Muammar Qaddafi Was A Hero

Yeah, I don't get it either. However, in the aftermath of Qaddafi's capture and death, many of my young African peers have emerged saying just this.

A Nigerian friend of mine, let's call her Jennifer, posted on Facebook: "Very sad about Gaddafi is dead, I would have preferred he negotiated with NTC and agree on transitional date. He was one of the few African leaders that used the country's wealth to develop the country and for the good of the people. Well, he got his wish and fought till the end." After being challenged by a friend of hers, also Nigerian, who responded "After stuffing his own pockets, you mean," Jennifer then responds with "I wish our leaders developed our country like that and still stuff their pockets! We won't be where we are will we?"

Another friend of mine, let's call her Eve, lamented on Facebook: "Another HERO gone!!!!" She too was challenged by several of her friends, but one "Joseph" adamantly took her side. Joseph, who is also African, listed a number of statistics that illustrated the improvements Qaddafi made to Libya, and another person, "Andrew," challenged him saying: "Social development doesn't mean any thing when democracy and freedom of expression lack." In response, Joseph wrote: "[S]ocial development means everything!!! All those other things you just mentioned can be viewed as 'bonuses'... The fundamental thing we want for ourselves and our kids is food and job security, medical care and education.. When you have that, then you can start expressing yourself, and go to vote, etc etc."

::blank stare::

I... I can't.

I mean what good is living in a developed country where you have no rights? It's like living in a mansion with everything you need, but the owner tells you that you can't leave. Pretty soon that mansion is going to start feeling like a jail. Also, I wasn't aware that the streets of Libya were paved with gold. The average Libyan lives on $2/day while Qaddafi's own assets numbered $200 BILLION when he died. So why are these people (and many others) saying Qaddafi developed his country and Africa when he clearly put his desires before the needs of his own people. And, Jennifer's statement that she wished Nigerian leaders developed their country and then stole was particularly disheartening because it shows that many Africans just plainly accept corruption. Furthermore, did they even consider the fact that Qaddafi funded some of the most bloody conflicts on the African continent, including the wars in Liberia and Sierra Leone?

Even though my friends' statements kind of infuriated me, no comment bothered me more than "Joesph's" assertion that democracy and freedom of expression are "bonuses" and that social development is a predecessor of a people claiming their rights (self-expression, voting, etc). This notion exemplifies the traditional African mentality that people should be ruled rather than rule themselves. It is the same notion that fuels Africa's worst tyrants, including Qaddafi, and that keeps Africans at the bottom of the developmental totem pole. But I had to wonder, are Africans content with a dictator - as long as they perceive him to be benevolent? Sure does seem like it.

I do want to believe that my friends' views are justified in some way - after all these are educated people. Qaddafi definitely stood up to the West, which is a trait Africans tend to appreciate, especially because many of their leaders pander to Western leaders. Maybe he did develop Libya in substantial ways. Maybe he did do more for Africa as a whole than any contemporary African leader. Maybe I just don't know enough. But even if Qaddafi did do good, his deeds will forever be overshadowed by the iron fist he used to keep Libya under his control for 42 years. The disappearing dissenters, the public executions, the bodies of those who challenged him rotting in public view for days just so he could instill fear in his people -- it is clear now that none of these things were far from the minds of the Libyan people.

Perhaps the ultimate irony is that, according to reports, Qaddafi was shot with his own golden gun by a 20-year-old Libyan rebel. He was so hated by his own people that they handed him the ultimate insult and paraded his body in the streets for all the world to see.

Muammar Qaddafi a hero? I think not.