ACCORDING to media reports, tension between Christians and Muslims in the Central African Republic has reached a point where people are being attacked and killed just because they happen to be culturally different.

There is the case of a muslim who reportedly was dragged out of a bus and beaten to death in the capital Bangui. And as if that was not enough, the body was then set on fire, roasted and dismembered. One leg was cut off and eaten raw by a man, and this in the presence of several villagers who not only failed to come to his rescue, but gave “moral” support to the person who committed that act of cannibalism.

This may be an extreme act, but it points to the dangers that could befall any society when there is a breakdown of social norms and law and order. People are then thrown into what the English Philosopher Thomas Hobbes referred to as “a state of nature” in which there is”war of all against all”.

The situation in the Central African state has been grabbing international attention due to the tens of thousands of people who were forced to abandon their homes and seek refuge in nearby bushes of public places considered safe.

Only recently, both the country’s president and prime minister were forced to resign due to their inability to restore order and stability.

The situation in the Central African Republic brings back memories of what transpired in Rwanda some years ago when over a million lives were lost due to ethnic rivalry.

The international community, in particular the United Nations, needs to act promptly and decisively to prevent any further loss of lives and avert a humanitarian crisis that is looming dangerously over the country.

HYDAR ALLY