No mesmo dia em que Obama confirmava a condição de vencedor, os noticiários internacionais abarrotavam de notícias terríveis sobre África. No mesmo dia da vitória da maioria norte-americana, África continuava sendo derrotada por guerras, má gestão, ambição desmesurada de políticos gananciosos. Depois de terem morto a democracia, esses políticos estão matando a própria política. Resta a guerra, em alguns casos. Outros, a desistência e o cinismo. Só há um modo verdadeiro de celebrar Obama nos países africanos: é lutar para que mais bandeiras de esperança possam nascer aqui, no nosso continente. É lutar para que Obamas africanos possam também vencer. E nós, africanos de todas as etnias e raças, vencermos com esses Obamas e celebrarmos em nossa casa aquilo que agora festejamos em casa alheia.

On the same day that Obama was confirmed as the winner, there were plenty of terrible pieces about Africa in the international news coverage. On the same day of the victory for the majority of Americans, Africa was still being defeated by wars, mismanagement, and the excessive ambition of greedy politicians. After having killed democracy, these politicians are killing their own politics. The war remains in some cases. In others, there are flinch and cynicism. There is only one real way of celebrating Obama in the African countries: it is fighting so that more flags of hope may rise here in our continent. It is fighting for the African Obamas to win too. And we, Africans of all races and ethnicity, will win together with these Obamas and celebrate in our house what we now celebrate elsewhere.

Some people disagreed with that view and considered it a comparison between apples and pears. Mozambican sociologist Patricio Langa replies saying that Couto was comparing 300 years of the establishment of democratic institutions in the US with two decades in Africa, and pointing out that the idea of predatory elites is a widespread and unfortunate defect of reasoning. He mentions a book by Patrick Chabal and Jean Pascal Daloz, “Africa Works: Disorder as a political Instrument” as the academic background of such arguments. The blogger concludes:

Perguntem aos americanos quantas guerras antecederam a sua democracia secular, quantas pilhagens houve até desenvolverem instituições credíveis (e mesmo assim caíram na maior crise corrupta do sistema bancário); quantos políticos desonestos se descobrem hoje na terra do tio SAM; quantos corruptos são denunciados e tantos outros escapam; perguntem aos americanos como se lida com os lobbyistas. Aí veremos que o problema não reside apenas na condição genética de político africano. Não estou a sugerir com isto que a África tenha que passar pela mesma trilha. Estou simplesmente a sugerir que África devia ser analisada por seus próprios termos. Não existe nenhuma possibilidade de se pensar num Obama africano, assim como é absurdo pensar-se, ainda que se faça, numa África que são os EUA.

Ask Americans how many wars there were prior to their secular democracy, how much looting took place until they developed credible institutions (and even then they fell in the greatest corrupt crisis of their banking system); how many dishonest politicians are uncovered today in Uncle Sam's land; how many corrupt people are denounced and how many others manage to escape; ask Americans how to deal with lobbyists. Then we will see that the problem is not only with the genetic condition of African politicians. I am not suggesting that Africa has to go through the same paths. I'm simply suggesting that Africa should be examined by its own terms. There is no possibility of thinking about an African Obama, as well as it is absurd to think, although it has been done, about an Africa that is the USA.

Angolan blogger Koluki follows the surreal trail to “try to imagine an Africa that was the United States of Africa,” which would be a country with the following characteristics:

1. Os EUA Africanos estariam independentes ha’ mais de dois seculos e nao teriam existido guerras de libertacao contra o colonialismo durante decadas. Caso, por alguma razao, tivessem existido ‘movimentos de libertacao’, estes tenderiam a perseguir os seus objectivos atraves de protestos, marchas, boicotes, cancoes e sonhos, sendo pouco provavel que se organizassem em exercitos armados.

2. Os EUA Africanos teriam adoptado uma Constituicao guiada por ideais libertarios, tanto em termos de liberdade economica como individual e nao teriam seguido estrategias de desenvolvimento socialista lideradas por ex-guerrilheiros marxistas ou maoistas coadjuvados por poetas e romancistas e aconselhados por acessores estrangeiros.

3. Os lideres dos EUA Africanos, independentemente da sua raca, etnicidade, genero ou origem geografica, nao seriam simplesmente apontados e ‘entronados’ em posicoes governamentais ou empresariais com base na sua militancia partidaria, mais antiga ou mais recente, mas teriam que, no primeiro caso, concorrer a eleicoes regulares sancionadas pelo sufragio universal, tanto a nivel do seu partido como a nivel nacional, em condicoes de igualdade com qualquer outro candidato elegivel e, no segundo caso, demonstrar as suas capacidades e competencias atraves de resultados positivos observaveis e aprovados pelos ‘shareholders’ das suas empresas ou, dito de outro modo, teriam que ‘subir a pulso’.

She then asks if Barack Obama would be elected the president of the United States of African, and answers: “YES HE COULD!”

Obama's victory has moved Americans and people all over the world. It is as if we were thirsty for change. It is as if the great leader we have been waiting for arrived at last. From New York, Mozambican blogger Manuel Araújo [pt] tells of the huge crowd that gathered at Times Square to see Obama. The blogger says he will be proud to tell his grandchildren he was there at this historic moment:

“A explosao de alegria no Time Square foi tanta que por momentos fiquei surdo! As lagrimas foram tantas que me senti por segundos sufocado e afogado naquele mar de alegria! A felicidade tao grande que por segundos senti um no pescoco! O ar tao quente que por segundos senti o calor da raca humana! Um calor que nuna tinha sentido antes. No Times square, hoje descobri que quando o ideal e a esperanca e grande existe apenas uma raca - A RACA HUMANA! Que nao ha negros ou brancos, mulatos ou latinos, africanos ou asiaticos, vermelhos, azuis, pobres, ricos, nordicos, autralianos, pakistanis, kenyanos, zambianos, dominiquenhos, costariquenos, japoneses! A diversidade de racas, nacionalidades, estratos sociais representadas fez-me recordar a figura biblica da Arca de Noe!”.

Angolan blog A Casa de Luanda [Luanda House, pt] made clear they shared the hopes deposited in Obama with their readers:

“Obama emocionou-me com o seu discurso. Lembrou-nos de como um país deve ir muito além de uma colectividade de indíviduos. Deve ser uma unidade de pessoas que olham umas para as outras. Lembrou que temos histórias diferentes, mas um mesmo destino. Que enquanto respiramos, temos esperança. E principalmente, convocou os americanos e o mundo para um novo espírito de trabalho, baseado na responsabilidade, nas alianças, na esperança, na liberdade e na paz. Espero que o discurso ecoe em Angola, pois este país precisa como ninguém de todos esses valores”.

With Barack Obama as president come confusing feelings. Most of the president's supporters are now happy with this victory because Obama is of black descent, and I believe that this may help him combat racial discrimination and to become a standard-bearer for the black race. In Kenya, the country of the U.S. president elect's father's birth, they naively wait salvation at Obama's hands, hoping that he will pursue the corrupt politicians there and that it will be easier to obtain visas to enter American soil. It is the “American dream” in action, materialized and delivered by Obama in his post-victory speech. But first and foremost, Barack Obama is American and was keen to stress this even during the campaign. The author from Menina de Angola [Angolan Girl, pt] reflects on the same thing:

“Angola está sorrindo, bom pelo menos a minoria que entende ou acha que entende o que está acontecendo mundo. Os poucos angolanos com acesso à informação comemoram a vitória de Barack Obama, brindam ao primeiro negro da história mundial, mas cá com os meus botões, não vejo bem o que muda para nós pobres mortais. Não vejo como a cor da pele pode alterar o rumo da história do dia para a noite. Por acaso o racismo vai acabar? A fome e miséria do mundo vão desaparecer como num passe de mágica? Os conflitos intermináveis no médio oriente terão fim? Ele é apenas mais um americano no poder, com os mesmos ideiais de todos os americanos. É mais um capitalista rico que veio de família rica e teve acesso às melhores escolas. Mas acima de tudo ele é apenas um ser humano, não um mágico, messias ou super homem com super poderes, capaz de resolver todos os problemas do mundo do dia para a noite. Não estou fazendo propaganda contra, muito pelo contrário, fiquei muito feliz com a vitória de Obama, mas não porque ele é negro, branco, amarelo ou rosa choque, mas sim porque a sua plataforma de governo inclui entre outras coisas, uma grande preocupação com o meio ambiente. Eu vou comemorar de verdade daqui a 4 ou 5 anos quando as promessas de campanha tornarem-se realidade”.

The Chez Ludgero [pt] blog from Cape Verde shows his enthusiasm for Barack Obama, writing:

“Barack Obama é um fenómeno global. Fala-se dele em todas as línguas, em todos os países. Aqui em Cabo Verde tornou-se usual ver-se gente de todas as raças, de culturas diferenciadas, oriundas de vários pontos do globo, falando de Obama. A África lusófona ficou orfã depois de perder os seus líderes históricos (Cabral, Neto, Mondlane e Machel). E isso um pouco em consequência de alguma reticência em relação a Kalungano e alguns outros, por causa da mistura de raças que corporizam. A consagração de Obama, num ambiente como o dos Estados Unidos, pode chamar toda a África à razão, mormente os países lusófonos, cuja maior riqueza reside na mistura de raças e no encontro de culturas. A consagração da educação como a chave que abre todas as portas (mesmo as da Casa Branca) seria a maior lição a tirar da trajectória de Obama.”

Whatever the reasons for supporting Obama, the new American president has managed to generate a strong empathy around him, both locally and internationally. Kianda from O silêncio da Kianda [Kianda's Silence, pt] expresses with no shame her admiration for the elected president:

“Gosto de Obama porque sou muito mais democrata do que republicana, na minha essência de mais de esquerda do que conservadora. Sou a favor do aborto, do casamento dos homossexuais, da sensibilidade para questões sociais, da não ingerência arbitrária dos EUA na política interna do resto do mundo. Acredito muito mais no programa de Obama para resolver ou controlar os problemas económicos dentro dos Estados, o que tem sempre consequências no resto do mundo. Acredito mais na calma e na serenidade de Obama para julgar os problemas. Tem o sangue frio necessário para esta altura da história.”

Architect, Illustrator, Cartoonist João thanks Obama with this cartoon at Timor Cartoon International:

Thank you Barack!

Seja qual for o resultado…

“Next time I come around here, George Bush shall not be the President and it may well be the case that in his place there will be a woman (Hillary Clinton) or an African-American (Barrack Obama).
Both hypotheses are absolutely unprecedented in the history of this country, a political projection that certainly already frightens the conservative right wing, center and left wing Americans.
To say the truth, I no longer know what frightens these conservative [people] more, whether it is being governed by a totally blond woman or having a partially black president.”

About a year later Barack Obama has left the blond woman completely behind in a highly disputed and quarrelsome internal campaign and he is now the Democratic candidate for the forthcoming U.S. presidential elections planned for November.
Who would say so?
The enslavers of deep inside America (which still exist and are more than many) must not believe their eyes, nor their ears.
It is a real nightmare!
In other words, the world is getting ready to face a United States soon to be governed by a eloquent “black” [man], a fact still far from being a fait accompli, despite the many thousands of kilometers and speeches Obama has already run on the way to Washington DC.
It is difficult to make a right prediction, but now there are just two possibilities.
McCain or Obama.
May the best win, which is certainly our candidate.
It is not only because of the colour of his skin, which is like ours, but also because of the brilliance of ideas and glint of arguments, even though we know that it is possible the campaign's promises of change, particularly in foreign policy, will not go ahead even if he becomes the next tenant of the White House.
Campaigning and governance are distinct moments in the life of a politician who wants to come to power. Only when they are there we can proof of the pudding when it comes to coherence and consistency.
We will therefore have to wait a little longer.

Irving Wallace in his novel “The Man” described a situation where for the first time the United States were governed by a black [person].
Good to re-read this book, at a time when reality is about to overcome fiction.
In his famous best-seller, Wallace imagined, in the 60's, the arrival of the first black (Douglas Dilman) to power in the United States as a result of a fatality, that is, following the unexpected death of the elected President.
Now Obama may come to power as a result of the elections by a population that is largely white and conservative. Right-center, like McCain.
At this point, irrespective of the outcome that he might get in the end of the forthcoming clash, Obama has already won.
Obama's victory is also over those among us who continue to believe that humanity still moves on in accordance with their prejudices, hatreds and repression, where everything else is taken as “atypical”.
It turns out that the “atypical ones” are increasing in greater numbers to question “theories” and “thesis” which are no longer able to convince anyone, apart from their authors and their most faithful followers.
Last year, Obama said something that particularly moved me, and that for most part would have contributed to his extraordinary political success.
He said that if he doesn't win the elections it would not be because it he is black or because the United States are not yet prepared to have a non-white in the White House.
His failure would have been explained, he argued, only for the fact that he was unable to convince Americans with rational arguments to vote for him. Only that.
Obama has already convinced the Democrats, who are millions.
Now it is a matter of convincing others millions in a strange election where not always the one who has the majority of popular votes wins.
The current misery of the world, resulting of the election of George Bush over the environmentalist Al Gore, was due to this system, which for us is something absurd and surreal.

It represents just a drop from Angola's overflowing oil revenue barrel.

But diplomats from Angola are leaving nothing to chance now that President George W. Bush is in the White House. They spent 21-thousand dollars for a quarter-page advertisement in the Washington Post newspaper's inauguration day edition — a very public display of their hopes.

The ad conveyed the Angolan government's congratulations but also reaffirmed what was termed Angola's “firm desire to find peace” after decades of civil war.

It also said authorities in Luanda want peace so they can press ahead with the country's “social and economic development” — a promise clearly aimed at heading off critics who charge that for years Angola's vast oil revenues have done little to improve the lot of the nation's largely impoverished population. They charge that corrupt officials have siphoned off vast fortunes and squandered more and more money on expensive military hardware needed in the Angolan government's continuing battle against Angola's UNITA rebels.

As for the UNITA movement, there have been no expensive advertisements to greet the new administration. But rebel leader Jonas Savimbi is clearly hoping for some new, pro-UNITA policy initiatives from President Bush.

Mr. Savimbi has purportedly written letters to both the new president and his new secretary of state, Colin Powell. Officials at the State Department say they cannot confirm the authenticity of the documents.

But in copies made available by sources close to UNITA, the rebel side says it is “encouraged” by the president's emphasis on “consensus, listening, and reconciliation.” Mr. Savimbi says in his letter to Mr. Powell that he hopes these characteristics will help resolve the Angola crisis.

UNITA received US backing under past Republican administrations but fell out of favor under President Bill Clinton, a Democrat. Former Clinton National Security Advisor Anthony Lake is understood to have vowed at the outset of the Clinton administration to “finish off” UNITA leader Savimbi.

But Mr. Savimbi and his rebels remain a factor in Angola — a factor that cannot be ignored. Rebels forces fight on despite US support for UNITA's international isolation, United Nations sanctions designed to cripple the rebels, and the Angolan government's firm refusal to have anything further to do with Mr. Savimbi.

The Luanda government blames him for the breakdown of the Angolan peace process, saying he violated the disarmament and demilitarization pledges made by UNITA in a 1994 peace agreement.

The new Bush administration has given few signals yet about how it intends to proceed in Angola. In his confirmation hearings, Secretary of State Powell lumped Angola together with Sierra Leone, Liberia, and the Democratic Republic of Congo. He described them as places of conflict where the search for compromise, dialogue, and peace should replace war and killing.

That could be a hint the Bush administration will press authorities in Luanda to reopen talks with UNITA.

One South Africa-based analyst who closely follows events in Angola has already told me he is worried a change in US policy could, in his words “complicate matters wildly.”

But diplomatic sources side with the well-informed publication “Africa Confidential” in predicting that President Bush's policy is likely to be guided more by oil interests and improving relations with Luanda than by old Republican associations with UNITA.