Introduction

Several African nations were directly or indirectly involved in genocides or mass atrocities perpetrated by European powers. Here are the key cases:

Rwanda

France was implicated in supporting the Hutu-led government prior to and during the 1994 genocide.

France provided arms and military training to Hutu militias that later carried out the genocide.

The UK indirectly contributed by proposing to reduce UN peacekeeping forces as the genocide began.

Namibia (formerly German South West Africa)

Site of the Herero and Nama Genocide from 1904-1908, carried out by German colonial forces.

Approximately 65,000 Herero and 10,000 Nama people were killed.

Germany used tactics such as forced labor, concentration camps, and extermination orders.

Democratic Republic of Congo (formerly Belgian Congo)

Under King Leopold II of Belgium’s rule, millions of Congolese died due to forced labor, murder, and starvation.

The Belgian colonial administration used tactics of torture, mutilation, and mass killings to exploit rubber resources.

Algeria

France’s colonial conquest and subsequent war of independence resulted in widespread violence and civilian deaths.

An estimated 500,000 to 1 million Algerians were killed during the initial conquest period.

Kenya

British colonial forces committed atrocities against the Kikuyu people during the Mau Mau uprising in the 1950s.

Tactics included forced labor, torture, and sexual abuse in detention camps.

Nigeria (Biafra)

The UK government secretly armed and backed Nigeria’s campaign against the secessionist region of Biafra from 1967-1970.

This conflict resulted in up to three million deaths, largely due to starvation caused by a blockade.

Conclusion

These cases demonstrate how European colonial powers directly or indirectly contributed to mass atrocities and genocides in Africa through policies of exploitation, divide-and-rule tactics, and violent suppression of resistance.

Intent of the author is to reflect on history and look at present events happening in Africa especially Europe.

Where in African development has been left behind by a decade Africa, Europe now faces political uncertainty by US and Russia.