. It should however not be forgotten that the people of Zimbabwe and most recently Uganda have engaged in peaceful protests against poor living conditions, spiralling levels of poverty and rising costs of living. Unsurprisingly, these protests have been brutally suppressed by their leaders. However, Laurent Gbagbo’s overthrow as President of the Ivory Coast after over a decade in power is perhaps an indication that Sub-Saharan Africans, like their North African and Arab neighbours, also thirst for the waters of democracy. At present however, it remains to be seen whether the Arab Spring, unwittingly sparked by Mohammed Bouazizi, will birth the eagerly anticipated Sub-Saharan summer.
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