On August 11, 2023, two weeks after the coup d’état in Niger, Philippe Toyo Noudjènoumè, general secretary of the Communist Party of Benin, wrote a letter to the president of his country, Patrice Talon, and asked a precise and simple question: “What interests led Benin to go to war with Niger, to starve its ‘sister’ population?”
He continued: “You want to commit the people of Benin to suffocating the people of Niger for France’s strategic interests. I demand that you refuse to involve our country in any aggressive operation against the sister population of Niger. Listen to the voice of our people, for peace, harmony and the development of the African people.”
At the time, he was denouncing a situation that persists to this day in West Africa: the strategic role that Benin occupies for French interests in the region, including by allowing the presence of French military personnel on the border with Niger and Burkina Faso.
“Unfortunately, my country now serves as a base for the military and geopolitical strategy of France and NATO,” explains Noudjènoumè, in an exclusive interview with Brasil de Fato.
The growing anti-French sentiment currently observed among the population of the Sahel countries, which has culminated in the overthrow of governments in Mali, Burkina Faso and Niger in recent years, increased after the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) invaded Libya in 2011 in a war supposedly to “protect civilians” and against the continued rule of Libyan leader Muammar Gaddafi, who had been in power for 42 years.
France’s interest in invading Libya, however, was also economic. In 2009, Gaddafi proposed that African nations adopt a single currency: the gold dinar. This would allow African countries to free themselves from the domination of the US dollar and, in the case of West Africa, also from the Central African CFA franc, a colonial currency used in 14 countries in the region and controlled entirely by France.
In the war that toppled the Libyan leader, NATO brought in jihadist fighters, such as veterans of the Libyan Islamic Fighting Group, from the Syria-Turkey border, and encouraged other jihadist forces that had already been defeated in the Algerian Civil War (1991-2002).
It was after the end of the conflict that a group of secessionist groups, trans-Saharan smugglers and branches of Al-Qaeda marched south of the Sahara and began to occupy large parts of the Sahel. Today, the region is also marked by the presence of the Islamic State of the Sahel Province (IS Sahel), an offshoot of the Islamic State in the region.
The presence of Islamic fundamentalist groups in this vast area between the Sahara desert and the Gabonese forest was the ideal justification for French and American military intervention in the Sahel, with the establishment of Operation Barkhane (2013) and the creation of the neo-colonial G-5 Sahel project.
The French military presence, however, has not resulted in an effective fight against terrorists. On the contrary, there have been complaints of “inefficiency” and “lack of partnership” in containing these groups over the last decade.
Currently, the three countries are helping each other fight these groups through the Alliance of Sahel States (AES), after expelling the French military from their territories with the force of street demonstrations.
“Actually, there is no such thing as terrorism. There is France. There is no terrorism, there are elements created by France to create insecurity in African countries. They are created, fomented, set up, organized, financed and trained militarily by the French,” says Noudjènoumè.
The audacity to confront neo-colonial structures and put an end to submission to France in the region is what motivated the creation of the West African Peoples’ Organization (WAPO), of which Noudjènoumè is now president.
Alongside Pan Africanism Today, WAPO was one of the organizers of the Conference in Solidarity with the Peoples of the Sahel, which took place between November 19 and 21 in Niamey, the capital of Niger.
Read the full interview:
Brasil de Fato: Philippe, let’s start by talking about the Conference in Solidarity with the Peoples of the Sahel. Can you take stock of everything that was seen and discussed over the three days? Are you happy with the outcome?
Philippe Toyo Noudjènoumè: The first thing to say is that there have been major events over the last three, two and a half years in the Sahel, especially in the three countries of Mali, Burkina Faso and Niger. A great popular movement is taking place and the rulers are taking patriotic measures of anti-colonial liberation, especially from French colonization, parallel measures on a political level, on an economic level, on a cultural level and on a scientific level.
We are currently witnessing a special situation in which African countries are managing to free themselves from foreign domination, particularly French domination, and from NATO forces. In order to make this situation better known, we decided, as WAPO, and with the support of international friends, to hold an international conference in support of the people of the Sahel in Niamey. The conference was organized with the support of the Nigerien government, which helped us enormously in the preparation and organization of this event.
In fact, during the three days we were here, from November 19 to 21, the Nigerien government paid special attention to us and put everything at our disposal, not to mention the support of all the Nigerien people, from the opening of this conference on November 19, which was attended by the Prime Minister of Niger, to the last day, where we were received by the Head of State, the President of the National Council for the Safeguarding of the Homeland, Abdourahamane Tiani. This shows that two wills have come together, the will of the world’s supporters and the will of Niger’s leaders, for us to have succeeded in this cycle.
The initial objective was for the world to know about the experience of the AES (Alliance of Sahel States), all the peoples of the world, especially Latin Americans, who don’t know about it. The second objective was to give the people of Niger confidence in what they are doing, in the reality and greatness of what they are building here in Niger. Finally, to allow the people of West Africa to do as they do, because that is, in fact, the only way to liberate Africa. Having said that, we believe that our conference was a complete success.
BDF: We noted that the formation of the Alliance of Sahel States (AES) was important in strengthening the countries amid threats of military invasion by ECOWAS. What are the main challenges for these three countries on the road to independence and confronting imperialist forces, especially France in the region?
PTN: In fact, all three countries face a challenge. The three countries have in common French imperialist aggression by terrorist elements. The three countries, Mali, Burkina, Niger, are the object of French and NATO aggression, which has brought in terrorists to create insecurity. These countries have an interest in fighting together, in uniting against a common enemy.
So the AES (Alliance of Sahel States) is a rescue for them. They pool their military forces to defend themselves, they pool their economies, it’s the only way for them to win and succeed, to win everywhere. And in doing so, they are helping the whole of Africa to do as they do. And all African countries are looking in that direction.
All African countries today, especially the countries around them, the West African countries, are all looking in the same direction as the people of the Sahel. Because they all want to do as they do to free themselves from the, shall we say, imperialist domination embodied by France and the NATO forces. It is therefore in their interest to unite. By uniting, they become stronger, and are stronger, and they can defend themselves better.
That’s why I say it again: their interest lies in consolidating a great unity, in strengthening the AES and even in setting up a federation of Africa, allowing space to integrate military, economic and industrial structures.
BDF: Can you explain what the West African Peoples’ Organization (WAPO) is and why it was created?
PTN: The West African Peoples’ Organization (WAPO) was created by patriotic African revolutionaries from West Africa, with the help of international and other organizations of world revolutionaries who helped us. It was necessary to create an organization to bring together all the revolutionary forces in West Africa, political movements, social movements, economic movements, trade union movements and revolutionaries together, to create a force, to make the patriotic revolution in West Africa.
This region today comprises around 16 countries, including Mauritania. That’s all the ECOWAS countries, plus Mauritania on top. The aim is to make the people of West Africa aware of the need to organize themselves and fight to free themselves from domination, we call it imperialist domination, in particular from the imperialist forces of NATO.
That’s why it was created. And we work from the popular sectors, from the West African workers’ organization, the women’s organization, the peasants’ organization, all together to help raise popular consciousness about all the workers, farmers, women, young people of West Africa, to enable us jointly to liberate ourselves. That’s why the AES intervention is a good thing for us. This is the realization of our objectives. We are happy to be with them and we believe that other countries will join the ranks of the AES. Other countries will make the patriotic revolution.
BDF: Now, let’s talk about Benin. The governments of the AES and the popular movements of West Africa have been denouncing the French military presence in the north of the country, especially on the country’s border with Niger and Burkina Faso. How do you see the relationship between France and Benin today? Could the country be a strategic location for France’s interests in the region?
PTN: Unfortunately, my country today serves as a base for the military and geopolitical strategy of France and NATO. In fact, as soon as the French and American military forces were expelled from Niger, they focused on Benin and Côte d’Ivoire. The two countries oversee the AES countries, the two countries on the coast bordering Niger, Mali and Burkina Faso. They chose these two countries and, unfortunately, my country Benin is there.
In fact, since February 2023, the government of Benin has signed an agreement to install French military bases. It’s real. A military cooperation agreement for the installation of French military bases in Benin was signed at the Elysée Palace [the seat of the French government in Paris] in February 2023. And in fact, as soon as the French forces were expelled from Niger, they arrived in Benin. And I can tell you that these forces are still in Benin today.
Spread out there, in small light forces, to support the Beninese forces, in the regions close to the borders of Niger and Burkina Faso. Benin borders both countries, Burkina Faso and Niger. So they are there. This is a serious matter. And so I understand the mistrust of the government of Niger, which won’t agree to reopen its borders as long as the military bases, supported by the French, which are spread out there, are still in place in Benin. It’s very serious.
BDF: How do you see the presence of terrorist groups today in this border region of the Sahel?
PTN: Actually, there is no terrorism. There is France. There is no terrorism, there are elements created by France to create insecurity in African countries. They are created, fostered, set up, organized, financed and militarily trained by the French. And we see that wherever there are French military bases, the number of terrorists increases and their actions become more tense. It’s a formation of imperialism, starting with the NATO forces in West Africa.
So we have to fight them firmly. And by fighting France, by fighting, let’s say, the French government, by fighting the fake French military, we will also eradicate the security problem with terrorists. And that’s what should make it possible to mobilize all the African peoples. This means that when you have been conquered by war, you must be liberated by war. This is the case today, this is the anti-colonial war that the peoples of West Africa are facing. The so-called security war, but a war in reality against colonial France.
BDF: During these days of the conference in Niamey, we saw a synergy between the government and civil society on the road to this anti-colonial and revolutionary breakthrough in Niger. In your opinion, what is the future outlook for this relationship between the people and the military?
PTN: What strengthens the popular movement in Niger is the synergy between the leaders and the people. That makes the government strong. And we have also noticed that the government is making an effort to satisfy the demands of the people, taking measures favorable to the people, reducing taxes, the prices of products, and making a great effort to listen to the people. So, as we can see, there really is a synergy between the government and the people here. I think it must be the same in Mali and Burkina Faso. I wasn’t there to see if this is happening, but I think it must be the same, given the size of the movement. The synergy of the government and the people is decisive for any revolution.
BDF: To close, Philippe, I’d like you to talk a bit about the relationship between the popular movements in West Africa and the Landless Workers’ Movement (MST) in Brazil, which was represented here in Niamey by Neuri Rossetto, also a leader of the International Peoples’ Assembly (IPA). Is there room for partnership between the MST and West African countries?
PTN: I’m an admirer. I admire the MST in Brazil for its formidable work. I’ve known the movement for at least six years, since 2018. And my wish is for relations to be strengthened between the MST and peasant organizations in West Africa. We have huge things to do together. Here we produce cocoa, coffee, all of which is Brazilian too. In short, we have a lot in common. We have agrarian problems almost equally in common.
So we want, at the WAPO level, to draw inspiration from the experiences of the MST and strengthen relations between this movement and the African peoples. We are, in fact, open to any discussion, any exchange of ideas, information and experiences that one or the other can provide in the current context. So we hope that in the days to come we can strengthen relations between the MST and the peasant organizations that exist in West Africa.
This article was translated from an article originally published in Portuguese on Brasil de Fato.
