South Africa's ANC Secretary General Gives the BBC a Lesson on Western Double Standards

Moral hypocrisy of the West

BBC World News’ Hard Talk got exactly that recently. The show is renowned for its in-depth interviews with hard-hitting questions but this time it received some hard-hitting answers from South Africa’s ANC Secretary General, Fikile Mbalula.

Presenter Stephen Sackur asked Mbalula whether the South African government will arrest Vladimir Putin when he visits the country in August. Sackur says the country is a member of the International Criminal Court and so the South African government is obliged to arrest him.

Mbalula says he would welcome Putin even if he came tomorrow. He says, Russia is part of BRICS and Putin is a head of state. Sackur, stuck in his liberal-elite bubble is shocked at the response and reminds Mbalula that this is a man being investigated for war crimes.

This is where Mbalula lets loose. “Do you think a head of state can just be arrested anywhere,” he says. He asks how many crimes the West has committed in Iraq and Afghanistan and whether any Western heads of state have been arrested. Tony Blair went to Iraq and claimed there were weapons of mass destruction. Where were they, he asked. Millions of people have died in Iraq and Afghanistan but yet still no weapons of mass destruction.

Mbalula says they know the real reason behind the Ukrainian war and they just want peace, that is what is important.

Unable to argue the point, Sackur says they are running out of time and quickly changes the subject back to South African domestic politics.

Of course the BRICS nations are no saints either but this is how they view the West - as moral hypocrites. The West appeals to these nations to arrest Putin whilst simultaneously hoping they will forget the illegal wars we have started. This perceived double standard is not lost on the BRICS countries. Yet, individuals like Sackur remain oblivious to this dynamic, persisting in the belief that the West upholds a moral high ground unmatched by the rest of the world.

Mbalula should be careful as Covid has proved particularly dangerous for African leaders who have stepped out of line.