Chicago Tribune - August 20, 2006
Jeff Zeleny, Tribune correspondent, jzeleny@tribune.com

Sen. Barack Obama (D-Ill.) arrived here Saturday to begin a two-week, six-nation sweep through Africa, a journey steeped in political significance and personal reflection as he returns to the continent of his late father for the first time as a U.S. senator.

Amid the jubilation, Obama worried his visit had mistakenly raised expectations that he could shower prosperity on a Kenyan province that has long been awash in poverty.

"There is a sense that somehow I can deliver the largess of the U.S. government to that region," he said in an interview last week as he prepared for his trip. "And I can't."

Instead, Obama said he hoped to learn about the troubles -- and the prospects -- of Africa as he travels from South Africa to Rwanda, Congo to Kenya, Djibouti to Chad. By shedding light on his findings, he said he hopes to illuminate Africa's importance to the world and to the war on terrorism, not to mention its perpetual need for aid.

Authentic ties

While countless celebrities have sought to highlight the problems of Africa, Obama's authentic tie to the continent presents a unique opportunity for an American senator. Not being bashful about promoting his trip, he sent an e-mail alert to thousands of followers last week, asking them to tune into the dispatches he intends to post on his Web site.

"Obviously, I've got a personal connection to Africa that makes the trip special," Obama said. "I also have a deep, abiding interest in what happens to the African continent as a whole."

While it's hardly unusual for members of Congress to take fact-finding trips to Africa, the visit by Obama has taken on increased meaning: He is the only African-American currently in the U.S. Senate and has a grandmother and a host of relatives in Kenya.

On Saturday, the village of Kogelo was abuzz with anticipation. Obama's picture appeared on the front page of the newspaper -- again -- and family members gathered to sort out details for next weekend's reunion.

"Everybody in town knows that he is coming," the senator's step-uncle, Said Hussein Obama, declared Saturday in a telephone interview from Kenya. "He is not just a member of the family, but someone who is high up the political ladder in the U.S."

Preparations have been under way for weeks, he said, and a team of American Embassy officials was completing its final stages of planning for the trip this weekend.

A member of the Senate Foreign Relations subcommittee on Africa, Obama stressed that the homecoming was only a small portion of his visit. He said he hoped to learn more about the spread and treatment of AIDS, bird flu and other diseases, in addition to genocide in the Darfur region of Sudan.

No visa from Sudan

Obama had intended to include Sudan on his itinerary but instead will visit nearby Chad after the Sudanese government repeatedly delayed granting him a visa. In Chad, Obama will see African Union forces and refugees who have fled across the Sudanese border.

He also is scheduled to visit Congo, which late last month held its first free legislative and presidential elections in 46 years. Earlier this year, Obama sponsored a bill that would provide up to $52 million to Congo, with a caveat that President Bush could withdraw the aid if Congo fails to show significant progress toward democracy.

While Africa is hardly at the forefront of the long list of U.S. foreign policy concerns, Obama said the continent should not be overlooked, particularly as a potential breeding ground for terrorism.

"Unfortunately, our foreign policy seems to be focused on yesterday's crises rather than anticipating the crises of the future," Obama said. "Africa is not perceived as a direct threat to U.S. security at the moment, so the foreign policy apparatus tends to believe that it can be safely neglected. I think that's a mistake."

Tour of prison island

While in South Africa, Obama hopes to meet with Nelson Mandela, but the prospects were uncertain, given the former president's failing health. However, Obama will tour Robben Island, where Mandela was imprisoned for 27 years, and deliver speeches on government corruption and democracy to audiences in Cape Town and Nairobi, Kenya.

"It's critically important to capture a sense of hopefulness," Obama said, "to give people in Africa and people outside Africa a sense that for all the strife and hardship that the continent has been through, the spirit of the people remains resilient."

Obama's wife, Michelle, and their two daughters are scheduled to join the group for the Kenya portion of the journey.

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