David Kayumba
27 January 2008
opinion
Kampala — Civil war was perceived as an African phenomenon until the end of cold war and most often viewed as liberation struggles. In the aftermath of September 11, civil wars have been labelled according to interests in the global arena.
The above notwithstanding, the African state remains a central problem to achieving sustainable peace in Africa.The model of the state in Africa is not a product of African initiative, it is a borrowed one. From the constitution apparatus to the political system, the colonial powers shaped the African state.
In doing so they felt they were civilizing Africa and off course with a view of creating an always dependent community but with a flag.
But from the outset, the African state was weak and viewed that way by the colonial masters.
Weak because it was artificial and engaged in nation-building on shifting sands of renamed roads, a national flag, national dress and anthem. One can see that the African leaders who emerged in the struggle for independence, stepped in the same shoes of the colonialists by maintaining a colonial state by the same means the colonials maintained it -- force.
It did not take long after for civil wars to break out. Had African people been allowed to have states evolve naturally, they would have definitely arranged themselves on ethnic basis which would have been all right. A glimpse in African history we see empires arranged on ethnic basis with smaller groups absorbed by larger ones. This did not happen for nations that emerged from colonialism.
The African experience from 1950s to the present shows that the people's aspirations were never realised and thus the continuous conflicts. Yet, we continue to misdirect false efforts in the wrong direction to secure a misunderstood future.
Our countries continue to be foreign dominated, suffer from institutionalised corruption, be heavily militarised and are thus failed states. The African state no matter what form of government it adopts, remains the hindrance to peace. Coupled with the geo-political interests of the new colonial masters, it does not matter whether civil war or human rights abuses are carried out. In fact, these days genuine civil uprising can easily be labelled terrorism. The days for liberation seem to be fading away.
In the light of our current situations, it is imperative that peace building efforts should start from the grassroots level and should be honest in handling serious structural conditions that nourish intractable conflicts. It is important politicians engage in building sustainable institutions that can settle once and for all the marginalised like the Luo of Kenya , Baganda of Uganda , etc. You cannot build a nation by marginalising groups of people; rather you do so by involving everyone on equal terms.
Mr Kayumba is a Ugandan on peace studies in Brussels
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