"Squeezed out of sanctuaries elsewhere in the world, al-Qaida may be considering new havens in Africa where they can exploit weak governments and take advantage of lawless deserts or jungles to train, recruit and plan future operations, the deputy head of U.S. forces in Europe said Friday," reports the Herald Tribune.

"Mauritania and Nigeria are among West African nations alleged by some Western think-tanks to have al-Qaida cells. Top figures from Osama bin Laden's al-Qaida circle came from Mauritania, although the government publicly cracked down hard on alleged Muslim extremism, and on alleged recruiting of fighters for Saddam Hussein's cause in Iraq."

Once again, we are asked to believe al-Qaeda is a maleficent force of evil, taking advantage of the weak in its interminable war against the infidels. And yet, once we take a closer look at Nigeria, things become a little more focused.

"Nigeria has... an abundance of natural resources, especially hydrocarbons. It is the 10th largest oil producer in the world, the third largest in Africa and the most prolific oil producer in Sub-Saharan Africa. The Nigerian economy is largely dependent on its oil sector which supplies 95% of its foreign exchange earnings," explains the MBendi Information for Africa website.

Obviously of more concern to the Bushites and their buddies in Big Oil is the unstable situation in Nigeria -- the largest oil producer in Africa and the United State's fifth-largest supplier. "Locals often kidnap oil workers and demand ransom money from the oil companies," notes the BBC. "Sometimes they also demand infrastructure, such as roads, schools or clinics."

In July of 2002, hundreds of Nigerian women stormed an oil plant on Escravos island, off the southern coast, and demanded local facilities and jobs and contracts for their children. "We have nothing to show for over 30 years of the company's existence," Lucky Lelekumo, spokeswoman for Ijaw activists, told the media.

Chevron Nigeria eventually agreed to hire more than two dozen villagers and build schools, water systems and other amenities.

"The oil companies can't pretend they don't know what's happening all around them," Kenneth Roth, executive director of Human Rights Watch, said in 1999. "The Nigerian government obviously has the primary responsibility to stop human rights abuse [perpetuated by Nigerian security forces]. But the oil companies are directly benefiting from these crude attempts to suppress dissent, and that means they have a duty to try and stop it."

So eager are the oil companies to stifle dissent, Chevron loaned out a helicopter and boats to attack "villagers in two small communities in Delta State, Opia and Ikenyan, killing at least four people and burning most of the villages to the ground. More than fifty people are still missing. Chevron has alleged to a committee of survivors of the attack that this was a "counterattack" resulting from a confrontation between local youths and soldiers posted to a Chevron drilling rig. Community members deny that any such confrontation took place. In any event, the soldiers' response was clearly disproportionate and excessive," HRW wrote in 1999.

"For the Ogoni, as for other peoples of the Niger delta -- including Ekpeyes, Ibibios, Ijaws, Ikwerres, Ilajes, Itsekiris and Ogbas -- the environmental, social and economic costs of oil exploitation have been high, and very little of the national wealth that their region generates has returned to them," reports the Minority Rights website "During the 1970s and 1980s the Ogoni people increasingly saw that government promises of beneficial development associated with oil production were unreliable. This pattern continues: development projects are not completed; local infrastructure is deteriorating... The high environmental costs of oil exploration and extraction also quickly became apparent, as huge oil spills occurred, drinking water, fishing grounds and farmlands became contaminated, and gas flares caused air pollution."

In addition to environmental degradation, Nigeria has fallen victim to IMF loan sharks. "Under pressure from the International Monetary Fund (IMF), the government has moved quickly to privatize public assets, slash social services, and promote trade liberalization," writes Ben Arenburg. "State-owned industries in several key sectors of the economy, including petroleum, construction, insurance, hotels, cement industries, and telecommunications, are being sold off to the highest bidding multinationals and Nigerian capitalists. These measures have led to mass layoffs, higher prices for services, and a general lowering of living standards."

Neoliberalism and the legacy of colonialism are responsible for much of Nigeria's plight. "Massive protests have erupted, with two general strikes in the last year," Arenburg continues. "But without a clear class-conscious leadership in these struggles, they have failed to show a way out for the working class. In this vacuum of working class leadership, there is a growing tendency toward national fragmentation along ethnic and religious lines. The possibility of an all-out civil war dividing the country cannot be ruled out, which would have devastating consequences for the whole continent."

Last year, "tribal violence left villages in ruins, scores dead and Nigeria's petroleum industry crippled," the Guardian reported. "Thousands of people fled the area to get away from the fighting between Ijaw militants and the Itsekiris and government troops. Only a few civilians have returned to their villages of mud-and-zinc shacks, with many fearing that fighting will break out again. Others fear an army massacre in retaliation for the deaths of at least 10 soldiers and policemen who were among more than 100 people reported killed. The military gunned down hundreds of villagers in 1999 and 2001 in retaliation for the killings of security force officials."

Obviously, if Chevron and Shell are going to pump oil out of the ground as cheaply and efficiently as possible, they will need help dealing with the legacy of colonialism and the ravages of neoliberalism.

The Heritage Foundation, a mad-dog neocon think tank in Washington, is currently pushing for U.S.-based Central Command to take over "responsibility" for Africa, the Herald Tribune explains. Since the US wants to militarily impose stability for the sake of the oil industry in Africa, it only stands to reason al-Qaeda would take up operations there. It will be easier for the corporate media to explain why Bush is in Africa if the demon al-Qaeda is there.

For, as by Matthew Parris of the UK Times has noted, "If we didn't have al-Qaeda, we would have to invent it."

Neoliberalism demands such contrivances.

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