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Equatorial Kundu
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The Republic of Equatorial Kundu is a fictional African country from the television series The West Wing. Equatorial Kundu has been used in two of The West Wing's African foreign policy plots and can also be seen as an amalgam of many perceptions of African nations such as poverty, violence and AIDS. The name may be inspired by the Republic of Equatorial Guinea, although the 2003 genocide in Kundu also strongly resembles the 1994 Rwandan Genocide. Events When Kundu was first mentioned in season 2, it is led by President Nimbala. Nimbala was a former soldier and military commander in Kundu, before becoming President and ruling for 28 years. Toby Zeigler describes him as a "good President", but thinks "he's holding his country together with both hands." Nimbala visits the White House for talks on sales of AIDS drugs to Africa, representing the African nations. But during his visit, AFRC rebels launch a coup d'etat and seize Bitanga. Nimbala's brother and two sons are killed in the coup, while his wife is sent into hiding in Kenya. Nimbala insists on returning to Kundu, but on arrival at the airport is immediately executed. In January 2003 in the The West Wing Universe ("Inauguration, Part I"), the Arkutu-run government of President Nzele (described as a "sadistic madman") begins an ethnic cleansing campaign against the Induye in Bitanga, killing 200 people. The government uses radio to direct mobs that are carrying out the genocide, ending every broadcast with "krawala" ("cleanse.") The violence soon spreads outside Bitanga and into the countryside. The US, UN, the Vatican, Nigeria, Ghana and Zaire all begin to pressure the Artuku government to end the violence and the make diplomatic overtures. But the death toll rises rapidly, increasing to 25,000. Reports of a machete massacre of 800 Induye at a church, mass rape and reports of mothers standing in front of tanks also come out of Kundu. In President Josiah Bartlet's second inaugural address ("Inauguration Over There"), he announces the new Bartlet Doctrine for the use of force: America shall intervene whenever there are humanitarian interests at stake. With that new doctrine, Bartlet sends a brigade of the 82nd Airborne Division, the 101st Airborne Division, and a Marine expeditionary unit, a force of 11,000 troops in total, to Kundu to stop the violence ("The California 47th"). The 82nd Airborne take Bitanga airport, allowing the Marines and the 101st to deploy there, and the US give President Nzele 36 hours for his troops to disarm before the US forces took the whole city of Bitanga. President Nzele then attempted to speed up the genocide, in order to complete it before the deadline, by marching thousands of Induye to a mass grave at Musato. Shortly after, three Marines patrolling Bitanga Airport are kidnapped in a surprise attack by 50 soldiers of the Kundu National Army. The US responds by deploying a 26-man commando force, Task Force Dawn Sky, consisting of Delta Force and a CIA "wet team" to a makeshift camp in Ghana, Red Haven ("Red Haven's on Fire"). Dawn Sky launches a successful rescue operation to retrieve the three Marines from a KNA barracks 37 miles east of Bitanga. But in retaliation, terrorists attack Red Haven. A suicide car bombing by three SUVs at the base kills 17 US personnel and injures 20 others. Shortly after, five US soldiers are killed in a friendly fire incident in Kundu, when an airstrike they call in accidentally targets them. Barlet Administration proposes a Kundu Peacekeeping Bill to congress, which is opposed by Representative Mark Richardson (D-New York) until an amendment is added ("Angel Maintenance"). As of the episode Twenty Five, US forces are still operating in Kundu. Geography & Demographics In its original appearance ("In This White House"), Kundu's location is somewhat ambiguous. President Nimbala and his aide appear to speak Setswana, a Bantu language spoken in South Africa and Botswana, which would imply a Southern African setting. As the coup against Nimbala occurs, American intelligence sources in Angola are involved in gathering information, but Bartlet also cites American sources in Sudan and Nimbala's wife flees to Kenya, which implies that Kundu is in East Africa. However, the Season 4 appearance seems to more firmly place the country in West Africa, near to the Ivory Coast and Ghana. Also, the inclusion of the word "Equatorial" in the nation's official title rules out a location other than Central, West or East Africa. Its capital city is Bitanga, which contains a major airport, TV station and a radio station. The U.S. Embassy in Bitanga is small, with ten staff and no CIA Station Chief. Kundu has problems with poverty and its agricultural industry is indicated to have problems due to infertile land in the region. The country also has a large AIDS epidemic, with 35.8 percent of its adult population infected with the disease. The country has two main ethnic groups, the Arkutu and the Induye. Roman Catholicism is a major religion in Kundu, with 500 American missionaries based there and the Vatican taking a key role in the international response to the genocide. The leader of Kundunese Catholic church is Archbishop Zake Kintaka. See Also
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