"LE GABON ENERVANT" OR "ANNOYING GABON"

English version The article entitled « The Quai d’Orsay hindered an investigation for crimes against humanity in Gabon », signed by journalist Maël Jouan and published in Marianne, deals with the mechanisms of Françafrique and French diplomatic interference in judicial cases affecting its historical allies. The investigation focusses on the consequences of the post-election violence of 2016 in Gabon, perpetrated by the Ali Bongo regime. At that time, complaints had been filed in France for crimes against humanity, in particular targeting the bloody repression carried out by the Gabonese security forces: assaults against the headquarters of the opponent Jean Ping, disappearances, summary executions. The article reveals how reason of state prevailed over justice. The author demonstrates that the French Ministry of Foreign Affairs (the Quai d’Orsay) exerted pressure or used administrative levers to slow down the progress of the judicial investigation. The objective was to avoid a...

English version The Spanish government of Pedro Sánchez is positioned as one of the strongest critics of the Donald Trump administration; which has just triggered an unprecedented crisis between Madrid and Washington. Spain recently denied US forces access to its military bases in Rota and Morón for operations related to strikes against Iran. Madrid invokes respect for international law and the absence of a UN mandate. Pedro Sánchez hammered the slogan « No a la guerra » (No to war), warning that the conflict in the Middle East amounts to playing Russian roulette with the fate of millions of people. In response, Donald Trump threatened to break all trade with Spain, describing the country as a terrible and uncooperative partner. The Spanish government said it would not be complicit for fear of reprisals. It relies on European solidarity, recalling that trade policy is a competence of the European Union and not of the individual Member States. Brussels and Paris (via Emmanuel M...

 

English version It is a Gabonese classic, albeit frustrating. People in power who are unable to provide the easy things, have the gall to claim their technical firepower on things that even the West finds almost impossible. In Gabon, dear reader, governance is often prioritized for control rather than for service. Gabon has failing infrastructure but the regime is focused on high-tech digital policing. This is a common laugh-or-cry moments. Germain Ngoyo Moussavou, President of the High Authority of Communication (HAC) in Gabon, essentially admits that the state is actively working to bridge technical gaps to block VPNs. While the authorities claim to have the necessary technology, there are several reasons why this feels like a cruel joke. Anyone with half a brain knows that fully blocking VPNs is notoriously difficult. While a state can block known VPN server IP addresses or use Deep Packet Inspection (DPI) to find VPN traffic, developers are constantly creating new obfuscation proto...

English version When someone like Alain-Claude Bilie-By-Nze speaks, his newly found lucidity isn't just accidental. Having served as the ultimate shield for the Bongo system for years, the voice of the PDG, he understands the mechanics of Gabonese power better than almost anyone.  When he critiques Oligui Nguema, he isn't guessing about the risks of autocracy; he’s describing a playbook he helped write. There is a specific kind of clarity that comes to a propagandist once they are pushed out of the inner circle. They suddenly see every flaw they previously spent years airbrushing away. By being the first to point out the new regime's old habits, they surprise everyone by seeming to always be ahead of everyone. The most effective way for a discredited figure to regain relevance is to say what everyone else is too afraid (or too hopeful) to admit. In Gabon’s case, the moment of lucidity Bilie-By-Nze is offering is the suggestion that military populism is just civilian autocra...