Political conflicts

Endangered democracy? : The struggle over secularism and its implications for politics and democracy in Nigeria

Upphovspersoner:	Tar, Usman A. | Shettima, Abba Gana
Utgivare:	Nordiska Afrikainstitutet, Conflict, Displacement and Transformation | Uppsala : Nordiska Afrikainstitutet
År:	2010
Ämnesord:	politics, Religion, Secularism, State, Political power, democracy, Islam, Christianity, Cultural pluralism, Religious groups, Political conflicts, Nigeria, Political science, Statsvetenskap

This Discussion Paper critically examines the pivotal role religion plays in Nigerian politics, particularly as it relates to the ways Islamic and Christian identities have been manipulated by competing political elites in their struggle for power. It provides a concise but well-informed history of the evolution of the religious factor in politics and its adverse implications for Nigeria’s democracy. Its point of departure is a critique of the notion of a secular Nigerian state (as prescribed by the constitution), which shows how governments and politicians have taken advantage of constitutional loop holes and used state resources to foster the politicisation of religion, with serious consequences for society at large. Some of the adverse consequences identified include religious conflict, political instability, insecurity and the undermining of the country’s democracy and development. The study carefully peels away the outward display of religious piety by political elites and leaders to reveal some of the underlying personal and narrow calculations. Over time, these calculations have eroded the social elements binding relations in a multi ethnic, multi-religious setting such as Nigeria, and there have been periodic explosions of sectarian and communal violence in various parts of the country. The authors show how the politicisation and ethnicisation of religious differences have further fuelled conflict between competing groups and geopolitical interests in Nigeria and raised serious questions for Nigeria’s democracy, development and the nation-state project. While noting that religion cannot be completely de-linked from politics, the study proffers some suggestions to begin to address and reverse the adverse effects of the intrusion of religion into democratic politics in Nigeria, Africa’s largest country and leading oil producer.

The Zimbabwean Nation-State Project : A Historical Diagnosis of Identity and Power-based Conflicts in a Postcolonial State

Upphovsperson:	Ndlovu-Gatsheni, Sabelo J.
Utgivare:	Nordiska Afrikainstitutet, Conflict, Displacement and Transformation | Nordiska Afrikainstitutet
År:	2011
Ämnesord:	Zimbabwe, nationalism, State, Political conflicts, political development, Political leadership, Elite, Ethnicity, National identity, Nation-building, Post-colonialism, Political science, Statsvetenskap

This Discussion Paper draws attention to the often overlooked aspects of the limits, poverty and contradictions embedded in the “unfinished business” of the Zimbabwe nation state project. It is located within the broader context of the crisis of the nation-state in an African continent increasingly buffeted by waves of globalisation. It also revisits the debate on whether postcolonial nationalism can completely avoid reproducing the racial and ethnic discrimination that characterised its colonial past. Zeroing in on Zimbabwe, the paper argues that the nation-state crisis has roots in the legacy of settler colonialism, the ethnic fragmentation that marked the history of the liberation movement and the character of the nationalist elite. Its critique of the politics of the nationalist and political elite, the Lancaster House Agreement, the National Democratic Revolution and the Global Political Agreement makes this paper an important contribution to the debates on the real legacy of the liberation struggle in Zimbabwe and the prospects for a common national identity based on nationalism, social justice, inclusive democracy and development in the country.