Regarding the “corporate colonial” thing, I can’t speak for Merrick here but my understanding when that phrase is used in the context of modern Africa is simply that the exploitation of the African continent (and elsewhere) that was carried out by nations (and their agents) in the past has largely continued into the present but in a slightly different guise — the multinational corporation.

Mann’s erstwhile paymasters (Executive Outcomes) are one of several corporations involved in — amongst other things — making sure that the natural resources of Africa flow into Western economies for as far below “a fair price” as is possible. That was pretty much the function of imperialism in the past, so the phrase “corporate colonialism” is justifiable I believe.

I do, 100%, agree with Jim that:
“If we seek a world where the nations of Africa are free from brutal dictators, then we need to be upset when anyone who engages in that kind of activity escapes punishment irregardless of their nationality. Obiang’s continued rule is to be lamented. But so is an attempt by anyone; white or black; to emulate him.”

…also, you’re taking Paul Greengrass’s quote out of context there: it was from 2002 in response to “what was Mann like to work with on Bloody Sunday” – it’s interesting in the same way as people’s comments on Hitler’s paintings. As far as I can see, most British centre-right-to-left press coverage has been more on those lines, “isn’t it weird that an African coup-running mercenary is a posh chap from Eton”, rather than “it’s OK that he’s an African coup-running mercenary because he’s a posh chap from Eton”.

I don’t understand the mindset that being oppressed by a dictator who happens to carry the same passport as you is any better than being oppressed by a governor from abroad.

Neither do I. Which is why I didn’t say that or, as far as I can see, anything like it.

I lament Mann’s release because here was someone who has made a career of killing people in order to take the mineral resources of their countries to enrich himself. He is, in the most direct sense, a corporate colonial killer. He has moved around the world doing it with the arrogance one would expect of the English upper class soldier, entrenching vile regimes and siphoning off wealth, making justice for the peoples of those lands even further out of their reach.

If the idea of such killing and repression for a corporate coup bothers you, then you should be bothered that those who get caught doing it get released from jail after a token spell inside.

I don’t read vile rags like the Telegraph, so if they’re running fawning pieces on Mann

It’s not just the Tory rags, most ‘quality’ papers ran cuddly pictures of him hugging his wife wearing a remembrance poppy. Which they were always going to do, cos he’s one of ours. When he first went down the British press said he was ‘looking more like a jailed intellectual than a freelance commando’ and had quotes calling him a ‘humane man… very English, a romantic, tremendously good company’.

And of course, Africa doesn’t hold a monopoly on corruption or oppression, but that’s where Equatorial Guinea is, and where Simon Mann sought his next fortune, so it’s the object of current focus.

Neither Merrick nor myself have suggested that we see local dictators as acceptable in some way, or that oppression and corruption can be justified by nationality or skin colour. Indeed, I pointed out that your implication that Mann’s coup attempt “didn’t matter”, was almost an endorsement of Obiang (as he isn’t quite as bad as his predecessor). That point is — I believe — an obvious condemnation of the Obiang regime.

But by saying that Mann’s release isn’t something to get worked up about or that his coup attempt didn’t matter, you are either saying “it doesn’t matter if white Etonian oppressors are not punished for their deeds” OR you are saying “it doesn’t matter if any oppressors are not punished”.

If we seek a world where the nations of Africa are free from brutal dictators, then we need to be upset when anyone who engages in that kind of activity escapes punishment irregardless of their nationality. Obiang’s continued rule is to be lamented. But so is an attempt by anyone; white or black; to emulate him.

I’d also suggest that Mann, being European and a former member of a European army, should be of marginally greater concern to us than Obiang in a “get your own home in order before criticising the housekeeping of others” sense. But that’s very much a secondary point.

And a tertiary point is that Mann’s activities represent a continuation of European imperialism in Africa (albeit with corporate rather than political paymasters). We may, in the final analysis, have little control over how Africans handle their affairs (and rightly so, many would argue) but we perhaps have an obligation to stamp out whatever remnants of our own inglorious past that remain on that continent. In which context, Mann’s release is extremely unhelpful and his violent plans must certainly matter to us.

The issue I have with Merrick’s post is that I don’t think it makes a blind bit of difference whether the crooked murderous bastards who misrule any given place are black, white, local, foreign, old Etonian (of local or foreign extraction) or left-school-at-10-to-join-the-militia. I don’t understand the mindset that being oppressed by a dictator who happens to carry the same passport as you is any better than being oppressed by a governor from abroad.

So while I’d have had no problems with Mann spending the rest of his life in a fleapit jail, I’m no sadder about his release than I am about the fact that – following the failure of Mann’s coup – Obiang isn’t going to spend the rest of his life in a fleapit jail. Being an Old Etonian with a UK passport doesn’t excuse robbing the poor in Africa, but nor is it any worse than wealthy Africans robbing the poor in Africa. Suggesting that it is has vaguely nasty connotations of “*they* don’t know any better, but *we* oughtn’t to do it”.

I might be misreading Merrick’s motivation, of course – I don’t read vile rags like the Telegraph, so if they’re running fawning pieces on Mann and Thatcher and the terrible injustice that befell them from trying to assume the White Man’s Burden, etc, then the Merrick piece is a completely reasonable reaction and I’m sorry for misunderstanding what drove it.

I’m sure you’re right too that Twitter necessarily reduces John Band’s points to caricature and they may be considered if given proper space. That being so, and him professing a failure to understand why I have the opinion I do, I wonder why he didn’t say owt in the comments on my post instead of issuing it in such an unsatisfactory medium as the tweet.

I hate tweeting for an extra reason. Every time the word is used it sets The Birdie Song by The Tweets going round my head.