3 - 9 December 1998
Issue No.406
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Al-Ahram Weekly On-line 3 - 9 December 1998 Issue No.406 |
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| Published in Cairo by AL-AHRAM established in 1875 | Current issue | Previous issue | Site map | ||
Arabs or Africans
I attentively followed the African summit held in Paris, and was especially interested in the prominent role Egypt played. I believe firmly in the strong ties that have bound us to the rest of Africa since ancient times. The Nile is like the artery of life running through Egypt, irrigating our land with water pumped through the heart of Africa. That is why Egypt's relations with other African nations have been so important over the centuries. In the modern age, this has become even clearer, especially during Nasser's time, when Arabs and Africans stood together throughout the struggle for freedom from imperialism and oppression.
I believe we should strengthen these ties further in the coming period, as we confront globalisation, in which individual entities have no place. We may be able to give Africa the strength it deserves on the international scene. I only hope the rest of the Arab countries can become a part of this political framework. Most inhabitants of the Arab world are Africans and, in this sense, political divisions mean little. We are one nation, of which one part falls in Asia and the other in Africa. This is why I was distressed at the absence of Libya and Sudan, two Arab African countries, from the summit in Paris. Their participation would have been most beneficial -- for precisely the same reasons that led to their isolation.
Based on an interview by Mohamed Salmawy.
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