We helped the French destroy the jihadi-dominated secession of sparsely populated northern Mali which is largely inhabited by Tuaregs who had long resented southern rule by black Africans.
I noted that in many ways the Tuaregs had a good point in wanting secession. Had it not been for their alliance with jihadis to break away from the central government, the Tuaregs could have been the sentimental favorite in the struggle against a corrupt, coup-rattled government.
But then the Tuaregs go and show why even without jihadi allies they are less than admirable:
Some aid groups are agitating for the government to pass laws criminalizing slavery. While the Mali constitution bans slavery (a clause inserted to appease foreign donors) laws making slavery illegal were never passed. So over 200,000 Malians (mostly black Africans) continue in bondage, mostly in the north were their owners tend to be Tuareg or Arab. The slaveholders insist that this is all an ancient tradition that is being misinterpreted by foreigners. But it is slavery and it still exists throughout the Moslem world. The anti-slavery movement, which is backed by a large minority of Malians, may encounter difficulty in the north where the Tuareg majority is still pushing for autonomy. That would probably include more tolerance for slavery.
Slavery. That's just effing great. People think our race relations are bad? When overt racism is apparently so rare here that liberal activists need to manufacture hate (tip to Instapundit on this one) from a racist, white-supremacist, right-wing cabal that won't cooperate and do it on their own?
I'm glad we helped the French smash up the jihadis. That had to be done. But why the sainted international community would pour money into northern Mali to rebuild when that "ancient tradition" endures is beyond me.
