"In all of the day to day suffering the citizens of Togo endure, the ONE thing that brings them happiness, hope, and a sense of collective pride is the sport of FOOTBALL. Almost every innocent child in Togo has hopes to become nothing more, or less, than a football player, and now what? Togo’s National Football Team, the country, its people, and people around the world were distraught by the misfortune that occurred in Cabinda last month. As if they haven’t suffered enough within their own country, they were arbitrarily hit as a victim once again on the road to Angola, in an act of terrorism from the Front for the Liberation of the Enclave of Cabinda (FLEC). Not only were they mentally and physically wounded and killed by gun shots, they were also incapable of participating in the African Cup of Nations Football Tournament that was one of the pinnacle events they, and supporters around the world, had been anticipating for the past two years. The African Football Confederation (CAF) decided to ban Togo from playing in the African Cup of Nations until 2016, because Togo withdrew from the 2010 tournament after considering the shocking events and circumstances. With such a harsh penalty from CAF, (after already fining Togo 50,000 USD) it is apparent that CAF knew they were going to cause a public outrage when they made this decision. The conflict resolution thinking and abilities of CAF can now only leave me to compare the many behavioral similarities between CAF and FLEC. This suffering and pain is nothing new to the vulnerable people of Togo, and yet, they continue to be taken advantage of further. But the underlying question to the people causing the suffering is “WHY”?"
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