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THOMAS SANKARA REJECTS FOOD AID
Thomas Sankara (1949-87), Burkina Faso’s revolutionary leader until his assassination, famously stated, ‘He who feeds you, controls you.’
In this 1987 interview, he elaborated on that point by explaining that foreign aid through Western institutions, such as the International Monetary Fund (IMF), impose conditions on African countries that distract from the path to true independence.
‘Where is imperialism?’ Sankara asked. ‘Look at your plates when you eat. The imported grains of rice, corn and millet? That is imperialism. Let’s not look any further.’
He said food aid creates dependency on imports, keeping African farmers from selling their crops at a fair rate. For Sankara, true food aid came in the form of agricultural tools and technologies that would lead to food sovereignty and self-sufficiency.
Thomas Sankara (1949-87), Burkina Faso’s revolutionary leader until his assassination, famously stated, ‘He who feeds you, controls you.’
In this 1987 interview, he elaborated on that point by explaining that foreign aid through Western institutions, such as the International Monetary Fund (IMF), impose conditions on African countries that distract from the path to true independence.
‘Where is imperialism?’ Sankara asked. ‘Look at your plates when you eat. The imported grains of rice, corn and millet? That is imperialism. Let’s not look any further.’
He said food aid creates dependency on imports, keeping African farmers from selling their crops at a fair rate. For Sankara, true food aid came in the form of agricultural tools and technologies that would lead to food sovereignty and self-sufficiency.
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Continued……. Today, Burkina Faso is once again following the path that Sankara laid out, this time under Captain Ibrahim Traoré (@capitaineib226 on X), who came to power like Sankara. In 2022, a people-backed military coup d’état ousted a Western-aligned leader. Since then, the new Burkinabé government has distributed farming equipment to local farmers as well as purchased tractors and other important farming technology. Furthermore, the country is industrialising food production by constructing factories, such as two that churn tomatoes into paste, another that mills grains into flour and yet another that refines rice.
Burkina Faso has $330.2 million in outstanding IMF loan debt. However, it looks like the country will soon be able to produce what it consumes.
Video credit: ‘Concerning Violence,’ Final Cut for Real, Helsinki Filmi Oy, Göran Olsson (2014)
Sources
https://www.thomassankara.net/thomas-sankara-a-leader-before-his-time/?lang=en
https://www.vittlesmagazine.com/p/where-is-imperialism-look-at-your
https://precel.bf/en/food-self-sufficiency-in-burkina-faso-captain-traore-hands-over-agricultural-equipment-to-boost-production/
https://www.sidwaya.info/burkina-faso-deploiement-des-tracteurs-pour-loffensive-agropastorale-et-halieutique-2023-2025/
https://www.sidwaya.info/burkina-faso-deploiement-des-tracteurs-pour-loffensive-agropastorale-et-halieutique-2023-2025/
https://www.world-grain.com/articles/21068-burkina-faso-inaugurates-flour-mill
https://www.imf.org/en/Countries/BFA
Burkina Faso has $330.2 million in outstanding IMF loan debt. However, it looks like the country will soon be able to produce what it consumes.
Video credit: ‘Concerning Violence,’ Final Cut for Real, Helsinki Filmi Oy, Göran Olsson (2014)
Sources
https://www.thomassankara.net/thomas-sankara-a-leader-before-his-time/?lang=en
https://www.vittlesmagazine.com/p/where-is-imperialism-look-at-your
https://precel.bf/en/food-self-sufficiency-in-burkina-faso-captain-traore-hands-over-agricultural-equipment-to-boost-production/
https://www.sidwaya.info/burkina-faso-deploiement-des-tracteurs-pour-loffensive-agropastorale-et-halieutique-2023-2025/
https://www.sidwaya.info/burkina-faso-deploiement-des-tracteurs-pour-loffensive-agropastorale-et-halieutique-2023-2025/
https://www.world-grain.com/articles/21068-burkina-faso-inaugurates-flour-mill
https://www.imf.org/en/Countries/BFA
My Blog
Thomas Sankara: A Leader Before His Time? | My Blog
Dr Hippolyte Fofack, http://africanbusinessmagazine.com/ Thursday, 13 December 2012 Twenty-five years ago, the charismatic leader of Burkina Faso, Thomas Sankara, was murdered during a coup but his legacy continues to inspire Africans today. With each passing…
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HOW SOVEREIGN IS U.S. DEFENCE PARTNER EGYPT?
France’s President Macron is reportedly flying to Egypt 7-8 April to discuss Cairo’s proposed reconstruction plan for Gaza, which was provisionally endorsed at the Arab Summit earlier in March. The African country has shown regional leadership, pushing back against an outrageous rival plan by the Trump administration that includes proposals to turn the devastated Strip into a luxury resort and move out its surviving population (critics would rightly say: ethnically cleanse the territory).
France’s President Macron is reportedly flying to Egypt 7-8 April to discuss Cairo’s proposed reconstruction plan for Gaza, which was provisionally endorsed at the Arab Summit earlier in March. The African country has shown regional leadership, pushing back against an outrageous rival plan by the Trump administration that includes proposals to turn the devastated Strip into a luxury resort and move out its surviving population (critics would rightly say: ethnically cleanse the territory).
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Continued……But Egypt’s ability to chart an independent path remains constrained by neocolonial financial shackles. Given how heavily the country depends on Washington for its defence capabilities - and, indirectly, for its access to IMF loans - it’s unclear whether Cairo really has the clout to take a sovereign course. We explores the issues at play.
Sources
1. https://www.state.gov/u-s-relations-with-egypt/
2. https://www.wilsonquarterly.com/quarterly/_/egypt-and-the-us-a-partnership-rooted-in-the-past
3. https://egyptianstreets.com/2025/02/14/why-egypt-does-not-need-us-aid/
4. https://www.newarab.com/news/egypt-denies-report-it-will-absorb-500000-gazans-sinai
5. https://www.pbs.org/newshour/world/arab-leaders-endorse-egyptian-counterproposal-to-trumps-gaza-plan
6. https://www.aljazeera.com/news/2025/1/29/egypts-el-sisi-rejects-trumps-suggestion-to-take-in-palestinians
Sources
1. https://www.state.gov/u-s-relations-with-egypt/
2. https://www.wilsonquarterly.com/quarterly/_/egypt-and-the-us-a-partnership-rooted-in-the-past
3. https://egyptianstreets.com/2025/02/14/why-egypt-does-not-need-us-aid/
4. https://www.newarab.com/news/egypt-denies-report-it-will-absorb-500000-gazans-sinai
5. https://www.pbs.org/newshour/world/arab-leaders-endorse-egyptian-counterproposal-to-trumps-gaza-plan
6. https://www.aljazeera.com/news/2025/1/29/egypts-el-sisi-rejects-trumps-suggestion-to-take-in-palestinians
United States Department of State
U.S. Relations With Egypt
More information about Egypt is available on the Egypt Page and from other Department of State publications and other sources listed at the end of this fact sheet. U.S.-EGYPT RELATIONS The United States established diplomatic relations with Egypt in 1922…
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A British MP is calling for a public inquiry into the historical classification of Black immigrant children from the West Indies as ‘educationally subnormal’ during the 1960s and .70s.
Labour’s Kim Johnson, who represents Liverpool Riverside, has been a strong advocate for those impacted by the ‘educationally subnormal’ (ESN) policy, which was disproportionately pushed onto Black children, often relying on flawed IQ tests. Many of those affected were part of the Windrush generation, who arrived in the UK from the West Indies and other Caribbean nations to address labour shortages following World War Two.
Swipe through to explore the ongoing struggles of these victims, the lasting trauma they face and the efforts of Black parents, educators, and community members who have stood up against racism and inequality in the UK education system.
Labour’s Kim Johnson, who represents Liverpool Riverside, has been a strong advocate for those impacted by the ‘educationally subnormal’ (ESN) policy, which was disproportionately pushed onto Black children, often relying on flawed IQ tests. Many of those affected were part of the Windrush generation, who arrived in the UK from the West Indies and other Caribbean nations to address labour shortages following World War Two.
Swipe through to explore the ongoing struggles of these victims, the lasting trauma they face and the efforts of Black parents, educators, and community members who have stood up against racism and inequality in the UK education system.
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Continued……Sources
https://www.theguardian.com/education/2025/mar/13/mp-calls-for-inquiry-into-labelling-of-black-pupils-as-educationally-subnormal
https://www.bigissue.com/news/activism/how-the-black-education-movement-took-on-the-racist-schools-system/
https://www.bps.org.uk/blog/racism-and-inequality-british-education-system-how-far-have-we-come
https://www.bbc.co.uk/teach/class-clips-video/articles/zhsxqfr
https://publications.parliament.uk/pa/cm201719/cmselect/cmeduc/342/342.pdf
https://www.voice-online.co.uk/news/education/2023/06/30/the-scandal-of-pupil-referral-units/
https://www.theguardian.com/education/2023/feb/21/black-people-labelled-backward-as-children-seek-justice-for-lifelong-trauma
https://www.theguardian.com/education/2005/feb/05/schools.uk
https://hansard.parliament.uk/commons/2025-03-12/debates/D960A3F4-7209-48E2-BB31-563C274CC634/SwannReport40ThAnniversary#:~:text=The%20inquiry%2C%20led%20by%20Lord,education%20settings%2C%20and%20wrongly%20labelled
https://www.theguardian.com/education/2025/mar/13/mp-calls-for-inquiry-into-labelling-of-black-pupils-as-educationally-subnormal
https://www.bigissue.com/news/activism/how-the-black-education-movement-took-on-the-racist-schools-system/
https://www.bps.org.uk/blog/racism-and-inequality-british-education-system-how-far-have-we-come
https://www.bbc.co.uk/teach/class-clips-video/articles/zhsxqfr
https://publications.parliament.uk/pa/cm201719/cmselect/cmeduc/342/342.pdf
https://www.voice-online.co.uk/news/education/2023/06/30/the-scandal-of-pupil-referral-units/
https://www.theguardian.com/education/2023/feb/21/black-people-labelled-backward-as-children-seek-justice-for-lifelong-trauma
https://www.theguardian.com/education/2005/feb/05/schools.uk
https://hansard.parliament.uk/commons/2025-03-12/debates/D960A3F4-7209-48E2-BB31-563C274CC634/SwannReport40ThAnniversary#:~:text=The%20inquiry%2C%20led%20by%20Lord,education%20settings%2C%20and%20wrongly%20labelled
the Guardian
MP calls for inquiry into labelling of black pupils as ‘educationally subnormal’
Kim Johnson tells parliament lessons must be learnt from poor treatment of children at institutions in 1960s and 70s
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PT. 4: GRENADA’S EDUCATION REVOLUTION 🇬🇩
This month marks 46 years since the revolution in Grenada.
On 13 March 1979, The New JEWEL Movement—New Joint Endeavor for Welfare, Education and Liberation—carried out a bloodless coup that ousted the US-backed dictatorship of Prime Minister Eric Gairy (1922-97).
They established the People’s Revolutionary Government (PRG) headed by Maurice Bishop (1944-83).
The new government set out to build a society anchored on revolutionary socialist values, which did not please Washington. In October 1983, the US invaded Grenada and overthrew the PRG.
This video examines how that invasion overturned the revolution’s educational programmes, forcing a US-funded newspaper onto the population and the exile of many revolutionaries.
This month marks 46 years since the revolution in Grenada.
On 13 March 1979, The New JEWEL Movement—New Joint Endeavor for Welfare, Education and Liberation—carried out a bloodless coup that ousted the US-backed dictatorship of Prime Minister Eric Gairy (1922-97).
They established the People’s Revolutionary Government (PRG) headed by Maurice Bishop (1944-83).
The new government set out to build a society anchored on revolutionary socialist values, which did not please Washington. In October 1983, the US invaded Grenada and overthrew the PRG.
This video examines how that invasion overturned the revolution’s educational programmes, forcing a US-funded newspaper onto the population and the exile of many revolutionaries.
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SWORN IN: NIGER’S REVOLUTIONARY NEW PRESIDENT
He’s been leading Niger for some time, but now it’s official: General Abdourahamane Tiani has been sworn in as the country’s president for the next five years. The move was backed by civil-society groups last month, with the inauguration happening on Wednesday. He’s also popular with the people, especially for kicking out the French military and for nationalising uranium mines.
Sources
https://www.aa.com.tr/fr/afrique/niger-abdourahamane-tiani-investi-président-de-la-république-pour-un-mandat-de-5-ans-renouvelable/3520505
https://www.sidwaya.info/assises-nationales-du-niger-les-bases-de-la-refondation-du-pays-jetees/
https://www.aa.com.tr/fr/afrique/burkina-faso-des-assises-nationales-les-25-et-26-mai-pour-statuer-sur-la-suite-à-donner-à-la-transition/3219932
He’s been leading Niger for some time, but now it’s official: General Abdourahamane Tiani has been sworn in as the country’s president for the next five years. The move was backed by civil-society groups last month, with the inauguration happening on Wednesday. He’s also popular with the people, especially for kicking out the French military and for nationalising uranium mines.
Sources
https://www.aa.com.tr/fr/afrique/niger-abdourahamane-tiani-investi-président-de-la-république-pour-un-mandat-de-5-ans-renouvelable/3520505
https://www.sidwaya.info/assises-nationales-du-niger-les-bases-de-la-refondation-du-pays-jetees/
https://www.aa.com.tr/fr/afrique/burkina-faso-des-assises-nationales-les-25-et-26-mai-pour-statuer-sur-la-suite-à-donner-à-la-transition/3219932
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Continued….. https://www.aa.com.tr/fr/afrique/au-burkina-faso-la-durée-de-la-transition-prolongée-de-5-ans/3230522
https://blackagendareport.com/eritrea-versus-africom-defending-sovereignty-face-imperialist-aggression
https://hoodcommunist.org/2021/12/02/eritrea-versus-africom/amp/
https://blackagendareport.com/eritrea-versus-africom-defending-sovereignty-face-imperialist-aggression
https://hoodcommunist.org/2021/12/02/eritrea-versus-africom/amp/
Anadolu Agency
Au Burkina Faso, la durée de la transition prolongée de 5 ans
- À l'issue des Assises nationales tenues à Ouagadougou
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USAID-FREE ERITREA DOING BETTER THAN RECIPIENT AFRICAN COUNTRIES
For years, Western aid has been sold as Africa’s lifeline. Here’s some useful information if you’re weighing in on the debate over whether the recent USAID cuts are a blessing or a curse. One African country that kicked out USAID in 2005 seems to be in better shape - at least by certain key measures - than some of those that are still stuck in the web of US funding and dependency.
Sources
USAID Mobutu
https://www.aljazeera.com/news/2025/2/3/what-is-usaid-and-how-central-is-it-to-us-foreign-policy
Michela Wrong: It’s Our turn to eat (pg. 198)
Eritrea doing better than aid recipient countries
https://archive.ph/qLMw5
For years, Western aid has been sold as Africa’s lifeline. Here’s some useful information if you’re weighing in on the debate over whether the recent USAID cuts are a blessing or a curse. One African country that kicked out USAID in 2005 seems to be in better shape - at least by certain key measures - than some of those that are still stuck in the web of US funding and dependency.
Sources
USAID Mobutu
https://www.aljazeera.com/news/2025/2/3/what-is-usaid-and-how-central-is-it-to-us-foreign-policy
Michela Wrong: It’s Our turn to eat (pg. 198)
Eritrea doing better than aid recipient countries
https://archive.ph/qLMw5
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Continued……Aid as a tool for foreign policy
https://the307.substack.com/p/how-the-ned-and-usaid-are-tools-of
https://amuseonx.substack.com/p/from-foreign-regimes-to-trump-usaids
https://www.counterpunch.org/2020/08/13/teaching-torture-the-death-and-legacy-of-dan-mitrione/
https://chimpreports.com/usaid-freeze-uganda-catches-a-cold/
https://www.minecofin.gov.rw/news-detail/government-and-usaid-sign-commitment-of-frw-605-billion-to-rwandas-development-efforts
https://the307.substack.com/p/how-the-ned-and-usaid-are-tools-of
https://amuseonx.substack.com/p/from-foreign-regimes-to-trump-usaids
https://www.counterpunch.org/2020/08/13/teaching-torture-the-death-and-legacy-of-dan-mitrione/
https://chimpreports.com/usaid-freeze-uganda-catches-a-cold/
https://www.minecofin.gov.rw/news-detail/government-and-usaid-sign-commitment-of-frw-605-billion-to-rwandas-development-efforts
Substack
How The NED and USAID Are Tools Of Neo-Con Foreign Policy.
Trump is Very Unlikely To End American Regime Change Operations, But USAID and NED should not be defended.
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FMR GREEK MINISTER TO S. AFRICA: DON'T BEG THE U.S.
Former Greek Finance Minister Yanis Varoufakis (@yanisvaroufakis on X) says South Africa should not cower before the Trump administration in the ongoing rift between Pretoria and Washington.
During an exclusive 25 March interview with South African Broadcasting Corporation (SABC) International News Editor Sophie Mokoena (@Sophie_Mokoena on X), Varoufakis urged South Africa to take the fallout with the US as an opportunity to reduce dependency on Western markets and aid.
South Africa has been in Trump's crosshairs in recent weeks over what he views as an ‘anti-white’ land reform law that seeks to redress long-standing inequities. In February, Trump cut US financial support to South Africa's HIV/AIDS response programme, and he offered the US as a refuge to South African white settlers.
Former Greek Finance Minister Yanis Varoufakis (@yanisvaroufakis on X) says South Africa should not cower before the Trump administration in the ongoing rift between Pretoria and Washington.
During an exclusive 25 March interview with South African Broadcasting Corporation (SABC) International News Editor Sophie Mokoena (@Sophie_Mokoena on X), Varoufakis urged South Africa to take the fallout with the US as an opportunity to reduce dependency on Western markets and aid.
South Africa has been in Trump's crosshairs in recent weeks over what he views as an ‘anti-white’ land reform law that seeks to redress long-standing inequities. In February, Trump cut US financial support to South Africa's HIV/AIDS response programme, and he offered the US as a refuge to South African white settlers.
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Continued….. The law seeks to redress the legacy of apartheid-era discriminatory laws that placed the majority of the country's arable land in the hands of the white minority. According to the latest land audit conducted in 2017 by the country's Department of Agriculture, Land Reform and Rural Development, white settlers own at least 72 per cent of arable land despite making up less than 8 per cent of the population, per the 2022 census. The World Bank has also ranked South Africa as the world’s most unequal country.
On 14 March, Washington sent South Africa's ambassador to the US packing following his remarks that Trump mobilised a 'supremacist instinct' with his ‘Make America Great Again’ (MAGA) movement that enjoyed the spotlight during his last two runs for US president.
Credit: @sabcnews (YouTube)
Sources
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dPRZb-h88sI
https://www.rfi.fr/en/africa/20250207-south-africa-will-not-be-bullied-ramaphosa-says-after-trump-attack
https://www.state.gov/u-s-relations-with-south-africa
https://www.euronews.com/2025/03/25/south-african-president-cyril-ramaphosa-rejects-claims-of-afrikaner-persecution
https://www.gov.za/documents/other/land-audit-report-2017-05-feb-2018
https://www.statssa.gov.za/?p=16716
https://documents1.worldbank.org/curated/en/099125003072240961/pdf/P1649270b73f1f0b5093fb0e644d33bc6f1.pdf
On 14 March, Washington sent South Africa's ambassador to the US packing following his remarks that Trump mobilised a 'supremacist instinct' with his ‘Make America Great Again’ (MAGA) movement that enjoyed the spotlight during his last two runs for US president.
Credit: @sabcnews (YouTube)
Sources
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dPRZb-h88sI
https://www.rfi.fr/en/africa/20250207-south-africa-will-not-be-bullied-ramaphosa-says-after-trump-attack
https://www.state.gov/u-s-relations-with-south-africa
https://www.euronews.com/2025/03/25/south-african-president-cyril-ramaphosa-rejects-claims-of-afrikaner-persecution
https://www.gov.za/documents/other/land-audit-report-2017-05-feb-2018
https://www.statssa.gov.za/?p=16716
https://documents1.worldbank.org/curated/en/099125003072240961/pdf/P1649270b73f1f0b5093fb0e644d33bc6f1.pdf
YouTube
Exclusive | South Africa should not go begging to the White House: Yanis Varoufakis
Former Greek Finance Minister Yanis Varoufakis says South Africa must not go to the US with the begging attitude but rather engage in an honest bilateral engagement as US President Donald Trump shuns weak leadership. Varoufakis has called on the international…
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GOVERNOR’S MEDICAL TOURISM RIGHTFULLY ANGERS KENYANS
African leaders travelling to the Global North for medical tourism has become all too common. Our elected officials access the best facilities in Europe and the US, while citizens of their countries continue to suffer due to poorly funded health infrastructure.
In recent weeks, Kenyans in Nakuru County filed a petition demanding to know the whereabouts of their governor after her prolonged absence. Susan Kihika is reportedly on an extended maternity leave in the US. Now, some women leaders are trying to re-frame the outcry, saying the public is opposed to women’s empowerment rather than seeking accountability for poor governance.
Here, we examine why Kenyans are angry.
African leaders travelling to the Global North for medical tourism has become all too common. Our elected officials access the best facilities in Europe and the US, while citizens of their countries continue to suffer due to poorly funded health infrastructure.
In recent weeks, Kenyans in Nakuru County filed a petition demanding to know the whereabouts of their governor after her prolonged absence. Susan Kihika is reportedly on an extended maternity leave in the US. Now, some women leaders are trying to re-frame the outcry, saying the public is opposed to women’s empowerment rather than seeking accountability for poor governance.
Here, we examine why Kenyans are angry.
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Continued…….Sources
https://nation.africa/kenya/counties/nakuru/where-is-governor-kihika-nakuru-residents-petition-assembly-4972666
https://x.com/SenHamidaK/status/1904525817155055963
https://www.aljazeera.com/news/2017/8/21/muhammadu-buhari-addresses-nation-on-return-from-uk
https://www.socialistnigeria.org/7759/2025/01/08/tinubus-approval-of-20000-foreign-medical-treatment-bullet-proof-suvs-and-other-perks-top-generals-is-an-insult-to-nigerian-workers-and-masses/?doing_wp_cron=1743083223.9668478965759277343750
https://oxfamilibrary.openrepository.com/bitstream/handle/10546/620389/bp-taxing-for-more-equal-kenya-061217-en.pdf;jsessionid=F751D670A9FA9AE9E9DDD91720BAF6CC?sequence=1
https://nation.africa/kenya/counties/nakuru/where-is-governor-kihika-nakuru-residents-petition-assembly-4972666
https://x.com/SenHamidaK/status/1904525817155055963
https://www.aljazeera.com/news/2017/8/21/muhammadu-buhari-addresses-nation-on-return-from-uk
https://www.socialistnigeria.org/7759/2025/01/08/tinubus-approval-of-20000-foreign-medical-treatment-bullet-proof-suvs-and-other-perks-top-generals-is-an-insult-to-nigerian-workers-and-masses/?doing_wp_cron=1743083223.9668478965759277343750
https://oxfamilibrary.openrepository.com/bitstream/handle/10546/620389/bp-taxing-for-more-equal-kenya-061217-en.pdf;jsessionid=F751D670A9FA9AE9E9DDD91720BAF6CC?sequence=1
Nation
Where is Governor Kihika? Nakuru residents petition county assembly
They say the governor has been absent from key county affairs, yet she should be back from maternity leave.
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