世界上不只石油重要 美國不能再無視非洲人權

Close to 50 heads of state are gathering in Washington for this week’s US-Africa Leaders Summit on the theme of “Investing in the Next Generation”. Among those being feted by American politicians, businesses and investors will be a handful of older strongmen, including the world’s longest-serving non-royal head of state, Teodoro Obiang Nguema Mbasogo, president of Equatorial Guinea.

近50位國家元首正齊聚華盛頓，參加本週舉行的美國-非洲領導人峯會。此次峯會的主題是“投資於下一代”(Investing in the Next Generation)。在美國政治人士、企業和投資者宴請的嘉賓中，將出現幾位年齡較大的政治強人，包括全球執政時間最長的非皇室國家元首——赤道幾內亞總統特奧多羅•奧比昂•恩圭馬•姆巴索戈(Teodoro Obiang Nguema Mbasogo)。

The US has a history of courting many African strongmen, memorably Egypt’s Hosni Mubarak, Libya’s Muammer Gaddafi, Charles Taylor of Liberia and Zaire’s Mobutu Sese Seko. It is impossible to find an instance where turning a blind eye to corruption and human rights abuses has paid off for the US or Africa in the long run.

美國有着向非洲鐵腕人物獻殷勤的歷史，這些鐵腕人物中讓人印象最深刻的有埃及的胡斯尼•穆巴拉克(Hosni Mubarak)、利比亞的穆阿邁爾•卡扎菲(Muammer Gaddafi)以及扎伊爾的蒙博託•塞塞•塞科(Mobutu Sese Seko)。但沒有任何證據能顯示，美國對非洲國家的腐敗和侵犯人權現象保持漠視，在長期有利於美國或非洲。

While Mr Obiang is in Washington, back home they commemorate the anniversary of the coup that brought him to power. In August 1979, he seized control from his uncle and mentor, President Francisco Macías Nguema, who used to hang dissidents from the capital’s few street lamps. A month later, he had Macías executed by firing squad.

儘管奧比昂現在身在華盛頓，但在他的祖國，人們正在紀念當年那場讓他上臺的軍事政變。1979年8月，他從他的叔叔以及導師弗朗西斯科•馬西埃•恩圭馬總統(Francisco Macias Nguema)手中奪取了政權。馬西埃曾將持不同政見者吊死在該國首都爲數不多的街燈下。一個月後，馬西埃被行刑隊處決。

How does one man manage to stay in power for so long, winning elections with up to 99 per cent of the vote, as his party has done between 1983 and 2013?

但之後，奧比昂何以能在赤道幾內亞掌權這麼長時間，而他的政黨又何以能在1983年至2013年都以最高達99%的得票率贏得大選？

In the mid-1990s oil was discovered off the west African country’s coast; today it is the third-largest producer of oil and gas in sub-Saharan Africa. Exact figures are hard to find (classified a “state secret”) but the US Energy Information Administration puts oil production at about 318,000 barrels a day, an estimate many consider conservative. Even that would sell for billions of dollars a year.

上世紀90年代中期，這個西非國家在海上發現了石油；如今，該國已成爲非洲撒哈拉沙漠以南地區第三大油氣生產國。確切的數據很難找到（這些被列爲“國家機密”），但美國能源情報署(Energy Information Administration)估計，該國石油日產量在31.8萬桶左右，很多人認爲這一估計較爲保守。即便是這一數字每年也能帶來數十億美元的收入。

Such great sovereign wealth has funded lavish purchases by the Obiang family, including a fleet of Ferraris, Rolls-Royces and Lamborghinis and a couple of private jets. Mr Obiang’s son and presumptive heir, Teodoro Nguema Obiang Mangue, known as Teodorín, has amassed one of the world’s finest collections of Michael Jackson memorabilia, including the red and black “Thriller jacket” and Jackson’s crystal-studded “Bad Tour” glove. He is also the focus of a corruption investigation in France, which has seized his 101-room Paris mansion, a collection of cars and other luxury assets. He has repeatedly denied the allegations.

如此鉅額的主權財富爲奧比昂家族的奢華生活提供了資金。他的家族擁有一個由法拉利(Ferraris)、勞斯萊斯(Rolls-Royces)和蘭博基尼(Lamborghinis)組成的車隊以及數架私人飛機。奧比昂的兒子、看上去將繼承父業的特奧多羅•恩圭馬•奧比昂•曼格（Teodoro Nguema Obiang Mangue，人稱特奧多林(Teodorin)）收藏了一些全球最頂級的邁克爾•傑克遜(Michael Jackson)紀念品，包括一件紅黑兩色的“顫慄(Thriller)夾克”以及傑克遜在“Bad Tour”巡演中戴過的鑲有水晶的手套。他還是法國一樁腐敗調查的焦點，法國查封了他位於巴黎的擁有101個間房的豪宅、一批豪車以及其他奢侈品。不過他多次否認這些指控。

Meanwhile the average income for citizens is about $2 a day. Life expectancy is about 53 years. Clean water is scarce and child mortality rates are high. Mr Obiang has said corruption is impossible since he personally controls all financial transactions; yet in 2013 the country ranked 163 out of 177 on Transparency International’s Corruption Perceptions Index.

與此同時，赤道幾內亞國民的平均收入爲每日2美元左右。預期壽命大約爲53歲。潔淨水資源短缺，兒童死亡率高。奧比昂曾表示，不可能有腐敗，因爲他個人控制着所有金融交易；然而2013年，在透明國際(Transparency International)“清廉指數”(Corruption Perceptions Index)排行榜上，該國在177個國家中排名第163位。

In Washington, Mr Obiang and his fellow heads of state will meet members of the US government and investors interested in profiting from Africa’s economic boom. He will be guest of honour at a dinner hosted by the Corporate Council on Africa, also co-sponsor of an Equatorial Guinea Economic Forum this week. Success is likely to be measured by the value of contacts made and contracts signed. Mention is unlikely to be made of last week’s Human Rights Watch report, “Equatorial Guinea: Halt Prisoner Torture”, which details human rights abuses.

在華盛頓，奧比昂及其他非洲國家元首將與美國政府官員和有意從非洲經濟繁榮中獲利的投資者會晤。他將是美國非洲企業理事會(Corporate Council on Africa)舉辦的晚宴的貴賓，該理事會也是本週舉行的赤道幾內亞經濟論壇(Equatorial Guinea Economic Forum)的聯合發起人之一。他的美國之行是否成功，很可能會以他結交的人脈的價值和簽署的合同來衡量。而上週人權觀察組織(Human Rights Watch)發佈的報告《赤道幾內亞：停止虐囚》(Equatorial Guinea: Halt Prisoner Torture)，則不太可能被人提及，該報告詳述了赤道幾內亞侵犯人權現象。

There are several basic economic reforms the US government and private sector could take to help improve the situation for citizens. The US should end the system of anonymous corporations that enabled Mr Obiang’s son and lawyers allegedly to launder more than $100m of sovereign wealth into the US.

美國政府和私人部門可以通過數項基本經濟改革來幫助改善該國公民境況。美國應該結束匿名企業制度。這一制度，使得奧比昂的兒子和律師能夠將逾1億美元的國家財富洗白轉入美國。

As part of the Dodd-Frank financial reform act, the Securities and Exchange Commission should issue disclosure rules requiring oil, gas and mining companies to publicly reveal how much they pay governments for each project, allowing citizens to see how much is retained by those in power.

作爲多德-弗蘭克(Dodd-Frank)金融改革法的一部分，美國證交會(SEC)應該制定披露規則，要求石油、天然氣和礦業公司公開披露它們爲每個項目向非洲國家政府支付的資金，從而讓這些國家的公民能夠知道當權者從中剋扣的資金數目。

In addition global actors, led by African heads of state, must pursue human rights abuses and back measures such as the creation of an independent media and electoral reform, which would help reformers in the country.

此外，非洲各國元首應當牽頭全球領導人們，追查赤道幾內亞的侵犯人權行爲，幫助建立獨立媒體和推動選舉改革，聲援這個國家中的改革派。

Presidential elections are due in 2016, yet there is good reason to believe Mr Obiang will hold them in 2015 to thwart attempts to send independent election monitoring teams. The world should commit itself to brokering negotiations between the regime and the opposition, and supporting local election-monitoring efforts. It could suggest to Mr Obiang, as US Secretary of State John Kerry recently did to Democratic Republic of Congo’s President Joseph Kabila, that he does not seek re-election.

赤道幾內亞本該在2016年舉行總統大選，然而，有充分證據顯示奧比昂將在2015年舉行大選，以阻礙國際社會派遣獨立選舉監督團的努力。國際社會應該致力於撮合該國政府和反對派之間的談判，並支持當地的選舉監督努力。國際社會還可以建議奧比昂不要尋求連任，正如美國國務卿約翰•克里(John Kerry)最近向民主剛果共和國總統約瑟夫•卡比拉(Joseph Kabila)建議的那樣。

In 2009, on his first presidential visit to the continent, Mr Obama declared: “Africa doesn’t need strongmen; it needs strong institutions.”

2009年，奧巴馬就任美國總統以來首次訪問非洲時宣佈：“非洲不需要鐵腕人物，它需要強大的機制。”

This is truer than ever. And yet instead of pressing for an end to corruption and torture, the US, along with the African Union, continues to wine and dine Mr Obiang, happy to deal with the strongman in return for oil.

這句話比以往任何時候都正確。然而，美國卻和非洲聯盟(African Union)一起，繼續在酒宴上款待奧比昂，並樂於與這位強人打交道以換取石油，而不是推動結束腐敗和酷刑。