Heavy-Handedness of French, Controlled Election, Nationalism Seeds of Violence - It's easy to blame the French for bloodshed in Djibouti, but harder to figure out a way to avoid it. French pride and heavy-handedness played a big role in the events that led to Monday's rioting and shooting. The day ended with French troops killing at least 12 Africans in tiny French Somaliland, last French colony in Africa. The city was quiet Tuesday and Wednesday, as French troops patrolled the streets. But even without French pride and heavy-handedness, there might have been killing, if not in Djibouti, then elsewhere in this eastern tip of Africa. There is little room to maneuver among the fierce currents of tribalism and nationalism here. The French set up a sham election for independence and then put down the protests with brute force. There were three main reasons for this...

French troops Monday fired into crowds of Africans rioting against the results of a referendum on independence in this last French colony in Africa. At least 11 Africans were killed, and 30 were reported wounded. The violence burst the tense calm of the city soon after the government announced that the voters of French Somaliland had rejected independence Sunday in favor of continued French colonial status. The troops, particularly marines and foreign legionnaires, quickly restored the city to quiet after the bloodshed. The Somali quarter of the city, cordoned by barbed wire and patrolled by troops, took on the air of a desolate concentration camp, silent except for the braying of donkeys, motionless except for frightened Africans rushing homeward. But the violence foreshadowed trouble for France. Despite the referendum returns, it is clear that most of the 125,000 people who live in the territory want independence from France...

Referendum Could Reflect Minority Wish Since Many Residents Aren't Citizens - The voters of French Somaliland, the last French colony in Africa, are expected to reject independence today in favor of continued rule by France. The results of the referendum, however, may not reflect the desires of the majority of the people who live in French Somaliland. The electoral procedures work in a way that benefits the Danakils, a minority tribe that fears independence and wants the protection of France. But, whether fair or not, a vote for continued French rule could ease tensions in this eastern tip of Africa, at least for a while. It is hard to believe that an independent French Somaliland would stay independent very long, for it is a little piece of hot desert land on the Red Sea with nothing productive but the busy port of Djibouti. Its two large neighbors, Ethiopia and the Somali Republic, claim it as their own and are ready to go to war over it...

Internal Trouble Weakening Empire Just as It Faces Crisis With Somali Republic - Guerrilla insurrections are growing more intense in Ethiopia, weakening the empire just as it faces a crisis that could lead to war with the Somali Republic. The internal trouble, in fact, may help avert war by making Ethiopia more cautious in its dealings with the Somali Republic. The crisis centers on Sunday's referendum in French Somaliland, a nub of coastal land between Ethiopia and the Somalia Republic. The tiny territory will decide whether it wants independence or continued French control. If the French withdraw, the territory of 82,000 people may find itself too weak economically to stay independent very long. But the Somali Republic, which claims the territory as its own, says it will never tolerate Ethiopian control. And Ethiopia, which depends heavily on the territory's port of Djibouti, says it will never tolerate Somali control...

French Somaliland Could Become Theater of War if Citizens Vote for Independence - The prime minister of Somalia disclosed Monday that he has moved troops toward French Somaliland, countering what he called a huge massing of Ethiopian troops near there. Prime Minister Abdirazak Haji Hussein described his troops as "few - just a symbolic presence," but he also said Somalia will not hesitate to intervene if Ethiopian troops march into French Somaliland. The remarks of Abdirazak, made in an interview, raised the possibility of war in the eastern tip of Africa. However, most observers here believe the possibility is slim. Trouble is likeliest if French Somaliland votes itself independent of France in the plebiscite March 19, and even Abdirazak - who supports independence in French Somaliland - doubts that the French dependency will vote a clean break...