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Nokoko1Fall2010Nokoko1NokokoInstituteofAfricanStudiesCarletonUniversity(Ottawa,Canada)Fall2010(1)Nokokoisanopen-accessjournalpromotingdialogue,discourseanddebateonPan-Africanism,Africa,andAfricana.
NokokobringsforwardthefoundationalworkofProfessorDanielOsabu-KleandhiscolleagueswhentheystartedtheJournalofPan-AfricanWisdomin2005.
'Nokoko'isaGawordthatmeanssomethingthatisnew,novel,surprisingandinteresting.
ThejournaloffersavenueforscholarshiptochallengeenduringsimplifiedviewsofAfricaandtheAfricandiaspora,bypro-vidingotherperspectivesandinsightsthatmaybesurprising,interesting,andre-freshing.
Combiningspacesforacademicandcommunityreflection,Nokokocreatesanop-portunityfordiscussionofresearchthatreflectsonthecomplicatednatureofpan-Africanissues.
Itprovidesaforumforthepublicationofworkfromacrossdiscipli-naryperspectivethatreflectsscholarlyendeavour,policydiscussions,practitioners'reflections,andsocialactivists'thinkingconcerningthecontinentandbeyond.
HostedbytheInstituteofAfricanStudies,atCarletonUniversity(inOttawa,Can-ada),NokokoprovidesaspaceforemergingandestablishedscholarstopublishtheirworkonAfricaandtheAfricandiaspora.
TheEditorialBoardofNokokoisPiusAdesanmi,Professor,EnglishandAfricanStudies,CarletonUniversityJamesNiiAyiteAryee,FederalCivilServant,OttawaDanielBaheta,SeniorDevelopmentOfficer,CanadianInternationalDevelopmentAgency(CIDA)ErinBellAlemBerhaneLaketchDirasse,President,Afri-CanTechTransPartners(ACTTP)Inc.
WanguiKimari,GraduateStudent,Anthropology,CarletonUniversityKathrynMcDonald,History,Queen'sUniversityHamdiMohamed,OttawaCommunityImmigrantServicesOrganizationTobyMoorsom,GraduateStudent,History,Queen'sUniversityDanielTettehOsabu-Kle(Ph.
D),Professor,PoliticalScienceandAfricanStudies,CarletonBlairRutherford,Director,InstituteofAfricanStudies,CarletonDanielTubb,GraduateStudent,Anthropology,CarletonCopyeditingbyKathrynMcDonaldandErinSeatter.
ProofreadingbyKathrynMcDonald.
LayoutbyDanielTubb.
iTableofContentsEditorialNote:Thingsa-stirringwiththeHarmattanBlairRutherford1WhatisAfricadoingwiththeNovelEdwardSackey.
9Ahabitusofwaranddisplacement:Bourdieu's'thirdway'andyouthinNorthernUgandaaftertwodecadesofwarLaraRosenoff49TheSouthAfricanReserveBankandthetellingofmonetarystoriesElizabethCobbett.
67TheneoliberalturnintheSADC:RegionalintegrationanddisintegrationJessicaEvans101"Settingtheagendaforourleadersfromunderatree":ThePeople'sParliamentinNairobiWanguiKimariandJacobRasmussen131PoliticsAcrossBoundaries:Pan-Africanism:SeedsforAfricanunityGachekeGachihi.
161iiContributorsBlairRutherfordisaProfessorofAnthropologyandtheDirectoroftheInstituteofAfricanStudies,bothatCarletonUniversity,Ontario,Canada.
EdwardSackeyisaProfessorintheDepartmentofEnglishattheUniversityofGhana,Legon.
LaraRosenoffisaPhDstudentinAnthropologyattheUniversityofBritishColumbia,inCanada.
Shehascollaboratedonnumer-ousprojectsinandaboutNorthernUgandaasartist,activistandlecturersince2004.
Herdissertationprojectwillexaminetheef-fectsoflong-termconflictonintergenerationalknowledgeex-change.
LaraisgratefultobeaLiuScholarandSSHRCrecipient.
ElizabethCobbettisaPhDstudentinPoliticalScienceatCarletonUniversity.
JessicaEvansisafirstyearMaster'sstudentinPoliticalScienceatCarletonUniversity.
Herinterestsincludecriticalinternationalpoliticaleconomy,development,SouthernAfrica,LatinAmerica,immigrationandregionalism.
iiiWanguiKimariisaMaster'sstudentinAnthropologyatCarletonUniversity.
HerresearchisontheAfricandiasporainBrazil,fo-cusingonmigration,educationandidentity.
JacobRasmussenisaPhDstudentinPolitics,CultureandGlobalChangeattheTheDepartmentofSocietyandGlobalisation,atRoskildeUniversity(RUC),inDenmark.
GachekeGachihiisacommunityorganizerwiththeBungelaMwananchisocialmovement,whichoperatesmainlyoutofKenya.
ThecoverphotoisbyBobSankofa,andisusedwithpermission.
NokokoInstituteofAfricanStudiesCarletonUniversity(Ottawa,Canada)Fall2010(1)EditorialNotesThingsa-stirringwiththeHarmattan….
BlairRutherfordBorntoathrone,strongerthanRomeButviolentprone,poorpeoplezoneButit'smyhome,allIhaveknownWhereIgotgrown,streetswewouldroamButoutofthedarkness,IcamethefarthestAmongthehardestsurvivalLearnfromthesestreets,itcanbebleakAcceptnodefeat,surrenderretreatSowestruggling,fightingtoeatandWewonderingwhenwe'llbefreeSowepatientlywait,forthatfatefuldayIt'snotfaraway,sofornowwesayWhenIgetolder,IwillbestrongerThey'llcallmefreedom,justlikeawavingflagAndthenitgoesback,andthenitgoesbackAndthenitgoesback.
—K'naan,"WavingFlag,"Troubadour(2009)2Nokoko1Fall2010Thereissomethingfresh,again,aboutAfrica.
Theconferences,thebooks,thetweets,theblogs,thedebates,theinvestments,thestruggles,thefilms,thesports,thegospelsandsermonsfrommanyreligiousdoctrinesandsyncreticisms,theconflicts,andthemusic—perhaps,especiallythemusic—havebeengeneratinggreaterinterest,widerscopes,andmoreintenseactivitiesconcern-ingAfricanmatterswithinandbeyondthecontinentofAfrica.
Therearenewscramblesforinfluenceandaccessafoot,involvingnotonlytheusual20th-centurycolonialandotherGlobalNorthplayers,butalsogreateractivitiesandinterestsbyChina,Brazil,India,Turkey,andArabLeagueplayersindifferentspotsanden-clavesinAfrica.
Hopesarebeinggenerated,ormoreaccurately,regenerated,rejuvenated,andretooledevenamidcontinued,en-during,evendeepeningpoverty,inequalities,environmentalcri-ses,misgovernance,andotherformsofabjectionthathavetoolongafflictedgenerationsinmanylocalitiesonthecontinent.
Thewordsof"WavingFlag"—asongwrittenbySomalia-bornandraised,Toronto-based,KeynaanCabdiWarsame,a.
k.
a.
K'naan,alsonephewofthelegendarySomalisingerMagool—wererewrittenbyitsauthoraspartofaCoca-ColaInc.
advertisingcampaigntocelebratetheFifaWorldCupinSouthAfrica,tobemore"hopeful,"asignofgreaterattemptstohavearenewedim-aginationof(andmorebusinesspracticesin)Africa.
Meanwhile,AchillesMbembe,therenownedCameroonian,SouthAfrica-basedcosmopolitancriticofthepostcolonialcrisesinAfrica,hassuggestedinhisnewbookSortirdelagrandenuit:Essaisurl'AfriquedécoloniséethatAfricamustreconstituteitsownforce,rediscovertheresourcesforitsownregeneration,andgobeyonditsentan-gledhistorywithEurope.
Throughsuchefforts,Africawilladvan-EditorialNotes:Thingsa-stirringwiththeHarmattan…/BlairRutherford3tageouslynegotiatewithitselfandwiththeworld,enablingacon-ditiontocreatesomethingeminentlynew.
1Nokokoisanothervehicleforlisteningin,stirringup,andmovingwiththeolderandthenewerwindsa-blowingthroughandbeyondAfrica.
Nokokoisanopen-accessjournalthatpro-motesdialogue,discourse,anddebateonpan-Africanism,Africa,andAfricana.
ItbuildsonthefoundationalworkofProfessorDanielOsabu-KleofCarletonUniversityinOttawa,Canada,andhiscolleagueswhentheystartedtheJournalofPan-AfricanWisdomin2005.
NokokoisaGawordthatmeanssomethingthatisnew,novel,surprising,andinteresting.
ThejournaloffersavenueforscholarshiptochallengeenduringsimplifiedviewsofAfricaandtheAfricandiaspora,byprovidingotherperspectivesandinsightsthatmaybesurprising,interesting,andevenrefreshing.
ThejournalishostedbythenewInstituteofAfricanStudiesatCarletonUniversity.
TheInstitutewasestablishedin2009,aspartoftheexpandinginterestinthingsAfricaninCanadaandelse-where.
ManyoftheeditorialboardmembershavetiestotheIn-stitute,andweseeNokokoasawaytoexpandtheconversations,discussions,andcounterpointsthataregoingonhereandinmanyotherplacesaboutAfrica'sfuture,present,andpast.
ForideasofAfricaaremorecontested,moreexciting,andarguablymoreperilousthaneverbefore.
AsthetitleofamanuscriptbyPiusAdesanmi,whoisalsoontheNokokoeditorialboardandwhorecentlywontheinauguralPenguinprizeforAfricanwritinginthenon-fictioncategoryinSeptember2010,putsit,You'reNot1LooselytranslatedfromaninterviewMbembedidwithNorbertN.
OuendjiinJohannesburgon7October2010,foundathttp://www.
mediasfreres.
org/:C'estenelle-mêmequel'Afriquedoitredécouvrirlesressourcesdesarégéné-ration,soncentre,salignemédiane.
Cecin'estpasl'équivalentd'unretouràjenesaisquellescoutumesanciennes.
L'Afriquedoitsereconstituerentantqueforcepropre.
C'estendevenantsaforceproprequ'ellenégocieraavantageu-sementavecelle-mêmeetaveclemonde—conditionpourcréerquelquechosed'éminemmentneuf,quifassesigneàl'humanitédanssonensemble.
4Nokoko1Fall2010aCountry,Africa.
ThetitleriffsofflinesfromapoembytheSierraLeoneannationalist,DavidsonAbiosehNicol:Youarenotacountry,AfricaYouareaconceptFashionedinourminds,eachtoeach,TohideourseparatefearsTodreamourseparatedreamsCombiningspacesforacademicandcommunityreflection,Nokokocreatesanopportunityfordiscussionofresearchthatreflectsonthecomplicatednatureofpan-Africanissues.
Itprovidesaforumforthepublicationofworkfromacross-disciplinaryperspectivethatreflectsscholarlyendeavours,policydiscussions,practition-ers'reflections,andsocialactivists'thinkingconcerningtheconti-nentandbeyond.
ItprovidesoxygentoemergingandestablishedscholarswhowishtopublishtheirworkonAfricaanditsdiaspo-ras.
ThisissueisentitledPoliticsAcrossBoundaries:ExamplesfromAfricaandtheAfricanDiaspora.
Itsarticlesexploreboundariesintheirmultiplicityofmeanings,includingpolitical,cultural,anddisciplinary,fromabroadrangeofdisciplinesacrossthehumani-tiesandsocialsciences.
Boundariesreferstopolitical,economic,social,andculturaldividesthroughwhichmobilizationoccursorfalters,administrativepracticesareentrenchedorundermined,andpowerconstitutes,refines,andamends.
Fromcallsfortheestablishmentofthe"UnitedStatesofAfrica"andthedissolutionofpoliticalboundariestothehar-denedviolentstakesinvolvedinborderconflicts,fromthepoliticsofethnicdisputesandconsolidationtothevarieddiscursiveandinstitutionalboundariesthroughwhichdemocratizationisenvi-sionedandpracticed,fromtheboundariesforgedanddissolvedthroughAfricandiasporicpoliticstothegrowingweightplacedonthemultinationalboundariesofregionalorganizations,fromtheunevenpoliticalglobalgeographiesaffectingclimatechangeandEditorialNotes:Thingsa-stirringwiththeHarmattan…/BlairRutherford5itstreatiestothebordersenforcedthroughcitizenshipregimesagainstdisplacedpeoplesandAfricanrefugeesinAfricaandelse-where,boundariesareofgreatimportanceinAfricaandtheAfri-candiaspora.
Wearedelightedtostartthefirstissuewithapenetratingandastutearticleentitled"WhatisAfricadoingwiththeNovel"byProfessorEdwardSackeyfromtheUniversityofGhana.
ProfessorSackeywastheAfricanVisitingScholartoCarletonUniversityin2009–2010,andthroughhispublictalksandparticipationinseminarsandprivateconversationswithcolleagues,students,andavarietyofpublicsintheOttawa-Gatineauregion,heputforthhiskeeneyeandfinewordstoexplorethecanonicalboundariesaroundAfricaandAfricanliteratureinparticular.
In"AHabitusofWarandDisplacement:Bourdieu's'ThirdWay'andYouthinNorthernUgandaafterTwoDecadesofWar,"LaraRosenoffconsidershowmanyyoutharoundtheworldaregrowingupinsituationsofprolongedwarfare,sothatmostcon-ceptualcategoriespreviouslyemployedtounderstandyouthinwararenolongerusefulinelucidatingtheirexperiencesandchoices.
SheseekstomovetowardsremedyingthisdilemmabyexploringPierreBourdieu'sclassic"thirdway"approachtoknow-ledge.
Sheapplieshistheoryofpracticetoyouthinlong-termconflictareas.
RosenoffisaPhDstudentinanthropologyattheUniversityofBritishColumbia.
Shehascollaboratedonnumer-ousprojectsinandaboutNorthernUgandaasartist,activist,andlecturersince2004.
ElizabethCobbet,adoctoralstudentinpoliticalscienceatCarletonUniversity,explorescentraldiscoursesonbankinginSouthAfricainherarticle"TheSouthAfricanReserveBankandtheTellingofMonetaryStories.
"ShearguesthatSouthAfricanpoliticaleconomicleadersareinastruggletoputinplaceamas-ternarrativeabouttheeconomy.
TheSouthAfricanReserveBankhasputforwardadominantnarrativeabouttheneedtoreinteg-6Nokoko1Fall2010ratetheeconomyintoarapidlychangingglobalfinancialenvi-ronmentafterthelongperiodofapartheidisolation.
Thelastde-cadeshaveseenconstanteffortstobringthenationaleconomyinlinewithglobalfinancialrequirements.
Cobbetarguesthattheseactorsareengagedinanongoingpublicdebate,whichplaysoutinthediscoursesaboutcentralbanking.
JessicaEvans,asecond-yearmaster'sstudentinPoliticalSci-enceatCarletonUniversity,whoseinterestsincludecriticalinter-nationalpoliticaleconomy,development,SouthernAfrica,LatinAmerica,immigration,andregionalism.
SheexplorestheSouth-ernAfricanDevelopmentCommunity(SADC)in"TheNeoliberalTurnintheSADC:RegionalIntegrationandDisintegration.
"ShearguesthattheSADC,formedin1992followingthedemiseofitspredecessor,theSouthernAfricanDevelopmentCoordinationConference(SADCC),hadbeenseizeduponbySouthernAfricanregionalpoliticalelitesasapivotalcomponentinregionaldevel-opment,peace,andpovertyreductionstrategies.
Yettodate,sheargues,theSADC'strackrecordhasfailedtodemonstratesignifi-cantandmeaningfuladvancesinthesedomains.
SheexplainsthatinthetransformationoftheSADCCtotheSADC,thecontentandgoalsofregionalismshifted.
WanguiKimari,amaster'sstudentinanthropologyatCarle-tonUniversity,andJacobRasmussen,aPhDstudentinpolitics,cultureandglobalchangeintheDepartmentofSocietyandGlob-alisationatRoskildeUniversity,explorethePeople'sParliamentinNairobiintheirarticle"'SettingtheAgendaforOurLeadersfromunderaTree':ThePeople'sParliamentinNairobi.
"TheyinvestigatehowmembersofasocialmovementcalledthePeo-ple'sParliament("BungelaMwananchi"inKiSwahili)engagethemselvesintheeverydaypoliticsofKenya'scapitalNairobi.
Drawingonnotionsofhowtobepolitical,theyexplorehowop-positionalpoliticsandpoliticsofresistanceplayoutonagrass-rootslevelincontemporaryKenya.
TheexplorationofpoliticalEditorialNotes:Thingsa-stirringwiththeHarmattan…/BlairRutherford7practicerelatestoadiscussionofthePeople'sParliament'sposi-tioninthewiderKenyansociety,andthisdialecticissupportedbycommentsonhegemonicandcounterhegemonicprocesses.
Alloftheseelementsrelatetoabroaderdiscussionofboundariesandpolitics,andhowtotransgressandcircumventtheeconomic,social,andconceptualboundariesthatinformthewaypoliticsisunderstoodandpracticed.
Finally,GachekeGachihi,acommunityorganizerwiththeBungelaMwananchisocialmovementinKenya,writesabouttheideaofPan-Africansiminhisarticle"Pan-Africanism:SeedsforAfricanUnity.
"Intheend,orperhapsinthisbeginning,NokokostrivestodocumentAfrica'spastandpresentinanengagedmanner.
Ithopestoconveythecontemporarymanifestationsoftheconti-nent'shistoryinthemyriadoflocationsinwhichitspeopleshavebeenestablished.
Aboveall,thejournalisdedicatedtomakingthelinksbetweentheeverydaypractices,struggles,anddreamsofAfricansandothersinAfricaandbeyond,withtheworkofpracti-tionersinpolicy,projects,andactivism,academia.
Nokokoencouragesworkwithacontemporary,engaged,anddecolonialperspectivethataimstocrosstheboundariesbetweentheacademyandpractitioners,whilesimultaneouslyremainingopentootherperspectives.
Nokokomaintainsacriticaltilt,favour-ingengagedscholarship,whileremainingopentobroaderper-spectives.
Nokokoisaforumforcurrentscholarship,whilerecog-nizingwisdomisnotconfinedtoscholars.
NokokoInstituteofAfricanStudiesCarletonUniversity(Ottawa,Canada)Fall2010(1)WhatisAfricadoingwiththeNovelEdwardSackeyThestorytellertakeswhathetellsfromexperience—hisownorthatre-portedbyothers.
Andheinturnmakesittheexperienceofthosewhoarelisteningtohistale.
Thenovelisthasisolatedhimself.
Thebirthplaceofthenovelisthesolitaryindividual,whoisnolongerabletoexpresshimselfbygivingexamplesofhismostimportantconcerns,ishimselfun-counseled,andcannotcounselothers.
Towriteanovelmeanstocarrytheincommensurabletoextremesintherepresentationofhumanlife.
—WalterBenjamin,Illuminations(2007)Theburdenofthispaperistoattempttoanswerthequestion:whatisAfricadoingwiththenovelButImustadmitthatasde-ceptivelysimpleasthisquestionlooksandsounds,itisacomplexone;anditsanswerismanifold.
Africaisdoingsomanythingswiththenovel.
InhisbookCultureandImperialism(1993),EdwardSaidhasdeeplyexploredtheroleofthenovelinthecolonialandimperialenterpriseofWesterncolonialism.
Heargueseloquentlythat"storiesareattheheartofwhatexplorersandnovelistssayaboutstrangeregionsoftheworld,theyalsobecomethemethodcolonizedpeopleusetoasserttheirownidentityandtheexist-enceoftheirownhistory"(p.
xii).
Infact,thehistoryofChinua10Nokoko1Fall2010Achebe'sThingsFallApart(1958),acorrectivenovelofprimeim-portanceandanembodimentofthathistoryisrelevanthere.
ConceivedasaresponsetothedenigrationofAfricainJosephConrad'sHeartofDarkness(1899)andJoyceCary'sMisterJohnson(1939),ThingsFallApartseekstocorrectthenegativecolonialistconstructedimageofAfrica.
AreadingofTheAfricaThatNeverWas:FourCenturiesofBritishWritingaboutAfrica(1970)revealsasummaofthedamagethatnarratives,travelogues,andnovelshavedonetotheimageofAfrica.
Thisisnottosaythatnarrativesarenotgood;theycanbeuseful.
Narrativesorstorytellingserveascon-duitsforthetransmissionofknowledgeandcultureinAfrica.
Thereisalsothephenomenonpopularlyknownas"theEmpireWritesBack"—thankstoSalmanRushdie.
Itisaformofre-writingcolonialtexts,questioningthecolonialistassumptionsunderpin-ningthem;besidethat,itoffersdecolonizedwriterstheoppor-tunitytobringnewinterpretationstobearoncolonialistnarra-tives.
Thesere-writtencolonialtextsreflectreactions—whichhavebeendescribedcontroversially,Ithink,as"postcolonial"—tocolonialistactions.
TheargumentButmyinterestinthispaperispredominantlyintheformalaspectofthenovel:thevariousliterarydeviceswhichAfricanex-perimentalnovelistsdeployinthesenovelsintheirattempttodomesticateit.
Whathaspromptedthisquestion,whichisthesubjectofthispaper,istheunmitigatedcompulsiononthepartoftheWesterncriticalestablishmentandsomeWestern-educatedAfricancriticstoassertthatthenovelisalientoAfricanformsofexpressionandthatitisaWesternimport.
MypositionisthatwhethertheWestistheabsoluteoriginofthenovelformornot,Africanshavebeenwritingnovelsthateasilystandincomparisonwiththebestnovelsanywhereintheworld.
What,then,shouldWhatisAfricadoingwiththeNovel/EdwardSackey11preoccupycriticsandscholarsofthenovel,inmyview,istosub-jectthemodernAfricannovelsavailabletousnowtoanhonesttextualprobingtofindoutwhetherthemodernAfricannovelex-tendsthefrontiersofthenovelformasawholeornot.
Therefore,tomymind,theproductivequestiontoaskincomparisonwiththecompulsiontoprovetheoriginofthenovelandhowiteven-tuallyendedupinAfricais:WhatisAfricadoingwiththeNovelAsKwameAppiahargues,"Africannovelsdonotneedjustifica-tion;theyneedasdoallnovels,analysis,understanding—inshort,reading"withoutprejudice(inGates,1984,p.
146).
Armahalsomakesthatpointin"TheLazySchoolofLiteraryCriticism"(25February1985)inaforcefulmanner.
AndthatispreciselywhatIhavebeendoingwithselectedworksofPeterAbrahams,ChinuaAchebe,AmaAtaAidoo,AyiKweiArmah,KofiAwoonor,NgugiwaThiong'o,KojoLaing,OusmaneSembene,WoleSoy-inka,andAmosTutuola.
Butforreasonsofspace,IshalllimitthispapertoArmah,whoistheepicentreofmystudyoftheAfricannovel.
IhavechosenArmahastheepicentreofmyprojectnotbecauseheisthepointoforiginofthemodernAfricannovel,orAfricanliteratureforthatmatter,butbecauseIconsiderhimasoneAfricanwriterwhoisdeeplyinvolvedinwhatonecande-scribeastotal(African)literature.
Armahisanaccomplishednovelist,poet,andcriticwhohassinglehandedlyengineeredtheestablishmentofaco-operativepublishingconcern,nowrespon-sibleforpublishingandmarketinghisbooks.
PerAnkh,theco-operativepublishingestablishment,likeArmahhimself,isbasedinSenegal,Africa.
Armah'swholepersonality,thatofamodeloftheAfricanpeople—inseparablefromArmahasartistandthinker—isconstantlygrowinginstatureasagreateducator,amentor,anawakenerandaliberator,ofAfricans.
IfArmahisanAfricannovelist,itisnotjustbecausehewritesaboutAfrica,butbecausehewritesaboutitinanAfricankindofway;thewayinwhichTwoThousandSeasons(1973,2000)isanovelofAfricara-12Nokoko1Fall2010therthansimplyaboutAfrica.
IthinkitisnoexaggerationtosaythatArmahwritesAfricaitselfandnotaboutAfrica.
Further,andmoreimportantly,justasAfricansexistintheintersticesofeachothers'lives,sodoesArmahliveintheintersticesofAfricancul-tureandexperience.
MethodologyThepaperoffersaclosetextualspadeworkofArmah'sTwoThousandSeasons,exploringhiscreativeandcriticalappreciationofAfricanelementsandthewaysthatappropriationfunctionstobringintobeinganovelformthatcanbedescribedasdemon-strablyAfrican;anovelgenrethatarisesfromAfricanhistoricalandculturalmatrix,anditisunderstoodintermsofthatorigin.
ScrupulousexaminationofthechallengesandtechniquesofAr-mahasanAfricanexperimentalistnovelistandexplicationandanalysisofthisnovelwillreplacetheplatitudesandclichésofcriticalpronouncementswhichhavehithertodominateddiscus-sionsofthemodernAfricannovel.
Thestudywilldealcompre-hensivelywithwhatArmahhasmadeofthenovel,howhehasreinventeditto"beartheburden"ofAfricancultureandworld-view.
IshalltreatArmah'sTwoThousandSeasonsinthispaperasarepresentativeAfricannovel.
Armah'swritingislayeredsothattounderstandTwoThousandSeasonsoneneedstogobacktohisworksbeforeit.
Hisworksarelinkedandorganicallyconnected.
Contentandformareinseparableinhisnovels,buttheyaremoresoinTwoThousandSeasons.
Subsequently,adiscussionofformimpliesadiscussionofcontentviceversa.
However,inthispaper,myconcernismorewithformandthegrammaroftheAfricannovelthancontent.
Criticsmightask—andlegitimatelyso—whatdifferencemystudyisbringingtotheexistingcriticalliteratureontheAfricannovelWhatismycontributiontothestudyoftheAfricannovelIWhatisAfricadoingwiththeNovel/EdwardSackey13amawareofworksbycriticsandscholars,Africansandnon-Africans,ontheAfricannovel,asmybibliographyshows.
Whatismissingintheexistingcriticalliteratureisthedirectionalunder-pinningoftheAfricannovel.
Therehasbeennofocusonthedis-coveryofthephilosophicalfoundationsoftheimmanentexperi-mentationintheAfricannovel.
Hitherto,wehavebeenmorecon-cernedwiththecollectionofwordsthatwearticulateandreadintheAfricannovels,totheneglectoftheabstractandunderlyingdeepstructureswhichregulatetheirmeanings.
Therefore,myopinionisthatitisthisgrammaroftheAfricannovelthatmustbeourcriticalpreoccupation.
Thisismymajorassignmentinthispaper-whatarethephilosophicalandsocialarrangementsthatinformtheon-goingexperimentationsintheAfricannovel,ifanyInhisthirdnovel,WhyAreWeSoBlest(1972),ArmahhasmadeacriticalandrevolutionarydeclarationandstatementofprincipleinthenameofSoloAnkonam—anartistwhoisincon-stantsearchoftheappropriateandeffectiveartisticmediumnotsomuchtoreachtheordinaryAfricanpeople,but,moreimport-antly,tocreatewhatBertoltBrechtdescribesasan"alienationef-fect"inhisAfricanreadership.
Tothiseffect,Armahwrites:Whynotsimplyacceptthefateofanartist,andlikeaWesternseer,closemyeyestoeverythingaround,findreliefindiscretebeauty,andmakeitselaborationmyvocationImpossible.
TheWesternartistisblestwiththatatrophyofvisionthatcanseebeautyindeliberatelybroken-offpiecesofaworldsickenedwithoppression'sugliness.
Ihearthecallofthatarttoo.
Butintheworldofmypeoplethatmostimportantfirstactofcreation,thatrearrangementwithoutwhichallattemptsatcreationaredoomedtofalseness,remainstobedone.
Europehurleditselfagainstus—notforcreation,buttodestroyus,touseusforcreatingitself.
America,agrowthoutofEurope,nowdeepensthatdestruction.
Inthiswreckagethereisnocreativeartoutsidethedestructionofthedestroyers.
Inmypeople'sworld,revolutionwouldbetheonlyart,revolutionariestheonlycreators.
AllelseispartofAfrica'sdestruction(Armah,1972,p.
231).
ThisdeclarationhasradicallychangedthedirectionofArmah'swritingandsocialactivism;itisnotmererhetoric.
Hebreakswith14Nokoko1Fall2010thewesternelitistconceptofartasitisexpressedinhisfirstthreeworks;"theEuro-Africannovels,"withapologiestoNgugiwaThiong'o.
Thisdeclaration,Armah'sartisticmanifesto,ispoliticallyloadedandsignifiessecondarilytheaestheticideologyofBrechtandBenjamin.
Itrequiresacarefulunpackingandqualification.
EventhoughthedeclarationmightechoBrechtianandBenja-minianartisticthought,theideasitimplicitlyexpressesarederiva-tivesofAfricanaestheticthoughtaswell:thetraditionalAfricaninsistenceonthefunctionalityofart.
Armahisanovelist,acriticandanintellectualactivistwhogivesactiveandsustainedsupporttowhathedescribesas"changingAfrica'ssocialrealitiesforthebetter"(26August1985,p.
1753).
Theconvictionthattheconti-nentofAfricacanbechangedforthebetterpermeateshiswritingandactivism:aconvictionthatfindspowerfulexpressioninWhyAreWeSoBlestspillingoverinto,andagainin,TwoThousandSeasons.
ForArmah,itmeanstherecastingofthetoolheproffersfortheexecutionofthisproject:thenovel.
Heisnolongerinter-estedinaworkofartwhichconcealstherealityoftheAfricancondition.
Hispreoccupationnowishowtogetthesocialar-rangementshiddenbeneathsuchworksofartacrosstotheordi-narypeople.
Further,heiscallingforthedebunkingoftheWest-ernartformthatdefinestheauthorasaspecialistsothattheauthoralsobecomesaproducerinkeepingwithAfricanaestheticpractice.
Theauthor'ssolidaritywiththeAfricanpeopleisderivedthenfromtheidentityofbothasproducers.
Indeed,acriticallookatthelifeofArmahclarifiesthispoint.
Essentially,Armahcon-traststwoartistictraditionsheretoinsinuatetwoworlds:theWesternworldandtheAfricanworld;theyareworldsapart,sepa-rate.
Theformerisindividualisticandthelatteriscommunalistic.
AccordingtoArmah,theWesternworldisbasedontheCartesianinjunctionthat"Ithink,thereforeIam.
"Itisaworldgroundedinindividualism,believingstronglyinindependentactionasop-posedtoco-operation.
ItisaworldwherethehumanbeingisWhatisAfricadoingwiththeNovel/EdwardSackey15consideredasaseparatebeingfromothersorashavinganinde-pendentexistence.
ThattheWesternnovelformisincapableofthetaskofheal-ingAfrica'smultiplefracturesiscontainedintheprecursorsofTwoThousandSeasons:TheBeautyfulOnesAreNotyetBorn(1968,2008),Fragments(1970;2006),andWhyAreWeSoBlest(1972).
Asex-plainedintheepigraph,Armahiswell-informedofthefalsityoftheviewthatthenoveldevelopedasaformcreatedbytheiso-latedindividualand,therefore,itlegitimizesrealitybasedonin-dividualexperiencewhichfromtheAfricanworldview.
FromtheAfricancommunalpointofview,whatisrealisformedbytherelationoftheindividualtothecollective.
ThedeclarationitselfsuggeststhatArmahhasagoodideaofwhattheideologicalfor-mationoftheWesternnovelis.
Anditisthatknowledge,coupledwithwhathehadintendedtodowiththenovel,whichfuelledthecataclysmicdeclarationinWhyAreWeSoBlest(1972).
GiventhecommunalAfricanculturalconsciousness,thepoeticsoftheWest-erncanonicalnovelisgrosslyincommensurablewiththerepre-sentationofAfricanreality.
ItistheoppositeofestablishednormsandvaluesoftheAfricanworld.
ForArmah,therefore,thele-gitimizingoftheWesternnovelforminAfricanliteraturestandsindirectoppositetoAfricanculturalreality.
What,then,istheAfricanworldthatArmahisbentonnurturinginhiswritingandactivismtosupplanttheManicheancolonialistworldoftheWestintherepresentationofAfricanrealityTheAfricanWorldTheAfricanworldisimpliedinAnkonam'sdeclaration,butitisgivenfullexpressioninthecraftofTwoThousandSeasons,thesuccessorofWhyAreWeSoBlestTheAfricanworldisacommunalonewheretheinjunctionis"Iam,becauseweare.
"Thesenseofcommunitythatissaidtocharacterisesocialrelationsamongin-16Nokoko1Fall2010dividualsinAfricansocieties,ofwhichTwoThousandSeasonsisatemplate,isadirectconsequenceofthecommunitariansocialar-rangement.
Thissenseofcommunity,whichhasbecomethecornerstoneofArmah'swritingandactivism,isacharacteristicthatdefinesthecommunity's"Africanness.
"NopersonisanislandintheAfricancommunalworld.
AsSusanMorgan,mydissertationsupervisorputsit,"noislandisanisland.
"ThisistrueoftheAfri-cancommunalworldArmahprojectsinhisworkandactivism.
ForArmah—apersonwhohasalwaysconceivedofhimselfasfullysituatedinanAfricanworldwithAfricanobligationsandacommitmenttoAfrica'sfuture,acommitmentwhichisfullycon-sistentwithhiswritingandactivism—thereistheneedto"de-stroy"thecolonialstructuresofoppressionandreplacethemwithAfricanmodelsforthepurposesoftheAfricanproject:the"re-membering"ofAfrica.
ArmahisoftheviewthatitisincumbentuponAfricanstoengageseriouslyinaculturalclearingofthepost-coloniallandscapeofAfricatomakewayforthecultivationofAfricanmodels.
AccordingtothelogicofArmah'smanifesto,ifthatisnotdonethecultivationofAfricanmodelswillgetstifled,therebystuntingthecontinent'sgrowthanddevelopment.
TheanecdoteofAboligatheFroginTheBeautyfulOnesAreNotYetBornandthenovel'sstifling,life-denyingstructurearemetonymicoftheconsequenceoftheinabilityoftheNkrumahregimetore-place"theEuropeancolonialeconomicandsocialmodel"(Ar-mah,1968,2008,p.
14)withanAfricanone.
ThesamecanbesaidofFragmentsandWhyAreWeSoBlestHowever,itisoutofthemthatTwoThousandSeasonsemergedlikeaplantinsearchoflight.
LetusnowturntoTwoThousandSeasonsandthecalltoAfricatocomebackto"theway,ourway.
"WhatisAfricadoingwiththeNovel/EdwardSackey17TwoThousandSeasons:ComeBackAfricaTwoThousandSeasonsisarevolutionarynewdeparturefromthetheoryandpracticeoftheWesterncanonicalnovelform.
Likeasubterraneanstream,thisnovelhaseatenitswaybydegreesthroughtheWestern—informedliterarystructuresofTheBeautyfulOnesAreNotYetBorn,Fragments,andWhyAreWeSoBlesttoeruptandachieveitsstatusandidentityasTwoThousandSeasons.
TwoThousandSeasonsisnotarejectionofthenovelform,ortheele-mentsofthenovelassuch;ifanythingatall,itisarejectionra-theroftheCartesianindividualisticconsciousnessthatisthefoundationandspiritoftheWesternnovel.
WhattakesplaceinTwoThousandSeasonsisthattheelementsofthenovelareinjectedwithelementsoftheAfricancommunalideologywhich,forin-stance,lendscharacterisationorpointofviewinthisnovelanAfricancommunalagreement.
Asopposedtothehighlyindividu-alizingcharacteroftheWesternnovel,whichBenjamingraphi-callydepictsabove,inTwoThousandSeasons,Armahseekstocom-munalisethenovelformandcreateademocraticspaceinitinconsonancewithAfricancommunitarianculturalpractice.
There-fore,heassumesthepositionofthecraftsmanofthecommunalvoice,thecommunalconsciousnessmoreconcernedwiththecol-lective,ratherthantheindividualsensibilitythatinhabitstheWesternnovel.
ThevastmajorityofWesternliterarynarrativesconsistcentrallyofthestoriesofoneindividualinisolationorofalimitednumberofinteractingindividuals.
Thatisarepresenta-tionofWesternwayoflife.
ButArmah'sabout-turn,clearlyexhib-itedinTwoThousandSeasons,alsoredefineswhatittakestobeanartistinmoderndayAfrica.
So,whatmanycriticslamentasthedeclineofhiswritingactuallybecomesthefoundationforsome-thingpositive,whichcouldbeseenastheredefinitionofwhoanAfricanauthoris,aswellasaradicalrecastingofthenovelstruc-ture.
Isuggestthisiswhathappensinhispost—WhyAreWeSoBlestnovels.
Armah'schoiceofpointofview,modeofcharacteri-18Nokoko1Fall2010zationanduseoflanguageinTwoThousandSeasonsrevealnotonlythevaluesystemoftheAfricancommunalisticworld.
Italsobringstotheforethepromisedrevolutionaryrecastingofthenovelform.
Thepointofviewofthisnovel—thecommunal"We"perspec-tive—isacleardemonstrationoftheAfricanworldview.
ItisanattempttobreakoutofourimposedEuro-Americanworldview,therebyliberatingusfromadeadontologywhichpreventsusfromexperiencingourworld,theAfricanworld.
OneofArmah'smostimportanttasks,sofarashiswritingandactivismarecon-cerned,istheattempttofreeAfricansfromtheEuro-AmericanworldviewwhichpreventsusfromexperiencingourAfricanworldasitreallyis,ratherthanwhattheEuro-Americanworldthinksitoughttobe.
Generally,thechoiceofapointofviewfromwhichastoryistoldisarguablythemostimportantsingledecisionthatthenovelisthastomake,foritfundamentallyaffectsthewayreaderswillrespondemotionallyandmorally,tothefictionalcharactersandtheiractions.
Armah'schoiceofthecommunal"We"pointofviewinTwoThousandSeasons,apointofviewwhichisinclusiveofthenarratoraswellasthepeopleofAfrica,indi-catestothereaderthatweareacommunityandthateachandeveryoneofusispartofthiscommunitypreciselybecauseasacommunitywedonotstandapartfromoneanother.
ThisisthepointFoliemphasizesinhislibationinFragmentspriortoBaako'sdepartureforfurtherstudiesintheWestwheresolipsismistherhythmoflife:WhereyouaregoinggosoftlyNananomyouwhohavegonebeforeseethathisbodydoesnotleadhimintosnaresmadeforthedeathofspiritsYouwhoaregoingnow,donotletyourmindbecomepersuadedWhatisAfricadoingwiththeNovel/EdwardSackey19thatyouwalkalone.
Therearenohumansbornalone.
Youareapieceofus,ofthosegonebeforeandwhowillcomeagainapieceofus,goandcomeapieceofus.
Youwillnotbecoming,whenyoucome,thewayyouwentaway.
Youwillcomestronger,tomakeusstronger,wiser,toguideuswithyourwisdom.
Gainmuchfromthisgoing.
GainthewisdomtoturnyourbackonthewisdomofAnanse.
Donotbepersuadedyouwillfillyourstomachfasterifyoudonothaveothers'tofillTherearenohumanswhowalkthisearthalone(1971,p.
5).
ThesignificanceofFoli'slibationisthis:OnipaBaakowasraisedforlivingincooperationwithhiscommunity.
Nowheisabouttotraveltoa"severelycompetitiveandacquisitivesociety"(Busia,1962,p.
34)tofurtherhiseducation.
Theprayer,then,istore-mindhimofwhoheisandwhatobtainsatthecountrywhereheisgoingtostudy.
Hisuncleistellinghimthroughthelibationthatheshouldalwaysrememberthatheispartofawhole.
Heisnotaloneandhemustneverconsiderhimselfalonewhereverhefindshimself;hencethelibationendsontheemphatictoneoffinality:"Therearenohumanswhowalkthisearthalone.
"Thiscommunal"We"rhetoricalpatternbeginsrightfromTheBeautyfulOnesAreNotYetBornthroughtoTwoThousandSeasons,givingstructureandmeaningtoArmah'swritingandactivism,totheextentthatithasbecomealeitmotivofhiswritingandactiv-ism.
Thelastparagraphoftheinspiringspeechof"thenewman"—KwameNkrumahthen—endsonthenoteofthelitanyof20Nokoko1Fall2010communityandco-operationwhichisafeatureofArmah'sart.
Hearhim:"[a]lone,Iamnothing.
Ihavenothing.
Wehavepower.
Butwewillneverknowit;wewillneverseeitwork.
Un-lesswechoosetocometogethertomakeitwork.
Letuscometo-gether…Letus…We….
We….
We….
Freedom….
Freeeeeeeedom!
"(Armah1968,2008,p.
138).
So,thecommunal"We"perspectiveimplicitlyacknowledgestheexistenceofotherswhoseexistenceisagiven.
Thisisbecause,bytheveryfactthatIamintheworld,IamalreadyinvolvedwithothersImightnotevenknow.
Idonothavetoprovethattheyexistinordertomakesenseofthem,becauseIcannotmakesenseofmyselfwith-outthem.
ThisistheAfricanworldandtheAfricanworldview:theworldviewthatFolidrillsintothemindofhisnephewpriortohisdeparturetotheWest,thecitadelofindividualism,tostudy.
AsthenarratortellstheaudienceattheendofTwoThousandSeasons:"[t]hereisnobeautybutinrelationships.
Nothingcutoffbyitselfisbeautiful.
Nevercanthingsindestructiverelationshipsbebeau-tiful.
Allbeautyisinthecreativepurposeofourrelationships;alluglinessisinthedestructiveaimsofthedestroyers'arrangements"(1973,2000,p.
317).
ThisquotationisalsoareiterationoftheabsoluteneedforAfricanUnity,whatArmahdescribesas"re-memberingthedismemberedcontinent"—theabsoluteneedtorepairthedamageinflictedonAfricaattheBerlinConferenceof1884-1885.
BenedictAndersonarguesinImaginedCommunities:ReflectionsontheOriginandSpreadofNationalismthatworksofart—particularlynovels—helpedtocreatenationalcommunitiesbytheirpostulationofandappealtoabroadcommunityofreaders.
"Fiction,"Andersonwrites,"seepsquietlyandcontinuouslyintoreality,creatingthatremarkableconfidenceofcommunityinano-nymitywhichisthehallmarkofmodernnations"(1983,2006,p.
36).
Inotherwords,literatureingeneral,andthenovelinpar-ticular,hasthecapacityofbringingpeopletogether:ithasthecapacityofmentallyclosingthedistancebetweenindividualsorWhatisAfricadoingwiththeNovel/EdwardSackey21communitiesattheleveloftheimagination.
ThusitisthatareaderofTwoThousandSeasonsinUmtata,SouthAfrica,forin-stance,doessounderthepresumptionthattherearefellowread-ersofthisbookinAbeokuta,Nigeria,orsomewhereelseinAfricaortheAfricandiaspora.
Similarly,thecraftofTwoThousandSeasonsandtheauthor'schoiceofthecommunal"We"perspectivetoad-dresstheAfricanpeopleinanincantatorymannerareconsciouslymadetoawakenintheheartsoftheAfricanpeoplethatfeelingofunavoidablesolidaritywhichbindshumanbeingstoeachother,creatinganAfricanimaginedcommunity.
Thefeatofthetwentycourageousmenandwomen,forexample,issuggestiveofwhatcontemporaryAfricansoughttodotorestoreAfricato"theway,ourway.
"Theplotstructureofthisnovel—thecircumstancessurround-ingthecaptureandthesubsequentstruggleoftwentygallantAfri-canmenandwomentoliberatethemselvesfromcaptivity,andtheirreturntothecontinenttoworktobringitbacktoconscious-ness—serves,potentially,toawakentheAfricanpeoplefromtheircoloniallyinducedlethargy.
ItreinforcesthecallontheAfricanpeoplebythecommunalnarrator,thevoiceofthecommunity,thesourceofitsknowledgeanditstraditions,tocomebackto"theway,ourway,"somethingthattheveryexistenceoftheAfri-canpeopledependon.
Thenarrative,whichisrepresentativeoftheAfricannarrative,inthiscaseisnotfilteredthroughthecon-sciousnessofasingleobserver,orwhatJonathanCullerdescribesas"contaminatingintermediaries.
"ItisthenarrativeofAfricansbyAfricansforAfricans,presentingacriticalchallengetothecodesandcanonsofboththetheoryandthepracticeofthenovelanditscriticismastheyhavebeendevelopedintheWest.
Characteri-zationinTwoThousandSeasons,whichisalsorootedintheAfricancommunalethos,isarejectionofthesolipsisticphilosophythatunderpinstheWesterncanonicalnovelform.
Characterandchar-acterizationinfiction,sowearetoldandtaught,shouldbecom-22Nokoko1Fall2010plex,rich,developingandmany-sided,butArmah'scharactersinTwoThousandSeasonsinparticularembodynoneoftheseprescrip-tions.
Thisisbecausetheyareproductsofadifferentculturalcon-sciousness,notbecause—ascriticswhoareschooledinthetheoryandpracticeofWesternliteratureassume—theyaredefectivelydrawn.
TheyaretruetoakindofculturalexperiencedifferentfromtheWesternkind.
ThepointhereisthatTwoThousandSeas-ons,asanewdepartureoftheAfricannovel,isaradicalexperi-mentationintheserviceofAfricanreality.
ItisaradicalrejectionoftheimpositionoftheWesternformofthenovel,whichisaWesternideologicalformationand,therefore,arepresentationofWesternthought.
AndasarepresentationofWesternthought,itiswithoutdoubtembeddedandinterwoveninWesternworldview,theworldviewofwhichthepoeticsofTwoThousandSeasonsisadivestment.
Thecommunalethosisthefundamentaltruthfromwhichpointofviewandcharacterizationarederivedinthisnovel.
ItistheveryfoundationofTwoThousandSeasonsanditisArmah'sphilosophyoflife.
Helivesit.
LookedatcriticallyfromTheBeauty-fulOnesAreNotYetBornthroughtoTwoThousandSeasons,itisclearthatArmah'swritinguptoTwoThousandSeasonswasaconsciousstruggletoreturntowhathedescribesinTwoThousandSeasonsas"theway,ourway,"ofwhichthenovelitselfissymbolic.
WhatimmediatelyarreststheattentionofthereaderofTwoThousandSeasonsistheincantatoryrhythmsandrepetitionsinthelanguageofthenovelandthepresumedpresenceofaliveaudiencetowhichInowturn.
ThelinguisticsoftheworldofTwoThousandSeasonsTwoThousandSeasonsisatext,butitsstyleisonepreservingrecognisableoralpatterning.
ItisaconscioussimulationofanAf-ricanoralstorytellingsession,demonstratingcharacteristicsofanWhatisAfricadoingwiththeNovel/EdwardSackey23oralexpression:namely,animpliedactiveaudience,andaudi-enceparticipation,repetitionandmodulationofvoiceforcom-municativeeffect,co-ordinationandsyntacticalparallelism.
There-fore,whatthereadercomesintoforcefulcontactwithrightfromthebeginningofthisnovelisthepresumedpresenceofanim-pliedactiveaudienceaswellasthemagisterialattitude,attributeandtoneofthecommunal"We"narrator.
Thenarrativeisinter-mittentlyinterjectedbymembersofthenarrator'salertaudienceinthiscasetoannouncetheirpresenceandtheiractiveinvolve-mentinshapingthenarrative,theirnarrative.
Thefollowinginter-jectionsareexciting:WhowasitprophesyingAndwhatwasitshesaidtopierceourcomfort,theeaseofages(1973,2000,p.
34).
andWhoaskstohearthementionofthepredators'namesWhowouldhearagainthecursednamesofthepredatorchieftainsWithwhichstinkingnameshallwebegin(1973,2000,p.
50).
or…whybreakourearswithallthenames,allthechoices(1973,2000,p.
153).
Audienceparticipationandresponse—whatmodernitycalls"callandresponse"—isanintegralpartofAfricanspokenart.
ButinthecontextofthecraftofTwoThousandSeasons,ArmahhasgivenitacreativeartisticprocessingtogivethenovelanAfricanattribute,therebydomesticatingit.
Whatthereaderexperiencesinthisnovelisaconsciousprovocationofthepresumedaudiencebythecommunal"We"narratortoannouncetheirpresence.
Thisisnotnecessaryinaliveperformance,becauseAfricanartisaninterac-tive,vital,integrated,andacommunaleverydayactivity,andthisispreciselywhatArmahaimsatinthisnovel.
AsRobertFraser24Nokoko1Fall2010pointsout,Armahhasevidentlybecomeincreasinglyconcernedwiththedemocraticbasisofhisart.
Therehasbeenamarkedefforttoreachoutbeyondtheconfinesoftheliteratiandtheuniversityintelligentsiatothelargerpo-tentialreadingpublic,andhencehopefullytorecapturesomeofthewiderancestralappealoftheoralartist.
ThetranslationofTheBeautyfulOnesAreNotYetBornintoSwahili,thelinguafrancaofEastAfrica,mightbetakenasoneinstanceofthis.
Therelativedirectnessandwideappealofhislaternovelsmustbeseenasanother.
Thedirectionwhichhisstyleandnarrativemannerhavetakencanhencebeviewed,notsomuchastheresultofpressureswhichhaveaccumulatedwithintheartit-self,astheproductofagrowingawarenessofthesocialcontextwithinwhichtheprofessionalartistinAfricamustoperate(1980,p.
x).
Thisconcern—thesearchforasimplifiedkindofwritingdistin-guishedfromthehieratic,thesearchforthekindofwritingwhichwillmakeitpossiblefortheartisttobeintouchandstayintouchwiththeordinarypeopleofAfrica—pervadesthewritingofAr-mah.
ItisprofuselydemonstratedinthecraftofTwoThousandSeasonsthroughthedeploymentofthetechniquesoforality:rep-etition,parallelism,co-ordination,transliterationofGhanaianvernacularexpressionstocreateandsustaintheappearanceofanoralstorytellingsession.
WhatArmahisconcernedwithinTwoThousandSeasonsistoreachalargeraudience,theordinaryAfri-cans.
ThisisbecausethereareintelligentAfricans,ordinarypeo-ple,whowanttoknowwhatisgoingonaroundthem,andArmahthinkshehasadutytoreachthatconstituency;orattheleast,tocreateanartisticpiecewhichwillbeintelligiblewithintheirownconstituency.
IthinkSoloAnkonamspeaksforArmahinWhyAreWeSoBlestwhenhesays:"[m]anynightsIhavedreamedofstor-iesIwouldliketowrite,wordswhichwouldinvitethereadertonodwithrecognitionandsay,"Yes,injustthiswayItoohaveex-periencedthethingshewritesabout.
"(1972,p.
14;emphasismine).
AsToniMorrisonwrites:WhatisAfricadoingwiththeNovel/EdwardSackey25theabilitytobebothprintandoralliterature:tocombinethosetwoas-pectssothatthestoriescanbereadinsilence,ofcourse,butoneshouldbeabletohearthemaswell.
ItshouldtrydeliberatelytomakeyoustandupandmakeyoufeelsomethingprofoundlyinthesamewaythataBlackpreacherrequireshiscongregationtospeak,tojoinhimintheser-mon,tobehaveinacertainway,tostandupandtoweepandtocryandtoaccedeortochangeandtomodify—toexpandonthesermonthatisbeingdelivered.
Inthesamewaythatamusician'smusicisenhancedwhenthereisaresponsefromtheaudience…Becauseitistheaffectiveandparticipatoryrelationshipbetweentheartistorthespeakerandtheaudiencethatisofprimaryimportance…Tomakethestoryappearoral,meandering,effortless,spoken…tohavethereaderworkwiththeauthorintheconstructionofthebook—iswhatisimportant(1984,p.
341).
ThisistheindwellingcreativeprincipleofTwoThousandSeasons:tomaketheAfricanpeoplepartnersintheproductionofTwoThou-sandSeasons.
LikeWalterBenjaminandBertoltBrecht,Armahsharesthebeliefthatknowledgemustnotonlybelived,itmustalsobeusedintheserviceofhumanity.
So,asRobertFraserpointsout,Armahisnotinterestedinthepeoplewhojustgivehisworksacademictreatment,theliteratiandtheuniversityintelli-gentsia;hisperspectiveinTwoThousandSeasonsisnotacademic.
Hisobjectiveistousehiswritinginhelpingtochange"Africa'ssocialrealitiesforthebetter"(Armah,25August1985,p.
1753).
Heisacutelyawarethatwordsbythemselvesdonotbringaboutchange;changehasbeenthefunctionofsensitizedandeducatedhumanbeings.
Assuch,heiskeenlyfocusedonaffectinghisread-ersandeventuallyturningthem"intoproducers—thatis,readersorspectatorsintocollaborators"(Benjamin,1999,p.
777).
TwoThousandSeasonsexplicitlyinvitestheactiveandcommittedpar-ticipationofAfricansinadvancingtheagendaofthesocialtrans-formationofthecontinent.
Hisinterestisincreativityandcreativepeople,andhethinkstheWesterncolonialistsystemofeducationdoesnotinstilintheWesterneducatedAfricanthesenseofwork.
26Nokoko1Fall2010ForArmah,"theendofaWesterneducationisnotworkbutself-indulgence.
Aneducationforwormsandslugs"(1972,p.
161).
WhatArmahasksisthattheAfricanintellectualmustfacethesocialrealityofAfricaandworktochange,inhisownwords,"Africa'ssocialrealitiesforthebetter.
"Unfortunately,hedoesnotthinkWesterneducationiscraftedtoservethatpurpose.
Hisar-gumentappearstomakehimatraitortohisclassofeducation:hewenttoAchimotaCollegeinGhana,thenHarvard—oneofthemostprestigiousuniversitiesintheWesternworldandacitadelofWesterncivilization—andfinallyColumbia,thelattertwobeingintheUnitedStates.
However,inthecaseofArmah,anovelistandthinkerwhoiswaryoftheslavishimitationofideasandepis-temologicalstructureshavingexternalorigin,hisapparentrebel-lionagainstWesternartdrawssustenancefromAfricanepistemo-logicalsources.
HisideologyisAfrica.
HisrevolutionisAfricaandAfricans.
Soheseekstopursuethewritingofanovelgenrewhichpossessessomedegreeofinherentagencyinconsonancewithtra-ditionalAfricanliterarypractice.
ArtinAfricaisfunctional.
Ofallthetechniquesoforalstorytelling,repetitionasamnemonicdeviceandperformativityiscentral,givingrisetowhatOngdescribesas"formulaicexpressions,"whichfigurewidelyasanoralstylisticdeviceinthenovel(1982,p.
34).
Sofarasoralcommunicationisconcerned,memoryisimportanttothehighestdegree,hencetheneedforrepetitiontotriggeroffmemory.
Con-sideringtheobjectiveofArmah,bythepowerofthecraftofTwoThousandSeasons,tomakeAfricansliterallyhearthecrucialall-Africancalltoreturnto"theway,ourway,"memoryanditsre-vivalbecomeinevitable.
Thisisexhibitedinthesimulationofthedynamicsofthespokenwordsontheprintedpage,therebybring-ingalivethecadencesofspokenspeech.
Takethefollowingex-cerpts,forexample:Knowthisagain.
Thewayisnottheruleofmen.
Thewayisneverwomenrulingmen.
Thewayisreciprocity.
Thewayisnotbarrenness.
NoristheWhatisAfricadoingwiththeNovel/EdwardSackey27waythisheedlessfecundity.
Thewayisnotblindproductivity.
Thewayiscreationknowingitspurpose,wiseinthewithholdingofitselffromsnares,fromdestroyers(1973,2000,p.
76).
orOurwayisreciprocity.
Thewayiswholeness.
Ourwayknowsnooppres-sion.
Thewaydestroysoppression.
Ourwayishospitabletoguests.
Thewayrepelsdestroyyers.
Ourwayproducesbeforeitconsumes.
Thewayproducesfarmorethanitconsumes.
Ourwaycreates.
Thewaydestroysonlydestruction(1973,2000,p.
76).
Therepetitionof"theway"—seventimesinthefirstexcerpt—andthehighlyrhythmic,balancedpatternsaidrecallbyrevivingmemory.
Co-ordinationandparallelism,commonfeaturesoforalstyle,arealsodistinctivecharacteristicsofthestyleofTwoThousandSeasons.
Thenarrator'sskillinself-expressionandabilitytocom-municatefreelywithothersbywordofmouthisdemonstratedinmanywaysinthistext.
Letusdeliberateonthefollowing:Weheardalsooftheattemptsofotherwhitedestroyerstoreachotherplaces.
Here.
WeheardhowtheyhadreachedSimpa,Anago,BomeyandAhwei,butHowtheycametoAnoa—ah,disastrouscoming—wehadnotheard…(1973,2000,p.
130).
orAh,blindillusionofnostalgicspirits.
Ah,self-murderingdeafnessofearsforevercutofffromthequiet,reasonablecallofourway(2000,p.
234).
Themannerandthecontextinwhich"ah"isexpressedonallthreeoccasionsisoneoftheeffectivewaysofthenarrator'soralcy,aswellastheirabilitytoinduceempathyfromtheirtargetaudi-ence:theAfricanpeople.
Further,that"ah"mayalsobetakenasthewistfulsighofamomentarilydejectedman:inthiscase,thenarrator.
Thepointisthatintheoralstyleofnarrationthevoiceofthenarratorissubjectedtostrategicmodulationforcommuni-cativeeffect;bodylanguageandfacialexpressionformpartoftheoralcommunicativeprocess.
Butthesecannotbeexpressedina28Nokoko1Fall2010writtenform.
SoArmahresortstotherepresentationoftheoraltechniqueofvoicemodulationinthenarrativeofTwoThousandSeasons.
TwoThousandSeasonsisacomprehensiveexpressionof"theway,ourway"towhichitisferventlycallingcoloniallymisdi-rectedAfricatocomebackto.
NotonlyisTwoThousandSeasonsitselfanAfricanliteraryexpressionof"theway,ourway,"butthisAfricanliteraryexpressionalsocontainsthehabitualcharacteranddispositionoftheAfricanpeople:namely,ouranthropology,economics,history,linguistics,philosophy,psychology,sociology,traditionalmedicine,traditionalsystemofsocialandjudicialad-ministrationandsoon.
Forexample,thestyleofthenoveldem-onstratesaconsciouslyworkedoutlinguisticstrategyoftranslit-erationwithoutsubvertingthesemanticandsyntacticstructureofthewhiteman'slanguage,allinanefforttosuggestpossiblesolu-tionstothelanguageprobleminAfrica.
Thatiswhyinthenoveltimeisreckonedinseasonssothatyearsbecome"seasons";andthefollowingEnglishnamesaregivenGhanaianvernacularex-pressions:castlebecomes,"thestoneplace,";kitchenbecomes,"thecookingplace,"andsoon.
TherearealsoasprinklingofAkanwordsandexpressionslike"twapea,"(chewingstick)and"poano"(seashore).
ToextendmyargumentthroughthetrainofthoughtofGerhardFritschi,foranoralculturethebrainmustsufficetostoreandtransmittheculturalcodeofthegroup.
Fur-ther,tokeepknowledgefrombeingforgottenitisnotonlyneces-sarytosubjectittofrequentrepetition,butalso"tostructurein-formationinsuchawaythatman'spsychicapparatusacceptsandretainsit"(Fritschi,1983,p.
13).
Itisthisthoughtandunder-standingthatinformsthecraftingofTwoThousandSeasons,anovelthatispotentiallywrittenfortheear.
Africanhistoryandmytharealsoraisedtothelevelofartintheexperimentationprocessofthisnovel.
WhatisAfricadoingwiththeNovel/EdwardSackey29HistoryandmythTwoThousandSeasonsisacompositeofAfricanhistory,Africanmythandanexhibitionofindividualartistryandtalent,therebygivingtheimpressionthatAfricanliteratureisthedoingofAfricanhistoryandmyth.
Ghanaianoraltraditionhasitthatonceuponatime,intheAnloareaoftheVoltaRegionofGhana,achiefcol-laboratedwiththeslave-raiderstocapturetwentyyoungmenintoslavery.
Theyoungmenweretoldthatthewhiteslave-raidersweregoingtoentertainthemontheirship.
Theybelieveditandfollowedthemintotheirshiponlytobetakenaway.
Essentially,then,thestoryofthetwentyyoungAfricanmenandwomencap-tivescouldbeatruestory,givenaradicalartistictwisttomakeanimportantpoint:Africansaretheirownsaviours.
Further,ArmahdrawsonthehistoryofmigrationinAfrica,focusingonthemigra-tionoftheAkans,whichisalsoahistoricalreality.
However,Afri-canmythisthefoundationoftheformalstructureandthecom-municativestrategyofthenovel.
ThereisasenseinwhichArmahfeelstheneedforAfricanstocultivateasystemimbuedwithAfri-canvaluesystemstoreplacetheoppressiveandslavishWesternmodel.
Theproverbialnumberseven,aproductofestablishedAfricanmythologies,notonlyservesasaframeworkofthenovel,butalsoasasymbolofunityandinthiscaseAfricanunity.
Itisaluckynumberwhichisalsofactoredintothespeechesofthecommunalleadershipinthenovel.
TheseresourcesarenottheinventionofArmah;theyhavebeeninexistenceintheAfricanculturaldiscursivesetting.
Theyarecommunalculturalresources,afactwhichArmahhimselfhasrepeatedoverandoveragain.
Hewrites:"[t]hemythsofAfricaareastorehouseofimages,symbols,words,narrativesandideasthatwearefreetouse,ifwefeelcalledtosuchwork,forinvokingafuturemadeofthebestvalueswecanknow.
Whatwecantakethereistheoppositeofwhatthekillersofferustoday…(1971,2006,p.
262).
AndthesearemythsfamiliartotheAfricanpeople.
Inthisway,Armah'schoice30Nokoko1Fall2010ofmythsinTwoThousandSeasonsisdependentontheirfamiliaritytotheAfricanpeople.
AccordingtoRalphEllison,theBlackAmericannovelist,theycanbesimpleorelaborate,buttheyaretheconnectivetissuebetweenthenarratorandthereaderortheaudience.
Theyembodythevalues,theculturalgeneralizationsandthephilosophicalpreceptsbywhichthepeoplelive.
Thenar-rativeofthisnovelispredicatedonthehistoryofAkanmigration,aswellasAkanfolklore,andthereferenceinthenarrativetotheoldwomanandthesevenchildrenhastodowiththesevenclansoftheAkans.
InthenarrativeofTwoThousandSeasons,theyarerepresentativeoftheAfricanpeople.
AsBusiacorrectlypointsout,"Africaisavastcontinent,inhabitedbycommunitiesthathavehaddifferenthistoricalexperiences.
Oneshouldbecharyinde-scribingasAfricanculturethetraditionsandwayoflifeofanyonecommunity.
""But,"hecontinues,"weoftenunderstandthegreaterfromthesmaller—movinglegitimatelyandlogicallyfromtheparticulartothegeneral—andtheexperienceofoneAfricancommunitymayhelpustounderstand,bycomparisonorcon-trast,theproblemofthelargerwhole"(1962,p.
7-8).
IthinkitisinthissensethatAkanculturemustbeseenasatropeinthenar-rativeofTwoThousandSeasons.
TwoThousandSeasonsisdousedinAfricancultureandthought;and,theonlyissuethatappearstobedetractionfromits"Africanness,"—eventhoughIdon'tthinkthatdoesdetractTwoThousandSeasonsfromitsstatureastheAfricannovelparexcel-lence—isthelanguagequestioninAfricanwriting.
Armahiskeenlyawareof,anddisturbedby,'thelanguagequestion'.
Intruth,itshowsinhisuseoftheEnglishlanguageinthisnovel.
Acharacter-isticofArmahasacreativewriterandathinkeristhathehasthehabitofusinghisnovelstoexpresshisthoughtsaboutcriticalis-suesinAfricaandAfricanliterature,allthetimesuggestingap-proachesthatcanbecarriedout.
ThelanguagequestioninAfricanliteratureisoneofsuchcriticalissues.
HeagreesabsolutelywithWhatisAfricadoingwiththeNovel/EdwardSackey31theneedforAfricanwriterstowriteinanAfricanlanguage,anAfricanlinguafranca.
However,giventhelinguisticconfusiononthecontinent,hethinksthewayforward,typicalofhim,isathoughtfulcontinent-widesolutiongearedtowardsfindingaper-manentsolutiontoit.
Anythingshortofthat,forhim,amountsto"lookingintotherearviewmirror"(29April1985,p.
832).
An-othercrucialobservationonecanmakeaboutthenovelsofAr-mahisthis:justasAfricanoraltraditionsandnarrativesarecap-sulesofknowledgeaboutAfrica,soarethenovelsofArmah;theyareencyclopaedicsofarasknowledgeaboutAfricaisconcerned.
AstheDangmepeopleofGhanaalwayssayaboutKlamaCult,theiroraltradition:"Klamaisourschool.
"Indeed,itisacapsuleofknowledgeabouttheDangmepeopleofGhana:theirhistory,theirphilosophy,theirtraditionalmedicine,theiroralliteratureandsoon.
TheonlyproblemIhavewiththecultisthatitisanelitisttraditionalinstitution.
Butthatisanothermatter.
ThepointhereisthatintraditionalAfricaworksofartaredesignedwithspecialregardtopurposeandpracticaluseandthisisanimport-antprinciplewhichArmahfactorsintohiscreativewriting,with-outtheelitismassociatedwiththe"KlamaSchool,"forexample.
ThisisalsoapracticeonefindsinthecompositionofBlack-AmericanBluessongswhichprovideadossierofaspectsofBlackAmericanhistorynotavailableinhistorybooks.
Armahputspre-miumonthefunctionalityandaccessibilityofhiscreativewritingandTwoThousandSeasonsisaclassicexample.
Ithinkwhatismiss-inginthecriticalappreciationofArmah'swritingisourinabilitytofathomthedrivingforcebehindit:theAfricanhastobemadeawareoftheirstateofalienationinordertobeabletochangetheirsocialconditions.
TheprinciplethatlinksArmah'swritingandsocialactivismintoacoherentwholehasbeentheideaofprocess,thatnothingisdetermined,absoluteandfixed,butsub-jecttoinfluenceandchange.
Consequently,forArmah,thepres-32Nokoko1Fall2010entdireconditionofAfricacanbechanged.
AndIdaresaythattheprocessofchangeisinprogressonthequiet.
AsIhavehintedatthebeginningofthepaper,AyiKweiAr-mahisnottheonlyAfricanwriternotableforexperimentationinfictioninAfricanliterature.
ChinuaAchebe,AmaAtaAidoo,KofiAwoonor,NgugiwaThiong'o,KojoLaing,AmosTutuola,Ous-maneSembene,WoleSoyinkaaresomeofthenamesthatcometomind.
Theexperimentationofmostofthem,ifnotall,involvestheincorporationofAfricanoraltraditionsintothenovelform.
Therefore,theirnovels,whicharesubjectsofexperimentation,ostentatiouslydeviatefromtheWestern-receivedwaysofrepre-sentingreality,eitherinnarrativeorganizationorinstyle,orinboth,tochangeourperceptionofthatreality.
Moreover,onecannotcreditthetechniqueofdeployingAfricanoraltraditionsintheAfricanexperimentalnoveltoanyparticularwriter,becausethesewritersputthemtodifferentuses,astheirworksclearlytes-tify.
Itisacleardemonstrationoftraditionandindividualtalentatitsbest,Ithink.
TheexperimentationofArmahandNgugiinparticularisdictatedlargelybydemoticconsiderations:theneedtoreachthe"commonpeople.
"ThisisuppermostintheschemeofArmah'swriting.
ThelateOusmaneSembene,anestablishednovelist,resortedtocinematographypreciselybecausehehadwantedtocommunicatewiththeordinarypeople,toclosethecommunicativegapbetweenAfricanliteraryproductionandtheordinarypeople.
WhatisholdingbackAfricannovelistslikeAr-mahfromgoingintocinematographyisthatitisextremelyex-pensivewithanextremely.
However,IhaveafeelingthattheideaisreceivingseriousconsiderationandthatArmahandNgugiarejustawaitingafavourablemoment.
IthinkthenovelsofArmah,forexample,arestructuredtolendthemselvestocinematographicconstructionwhenthetimearrives.
Theon-goingexperimentationinAfricanfictionhasbeenthesubjectofnegativeandsometimescondescendingevaluationwhichmustbeaddressed,evenifpa-WhatisAfricadoingwiththeNovel/EdwardSackey33renthetically.
Itmightclearupsomecultural,social,andhistoricalmisunderstandingoftheexperimentationandthedirectionofAfricanfictionandAfricanliteraturegenerally.
TheAfricanexperimentalnovelanditscriticismThepoeticsofTwoThousandSeasons—anovelgenreof"theway,ourway"—demonstratesamongotherthingsthatcriticismisanaccepted,inevitablepartofliterarycreativity;thatliterarycre-ativityisparticipatoryandcommunal,totheextentthatitcanbearguedthattheideaoftheauthorisamoderndaycapitalisteco-nomicinventioninAfricanliterature,andthatauthorshipintradi-tionalAfricaisvestedinthecommunity.
Thereasonisthatworksofartareconsideredcommunallyproducedandowned.
How-ever,thelogicofmoderndaycapitalistsocialandeconomicstruc-ture,aswellastheseeming"death"ofAfricanoraltraditionasaresultoftheinventionofprintingandwriting,hascontributedtothecreationoftheideaofauthorshipinmodernAfricanwriting.
Theirsisacallingandtherawmaterialtheyuseintheirworks—Armahkeepshammeringthispointinhisutterances—haveal-readybeencreated.
Whatisrequiredistheapplicationoftheirindividualtalentsintheliteraryassemblingoftheseliterarypartsintheirworks.
TheauthorshipofTwoThousandSeasons,forexam-ple,Iwouldliketobelieve,doesnotassumetobetheoriginofthenarrativeofthenovelinthesenseinwhichFoucaultattackstheconceptandauthorityoftheauthorin"WhatisAnAuthor"(1984).
Presumably,itisthefunctionofthecommunityofwhichthenarrator,notnecessarilyArmah,formsapart.
Ithinktheauthor-positionofAyiKweiArmahintheschemeofTwoThousandSeasons,aparadigmoftheAfricannovelwhichdrawsliterarynu-trientsfreelyfromareservoirof"sourcesandresourcesofAfricanliterature,"ispurelyeconomic.
This,inmyopinion,isreasonably34Nokoko1Fall2010so.
ThatArmahisinvolvedintheparatextualelementsofhisworkmustnotbeinterpretedtomeanthatAfricanwritersormostAfri-canwritersdothesame.
Historicallyandideologically,PerAnkhwas,andoughttobeseenas,anurgentdemandthatneededtobedealtwithbyAfricansandtheirwriters,andthatArmahhap-penedtobetheprimemoveroftheideawasoneofthetravestiesofourhistory.
ButIthinkthattheestablishmentofPerAnkhisadeclarationoftheneedforAfricanstobeindependentofexternalmanipulation.
WhatArmahdoesbestisthatheuseshisactivismandwritingtoremindhispeopleconstantlyofcriticalsocialprob-lems,allthetimesuggestingcarefullythoughtthroughsolutionsaswell.
OneofthethemesthatreceivesuchmnemonichandlinginTwoThousandSeasonsisthecommunityandthecommunalownershipofartworksand,indeed,knowledgeanditsproductionintraditionalAfricaand,consequently,theabsenceofwhatAr-mahcalls"thestampofownership"(2010,p.
131)syndromeintraditionalAfricanliteratureandphilosophy.
TwoThousandSeasonsdoesnotonlygiveclearandloudexpressionstothesethematicstatements;thenovelitselfisanexampleaswellasacollectionofexamplesofwhatisandwhatoughttobeaswellaswhatmustbedone.
Itis—toborrowthephraseoftheFranco-CzechnovelistMilanKundera—Africa's"mapofexistence"(2000,p.
15).
ThepointneedsstressingherethatinthisAfricannovelacol-lectivenarrativeagentoccupiestheprotagonistrole.
Andthepro-tagonististhecommunity,notanindividualasitisexpectedintheWesternsolipsisticnovel.
AsUriMargolinclaimsinhisessay"TellinginthePlural:FromGrammartoIdeology"(2000),anessaywhichmakesreferencetoArmah'sTwoThousandSeasons,amongpredominantlyWesternnovels,inArmah'snoveltheindi-vidualisrepresentedaspartofacollectivityoranAfricanculturalself;andthisisarealityinAfricanculturalpractice.
SoitisthatacharacterlikeIsanusi,anindividual,hasdevotedhislifetotheserviceofthewe-groupinthenovel.
Inallofthis,thenarrativeasWhatisAfricadoingwiththeNovel/EdwardSackey35awholeisprimarilythegroup'snarrative.
Thewe-groupinthenarrativeofthenovelsharegroupconcernsandactonthosecon-cernsjointly.
Tohammerhomethepointfurther,whenNelsonMandelawasreleasedfromprison,therewerecallsfromallovertheworldcongratulatinghim.
InaresponsetooneofsuchcallsonCNN,hesaidsomethinglikethis:"Idoappreciateyourcalls,butI'dliketomakeonethingclear:whatweareexperiencingto-dayistheworkofagroupofSouthAfricansofwhomIamjustapart.
Andsothecreditisforthegroup:WalterSisulu,OliverTamboandothers.
Ithinkthatmustbemadeclear.
"Finally,whenDr.
RosemaryBrown,thefirstBlackCanadianelectedtopublicoffice,remarked:"[u]ntilallofushavemadeit,noneofushavemadeit,"shewasexpressingafundamentalAfricansocialphi-losophyofcommunalismandoneness.
Thisisanimportantpartofthemake-upofTwoThousandSeasonsand,therefore,theAfricannovel.
Thatsaid,permitmetoquoteRobertScholesontheaberra-tionsinthecriticismofthenovelingeneralandthereforetheAf-ricannovelinparticular:[a]recurrenttendencyincriticismistheestablishmentoffalsenormsfortheevaluationofliteraryworks.
Tomentionafewinstancesinthecriti-cismoffiction,wecanfindHenryJamesandCo.
attackingtheintrusivenarratorinFieldingandThackery;orWayneBoothattackingtheambi-guityofJamesJoyce;orErlichAuerbachattackingthemultiplereflectionsofconsciousnessinmuchmodernfiction.
Thereasonsforthesecriticalaberrationsaremostclearlydiagnosablewhenweseethemasfailuresingenericlogic.
HenryJamessetuphisownkindoffictionasanormforthenovelasawhole,becausehewasunableorunwillingtoseethetermnovelasaloosedesignationforawidevarietyoffictionaltypes.
Inasimilarthoughopposedfashion,WayneBoothsetupeighteenth-centuryrhetorical-didacticfictionashisnorm.
AndErlichAuerbachsetupnineteenth-centuryEuropeanrealismashis……sinceeventheverybestcriticsoffiction—menofsensitivity,learning,andacumen—cangowrongwhentheyseekevaluativeprinciplesthatcrossgenericboundaries,weshouldconsciouslytrytoguardagainstmonisticevaluationbypaying36Nokoko1Fall2010reallycarefulattentiontogenerictypesandtheirspecialqualities(1977,43-44).
Therearecriticsoffictiontoday,studentsofHenryJames,WayneBooth,ErlichAuerbach,followingthefootstepsoftheirteachersandadmirers,totallyignoringtheimportanceofgenretheory,particularlyintheircriticismofexperimentalAfricanfiction.
TheyrefusetoacceptthefactthattheexperimentalAfricannovelistworksinatradition(African),andtheirachievementscanbemostclearlymeasuredintermsofthetradition(Africantradition)inwhichtheywork.
Asagenre,theAfricannovel,likeallgenres,"bringstolighttheconstitutivefeaturesof[Africansociety]towhich[it]belongs"(Todorov,1990,p.
19).
SotherearewindowsontheAfricanexperimentalnovelwhichenablethecritictopeepintoitandsearchforknowledgeandunderstanding.
Butas"fail-uresingenericlogic,"thesecriticsare"unwillingtoseethetermnovelasaloosedesignationforawidevarietyoffictionaltypes"ofwhichtheAfricannovelisone.
Asaconsequence,theyendupfindingrigidWesterntemplatesagainstwhichallnovels,irrespec-tiveoftheirculturalandsocialcontext,areforcedtofit.
ButnowthereisaforcefuleruptionofpositivecriticalopinionemanatingfromtheWesterncriticalestablishmentconcerningthecriticalev-aluationofthenovel,anoccurrencewhichamountstosavingtheright.
IamreferringheretoMargaretAnneDoody'scomprehen-sivelyresearchedTheTrueStoryoftheNovel(1997).
Thetitle—TheTrueStoryoftheNovel—ofDoody'sbookisveryinteresting.
Itisofcriticalinterestbecauseitimpliesthehithertocriticalconcealmentofthetruestoryofthenovel.
But,accordingtoDoody,thetruthaboutespeciallytheoriginofthenovelmustbetold.
Asshewrites:IhadlongfeltdissatisfiedwiththeversionofthehistoryofthenovelonwhichIhadbeenbredinthe1950sand1960(p.
Xvii).
Ifwritersandcriticswho,likemyselfareundeniablyWesternwanttoexplaintoourselvesandotherswhoweareandwhatweintheWesthavebeendoingandWhatisAfricadoingwiththeNovel/EdwardSackey37thinkingduringourhistory—sayinthepastcoupleofmillenniaorso—weneedtobereadytocorrectandamplifythestorythatwetellour-selves.
Otherwisewewillmisleadourselvesandothers(p.
3).
ItisfromtheprecedingreasonthatTheTrueStoryoftheNovelistold.
Doodyendsherwellresearchedbookonthisnote:[w]hatmysortofinterpretationofthegenreitself,ofthenovelasNovel,doesnotallowisourmakingnarrowdefinitionsofthegenreandshuttingouthalfoftheprosefictionoftheworld.
Myreadingwillalsonotallownationalandtemporalboundariestobetheperdurableaffairstheyareoftenimaginedtobe.
LikeHerodotus,IwishtoshowthatAsiaandAfricawere(andare)incontactwithEurope,andtoassureusthatourliteraryhistorydependsonamixture,aninterchangeofallofthese—with,itmustbeadded,theAmericas,PacificIslands,NewZealand,Australia,andsoforth.
ThehistoryoftheNovelisneverpure.
ThestoriestoldbytheNovelarenot"pure.
"Theyarestoriesofmixtureandvariety,ofboundarycrossingandchanging.
Thenovelitselfisnot"pure"andrefusesevertopretendtobeso…(1997,p.
484-485).
Apparently,itisincollaborationwiththecriticalsentimentsDoodyexpressesinTheTrueStoryoftheNovelthatTerryEagle-tonwritesChapterOne—"WhatisaNovel"—ofTheEnglishNovel:AnIntroduction.
Inthisintroductorychapter,Eagleton,likeDoodybeforehim,exposesthecriticalmalfeasanceabouttheoriginandthedefinitionofthenovelinanobjectiveandscientificmodeofargument.
Forexample,hewrites:[t]hepointaboutthenovel…isnotjustthatiteludesdefinitions,butthatitactivelyunderminesthem…Itcannibalizesotherliterarymodesandmixesthebitsandpiecespromiscuouslytogether…Thenovelquotes,parodies,andtransformsothergenres,convertingitsliteraryan-cestorintomerecomponentsofitselfinakindofOedipalvengeanceonthem…Thenovelisamightymeltingpot,amongrelamongliterarythoroughbreds.
Thereseemstobenothingitcannotdo(2005,p.
1).
Atthispoint,aworkthatpopstomindisAmaAtaAidoo'sseem-inglyproblematicOurSisterKilljoy(1977).
IsitanovelornotIfitisnotanovel,thenwhatisitTheauthorherselfclaims—wisely,I38Nokoko1Fall2010think—shedoesn'tknowandthatshehasleftittothecriticstodeterminewhatitis:Ineverdescribeitasanovelmyself.
WhenIhavebeenforcedtodescribeKilljoy.
Ihavesaiditisfictioninfourepisodes.
Astoitsverse-prosestyle,itwasalmostanunconsciousdecision.
TherewasnowayIcouldhavewrittenthatbookinanyotherstyle.
Itseemsthatthereweredifferenttemposintermsoftheprose,thenarrativeandwhatconstitutedthere-flectionsofthemajorcharacter.
Itseemstometobethemostappropri-atewaytohavewrittenthatbook.
AsIsaidearlieron,Ileavethecritictosaywhetheritisanovelornot(James,1990,p.
15).
WhatAmaAtaAidoohasleftout,consciouslyperhaps,isthattra-ditionallyAfricanliteratureisacompositeofdrama,prose,andverse:whatacriticdescribedas"totalart.
"Thethreemaingenreslivetogether.
LikeTwoThousandSeasons,whichisthesubject-matterofthisdiscussion,OurSisterKilljoydrawsdeepfromtheAfricanoraltraditionalrichliterarystorage.
AcharacteristicofAf-ricanoraltraditionalartisticproducts,whichTwoThousandSeas-onsabundantlydemonstrates,OurSisterKilljoydisplayssignsofpossessingsomedegreeofinherentagency.
TwoThousandSeasonsiscertainlyastatementorverb,thatitselfconstitutestheactionsitdescribes.
TheimportantpointhereisthatmodernAfricanlitera-tureowesalottoitsAfricanoraltraditionalheritageandthismustbetakenintoaccountinthediscussionofmattersofliteraryantecedents.
Inhisclassicessayonthenovel—"EpicandNovel:TowardaMethodologyfortheStudyoftheNovel"(1981),aworkthat,inmyview,leadsthewayinsuggestingthesystemofmethodsandrulesapplicabletoourunderstandingandappreci-ationofthenovel,BakhtinhassaidasmuchasDoodyandEagle-ton:thenovelisafluidartform.
LikeDoodyandEagleton,in"EpicandNovel,"Bakhtingivesproofofthenovel'suniquena-turebycontrastingitwiththeepic.
AccordingtoBakhtin,thenovelasagenreisuniqueinthatitisabletoembrace,ingest,anddevourothergenreswhilestillmaintainingitsstatusasaWhatisAfricadoingwiththeNovel/EdwardSackey39novel.
Analogically,then,theNovel,acomplexgenre,iscompa-rabletoahugesprawlingriverandthestreamsthatflowintoittoswellit—thegenresofthenovel.
Onecan,therefore,arguethattheNovelisaconfluence,aflowingtogether,ofgenresofthenovel.
Thatistosay,theAfricannovelis,andmustbeseenas,agenreoftheoverarchingNovel.
Thisbringsustothenextcriticalissue:thequestionofinfluence.
Influence,whichimmediatelyevokesoriginalityandplagia-rismsofarasliterarycreativityinAfricaisconcerned,is"ady-namicprincipleofcreativity.
"Itistheoxygenofcreativity,andapartfromGod,nohumanbeingisknowntohavecreatedany-thingoutofnothing.
Itisameanstoanendandthisisthereason[a]discussionofinfluencesuponaworkofimaginativewriting[oughtto]considerhowfartheyhavebeeningestedintothetextureandgen-eraloutlookofthework(orworks)andalsohowtheyhavebeentrans-cendedbythewriter(orwriters),ifatall,infindingadistinctiveidentityofvoiceoraestheticeffect.
Thefactofinfluence,thatis,becomesmoremeaningfulincriticalobservationwhenitsscopeandnaturearedefinedinrelationtotheresponsiveindividualityofusewithinthenewhostingframework(Jabbi,1980,p.
51).
IamnotacreativewriterandIdonotclaimtobeone,butIhavealwaysconsideredtheroleofinfluenceincreativewritingorcre-ativitygenerallycomparabletowhatpetrolorgasdoesinamotorengineandthereforethemotorcar.
Itpassesenergyintothemotorcartoenableitperformafunction:transportpeoplefromonepointtoanother,forexample.
Whathappensisthatthepet-rolgetsusedupintheprocess,butthefunctionwouldhavebeenperformedanyway.
Andatthatpointwhatinterestsusiswhatisachievedbymeansofthepetrolandnotthepetrolperse.
Ithinkthatthisiswhatoccursincreativityorimaginativewritingbyagoodwriterwhoisinfluenced.
Influencehelpsthegoodwriterorcreatortogivebirthtoauniquepieceofwork.
Nogoodwriter,therefore,isdiminishedbybeinginfluenced.
Butmuchasinflu-40Nokoko1Fall2010enceisthefuelthatpropelsthecreativemachine,itisnotaone-waytraffic.
Itworksbothways.
Forinstance,accordingtoShils,"[t]helayingopenofAfricatoexplorersandcoloniserswasfol-lowedbythebringingbacktoEuropeofworksofAfricanartwhichwereassimilatedintoandchangedgreatlythetraditionofEuropeanpaintingandsculpture"(1981,p.
260).
AsSoyinkare-veals,Shils'claimis"manifestedsorobustlyintheworksandar-tisticmanifestosofGauguin,Kandinsky,Brancusi,Cezanne,Pi-cassoandsoon"(1999,p.
33).
ThisiswellknowninWesterncriticalcircles,butitappearstobewilfullyignoredasaresultofWesterncriticalproclivityformalfeasance.
Inallofthis,theAfri-cannovelisthemosttraduced.
Butthetruthisthattheborrowingofartisticideasandforms,adaptingandadoptingthemtobeartheburdenofAfricanexperience,isoursthroughhistory.
Andthishasbeenpartlythesub-textofAfricancriticalreactionagainstthenegativeandunproductivecriticismoftheAfricannovel.
IthinkgivenourhistoryofWesterncolonizationandthesubse-quentimpositionofWesternvaluesandpracticesparticularlythroughacarefullycraftedWesternsystemofeducation,whatGauriViswanathan(1989)describesas"maskofconquest",itcannotbedeniedthatAfricancultureismadeupofsomeele-mentsthatmusthavebeenappropriatedfromWesterncolonialistcultureandhavebecomepartofourAfricantradition.
Nobodydeniesthathistoricalinevitabilityandreality.
InthewordsofKofiBusia:[s]urvivalsofextremelyoldculturescanbefoundalongsiderecentlybor-rowedinventionsandideas.
TheoldandthenewarebothpartofAfricaasitistoday.
ThetalkingdrumbelongsasmuchtocontemporaryAfricanculturesasdoesthetelegraphorthejazzband;thebabyatitsmother'sbackasmuchasthebabyInthepram;thelineageorclanasmuchasthetradeunionorthepoliticalparty;thechiefasmuchasthepresident.
Allhavebeenacceptedandincorporatedintotheever-changingandgrow-ingculturesthatconstituteAfrica'swayoflife(1962,p.
39).
WhatisAfricadoingwiththeNovel/EdwardSackey41Butthefactofthematteristhat—andthisisthelogicthatunder-pinsArmah'swritingandactivism,neatlycapsulatedinthede-clarationmadeinWhyAreWeSoBlest—Africanshavearichre-sidualAfricanculturalheritageourwriterscananddodeferto.
AndTwoThousandSeasonsisanobtrusiveexample.
ThatAfricamustbere-cultivatedinitsownimage,forArmah,isataskthatmustbetakenseriously,andhehasmadeanexampleofhimself.
ItisnoexaggerationtosaythathehasdedicatedhiswritingandlifetotheimportantworkofreclaimingAfrica.
ThereclamationofAfricainitsownimageatonceimplicatestheconceptofidentitywhich,Ithink,mustbecriticallylookedatinthecontextofthispaper.
AccordingtoAlanDundes(May1984),thewordidentityderivesfromtheLatinidemmeaning'thesame.
'Andyet,hegoeson,itisobviousfromallofthescholarlydiscussionsthat"identity"dependsasmuchupondifferencesasuponsimilarities.
HecitestheclaimofHeraclitusandmuchlaterSt.
ThomasAquinas,referringtothemetaphoroftheflowingriver,thatatanyonespotitisthesameriverbutneverthesamewater,whileLockeandHumerefertoanimateobjectstoexem-plifythenotionthatidentityremainsconstantevenifthephysicalconstituentschange.
Heconcludesthatthesameprinciplecanbeappliedtogroupidentity.
Iamoftheviewthatthesameargu-mentcanbemadeofAfricanidentityinparticular,regardlessoftheravagesofthecolonialenterprise.
Thepotinwhichsaltisstoredisnevershortofthetasteofsaltwhenthesaltisusedup,sogoesaDangmeproverb.
Identityishardlyabsolutelyde-stroyedwhenapeopletakeonotheridentities.
LetmesayhereinparenthesisthattheclaimofHeraclitusandSt.
ThomasAquinasaboutthemetaphorof"theflowingriverthatatonespotitisthesamebutneverthesamewater,"tiesinwiththeargumentsofDoodyandothersaboutthenovelanditsgenresliketheAfricannovel.
HencetheargumentthattheAfricannovelisthesamenovelbutitisdifferent:itobviouslyentailscontrastwith,andre-42Nokoko1Fall2010cognitionbysubscriptionof,theoverarchingnovel.
AndthatiswhatdefinestheAfricannovel.
OnelessonthatTwoThousandSeasonsteachesisthatintheAfricantraditionalsocietyaworkofartisnotanindividualbutacollectiveproduction.
Artinallitsformisasocialactivity,astheproductionofTwoThousandSeasonshasclearlyshown.
Armah'sexperimentation,whichTwoThousandSeasonsmakesanattestedcopyof,isafundamentalchallengetothelogicofsolipsism—thetheorythatself-existenceistheonlycertainty,absoluteegoism—whichtheWesterncanonicalnovelportraysisnon-African,anti-Africanandexclusive.
Hisexperimentationwiththenovel,there-fore,istogivetheformaninclusiveandpopulistinnovationtomakeitanaffectiveandeffectivecommunicativeutteranceinkeepingwiththerequirementsofworksofartintraditionalAfrica.
InwritingTwoThousandSeasons,thenovelthatgivesfullexpres-siontotheWhyAreWeSoBlestdeclarationand"theway,ourway,"ArmahturnstoAfricanliteraryantecedentswhatKwabenaNketiadescribesas"thegemsofthe[African]past"(1964,p.
62).
Oneofsuch"gems"thatArmahhasdialoguedwithwasChaka,ahistoricalepicwrittenin1909bytheSothoauthorThomasMo-pokuMofolo(1876—1948).
Acriticalreadingofhisessay—"TheDefinitiveChaka"(1976)—doesnotleaveanydoubtatallinthereader'smindthatArmahwasinLesothototalkwiththepeopletogetafirst-handknowledgeaboutMofoloandChaka.
TheresultofthatresearchwascreativelyprocessedintothecraftingofTwoThousandSeasons.
Indeed,hehasleftwindowsonthenoveltoen-ablethesceptics—thosewhothinkthatAfricaisbereftofliterarymodelsandthattheideaofliteraryantecedentsin(literary)cre-ativityisstrictlyWesternEuropean—topeepintothemandseethingsforthemselves.
TheloudpresencesofIsanusi—Chaka'switchdoctorandadiviner—andNoliwe—Chaka'sfiance,twoprominentcharactersinChaka—inTwoThousandSeasonsareevi-dentialalthoughtheirrolesdifferinthisnovel.
ButthatistobeWhatisAfricadoingwiththeNovel/EdwardSackey43expectedsinceenteringintodialoguewithliteraryantecedentsisconsideredtobeavaluableroutetooriginality,makingitnew.
WhatishappeningintheexperimentationsinAfricanliterature,andIthinkthisisalsotrueofotherformerlycolonizedcountries,isthatthewritershavelaunchedacanonicalcounter-discourseagainsttheliterarymodels,normsandvaluesoftheircolonialeducation.
AndthereasonisthattheremakingofAfricademandsAfricanepistemologicalmodelsandnottheWesterncolonialistmodelsthathavespawnedtheatrophyoftheContinent.
ThisisuppermostinthemindsofAfricanartistsandintellectualsanditbearsrepetition,Ithink,thatitisthepointofArmah'spowerfulandunforgettabledeclarationinWhyAreWeSoBlestConclusion:PraxisandTwoThousandSeasonsInconclusion,then,myanswertotheeponymousquestionthatsparkedoffthisdiscussion,usingTwoThousandSeasonsastherepresentativeAfricanexperimentalnovel,isthis:Africanwritersareseriouslyintheprocessofdomesticatingthenovel.
AndlikeWilsonHarriswhohasrejectedtheconventionsoftheWesternnovel—arejectionwhichisexemplifiedinhiscraftofPalaceofthePeacock(1960),AyiKweiArmah—unlikeWilsonHarris—hasinaradicalmannerdiscardedtheWesterncanonicalnovelformandreplaceditwithapotentiallydemocratisinganddemocraticnovel,presentedinamodesuitedtotheordinaryAfricanpeople,theultimateobjectiveoftheexperimentationsofArmahandNgugi.
TwoThousandSeasonsisaclearexampleofaradicalnovelisten-gagedinwhatisbasicallyademocraticenterprise.
Heincorpo-ratesthecommunaltraditionalstorytellingstructureintothenar-rativeofthisnovel,deferringtoastrategicallycomposedoralstylethatprovokesastateofimmediacy,adirectappealtointui-tiveunderstandingofthemessageofthenarratorbythereader.
Thepraxis-orientednatureofTwoThousandSeasonsdemandsthat44Nokoko1Fall2010thenarratormustsucceedinconveyingtheirmeaningtothereader.
Thesuccessofthenarratoringettingtheirmeaningacrosstothereaderisamarkofthetriumphofthenarrativeasacom-municativeutterance.
IthinkthatiswhatArmahaimsatinthenarrativeofTwoThousandSeasons,anovelwhich,bothincontentandform,illuminatestheAfricanworldview.
IntheoralstorytellingtraditioninAfrica,thetraditioninwhichTwoThousandSeasonsisdeeplysteeped,thestorytellerisnotapartfromtheaudience;theylivewiththeaudienceandwithinthenarrativeaswellthroughthevaluesystemoftheirsociety.
ArmahhasincorporatedthisartisticprincipleintothenarrativeofTwoThousandSeasons.
Heispresentinthenovel,andhispresenceissensedandfeltparticularlythroughhisdeploymentofthecommunal"We"perspective,characterizationandpraxis—somethingservingasanexampletobecopied.
UnlikeTheBeauty-fulOnesAreNotYetBorn,Fragments,andWhyAreWeSoBlest,whicharecyclicallystructuredandclosedforms,TwoThousandSeasonsisinsharpcontrastwiththem,providingnofinaleventstoclosethenarrative,notyingupoflooseends,nothingisfixedattheend.
Itisopen-endedandoptimisticallyfuturistic:Soonweshallendthisremembrance,thesoundofit.
Itisthesubstancethatcontinues.
Soonitwillend.
Yetstill,whatasceneofcarnagethewhitedestroyershavebroughthere,whatadestructionofbodies,whatadeathofsouls!
Againstthiswhatavisionofcreationyetunknown,higher,muchmoreprofoundthanallerstwhilecreation!
Whatahearingoftheconfluenceofallthewatersoflifeflowingtooverwhelmtheashendesert'sblight!
Whatanutteranceofthecomingtogetherofallthepeopleofourway,thecomingtogetherofallpeopleoftheway(1973,2000,p.
317).
Meaning,therefore,thatthereisafutureforaUnitedAfrica,butitiscontingentuponhardworkandcerebrationbyAfricanintel-lectuals.
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NokokoInstituteofAfricanStudiesCarletonUniversity(Ottawa,Canada)Fall2010(1)AhabitusofwaranddisplacementBourdieu's'thirdway'andruralyouthinNorthernUgandaaftertwodecadesofwarLaraRosenoffIwanttolearnaboutAcholiculturetomakemyfuturelookliketheoneofothersandtomakemefitinthesociety,becauseImissedthemwhenIwasyoungandevenwhenIwasgrowingup.
IwouldaskotherAcholitoteachmethewayofhowtolivewithothers.
1MyworkinUgandahasallowedmetomeetFlorence,a15-year-old,orphaned,formerlyabductedfemalehead-ofhousehold.
Herreflectionsonwhatsheis'missing'inthemidstoftheovertwodecadelongwarinNorthernUgandahavepromptedmetoradi-callyreconsideryouth'sexperiencesin,andperceptionsof,con-flict.
Ithasbeenquitedifficulttoexaminethewaysthatmyongo-ingrelationshipwithFlorencehasshiftedmyconceptionsaboutyouthinconflict,andIhavebeenstrugglingforquitesometimewithoutacomprehensivetheoreticalframeworktogroundmy1InterviewwithFlorence(2008),PadibeIDPCamp,NorthernUganda.
50Nokoko1Fall2010thoughts,experiencesandobservationsfromthepastthreeyears.
Whenlong-termwar,orcrisis,isincreasinglyacknowledgedascontext(Vigh,2008),Bourdieu'smulti-levelinsightsintheclassicOutlineofaTheoryofaPractice(2008)intothenatureofinquiriesofthesocialworld,provideveryfruitfultermsofanalysisandmethodologicalframeworksthatcanbeespeciallyusefulinex-pandingdifficultbutvitaldiscussionsaboutsocialization,identityformation,andwar.
Hisideasaroundtheconvergenceofstruc-tureandprocesswithinthesocializedindividualshedmuchlightonhowwarasasocialconditionispracticallymanifestedandnavigated(Lubkemann,2008).
Mostdiscussionsaroundyouthinwartendtocentreonthedichotomouscontemporaryrealitiesofyouthasbothprimaryperpetratorsandvictimsofconflict.
Assuch,somehavecontem-platedthestructuresthathaveproducedwarandyouth'stenuousrolewithin(Achvarina&Reich,2006;Branch,forthcoming;Rich-ards,1996;Rosen,2005;Utas,2005;Wood,2008).
Otherstud-ieshavefocusedontheeffectsofthesephysicalrealitiesonyouthprimarilywithinthepsychosocialdiscoursesofresilienceandtrauma(Boothby,Strang&Wessells,2006;Eyber&Ager,2004;Engle,Castle&Menon,1996).
MyrepeatedexperienceswithFlorence,however,hintedatsomethingbeyondtheseanalyses.
Onseveralseparateoccasions,includingtheepigraphicconversa-tion,FlorencespokeaboutherperceiveddisconnectionwithAcholisociety.
Becauseshewasanorphaninthemidstofwaranddisplacement,shesomehowfeelsthatsheismissingsomevitalinformationtobeafunctioningandacceptedmemberofhersociety.
Recently,someotherscholarshaveaskedsimilarques-tionsregardingsocializationprocessesinwar.
ReferringtoherextensiveexperienceinEastAfrica,Tefferi(2008)statesthat"con-flictanddisplacementhaveledtothedisruptionofinstitutionsandpracticesthatwouldconventionallyserveasaframeworkforthetransitiontoadulthood"(p.
26).
JasonHart(2008)probesAhabitusofwaranddisplacement/LaraRosenoff51thesameissue,sayingthat"it[responsibilitiesplacedonyouthinconflict]shouldalsoleadustowonderaboutthelonger-term,societalconsequencesofconflict-inducedsituationsinwhichchil-dren'stransitionstofulladultresponsibilityistruncatedandoc-curswithlittleornoadultguidance"(p.
11).
PierreBourdieu'sthoughtson'howknowledgecanbeknown'areinterestinginlightofTefferi'sandHart'squestions,Florence'srevelationscitedabove,andmyresultingdissatisfactionwithboththeobjective(structural,statistical)andsubjective(psychological,experiential)epistemologicalapproachestotheproblemsofyouthinconflictareas.
BourdieustatesinAnOutlineofaTheoryofPractice(2008)that"thesocialworldmaybetheobjectofthreemodesoftheoreticalknowledge"(p.
3).
Thefirstistheobjectivistmodeexaminingstructures,withanoverallemphasisonthede-terminingnatureofmacrosocialphenomena.
Thesecondisthephenomenologicalmodeexaminingexperience,withitsoverallemphasisonthemicroandsubjectiveconstructionofreality.
Thethirdacknowledgesthelimitsofbothandseekstoreconciletheminadialecticofsortsthattranscendsthemacro-microdualism(Reay,2004,p.
432).
Inthispaper,IwillapplyBourdieu's'thirdway'topreliminaryquestionsregardingthesocializationofyouthinlong-termconflictzones.
AfterabriefsketchofFlorence'slifefromage1to17,IwillinvokeBourdieu'skeyconceptsofhabitus,doxaandstrategiesandwillproceedbyapplyingtheminananaly-sisofoneaspectofherlife.
Duetotheconstraintsofspaceandtime,itwillbeanincompleteoffering,buthopefullyonethatsuf-ficientlyprovesthecontinuingusevalueofBourdieu's'thirdway'ofapproachingproblemsofthesocialworldwiththeaimofelu-cidatingtheabstruserealitiesofyouthinconflict,specificallyFlor-ence'sinthecontextofthewarinNorthernUganda.
52Nokoko1Fall2010BornintowarThedetailsofFlorence'searlieryearsarequitehazy(astheyareformanyofus),andtheyaremadeevenmoresobythedis-organizinganddestructivenatureofwarandthelossofherpar-ents.
ThecurrentwarbetweentheLord'sResistanceArmy(LRA)andtheUgandanPeople'sDefenceForce(UPDF)beganwhenthecurrentPresident,YoweriMuseveni,cametopowerin1986,aboutfiveyearsbeforeFlorencewasborn.
Florence'sfatherwaskilledwhenshewasjustoneyearold,andhermothersoonre-turnedtoherownfamily'shomesteadnearby.
2Florencedoesnotremembermuchfromthistimeexceptthatshefrequentlysleptinthebushwithherbrothers,awayfromthehomestead,andthatsheheardalotofgunfire.
In1997(whenshewassix),hermother,brothersandshejoinedmostoftheruralpopulationthatfledtotheoutskirtsofthedistrictcapitalofKitguminre-sponsetomassacresintheareathatkilledsome450people(interviewwithDollyArach,July14,2008).
HermotherstayedwithamantherewhogotsickanddiedofHIV/AIDS.
Afteroneyear,thegovernmentopened'protectedvillages',whichwereac-tuallyinternaldisplacementcampswithinsufficienthygienicinfra-structureandprotection.
3In1998,Florence'smotheroptedtoleavetheoutskirtsofKitgumtowntoreturnonceagaintoherfamily'straditionallandsinsteadoftheinternaldisplacementcamps.
HermotherdiedofHIV/AIDSinlate1999whenFlorencewasnineyearsold.
Florenceandherbrothersspentthenextyears2TheAcholiareapatrilocal,patrilinealsociety.
Assuch,awomanmovestoherhusband'sfamily'slanduponmarriage.
WhenFlorence'sfatherdied,hermotherreturnedtoherownfamily'sland.
3Thecamps,althoughtoutedasaninstrumentofprotectionforthecivilianpopulation,wereactuallypartofthegovernment'smilitarystrategy.
"Itisnosecretthathigh-rankingarmyofficerswantthecampstoremainasavalidmili-tarystrategy,astheyregardallAcholiaspotentialrebelsupporterswhomustbecontrolledandmonitored"(Branch19,ARLPI2002aquotedinFinnstrom,2008,p.
142).
Thisstrategyresultedingrosslyhighdeathratesduetolackofin-frastructureinthecamps,withfiguresclimbingtoapproximately1000excessdeathperweekin2005(TheRepublicofUganda-MinistryofHealth,2005).
Ahabitusofwaranddisplacement/LaraRosenoff53hidinginthebushandgardeninginordertosurvive,whilemostpeopleinthesurroundingvillagesmoved(mostforciblybytheUPDF)tothecamps.
Withanescalationofthewarafter2002(re-sultingfromOperationIronFistIandII4),sheandherbrotherswerefinallyforcedintoPadibeInternallyDisplacedPersons'(IDP)camp.
FlorencewasthenabductedbytheLord'sResistanceArmyrebelgroupin2005whilecollectingfoodoutsidethecampperimeter,andescapedoneyearlater,finallyreturningtoPadibeIDPCamptolivewithherbrothers.
IfirstmetFlorenceinJanuary2007,sixmonthsafteracease-firewhichhassincerunout,whenshewas15yearsold.
ItwasaboutayearaftersheescapedfromtherebelsandshewaslivingagainwithherthreebrothersinPadibeIDPCamp.
5ThesecondtimeImetFlorence(December2007),shehadfoughtwithherbrothersandwaskickedoutofthehut.
ThefightoccurredwhenoneofherbrothersbroughtinawifewhocausedconflictwithFlorence.
Onherowninadifferentareaofthecamp,Florencebecamepregnantwiththechildofamanwho,bythetimeIvisitedthatDecember,wasinjailfordefilementofanotherunderagegirl.
Mythirdtrip(July2008)foundherlivingwithOkot,thefatherofherchild(whowasreleasedfromprison),inyetadifferentareaofthecamp.
Gum,herson,hadbeenbornthemonthbefore.
Okot'sfamilyhadmuchlandnearthecamp,andheandFlorencewereintheprocessofbuildingahomeandpre-paringthegardensforafullmoveoutofthecamp.
Florence'sformativeyearswerecharacterizedbylossoflife,multipledisplacementsandinstability.
Herschoolingwasinter-ruptedbythewarfromaveryearlyage,fromrepeatedboutsof4"ItisbeyonddoubtthattherebelssufferedheavilyundertheIronFistcam-paigns.
Butinthewakeofthesecampaigns,duringwhichfightinginnorthernUgandareachedlevelsnotexperiencedsincethebeginningofthewar,thenoncombatantpopulationsufferedmore(Finnstrom,2008,p.
113).
5Populationofabout35000.
54Nokoko1Fall2010typhoid,6andfromdisplacementsbetweenherfather'sandmother'sfamilyhomesteads,thedistrictcapital,theinternaldis-placementcampandvariousLord'sResistanceArmyrebelcampsinthebush.
Kinshipsystemswhichhadintegratedorphansinthepasthadbeenseverelyaffectedbythewaranditsdisastrouseco-nomicandsocialconsequences.
Florencebecamedefactoheadofherhouseholdatnineyearsoldamidsttheturmoilofwar.
7HowknowledgecanbeknownIhavebrieflydescribedFlorence'shistoryhereinordertosituatethetheoreticaldiscussion.
Theveryideaoftryingtounder-standsomebodywhoseesandhasexperiencedtheworldsoradi-callydifferentlyfromoneselfisitselfaperplexingendeavourthatalsoevokespowerissuesinvolvedwithspeakingforothersandrepresentation(Alcoff,1991-92;Ruby,1991;hooks,1992).
Yet,Ifirmlybelievethatsolutionscanonlybeofferedwithcontinueddialogueandcriticalinquiry.
Ithusfinditnecessarytostatetheextremecaution,yetcommitment,withwhichIadvanceinthesekindsofconversations.
8Inadditiontoanumberoflinguisticanthropologistswhohavetouchedonissuesofsubjectiveperceptualcategoriesandconstructionsofreality(vonHumboldt,forexampleinTrabant,2000;Sapir,1929;andWhorf,1956),AlfredShutz'phenomeno-6Typhoidwas,andisstill,quitecommonasaresultofinsufficientcleanwateraccessinthecamps.
7WhileFlorencewasamiddlechild(heryoungerbrotherwasborntohermotherbyanotherman),shewastheonlygirl.
Hergenderlargelydefinedherdutiesinhersocialunit,andinaccordancewithcustomaryAcholisocialorga-nization,wasresponsibleforthecooking,cleaning,andpracticalwell-beingofherbrothers.
8Asanengagedandappliedacademic,Ibelievethatanyactivitydepartingfromthickdescription,andinvolvingtheformulationandapplicationoftheory,musteventuallybetestedintermsofofferingrealworldsolutionstorealworldproblems.
Asthisisimpossiblehere,IwillproceedwiththesimplegoalofusingBourdieu's'thirdway'tohelpadvancequestionsregardingyouthinconflict.
Ahabitusofwaranddisplacement/LaraRosenoff55logicalideashavegonealongwayinpointingtothevastsociallyconstructedconceptualdifferences,inadditiontolinguisticones,thatneedtobesurmountedinestablishingtrueinterpersonalcommunicationandunderstandingsofsocialrealities(seeespe-ciallyThePhenomenologyoftheSocialWorld,1967).
Butotheran-thropologists,includingLévi-Strauss(1962),critiquethepurelyphenomenologicalapproachandstatethatsomebody'sconsciousrepresentationsofexperiencemaynotactuallyaidinadeeperunderstandingofsocialreality.
Bourdieuhimselfagreesandstatesthatinadditiontounderstandingsubjectivebehaviour,itisim-portanttoconsideroverarchingrealitiesofagivensociety(onecansaythestructure)thatofferruleswhichservetocreatedissi-tionsthatthenregulatesubjectivebehaviour.
9Healsosaysthatonecannotsimplyexaminethesestructuresorruleseither,astheyarestaticmodelsthatdonotaccountforthetemporalnatureofthehumancondition(Bourdieu,2008,p.
8).
Theimportance,hesays,isthedialecticactivitybetweenthesetwo,offeringtheideaofhabitusasapointofconvergenceofprocess-orientedphe-nomenologicalsubjectivityandstructure-orientedempiricalobjec-tivity.
10Iammostinterested,then,intheideaofwhatishabitusthroughwaranddisplacement,andwhatdispositionsitcreatesandengendersforagirllikeFlorencewhowasbornintoandgrewupinconflict.
9IpersonallybelievethatBourdieu's'thirdway'ismostlybasedonphenome-nologicalinsight.
Idonotagreewithhisstatementsthatphenomenology'sgoalsaresimplytodescribesubjectiveexperience.
Asevidencedinrecentan-thropologicalwriting,"whatphenomenologystandsagainstisthefetishiza-tionoftheproductsofintellectualreflection.
Thus,objectivismandsubjectiv-ismareequallyuntenable"(Jackson,1996,p.
1-2).
10"Habitusisanoldphilosophicalconcept,usedintermittentlybyAristotle(un-derthetermhexis),ThomasAquinas,Hegel,Weber,Durkheim,Mauss,andHusserl,amongothers.
Bourdieuretrieveditina1967reinterpretationofarthistorianErwinPanofsky'sanalysisoftheconnectionbetweenScholasticthoughtandgothicarchitectureinthemedievaleraandrefineditafterwards,bothempiricallyandtheoretically,ineachofhismajorworks"(Wacquant,2006,p.
6).
56Nokoko1Fall2010Bourdieustatesthathabituscreatesasystemofdynamicdispo-sitionsthatparadoxicallystemfromandinturnformperceptualcategories.
Hecallstheseperceptualcategoriesgenerativethemes.
Thegenerativethemesarethustheorganizingprinciplesofsociety.
Thecommunicationoftheseorganizingprinciples(ineffect,socialization),primarilyoccurswithinthehomeandthenatschool(Bourdieu,2008,p.
87-89),structuringtheperceptionofallsubsequentexperiences.
InFlorence'scase,however,theback-dropofwar,theabsenceofastablehomeorschoolingenvi-ronmentandyearsofdisplacementinIDPandrebelcampspro-videmanyquestionsastotheperceptualcategoriesandorganiz-ingprinciplesthroughwhichsheunderstandstheworld.
Inaddi-tion,heracknowledgementof'missing'somethingthatwouldshowherhowto'livewithothers'pointstoaperceived'disrupted'or'atypical'socialization.
11TryingtounderstandtheconstructionofFlorence'shabitusandthedispositionsitengendersmaybeaidedbyBourdieu'snotionofdoxa.
Doxaistheknowledgethatisunspoken,unquestionedandnaturalinasociety.
Itisthatwhichmakesthenaturalandsocialworldappearasself-evident(Bourdieu,2008,p.
164).
Butinthecontextoflong-termwar,howisdoxaaffectedbyviolentconflictanddisplacementChrisDolan(2009)hasrecentlymadeastrongcasethatthewarinNorthernUgandahasproducedasystemofsocialtorture:Thesocalled'protectedvillages'fortheinternallydisplacedareprimarysitesofthisprocess,whichIshallcallsocialtorture,asevidencedinwidespreadviolation,dread,disorientation,de-pendency,debilitationandhumiliation,allofwhicharetactics11Herconsciousnessofmissingsomethingintangibleisnotuncommonamongyouthinconflict.
"Their[youthinconflict's]discussionsgiveanimpressionofawebofrelationshipshackedthroughbytheviolenceofwar.
Thesebreaksinconnectionincludelinkswiththenaturalworld,culturallife,communityrela-tionshipsandfriendships—thestructuresandfabricofachild'slife"(Chil-dren/YouthAsPeacebuilders,2004,p.
10).
Ahabitusofwaranddisplacement/LaraRosenoff57andsymptomstypicaloftorture,butperpetratedonamassratherthantheindividualscale(p.
1).
WhatimplicationsdoesthishaveforyouthwhosenaturalizedworldconsistsofthistortureWhathappenswhensocialtortureandviolencebecomeincorporatedintotheself-evidentpartofsociety,thedoxaSverkerFinnstrm(2008)speaksofhowAcholiadultsrefertotheeverydayaspectsofwaras'badsurroundings.
'Whatthenofyouthwhohaveonlyknown'badsurroundings'Bourdieu'sideaofstrategyismostusefulhere.
Hespeaksofstrategiesasunconsciousorconsciousactionsthatseekthe"satis-factionofmaterialandsymbolicinterestsand[thatare]organizedbyreferencetoadeterminatesetofeconomicandsocialcondi-tions"(Bourdieu,2008,p.
36).
Thus,aftertwodecadesofwaranddisplacement,ifa)culturalconceptualcategoriesorgenerativethemeshavebeendisrupted,damagedandaltered;b)forsurvival,thehabitusofthoseaffectedbythisprolongedconflicthasin-corporatedtherealitiesofprolongedandprotractedwarintothesocializationofanindividual;andc)doxamayincludehighlevelsofacceptableviolence,thenwhatarethestrategiesthatyouthusetonavigatetheircomplexanddangerousworldsPerhapsitisbyanexaminationofstrategiesthemselvesthattheeffectsofconflictondoxa,generativethemesand,finally,habituscanbecomeclearer.
EmbodiedstrategiesAlthoughFlorence'slifewasfilledwithuncertainty,sheem-ployedcertainstrategiesforbasicsurvival.
Withinherhabitus,thesesurvivalstrategiesreliedpredominantlyoninstinctshapedbydoxa,andthegenerativethemeslearnedwhenhermotherwasstillalive,andlaterfromtherealitiesofwarincampand/orrebellife.
Tobesure,anyanalysisatthispointwillbeincomplete,butitisfruitfultoexamineFlorence'spregnancyinlightoftheseterms.
58Nokoko1Fall2010AsidefromayearandahalfwiththeLRArebelgroup,Flor-encehasalwayslivedwithherbrothers.
Thewarhaddrasticallyreducedthesizeofherkinshipnetworkandherdispositiontocareforherbrothersstillrepresentedacertainsocialorderinherlife-world.
Whenherbrothersthrewheroutofthehutinthemiddleof2007,Florencefoundherselfwithoutthelittlesocialorganiza-tionthathadhithertoshapedherworld.
Shewasalsowithoutmaleprotection,andwasessentiallycutofffromthesocio-economicbenefitsofkin.
Althoughthesocio-economicbenefitswerenotgreatduetodisplacement,peoplehadbeguntoreturntotheirtraditionalvillagesduetoaceasefireinhostilities.
GiventhattheAcholiareapatrilinealsocietywheremostmarriagesarepatrilocal(Girling,1960,p.
21),Florencefoundherselfaloneinthecampandinaliminalstate.
Shehadrecentlydroppedoutofschoolduetorepeatedboutsoftyphoidfromuncleanwaterinthecamp,andshehadonlycompletedPrimary5andwasstillnotliterate.
Withoutaneducation,andwithoutlandtoreturnto,whatwouldshedotosurviveSoonafterthesplitfromherbrothers,Florencebecamepreg-nant.
Consideringtheideaofstrategy,onecouldconsidertheideathatthepregnancywaselicitedbecauseshewasshutoutofherownfamily,andtheorder,rightsandbenefitsthatitallowed.
Indeed,thepregnancyeventuallybroughtherintothefatherofherchild'skinshipnetwork,andshewasgivenaplacetolive,landtofarmandahometoshare.
CanwenotsaythatFlorence'spregnancymighthavebeenherstrategywithinherhabitus,andinaccordancewiththedoxaandgenerativethemesofhersocialworldDespitethefactthatmanygirlsdonotendupasfortunateasFlorence(healthyandlivingwiththefatherofherchild),girlsinhersituationdonothavediverseandviableoptionswithintheeconomicandsocialstructuresoftheirsocietyafter23yearsofwar.
LikeFlorence,manyyounggirls'greatestresourcesaretheirAhabitusofwaranddisplacement/LaraRosenoff59ownbodies.
AlthoughFlorence'ssituationmaysoundunique,itisfarfromthatintherealitiesofthislongandbrutalwar.
Ofcourse,tocontinuewiththisanalysis,inessenceapplyingBourdieu's'thirdway'toanissuesuchasFlorence'spregnancy,furtherinquirymustbedoneintoFlorence'shabitus:thegenerativethemesanddoxainAcholiland(NorthernUganda),andhowtheyhavebeenaffectedbylongtermconflict.
Onemustsituateherstrategieswithinthelargersocietalandhistoricalcontextbyques-tioningtraditionalgenderrolesinAcholiculture,theformsandmethodsoftheircommunicationtoFlorence(oraltradition,homeorganization…),andtheirtransformationsfromviolenceanddisplacement(forexamplechangesinintergenerationalknowledgeexchangeandstructureofthe'home'fromvillagelife,toNGO-infusedIDPcamplife,torebelcamplife).
ConclusionAllinall,itappearsthatBourdieu's'thirdway'providesause-fulframeworkforquestionsregardingyouthinlong-termconflictzones.
Generally,onefindsverylittle'thirdway'dialecticalanaly-sisofhowyouth'slifechoicesaremadewithinaworldcomposedofstructuresandsystemsradicallyaffectedbythetemporaleffectsofviolence.
ConsideringthatinNorthernUganda,forexample,90%ofyouthhavegrownupwithinInternallyDisplacedPersons'(IDP)camps,andabout20%ofyouthexperiencedabductionandrebellifeatsomepoint,insightintothewaysinwhichviolenceanddisplacementhasshapedsocialstructuresandorganization,andthewaysthatyouthnegotiatebetweentherealitiesofwarontheonehand,andculturalvalues(orgenerativethemes)ontheother,wouldbeusefulindeed.
IthinkBourdieu'sstrengthcanbesummarized,inhisownterms,assayingthatashiftinepistemologicalinquirymustoccurfromtheopusoperatumtothemodusoperandi(Bourdieu,60Nokoko1Fall20102008,p.
72).
Thereisgreatvalueisshiftinganalysisfromtheworkwrought(theproducts,theexperiencesofwar)tothemodeofproductionitself(ortheprocesses,thepracticesofsurvivalinwar).
Heisquiterightinpointingoutthatmodesofproduction,orpractices,areactuallyacombinationofsubjectiveprocessesandobjectiverulesorstructuresthatcanbeexaminedbylookingatthestrategiesthatoneusestonegotiate'reality',broadlycon-ceived.
Theadvantageofincorporatingtheideaofhabitusinunderstandinglong-termwarisitsspecificfocusontheintersec-tionsofmacro-levelsocialstructuresandmicro-levelagencywithinthepracticalactionsofanindividualand/orsociety.
Itsapplicationtoquestionsregardingyouthinconflictcouldnotbemorenecessary.
Since1980,28countriesinSub-SaharanAfricahavebeentowar.
Today,40%oftheworld's27millionInternallyDisplacedPersons(IDPs)areinAfricancountries,withmostofthedisplacementduetoongoingorrecurringfighting(InternalDisplacementMonitoringCentre,2009).
Whilethereisgrowingagreementthat"…theroleofyouthiscriticalincreatinglong-termstability…andofferingprotectionfromfuturecon-flicts"(ReportoftheSecretaryGeneral,2003,p.
371),thereislittleinsightonhowtobringyouthwithinlocalandglobalnet-worksofsocialreconstruction.
Bourdieu's'thirdway'givesmegreathopethatacloseinquiryintothestrategiesandhabitusofyouthinsocietiesaffectedbylong-termorrecurringconflictcanmakegreatstridesinbeingabletofindlocallyrelevantsolutionstobringyouthwithinandsupportprocessesofrepair.
For,"toexplainanysocialeventorpattern,onemustinseparablydissectboththesocialconstitutionoftheagentandthemakeupoftheparticularsocialuniversewithinwhichsheoperatesaswellastheparticularconditionsunderwhichtheycometoencounterandimpingeuponeachother"(Wacquant,2006,p.
8).
Greaterthanthesumofanswerstoanygivenquestion,Bourdieu'sclassicOut-lineofaTheoryofaPracticedoesprovideausefulandpracticalAhabitusofwaranddisplacement/LaraRosenoff61frameworkforformulatingresearchquestionsanddesignregard-ingproblemsofthesocialworld,includingonesinvolvingyouthandconflictascontext.
Themainthingisthattheyarenottobeconceptualizedsomuchasideas,onthatlevel,butasamethod.
Thecoreofmyworkliesinthemethodandawayofthinking.
Tobemorepre-cise,mymethodisamannerofaskingquestionsratherthanjustideas.
This,Ithinkisacriticalpoint.
(Bourdieu,1985,quotedinMahar,1990,p.
33).
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NokokoInstituteofAfricanStudiesCarletonUniversity(Ottawa,Canada)Fall2010(1)TheSouthAfricanReserveBankandthetellingofmonetarystoriesElizabethCobbettStoriesaboutthenewSouthAfrica—itsmiraculousandpeacefultransitiontodemocracy,itsmacroeconomicstability,anditsstrongregionalandcontinentaldiplomaticrole—aboundandservetoreinforceamasternarrativeofatransformedcountryris-ingfromaviolentpastandnowheadingintherightdirection.
Thehostingofthe2010WorldCupFIFA(FédérationInternation-aledeFootballAssociation)isanexampleofthisnewSouthAfrica:asuccessfulAfricanstatehostingamajorinternationalevent.
TitoMboweni,formergovernoroftheSouthAfricanRe-serveBank(SARB),saidthatpreparationsfortheWorldCupcameatatimeofstrongeconomicgrowth(Mboweni,2007).
Theper-sistentadherencetoprudentmacroeconomicpoliciesbytheauthoritieshadresultedinthecountry'ssolideconomicperform-anceinrecentyearsandstrengtheneditscapacitytohostthegames.
ThisrhetoricportraysSouthAfricaasanewandactivepar-68Nokoko1Fall2010ticipantontheworldstage,astatusaidedbytheprudentandlong-sightedactionsoftheSARB,whichcreatedastablemacro-economicenvironment.
SouthAfricaisaninternationalsuccessstoryandthisachievementislinkedtogoodeconomicpolicy.
ThisarticlecontendsthatSouthAfricanpoliticaleconomicleadersareinastruggletoputinplaceamasternarrativeoftheeconomy,asupranationalidentificationofcommonsocio-economicproblemsandgoals.
TheSARBhasputforwardadomi-nantnarrative–theneedtoreintegratetheeconomyintoarapidlychangingglobalfinancialenvironmentafterthelongperiodofapartheidisolation(VanderMerwe,1997).
ThelasttwodecadeshaveseenconstanteffortsbytheSARBandbytheAfricanNationalCongress(ANC)governmenttobringtheSouthAfricaneconomyinlinewithglobalfinancialrequirements.
TheCongressofSouthAfricanTradeUnions(COSATU)publiclycondemnstheneoliberalchoicesthataccompanythisgoal,claimingthatthesepoliciesmountto"acapitalistonslaughtontheworkingclass"(Vavi,2010b,para.
7).
ForCOSATU'sgeneralsecretary,Zwelin-zimaVavi,thereisapressingneed"togiveaconciseclassunder-standingofpostapartheidSouthAfricaandthenatureofglobalcapitalism"(Vavi2010b,para.
8).
VavisaidthatSouthAfricawasinacrisis(Marrian,2010).
Pricestability,carriedoutthroughtheSARB'smonetarypolicy,havetoplayasubordinateroletonationaldevelopmentalgoalsofcreatingjobsanderadicatingpoverty.
Ifnecessary,thegovernmentshouldtaxthesuperrichandusethesefundstomeetthesetargets.
TheSARBplaysacriticalroleofcommunicatingitsmacroeco-nomicpoliciestothegeneralpublicandofunderminingalterna-tives,suchasCOSATU's,thatquestiontheirdecisions.
Todothis,theBanktells'monetarystories.
'Centralbanksarenotusuallyassociatedwithnarrativestorytelling,orwithnationbuilding;yet,recentresearchdemonstratesthatmonetarypolicyisanout-growthofamasternarrativeandproduces,inturn,thecontextinTheSouthAfricanReserveBankandthetellingofmonetarystories/ElizabethCobbett69whichtheeconomytakesplace.
InacontinuationoftheFIFAstory,theSARBrepresentsitselfasateam,oneamongstothernationalteams.
Inthiscase,theanalogyiswithsport:thereservebankisateam,liketherugby,cricket,andfootballteams,whoareallworkingtowardsthecommongoalofmakingSouthAfricastrongandinternationallyrelevant:Wehaveabusysportingyearaheadofus,withthecurrentcricketworldcupgamesonthego,andtherugbyWorldCupfinalsjustaroundthecorner.
Inmonetarypolicydecisionmaking,werelysomewhatonourforecastsforinflation.
Mycurrentcentralforecastisthatboththecricketandrugbyteamsaregoingtodowellthisyear.
.
.
AllowmetowishMrWhiteandtheSpringboksallthebestintheirendeavoursintherugbyWorldCupfinalsinFrance.
Wearefullybehindyouandbelievethatyouhavewhatittakestobringthecuphome.
YoudarenotdisappointthepeopleofSouthAfrica(Mboweni,2007,p.
5).
MbowenipresentsJakeWhite'sroleascoachoftherugbyteamandhisownasgovernoroftheBank,asbeingsimilar:theybothhavetoreachtargets.
Onecommonaspectcentresaroundthetargetthatbothofushave.
ForMrWhiteitistowinmatchesandtournaments,whileinmycaseitistoensurethatinflationremainswithinthetargetrange"(Mboweni,2007,p.
1).
MboweniusestheexcitementofnationalsportsandthefeelingsofpatriotismassociatedwiththesuccessesofnationalteamstoanchortheBank'sgoalsofinflationtargeting.
Ofcourse,whentheworldcupfinalsbeginin2010wewillbekeenspec-tatorsandsupportersofBafanaBafana[theSouthAfricannationalsoc-certeam],butthereisnotmuchwecandotodirectlyimpactonthefor-tunesoftheteam.
IwillleavethatinthecapablehandsofMrCarlosPar-reiraandhisteam.
Wehavetokeepoureyesonadifferentballandadifferentgoal.
Throughthisexcitinggrowthphasethatweareexperienc-ing,monetarypolicyhastoensurethatinflationiskeptundercontrol(Mboweni,2007,p.
4).
70Nokoko1Fall2010Masternarrativessuchasthesearestandardpracticeinthecre-ationandmaintenanceofimagesofstatesastheypromulgateframeworksthroughwhichpeopleareledtomakemeaningsofthemselves,oftheirlives,oftheiridentities,andoftheirsocialrelationships.
Butthesemonetarystoriesbythecentralbankre-flectapressingneedtoengrainandsettletheseparametersintothenationalimaginationofSouthAfricaandwhatitmeanstobeacitizenofthiscountry.
Peopleareimplicitlyaskedtoletgooftheformervisionofapost-apartheidSouthAfricaofsocialandeconomicjusticethatcarriedtheANCtopower,andworkandlivewithinarevisedeconomicagendaoffreemarkets,globalcompetition,andindividualresponsibilities.
COSATUclaimsthattheSARBdoesnotgiveadamnaboutwhathappenstotheeconomyandjobcreation,andwantstheSARBnationalisedbecauseitisanassetofourpeopleandnotofshareholders(COSATU,June25,2009).
COSATUpublicallyen-gageswiththeSARBandwiththeministeroffinanceaboutpolicydirection.
Whenthe2010nationalbudgetcameout,COSATUsaidthatithadexpectedmonetarypolicytobechangedtotargetemploymentdirectlyandprimarily,aspointedoutintheelectionmanifestooftheANCandinthevariousmeetingsofthe[Tripar-tite]Alliance(Mail&Guardian,2010).
Thisisapoliticaldebateandthisarticlelooksatthepoliticalroleofcentralbanksinaworldcharacterisedbydecentralisedandderegulatedfinance.
ThecaseofSouthAfricademonstrateswellabroadertheoreticaldis-cussionontheroleofcentralbankingintheglobalfinancialsys-tem.
Literatureindicatesthatcentralbankshavechangedtheirrela-tionshipwiththegeneralpublicoverthelasttwodecades(Blinder,Ehrmann,Fratzscher,DeHaan,&Jansen,2008;Davies&Green,2010;Hall,2008;Holmes,2009).
Theseinstitutionshaveadoptednewcommunicationtechniquesthatseektoanchormacroeconomicgoalswithinsociety.
ThesechangesneedtobeTheSouthAfricanReserveBankandthetellingofmonetarystories/ElizabethCobbett71understoodwithinthebroadercontextofthecurrentglobalfi-nancialorder.
Thisisthesubjectofthefirstsection,whichover-viewstheworldfinancialsystemandtherolesofgovernanceplayedbycreditratingagenciesandbycentralbanks.
Thisisfol-lowedbyanalysisofthechangesinstructuralpowerboughtaboutascentralbanksaremadeinstitutionallyindependentfrompoliti-calpressurewithintheircountriesandfreedtofollowregulationselaboratedbyinternationalfinancialinstitutions.
Followingthis,focusisgiventotheoryoncentralbankcommunicationmethodsandhowthey'perform'theeconomythroughthetellingofmon-etarystories.
Ofparticularinteresttothisarticlearecentralbanknarrativeswithincountriesundergoingextensivesocial,political,andeconomictransitions.
SouthAfricaexperiencedatransitiontodemocracy,whichputablack-majoritygovernmentinplace.
YetthedecisionbytheSouthAfricanpoliticalandeconomicelitetodirecttheeconomytowardsglobalneoliberalgoalsradicallyalterstheformervisionofadevelopmentalandredistributivestate.
TheongoingpublicdebatesaboutthechoicesopentoSouthAfricaareattheheartofthisstruggletomanagethenationaleconomyandinstiladominantnarrativewithinthenationalimagination.
DecentralisedandprivatisedglobalfinanceInthelast150yearsthreeinternationalfinancialsystemshaveexisted:thegoldstandard,theBrettonWoodsAgreement,andfree-floatingcurrencieswithnosetanchorformonetaryvalue(Broz&Frieden,2001).
Financialsystemsconsistof(i)exchangeratearrangements;(ii)capitalflows;and(iii)acollectionofinsti-tutions,rules,andconventionsthatgoverntheiroperations.
Eachsystemproducesspecificrelationswithdomesticfinancialmarkets.
Thegoldstandardcommandedmonetarypoliciesofdevaluationwhenthecurrencyexceededitssetvalueingold;BrettonWoodspermittedmoreembeddedliberalwelfarepoliciesforwestern72Nokoko1Fall2010countriesthroughinternationalfinancialinstitutions,whichsimul-taneouslyunderminedthesepoliciesinpostcolonialcountries;andtheshifttowardsdecentralisationandderegulationin1971compelleddomesticmarketstoadjusttotheeffectsofmobilecapitaloperatingbetweenmultiplefinancialcentresworldwide.
Thesecentresexertvaryingdegreesofinfluenceovertheglobalproductionofandaccesstocredit(Germain,1997).
Thisorganisa-tionischaracterisedbyalackofonenexusofcontrol—evenaswerecognisetheongoingdominanceofWallStreet—renderingthesystemmorecomplexandrequiringustopaycarefulattentiontoinstitutionalarrangements(Porter,2005).
Twoconstellationsofpower1haveemergedasstrategicinstitutionalarrangementscent-raltothisglobalgovernanceoffinance:creditratingagenciesandcentralbanks.
Theseconstellationsarekeyinfrastructuresintheperformanceoftheeconomy.
1stConstellationofPower:CreditRatingAgenciesCreditandbondratingagenciessuchasMoody's,Standard&Poor's,andFitchproducecomparativereadingsofinvestmentopportunitiesandriskswhichputvalueoncorporateandpublicdebtworldwide(Sinclair,2005).
Creditratingisaformofinstitu-tionalfinancialcoordinationthatpromotestheinterestsofinves-torsthroughtheproductionofinvestmentdata.
Ratingagenciesessentiallygivevaluetobothpublicandprivatedebtbymakingjudgementsabouttheriskandtheopportunitiesinvolvedinvari-ousinvestmentdestinies.
Likecentralbanks,ratingagenciesareacentralisingforceastheyactasacrucialnervecentreintheworldfinancialorder,"anexusofneoliberalcontrolthatisexercisedthroughemittingjudgementsabouttheeconomicperformanceofstatesandcorporations"(Sinclair,2005,p.
68).
Creditratingsarenotimposedongovernmentsbutgov-ernmentsseekthemasmeansofattractingcapitalandofassuring1TakenfromTimothyJ.
Sinclair'sbook,TheNewMastersofCapital(2005).
TheSouthAfricanReserveBankandthetellingofmonetarystories/ElizabethCobbett73financialinvestorsthattheirmoneyissafeinthecountry(Sinclair,2005,p.
10).
TheSouthAfricangovernmentinvitesforeigninves-torstothis'dreamofabusinessdestination,'whichcombinestheirideals:thestabilityofadevelopednation,theopportunityofavibrantemergingmarketandaclimatethatfostersgrowth.
"It'stime,[thegovernmentremindsinvestors],totakeacloserlookatSouthAfrica"(SouthAfricaInfo,2010,para.
1).
TrevorManuel,formerministeroffinance,statesthatinSouthAfrica"we'vetakensomeverytoughdecisionstoprovideaclimateforcertainty.
TheConstitution,thelegalframework,themacro-economicframework,alladduptocertaintyandpredictability.
SouthAfricahascreatedaclimatethatinvestorsneed"(SouthAfricaInfo,2010).
These'verytoughdecisions'resonatewellwithratingagencies;Standard&Poor'ssetSouthAfrica'slongtermratingatBBB+andforeigncurrencyissueratingatA+(SouthAfricaInfo,2009).
TheNationalTreasurypointsoutthat"theaf-firmationofSouthAfrica'sratingreflectsconfidenceinourcreditpositionandfuturepolicydirection,thanksinlargeparttoare-cordofprudentexecutionofmacroeconomicpolicies"(SouthAfricaInfo,2009,para.
3).
Thecountry'sfinancialsystemsarepresentedasbeingsophisticatedandsupportedbyrobustbank-ingregulationsthatrankamongthetop10globally(SouthAfricaInfo,2008).
TheseratingsreflectinvestoropiniononnationalpoliciesasismadeclearinthefollowingexcerptfromMoody'sNovember2009readingofSouthAfrica:Thereisalsoincreasedriskthateasierfiscalpolicy,withemphasisonthesocialsafetynet,willbecomeentrenchedduetothegreaterinfluenceofthelaborunionsingovernment.
Moreover,thegrowingimpatienceofthepopulationforthegovernmenttodeliveronpromisesofimprovedsocialservicesandhousing,jobs,andbettereducation,amongotherde-mands,couldmakeitdifficulttoreininspendingincreasesascurrentlyenvisionedoverthemediumtolongterm(Cailleteau,Lindow,&Or-chard,personalcommunication,April15,2010).
74Nokoko1Fall2010Socialandpoliticaldisturbancesorunrestplayagainstfavourablecreditratingsbuttheyareoffsetbythestate'sstablemanagementofthemacroeconomicenvironmentthroughcentralbankman-agement.
Moody'sgoesontosaythat:Theeconomy'sgrowthpotentialislikelytoshrinkinalesssupportiveglobalenvironment.
.
.
thiswouldmeanthatpressurefromwithinthegovernmentallianceforunaffordableanddistortivefiscalandmonetarypolicieswillneedtoberesisted,despitefrustrationwiththeslowpaceofprogressonthejobsfront(Cailleteau,Lindow,&Orchard,personalcommunication,April15,2010).
HereweclearlyseeMoody'sargumentagainstanyaccommoda-tionbytheANCofleft-wingmembersofthegovernment'sTripar-titeAlliance:2theSouthAfricanCommunistParty(SACP)andtheCongressofSouthAfricanTradeUnions(COSATU).
Therelevanceoflookingatcreditratingagencieswhenstudyingcentralbankactionresidesinunderstandingthedegreetowhichbanksneedtoobtaingoodratingsfromtheagenciesfornationalandsubna-tionaldebts.
Agenciesgivegoodratingswhenthemonetarypoli-ciesputinplacebycentralbanksreduceriskforforeigninvestorsandwhenthepoliticalclimateisstable,thatis,whenitwillnotthreatentheratesofprofitorthepossibilityofwithdrawingmoneyfromthecountryoncetheinvestmentisover.
Centralbanksthereforeundertaketoinfluenceanddirectmarketsandpublicbehaviourinlinewiththeseratingagencies'standardsandgoals.
2Whenpoliticalorganizationswereunbannedbytheapartheidgovernmentin1990,theAfricanNationalCongress,SouthAfricanCommunistPartyandCOSATUagreedtoworktogetherasaRevolutionaryAlliance(TripartiteAlli-ance).
The6thNationalCongress(ofCOSATUin1997)resolvedthattheAlli-anceremainstheonlyvehiclecapableofbringingaboutfundamentaltrans-formationinSouthAfrica(COSATU,2009).
TheSouthAfricanReserveBankandthetellingofmonetarystories/ElizabethCobbett752ndConstellationofPower:CentralBanksAnetworkofcentralbankslinkspopulations,states,nationaleconomies,andglobalfinancialarrangementswithinatransna-tionalregimeoffinancialgovernance.
Theultimateobjectiveofcentralbankshasalwaysbeenmonetaryandfinancialstability(White,2005).
Thisstabilityisassuredthroughregulatorystand-ardsthatareinternationallynegotiatedanddomesticallyapplied.
Thisgoalhasbecomemoredifficulttoachieveasglobalcapitalmovesfreelyacrossborders.
Theparadoxisthatthedecentralisedandderegulatedglobalfinancialsystemdependsincreasinglyontheregulatedandcentraliseddomesticcontrolofcentralbanks.
Nationaleconomiesarestabilisedthroughmonetarypolicyandactasananchorofvalueforglobalcapital.
Thepowerofcentralbankstoimplementtheirvisionthroughnationalpoliciesresidesinhistoricrelationsofcollaborationandcoordinationbetweencentralbanks,datingfromaround1930whentheBankofInternationalSettlements(BIS)wasfounded.
TheBISistheworld'soldestinternationalfinancialinstitutionandremainstheprincipallocusforcentralbankcooperationandgov-ernance.
Helleiner(1994)identifiesthiscooperationasamove-menttowardswhatPeterHaas(1992)callsanepistemiccommunity,ornetworksofknowledge-basedexperts.
Haasnotesthatepi-stemiccommunitiesplayakeyroleinarticulatingcomplexprob-lemsandinhelpingstatesidentifytheirinterests,framepublicdebates,andputforwardspecificpolicysolutions.
Importantly,epistemiccommunitieshavetheirownvisionofrealitybuiltthroughahistoricconsentonhowtheworldworks.
Thisknowledge-basednetwork,knownastheBaselCom-munity(White,2005),hasdevelopedavisionof'correct'beliefsthroughiterationofbeliefs,practice,andexperience.
Thisvisionisstrengthenedthroughthecommoneducationreceivedbycent-ralbankgovernorsandseniormembersofthebanks.
Interbankcooperationisfosteredthroughthehundredsofmeetingsthat76Nokoko1Fall2010takeplaceeveryyearinvolvingcentralbankgovernorsandspe-cialists(communicationexperts,auditors,securityexperts,ec-onomists,etc.
).
Thishasresultedinconvergencetoamutuallyacceptedinterpretationoftheworldandidentificationofthemostappropriatesolutionstofinancialproblems.
Itisthissharedunderstandingofrealitythatshoresupthecurrentglobalfinan-cialorder.
Centralbankstherefore'belong'bothtotheirindividualcountries,wheretheyareatthecentreofnationalmonetaryandfiscalcontrol,andtothisinternationalcommunityofcentralbankers,whichpromotesandsupportstheimplementationoftheirsharedvisionoftheglobalpoliticaleconomy.
TheBISsecre-tariatexplainsitasfollows:thecentralbank,anorganisationwithapublicmandate,belongstothegovernmentinabroadsense—asdothelegislative,executive,andjudicialbranches—andactsininterplaywithothergovernmentalbodieswithinacountry'sgov-ernancestructure(Oritani,2010).
Yet,centralbankindependencefromgovernmentandpoliticalpressureisnowconsideredarequisiteelementofglobalfinancialarchitecture.
CentralbanksandgovernmentsclearlyrecognisetheirinterdependenceinthenationalarenasbutthesepatternsofcoordinationbetweencentralbanksandgovernmentshavechangedwiththedemiseoftheBret-tonWoodsfinancialorder.
ThefiatmoneysystemthatsucceededthebreakdownofBrettonWoodssawwide-reachinginstitutionalreformsascentralbanksmovedtoassurefinancialstabilityworldwideandpricestabilitydomestically.
Centralbankinde-pendencewaspromptedbypreviousfailuresofanti-inflationpoliciesandabeliefthatindependencefrompoliticalpressurewouldhelpsecurelowerinflationinthefuture(Crowe&Meade,2007).
Thebeliefisthatbankindependencereducesthepossi-bilityofpolicyswingsthatcanarisewhenmonetarypoliciesaredeterminedbypoliticalpartiesrepresentingspecialinterests(Ori-tani,2010,p.
41).
TheSouthAfricanReserveBankandthetellingofmonetarystories/ElizabethCobbett77The1990ssawawaveofnewlegislationsecuringthislegisla-tiveindependenceinnewbankingactsandrevisedconstitutions.
TheMaastrichtTreatyandthecreationoftheEuropeanUnionclearlysetoutthelegalindependenceofthenewEuropeanCent-ralBank(ECB)anditsmembers,thecentralbanksofEurope.
ThisindependencefromdirectpoliticalpressureisguaranteedbyArticle107oftheTreaty,whichreadsthat"nomemberoftheECBshallseekortakeinstructionsfromCommunityinstitutionsorbodies,fromanygovernmentofaMemberStateorfromanyotherbody"(EuropeanUnion,1992,p.
17).
Thiswaveoflegalchangesincentralbankinghasbeenparticularlynotedindevel-opingandemergingmarketeconomies(Crowe&Meade,2007).
CountriesoftheformerSovietUnion,forexample,sawtheircon-stitutionallawsrewrittenandanewindependencegiventotheircentralbanks.
Africancountrieshavegenerallymovedtomoremarket-basedfinancialsystemswithgreaterautonomyandac-countabilityapplyingtocentralbanks(Mboweni,2004).
Thetransitiontoapost-apartheidstateandtherewritingoftheSouthAfricanConstitutionwereperfectopportunitiestogranttheSARBlegalindependence.
Subsection224(2)oftheSouthAfricanCon-stitutionstatesthat"theSouthAfricanReserveBank,inpursuitofitsprimaryobject,mustperformitsfunctionsindependentlyandwithoutfear,favourorprejudice.
.
.
"(ConstitutionoftheRepublicofSouthAfrica,1996,p.
1331[28]).
TheSARB'smonetarypolicycommittee(MPC)clarifiesthatitmakesmonetarypolicydecisionsindependentlyofitsshareholdersandthegovernment.
Consti-tutedbytheexecutivedirectors(thegovernorandthethreedeputygovernors)andtheprofessionalmembersoftheSARB,theMPChasthemandatetoelaborateandimplementthemonetarypolicyframeworkforthecountry.
AlthoughtheReserveBankhascompleteinstrumentalindependence,MboweniaddsthatitisofcourseaccountabletothecitizensofSouthAfrica(Mboweni,2004).
Accountabilityisindeedakeyissue.
TheConstitution78Nokoko1Fall2010stipulatesthattheReserveBankmustbeinregularconsultationwiththecabinetmemberresponsiblefornationalfinancialmat-ters(ConstitutionoftheRepublicofSouthAfrica,1996,p.
1331[28]).
Apartfromthisconditionofregularmeetingswiththeministeroffinance,thereislittlelegalprovisiontomaketheBankresponsivetopoliticaldemandsandcitizendiscontentabouteco-nomicpolicy.
TheConstitutionacts,rather,asashieldthatpro-tectsthecommitteefrom'external'pressure.
Discoursesofpower:CentralbanksasnarratorsLiteratureindicatesthatcentralbankshavechangedtheirrela-tionshipswithfinancialmarketsandthegeneralpublicoverthelasttwodecadesthroughthedevelopmentanduseofnewcom-municationtechniques(Blinderetal.
,2008;Hall,2008;Holmes,2009).
Beforethe1990s,centralbankswereshroudedinmys-tery—itwasbelievedthattheyshouldbe—anddecisionsweremadebehindcloseddoors(Blinderetal.
,2008).
Blinderetal.
(2008,p.
25)pointoutthatcentralbanksarenowmakingtheirdecisionsknown,widelyavailable,andtransparentinthebeliefthatiftheiractionsaremorepredictabletomarkets,marketswillreactinexpectedwaystomonetarypolicy.
Thiscommunicationcanbeunderstoodbroadlyastheprovisionofinformationbythecentralbanktothepublicregardingsuchmattersastheobjectivesofmonetarypolicy,themonetarypolicystrategy,theeconomicoutlook,andtheoutlookforfuturepolicydecisions(p.
10).
Forexample,themakingpublicoftheminutesfromacentralbank'smonetarypolicycommitteemeetingsalongwiththereleaseofacentralbank'sinflationreportsappeartomovefinancialmarketssignificantlyinthedirectiondesiredbythebanks(p.
34).
Com-municationstrategiesareconsideredessentialelements,forin-stance,inanchoringthelong-runinflationlevelsbyannouncinganumericalinflationtargetandmakingitwidelyknowntothegen-TheSouthAfricanReserveBankandthetellingofmonetarystories/ElizabethCobbett79eralpublic.
Themarketsandthepublicintegratethisinformationandadapttheirbehaviourinreactiontoanticipatedchanges,therebyenactingthedesiredresult.
Thesechangeshavebeenre-ferredtoasacommunicationrevolutionandarepowerfulcom-ponentsofeverycentralbank'stoolkit.
Blinderetal.
(2008,p.
5)pointoutthatnoconsensushasemergedonwhatcommunicationpoliciesconstitutebestpracticeforcentralbanks.
Practices,infact,differsubstantiallyandareevolvingcontinuouslyaccordingtostatehistories,practices,andinternallogics.
Thisechoescurrentliteratureonthestate(Hansen&Stepputat,2001),whichpointsoutthatwhiletherearecom-monalitiesinstate,governance,andthelanguageof'stateness',noinstitution,policypaper,oruniversalisedregimeis'thesame'everywhere.
Keepinginmindthiscaveat,itremainspossibletoidentifycommonanalyticalframeworkswithinwhichemergingcentralbankingpracticesareembedded.
Usingtheanalyticalframeworkofculturalanthropology,DouglasHolmes(2009,p.
383)buildsonBlinderetal.
'sobservationsofcentralbankcom-municationbylinkingthemtoJohnMaynardKeynes.
AccordingtoHolmes,KeynesidentifiedthepowerofcentralbanksinhisATractonMonetaryReform(Keynes,1923).
Keynessawthesefinan-cialinstitutionsaspossessinggreatregulatorypower,pacingtheactivityintheeconomyasawhole,asvirtuallyalltransactionsareinonewayoranothercontingentonfinancialmediation(Holmes,2009,p.
388).
Thispowerissubjecttointensepublicscrutinyandtoverylittleformalaccountability(p.
387).
Thechal-lenge,Keynesidentified,wastotamethe'animalspirits'ofeco-nomicactorswhentheyactwithlittleregardformonetaryauth-oritiesornotintheinterestofthelargergroup.
ExpectationsneededtobedisciplinedwithpersuasivenarrativesandKeyneswasconcernedwithdevelopingalanguageformoneyandmon-etarypolicy(p.
390).
Thegoalwastofindalanguagethatcould80Nokoko1Fall2010makeeconomicphenomenaintomeaningfulpublicdiscourseandthereby,intoinstrumentsofintervention(p.
391).
WorkingwithinKeynes'intellectualtradition,HolmesappliesMichelCallon's(2007)insightsonperformativetheory—thateconomictheoryisthemeansforcreatingeconomicphenomenaandregulatingeconomicbehaviourratherthanbeingmerelythetoolsforrepresentingoranalysingthem—toBlinderetal.
'sre-searchoncentralbankcommunicationstrategies.
Callon'sper-formativethesisarguesthatwordsperformthedecisivefunctionofcreatingcountlesscontextsthatframedataseries,statisticalmeasures,andeconometricprojections.
Economictheoryisthere-forethemeansforcreatingeconomicphenomenaandregulatingeconomicbehaviourratherthanasimpletoolforrepresentingtheeconomyasobject.
Buildingonthistheory,Holmesintro-ducesthenotionofan"economyofwords"asthemeansandme-diumthroughwhichthiskindofcreativelabourisarticulatedandenacted(2009,p.
384;italicsadded).
Aneconomyofwordsistheprocessbywhichcentralbankslin-guisticallymodeleconomicphenomenaoperatingatthelimitsofcalculationandmeasurement.
Inotherwords,centralbanksnameandrenderobservableeconomicphenomenathatarelargelyout-sideofcommonknowledgeandthus,makeknowncomplexeco-nomicphenomenathroughsimplifiedeconomicparameters.
Wellknownsymbols,suchasinterestratesandinflationtargets,actasparametersforgeneralsocialbehaviourwhileawiderrangeofmorecomplexmonetaryandfinancialtoolscreatethebroadercontextfortheoperationsoffinancialmarkets.
Theunderlyingprincipleisthatsuccessfulmonetarypolicyisnotsomuchamat-terofcontrolofmonetarytools,suchasovernightinterestrates,butratheraboutmanagingexpectationsandfutureactionthroughcommunication.
Towardstheendofthelastcentury,centralbankerscametoadoptanexperimentalethosofcommunicationperformedinsitu(Holmes,2009,p.
386).
InitiatedbytheRe-TheSouthAfricanReserveBankandthetellingofmonetarystories/ElizabethCobbett81serveBankofNewZealand,centralbanksworkedoutthemeansformodellinglinguisticallyandcommunicativelyeconomicphe-nomena(p.
411).
Narratives,ormonetarystories,informedbyacontinuousstreamofdataandanalyses,articulatedinameasuredandconsistentfashion,becamethemodusoperandiforcentralbanks(p.
385).
ThispracticerepresentsthemostdecisiveandconvincingdemonstrationofCallon'sperformativetheory(p.
383).
Wordscreatetheeconomysimultaneouslyasacommunica-tivefieldandasanempiricalfact.
Whatdoesthecentralbank'scommunicationachieveHolmesclaimsthattheanswerisbothsimpleandprofound(p.
403).
Thepublic'sexpectationswillcleaveovertimetomonetarypolicytargets,suchaspermissiblelevelsofinflation,whichareintegratedintheirfuturebehaviour.
People,inotherwords,willadapttheirexpectationsandactionstofitintotheparameterssetoutbythecentralbank,suchaspro-posedchangesintherateofinterest.
MonetarystorytellingisoccurringactivelyincontemporarySouthAfrica.
AsafrequentvisitortoSouthAfricaoverthelastfewyears,Iamconstantlysurprisedbytheweightyandconstantpres-enceofthecentralbankinthemedia.
Thecentralbankisaveryeloquent,visible,andparticularlypowerfulactorinpublicde-batesandisforemostinthecreationandmaintenanceofthecountry'smacroeconomicnarrative.
MyimpressionisthattheRe-serveBank'sgovernorhasasmuch,ifnotmore,influencethanthegoverningparty.
SouthAfricaThehistoricaltrajectoryofSouthAfrica'spoliticaleconomyhasbeenlargelydeterminedbyitsroleasworldgoldproduceranditsplacewithintheBritishEmpire.
TheSouthAfricanReserveBankhasbeencloselytiedtothewesterninternationalfinancialsystemfornearlyonehundredyears.
Thiswassoevenduringthe82Nokoko1Fall2010yearsofapartheidwhenthecountrybecamememberoftheBankofInternationalSettlementsin1971andthecentralbankfi-nancedtheapartheidgovernment'sdebtonforeignmarkets.
TheestablishmentoftheSouthAfricancentralbankneedstobeunderstoodwithinthisbroadercontextofhistoricglobalfinancialties.
Ahundredyearsago,domesticmonetarypolicywasshapedbyimperialbanksoperatinginSouthAfricaunderthedirectionsoftheBankofEngland(Ally,1994).
ThisgraduallychangedasBritainfounditincreasinglydifficulttocompetewiththeotherleadingEuropeanindustrialcountriesandtheUnitedStates'ris-ingfinancialpowerduringtheinter-warperiodof1919to1939.
Britain'smonopolisticrelationshipwithgoldproducersinSouthAfricahadbeencentraltomaintainingitsformerpositionatthecentreoftheglobalfinancialsystem.
ButJanSmuts,primeminis-teroftheUnionofSouthAfrica,hadcomeundercriticismfromNationalistsforallowingimperialBritain'sintereststooverrideSouthAfrica'sindependence,especiallyinregardstolocalcur-rencyrequirements,dependentonoverseasproductioninEng-land(p.
76).
Atthesametime,theChamberofMinespushedtohavemorecontroloverthegoldrefineryprocessandwantedtoinstallarefinerywithinSouthAfricainsteadofshippingallitsun-processedmetaltoLondonwhereitfellunderthecontroloftheBankofEngland.
TheChamberofMinesarguedthatalocalrefin-erywouldleadtoimportantsavingsfortheindustryandtogreatercontrolastowhomtosellthegoldto.
OfinteresttotheChamberwastheinterestshownbytheUnitedStatesofAmericawhosawanadvantageinbreakingtheBritishmonopolyanddeal-ingdirectlywithSouthAfricangoldsuppliers.
PoliticaloppositioninSouthAfricaagainstthecountry'ssubordinationtoBritain'simperialinterestsfinallycreatedenoughleveragetoestablishtwokeynationalinstitutions:agoldrefineryandanationalmint(p.
84).
Thesemovestoindependencewerefacilitatedbythechallen-TheSouthAfricanReserveBankandthetellingofmonetarystories/ElizabethCobbett83gingeconomiccontextfacingpost-warBritainanditslimitedre-sourcesinmanagingthesecrises.
CallsforaSouthAfricancentralbankwerebuttressedintheaftermathoftheFirstWorldWarwhentheBritishgovernmentunpeggeditscurrencytotheUSdollarbycomingoffthegoldstandardandlettingtheBritishpoundfloat.
AstheSouthAfricanpoundwaslinkedtothesterling,itwasalsodevaluedagainstthedollar,plungingthecountryintorecession.
MeritwasseeninbreakingwiththeBritishsterlingandestablishingnewbankingnormsandastatebankwithinthecountry.
Whilethisgoalwasattheforeofnationalistsentiment,thecreationofaSouthAfricancentralbankwasactuallymadepossiblebytheBankofEngland'sdecisiontoencouragethespreadofcentralbanksworldwide(Ally,1994,p.
88).
Thisdecisionbuiltonapoliticaleconomicre-evaluationofBritain'srelativeglobalstrengthanditsplaceandpowerwithinthechangingeconomicandfinancialworldcontext.
Britain'sinformalfinancialsystem,developedunderitsglobaldominance,hadshrunkasitfacedtheeconomicconsequencesofthewarandincreasingrivalryfromNewYorkasfinancialcentre(p.
89).
TheBankofEnglandsawtheestablishmentofnationalcentralbanksasameansofpursuingitsinfluenceoverglobalfi-nance.
Itreasonedthatinthechangedenvironmentamorefor-malinternationalmonetarysystemwouldseparatenationalpo-liticalpressuresandgovernments'interestsfromfinancialcontrolandmonetarystability,andhelpsecuredirectBritishinfluencethroughaworldwidebankingsystem.
Britainhadconsistentlyen-deavouredtoseparatetheinterestsoftheminingindustryfromthatoftheUniongovernment,wishingtosecureitsprivilegedrelationshiptogoldproducers(p.
81).
Thenational1919GoldConferenceofminingcompanies(whichmettoaddresstheprob-lemsencounteredwiththemarketingofSouthAfrica'sgoldpro-duction)pinpointedtheneedtointroduceauniformbankactthatcouldprotectagainsttheinflationofthecurrency,maintain84Nokoko1Fall2010thepriceofgold,andoffergreaterdegreeofnationalpower(p.
90).
ASelectCommitteeofParliamentfollowedontheGoldCon-ference'srecommendationtoestablishacentralbank.
JanSmutsinvitedHenryStrakosch,managingdirectoroftheUnionCorporation—aholdingcompanywithextensiveforeigninvestmentsinSouthAfricangoldmines—tothecountryforcon-sultationandadviceonimprovingthenationalbankingsystem(Ally,1994,p.
87).
Strakosch,incollaborationwiththeUnionCorporation'streasury,draftedtheoriginalBilloftheCurrencyandBankingActof1920,ensuringthatmanagementofthefuturereservebankwouldnotbeundergovernmentcontrol;ratherheproposedsettingupacentralbankwithprivatefundsobtainedthroughshareholders(p.
90).
Theindependenceofthecentralbankfromthegoverningpartywasunusualatthetimeofitses-tablishment;itismoreinlinewithcurrentglobalreformsthatseparatedemocratically-electedrepresentativesfrommonetarycontrol.
TheSouthAfricanReserveBankopeneditsdoorsforbusinessforthefirsttimeon30June1921.
TheBankwasapara-doxicalmixofBritishimperialinterestswithnationalistgoalsofgreaterindependencefromBritishruleandtheidentificationoftheneedofacentralbankunderthecontroloflocalgovernment.
Thismixofpowerfulminingcompanies,internationalfi-nance,andthecentralbankcontinuetoshapethepoliticalecon-omyofthecountry.
HabibandPadayachee(2000)notethatthe1989BankActrenewedhistoricalliancesbetweenthestateandpowerfulbusinessasthestatepreparedforitstransitiontoliberaldemocracy.
Agroupofpowerfulconglomeratesinvolvedinmin-ing,finance,andenergyworkedtoensurethatthenewblack-majoritygovernmentwouldcreateamacroeconomiccontextthatwouldfacilitatetheglobalisationoftheiractivities(p.
260).
ApivotalaspectofthismovetosecurethedesiredmacroeconomiccontextwastograntgreaterautonomytotheSARB(p.
248).
En-shrinedinthe1996Constitution,thepoliticaleconomicstructureTheSouthAfricanReserveBankandthetellingofmonetarystories/ElizabethCobbett85witnessedareturntotheoriginalvisionofindependentglobalfinancialpowerwithinthedomesticeconomy.
ThisarrangementbetweentheSARB,thegovernmentandthebusinesseliteunder-pinsthepoliticaleconomyofcontemporarySouthAfrica.
MonetarystoriesintheNewSouthAfricaSixteenyearsafterthefirstdemocraticelectionstherehasbeenlittlechangeintheoveralllevelofincomeinequality.
SouthAfricahasovertakenBrazilastheworld'smostunequalcountryasitsGinicoefficientindex—whichshowsthelevelofincomein-equality—increasesto0.
679(Craven,2009).
Inspiteofthisdis-malrecord,theSARBcontinuestomovethecountrytowardsfullcompliancewiththeglobalneoliberalregimeofderegulatedfi-nance.
Thismeansworkingtoorientatehumanexpectationsandactionstowardsthedesiredneoliberalmacroeconomicgoalsofprivatisedpublicservices,greaterindividualresponsibilityforhumanwelfare,andnewopportunitiesforfinancialinvestment.
WhiletheANCisfullysupportiveofthisorientation,socialgroupsandtradeunionsarevoicingtheiropposition.
Socialmovementsareholdingthegovernmenttoitsformerelectoralpromisesofsocialandeconomicredressforthepoormajority.
ThistensionismanifestwithintheTripartiteAlliancegovernmentwhereCOSATUpubliclyopposesthecentralbank'sconservativemonetarypolicies.
3ThefollowingexcerptsfromanarticleintheMail&Guardiannewspaper,publishedFebruary2010(Mapenzauswa,2010),makeevidentthispublicdebateovermonetarypolicy,poverty,andeconomicgrowthbetweenCOSATU,ontheonehand,and3ThistensionextendsequallytotheSouthAfricanCommunistParty(SACP)whocriticizessomeoftheANC'spoliciesasanti-poor;howeverthefocushereisonCOSATUwhoengagespubliclyandregularlywiththeANCexecutiveandtheSARBonissuesofmonetarypolicy.
86Nokoko1Fall2010theSARBandMinsterofFinancePravinGordhan,ontheotherhand:TheANC'slabourunionandcommunistallieswantanoverhaulofmon-etarypolicy,sayingthecentralbankhaspursueditsinflationtargetingmandateblindlyattheexpenseofeconomicgrowth.
(2010,para.
4).
Unionshaveproposedthatthe3%to6%targetforconsumerinflationbescrappedorwidened,orthatthecentralbank'smandatetobebroadenedtotakeintoaccounteconomicgrowthandjobcreation(2010,para.
6).
IwishtoconfirmthattheReserveBankwillcontinuetopursueatargetforCPIinflationof3%to6%,Gordhan[theministeroffinance]said(2010,para.
7).
Ongoingassessment,discussionandcommentaryaboutourmonetarypolicybyanalysts,interestedmembersofthepublic,interestgroupsandthebroaderresearchcommunityisconstructivefortheemergenceofasocialconsensusinthisareaoverthelonger-term,he[Gordhan]said(2010,para.
9).
Inapparentreferencetocalls[byCOSATU]tonationalisethecentralbank,GordhanreiteratedthatSouthAfrica'sConstitutionstipulatedtheinstitutionshouldpursueitsmandateindependentlyandwithoutfear,favourorprejudice(2010,para.
10).
TheroleoftheReserveBankinmaintainingfinancialstabilitywouldalsobeenhanced,Gordhansaid.
HewarnedthatSouthAfrica'spresentinfla-tionlevelswerehigherthanthoseofitstradingpartners,loweringitscompetitiveness(2010,para.
14).
TheSARBhasthetaskofgroundingitseconomicnarrativeinacountryundergoingsignificantsocialandpoliticaltransformationsandupheavals.
Incontrasttowellestablishedliberalmarketde-mocracieswherethedistributionofpowerwithinthepoliticaleconomicstructureislargelyacceptedbythepopulation,theSARBneedstomakesurethatitsnarrativeisseenasunquestion-able,astheundisputedtruth,regardlessofdeepeningtensionsTheSouthAfricanReserveBankandthetellingofmonetarystories/ElizabethCobbett87betweenprivatefinancialinterests,ontheonehand,andescalat-ingpovertyandpocketsofexclusion,ontheother.
Whenthenewgovernorofthecentralbank,GillMarcus,tookupherfunctionsinNovember2009,PravinGordhansentheraletterinwhichhereiteratedthatcrediblemonetarypolicyholdsacentralplaceinSouthAfricaasitendeavourstoattractforeigninvestmentandstimulategrowth(Gordhan,2010,p.
2).
Inthisletter,heemphasisedthatcommunicationwiththepublicneededtobeimprovedsoastoincreasetheeffectivenessofthecentralbankinachievingitsmandateoflowinflationandgreatereco-nomicgrowth.
ThisletterisaneffectivemediacommunicationthatconfirmsthedirectionoftheSARBinlinewiththebroaderglobalfinancialregimeandtheideologicallinksbetweentheANCandtheSARBasthechangeinthegovernorofthecentralbankwascarriedout.
TheletteraimedatreassuringfinancialmarketsthatthetransitiontothenewgovernorofthecentralbankwouldnotinterruptthesameconservativemonetarypoliciesinplacesincetheANCcametopower.
Itwasalsoamessagetosocialac-tors,suchaslabourunionsandgrassrootsactivists,thattherewouldbenochangeinmonetarypolicyandnoquestionofna-tionalisingthecentralbank.
COSATUNationalSpokespersonPatrickCravenasks:TheFreedomChartercalledforthepeopletoshareinthecountry'swealth.
Howcanweachievethatwhenthecountry'smostimportantfi-nancialinstitutionisnotunderanydemocraticcontrolby,oraccounta-bilityto,thepeople(Craven,2010,para.
4).
Thisideawasqualifiedas"nuts"byGovernorMarcus(SouthAfri-canPressAssociation,2010,para.
1).
ThesecallstonationalisetheSARBhavebeenaccompaniedbysimultaneousdemandsbyprivateshareholdersoftheBanktoobtainamarketvaluefortheirsharesintheeventofnationalisation.
Thepresent201088Nokoko1Fall2010SouthAfricanReserveBankAmendmentBillaimstoconfrontbothchallengestotheSARB'sindependence.
4Thesedebatesareexamplesoffrequentideologicalconfronta-tionsinthepublicarenabetweenleft-wingmembers—theSACPandCOSATUoftheTripartiteAllianceGovernment—andthemin-isteroffinance,andtheSARB.
WhattheReserveBankandtheANCnationalgovernmentareendeavouringistoeffectivelyside-linecallsfromtheleft-wingmembersfornationalisationofthecentralbank,foraneasinginmonetarypolicytowardslowerratesofinterest,forlessBankpreoccupationwiththeinflationtargetofthreetosixpercent,andforgreateremphasisonexpansionarymacroeconomicpoliciesandjobcreation.
YetANCsupportofthecentralbank'seconomicpoliciesappearstostandindirectcontra-dictiontodeclarationsmadebyPresidentJacobZuma:TheANC,adisciplinedforceoftheleft,acceptedtheelectoralmandatewhichcameprimarilyfromtheworkersandthepoor,withacommit-menttotakefurtherthestruggleforabetterlifeforall.
TheANCmustnowuseitsvictoryandcontrolofStatepowertoimprovethequalityoflifeofthepoorandmarginalised(Zuma,2009,para.
10-11).
ThereisadivisionintheeconomicdiscourseusedbytheMinisterofFinanceandtheSARB,ontheonehand,andtherevolutionaryrhetoricoftheANCexecutive,ontheother.
Thiscanbeexplainedbyadesiretomaintaintheimageofsocialandeconomicjusticebeingperformedthroughthepresidentandhisoffice.
Thepresi-dentbringstogetherthenation;heistheconcernedfatherthatlistenstoalltheproblems.
Debatesarethuscarriedoutbetweenthecentralbank,thefinanceminister,andthemembersoftheTripartiteAlliance,leavingthepresidentaside.
Thesemediatiseddebatesareadoubleedgedsword;Ibelievethattheyactuallyhelpanchorthecentralbank'sgoalsinimport-4TheBillaimstostopshareholdersfromcircumventingthecurrentact'slimita-tiononsharespershareholderto10000andtodefineclearcriteriaforthedisqualificationofpersonsfromservingontheboardoftheReserveBank.
TheSouthAfricanReserveBankandthetellingofmonetarystories/ElizabethCobbett89antways.
COSATUandtheSACParehistoricandpowerfulsocialbodiesthatactassocialandpoliticalmediarodsfortheSARB'snarrative.
Beingcalleduponbytheseactorstojustifyitsmonetarypolicies,theSARBisbroughtintothepublicrealmandtheratherobscureinstitutionismadeknownand'real'throughexchangewiththesewellknownsocialactors.
Byengagingwiththem,thecentralbankbecomesmorevisibletothewiderpublicanditsec-onomyofwordsisdisseminated.
What'smore,thesedebatespermittheSARBtoestablishmoredirectandinfluentiallinkswiththecountry'scitizensasCOSATUandSACPdirectlyinformtheirmembers—workers,socialgroups,andactivists—oftheReserveBank,itsrole,anditseconomicgoals.
Holmes'(2009)workontheReserveBankofNewZealandpointstotheseinnovationsusedbycentralbanksforsecuringtheimplementationofmon-etarypolicy.
Hishypothesisisthatcentralbankcommunicationsaretheinstrumentsofpolicythemselves,theymaketheeconomy.
Inthissense,SouthAfrica'scentralbankiscreatingthecontext,orthedominantnarrative,ofthenationaleconomythroughongo-ingdebateswithCOSATU.
ThecurrentpoliticaleconomicpowerstructuresensurethatthereisnorealthreattotheSARB'sinde-pendence—neithertoitsvisionnortoitspowertoimplementpolicies.
Thisexplainsthewillingnesswithwhichitengagesinthesepublicdialogues.
Insodoing,itsvisionisactuallyembed-dedwithinthepublicrealmandvalidated.
Thedialogues,inotherwords,createthisparticulareconomyofwords.
TheSARBusesspecialoccasionsforstorytellingthatpermitittotieitspoliciestopowerfulnationalsymbols.
Inaremarkablespeechgivenin2009attheAnnualSteveBikoMemorialLecture,Mboweni,thengovernoroftheSouthAfricanReserveBank,stated:Tobreakabitwithtradition,thethrustofmyaddresstonightwillbeoneconomicissues.
Inparticular,IwillshareafewobservationsandthoughtsonselectedmacroeconomicdevelopmentsinSouthAfricain90Nokoko1Fall2010thepast15years.
From9November2009Iwillnolongerbeallowedtocommentonmonetarypolicy.
Astheoutgoinggovernor,however,Iwilltakeadvantageofthisplatformtoremindyouofafewtruths,onebeingthatnocentralbankworthitssaltcanevertoleratehighinflation.
PricestabilitymaynotbeasufficientconditionbutImaintainthatitisane-cessaryconditionforasolidfoundationforsustainablegrowthandprosperity(Mboweni,2009,p.
2).
IwouldliketobelievethatSteveBikowouldhavebeengratifiedbythefairlycontainedpaceofinflationoverthepast15years,knowingthedireconsequencesofinflationforthepoor—thosewhoareusuallyleastabletohedgeagainstinflation—inparticular.
Since1994averageheadlinein-flationhasamountedtoapproximately6.
5percentperannum.
Overthepreceding15years,1979to1994,ithadaveragedalmost14percentperannum.
Inflationhasbeenunevenovertheperiod,though,inducedtypicallybysignificantchangesinkeyexogenousdriversofinflation,suchasoilprices(p.
3).
Secondly,therecentupsurgeinstrikeactionhasledtosomecommenta-torsdescribingthewaveasa"winterofdiscontent".
Inthisregard,Iwouldliketocommentonsomeworryingtrendsinthesettlementsreached.
Wagesettlementsabovetheprojectedrateofinflationandinexcessofproductivitygainstendtounderminethefightagainsthighin-flation.
Theyleadtolabourcostincreaseswayabovethoseoftradecom-petitorsand,therefore,lossofcompetitiveness(p.
3)Itisastonishingthatthecentralbankisinvitedtoaddressthepublicatthisparticularevent.
ThefactthattheSARBistherespeaksinallprobabilitytoitsdesiretomakethesekindsoflinksbetweenitspoliciesandnationalsymbols.
Mboweni'sdiscourseitselfisstrikingforseveralreasons.
Firstly,itclearlydemonstratesthewaythecentralbankproducesanarrativeoftheeconomyusinginfluentialnationalimageslinkedtothehistoryofSouthAfricaanditsstruggleagainstapartheid.
TolinkBiko,knownforhiselaborationofapro-blackradicaldoctrineandhisdeathatthehandsofstateinterrogators,toinflationtargetingseemstobeawildattempttovalidatedivisiveeconomicpolicieswithamanwhowouldalmostcertainlyhavecontestedtheseverypolicies.
COSATU'spositionontheSARB'sconservativemonetarypolicyTheSouthAfricanReserveBankandthetellingofmonetarystories/ElizabethCobbett91frameworkismoreindicativeofapositionthatBikowouldhavelikelytaken,thatoffocusingonthedevelopmentalneedsofthecountrywheretheunemploymentrateandinequalitygapareamongstthehighestintheworld(Dlamini,2010).
Yet,thecent-ralbankattemptstoauthenticateitscontroversialmonetarypolicybymakingthispowerfulhistoricpersonagespeakinitsfavour.
Secondly,thisreferencetoBikotransformsthefailureofstatedevelopmentintermsofpovertyreductionandserviceprovisionintoanarrativeofpolicysuccessandstateaccomplishment.
Thecentralbankcongratulatesitselfforhavingobtainedbettermacro-economicgoalsthanthoseachievedunderthepreviousapartheidadministration.
Since1994averageheadlineinflationhasamountedtoapproximately6.
5percentperannum.
Overthepreceding15years,1979to1994,inflationhadaveragedalmost14percentperannum(Mboweni,2009).
TheSARBusesthedi-mensionoftime—beforethetransitionof1994andthecurrentpost-apartheidperiod—toshedafavourablelightonitscurrentperformance.
ItportraysthecurrentSouthAfricastateasputtinggoodgovernancepracticesinplaceandrespectingitsmacroeco-nomicengagements,inamuchbetterwaythanhaddonetheapartheidstate.
ThisisironicbecausetheReserveBankwasanintegralpartoftheSouthAfricanapartheidstate'spoliticaleco-nomicstructure.
Butbyusingthisdifferenceintime,itdifferenti-atesitselffromtheapartheidpast,showingthatthecountryhasturnedaneweconomicpagewithsatisfactoryresults.
Thirdly,Biko'swellknownline,'thatthemostpotentweaponinthehandsoftheoppressoristhemindoftheoppressed',(Biko&Stubbs,1978)resonatesstrangelywiththecentralbank'sdesiretodirecthumaneconomicactionthroughcommunication.
Biko'slinkbetweentheideationalandmateriallifetakesonanewtwistasthegovernorcallsuponBiko'spersonatovalidatetheReserveBank'smacroeconomicpolicies.
Themanwhoisbeingcalledupontospeakonbehalfofcontestedpoliciesistheveryperson92Nokoko1Fall2010whospokeabouttheneedfortheoppressedtofreetheirmindsfrompoliticalmanipulation.
Inotherwords,Bikoisbeingusedtoauthenticatemonetarypoliciesthatdependonreflexivesubjects.
Centralbanksrecognisethattheideational—influencinganddi-rectingpeople'sideasandexpectationsabouttheirsocio-economiclives—willcreatethedesirednationaleconomythroughmanaginghumanexpectationsandtheiraction.
ConclusionTheSARBandtheANCexecutivehaveavisionofSouthAfricaasafullmemberofthederegulatedanddecentralizedglobalfi-nancialorder.
Thesepoliticaleconomicleadersareputtinginplaceamasternarrativeoftheeconomy;asupranationalidentifi-cationofthecountryasaneconomicpowerparticipatinginaglobalisedworld.
Thereissocialtensionasthevisionsassociatedwiththeoverthrowofcolonialpowerandtheelectionofthefirstblack-majoritygovernmentareputasidebythestatetoensurecompliancewiththeinterestsofcapitalandtheglobalfinancialsystem.
Peopleareimplicitlyaskedtoletgooftheformervisionofapost-apartheidSouthAfricaofsocialandeconomicjusticeandtoworkandlivewithinarevisedeconomicagendaoffreemarkets,globalcompetition,andliberalfreedomsandindividualresponsibilities.
ThisdirectionunderminestheformervisionofsocialandeconomicjusticethataccompaniedtheANCtopower.
Socialgroupscontestthisroute.
Inparticular,COSATUchallengesthecentralbankonitsmonetarypoliciesandcallstheANCexec-utivetorespectitsformercommitmentsofimprovinglivesthroughsharedwealthandsocialjustice.
Thenationalstrikeofpublicworkers,carriedoutbyCOSATUjustamonthbeforetheANC'snationalgeneralcouncil(NGC)in2010,isanindicationofthedeepeningriftwithinthegovernmentTripartiteAlliance.
Thestrikedemonstratesthestate'sdifficultyinoutlayingamoreuni-TheSouthAfricanReserveBankandthetellingofmonetarystories/ElizabethCobbett93fiedvisionofthepoliticaleconomyofthecountry.
COSATUiscallingforawageincreaseforthepublicsectorworkersandtheSARBrespondsthatwageincreasesinthepublicsectorareinfla-tionary(Donnelly,2010).
ThistensionhasnotbeenresolvedandSouthAfricaisatadefiningmomentinthisstruggleforamasternarrativeofthenationaleconomyand,consequently,ofsociety.
ThechallengefacingtheSARBisthestruggletosettlethere-visedeconomicorientationawayfromoneofredistributiontoonebasedonneoliberalprinciples.
Inotherwords,theSARBneedstogetSouthAfricansonboardasitmovesthenationalec-onomyandthehumanactionthatmakesit,towardsglobalfinan-cialandeconomicnormsandstandards.
Thischallengeismet,amongstothermethods,throughtherolethattheSARBhasad-optedindefiningtheparametersofacceptableeconomicactionwithinthecountry.
Thesesocio-economicboundariesaredrawnbyusingandadaptingnewcommunicationtechniquesdevelopedbycentralbanksoverthelasttwodecades.
Wordscreatetheec-onomyasacommunicativefieldandasanempiricalfact(Holmes,2009).
Inthiscontext,thelanguageofmacroeconomicfundamentalsadoptedbytheSARBandtheANCgovernmentispresentedasthedefiningorderofpermissibleeconomicandsocialactionforpeoplelivinginSouthAfrica.
Monetarystorytell-ingreinforcesthemessagethattheSARB'spoliciesarepartofthecountry—whatbeingSouthAfricanisallabout—and,therefore,thedefinitivebenchmarkforeconomicchoices.
TheSARBre-inforcesthesestoriesbylinkingthemtopowerfulnationalsym-bolssuchassportandhistoricfiguresofapartheidresistance.
Inthiscontext,thequestionishowwilltheSARBmakesurethatdomesticinflationismaintainedwithinthetargetrangeofthreetosixpercentandthatforeigninvestorsarenotscaredoffbypo-liticalunrest.
The'politicalunrest'alsodrawsontheFIFAsuccesstopointoutthat"TheWorldCuphasdemonstratedtothework-ingclassandthepoorthatindeedthestatehasthefiscalmuscle94Nokoko1Fall2010tospendondevelopmentalprojects.
Wehaveseenwhatispos-siblewithunityanddecisiveleadership.
Whenwedemandbettereducation,healthcare,jobsandhousingwewillnowhavetheWorldCupexperienceasareferencepoint"(Vavi,2010a).
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za/docs/cosatu2day/2009/sp0921.
htmlNokokoInstituteofAfricanStudiesCarletonUniversity(Ottawa,Canada)Fall2010(1)TheneoliberalturnintheSADCRegionalintegrationanddisintegrationJessicaEvansTheSADCvisionisoneofacommonfuture,withinaregionalcom-munitythatwillensureeconomicwell-being,improvementofthestand-ardsoflivingandqualityoflife,freedomandsocialjustice,peaceandse-curityforthepeoplesofSouthernAfrica.
Thissharedvisionisanchoredonthecommonvaluesandprinciplesandthehistoricalandculturalaf-finitiesthatexistamongstthepeoplesofSouthernAfrica.
(SADC,2010,p.
1)OnAugust17,1992,inWindhoek,Namibia,theSouthernAfri-canDevelopmentCoordinationConference(SADCC)wastrans-formedintotheSouthernAfricanDevelopmentCommunity(SADCC;Lee,2003,p.
47).
ThetransformationoftheSADCCintotheSADCwasawatershedmarkinthegeopoliticaldynamicsoftheregion,reflectingaclosingtotheeraofColdWarproxywarsonthecontinent,ananticipatedendtotheTotalStrategy11TheTotalStrategyreferstotheSouthAfricanapartheidstate'sattempttodefenditsraciallyinscribedcapitalismthroughanideologicalpositioning102Nokoko1Fall2010andapartheidstateinSouthAfrica,andoptimismaboutthepo-tentialofregionalcooperationanddevelopmentamongthenewlyliberatedstates.
Withthesegeopoliticaltransformationsathand,theSADCC,whichhademphasizedregionaleconomicco-operationandcoordinationwithaprimarygoalofreducingde-pendenceonapartheidSouthAfrica,wouldinevitablyhavetoundergosomecriticalstructuralandpolicychangesduetotheinclusionofademocraticSouthAfrica.
TransformedintotheSADC,thisnewregionalbodyostensiblyreflectedachangeinSouthAfrica'sposturetowardstheregion,anticipatedbyNelsonMandela'searlyawarenessof"theneedforpeacefulcooperationformutualbenefitiftheregion'sfutureistobesecure"(Simon,1998,p.
4).
AccordingtoHentz,thenewSADCprogrammewasaprototypeofdevelopmentalregionalintegrationandcooperation(2005,p.
33).
Yet,itwouldappearthat,todate,therehavebeenveryfewmeaningfulprojectsandpoliciesdevelopedwithintheSADCthathaveactuallypromoted"mutualbenefit"and"devel-opment"(seeforexampleTaylor,2003andTsie,1996).
Rather,theSADChasincreasinglyembracedafreemarketapproachtointegrationalongthelinesofneoliberalorthodoxy,exacerbatingtheexistingasymmetriesandinequalities.
Thus,thedevelop-mentalcontentoftheSADChasfallenintodisrepute,leadingcriticstotheconclusionthatitisdevelopmentalonlyinname(Hentz,2005,p.
33).
TheshiftwithinSADC'sprioritiesandideologicalposturemustbeunderstoodwithreferencetothecoincidingshiftsintheglobaleconomyfollowingtheendoftheColdWarandthecon-solidationofneoliberalismasaglobalagenda,andtheregionalagainstthe"totalonslaught"ofMarxismamongliberatedAfricanstates.
Thiswastobeachievedthroughastick-and-carrotcombinationofdiplomacyandideologicallegitimationvianational-levelcompromiseswithkeyBlackcon-stituentsandregional"cooperation"(whichlargelywouldhaveamountedtoincreasingregionaleconomicdependenceonSouthAfrica),aswellasheavilymilitarizedtacticsofdestabilizationagainstliberatedBlack-Africanstates(Da-vies&O'Meara,1984).
TheneoliberalturnintheSADC/JessicaEvans103geopoliticaltransformationsthatfollowedtheendofSouthAfrica'sapartheidstate.
ShiftsinthecompositionandtoolsoftheglobalpoliticaleconomywereinstrumentalintransformingtheformalagendaofregionalisminSouthernAfrica.
Inturn,thead-optionofneoliberalorthodoxyhasengenderedmultiplemicroregionalprocessesthathavecomplicatedtheprospectsforthesuccessfulconsolidationofaregionalimaginary.
Anexamin-ationofthecompetingregionalprocessesinstigatedbytheneo-liberalturnis,therefore,instructiveinidentifyingthedisjunctureandcontradictionthathavebecomeendemictoSADCregion-alism.
Inthisarticle,Iarguethattheexogenouspressuresoftheglo-balpoliticaleconomy,whichhaveshapedcontemporarySADCregionalism,haveproducedinformal,bottom-upregionalforces,which,whenleftoutsideoftheformalregionalconsideration(eitherintentionallyorunintentionally),havethepotentialoffosteringregionaldisintegrationratherthanintegration.
Iuseacasestudyoftheroleofinformalcross-bordertradersandcircularmigrantsintheSADC,withparticularfocusontheresponseofSouthAfricaasaregionalcentreforinformalcross-bordertradeandcircularmigration.
Ontheonehand,asaresultoftheregion-wideadoptionofneoliberalorthodoxythroughinternationalinfluenceandstructuraladjustmentprogramsinmanystates,ahollowingandweakeningofthestate'sabilitytoprovideforitspopulation,massivepublicsectorretrenchment,wagefreezes,andunemploymenthaveensued,causingasubstan-tialrelianceoftheregion'spopulationoninformalsectorliveli-hoodstrategies(Tripp,2001,p.
1).
Increasingly,theseinformalsectorlivelihoodstrategiesarepremisedoninformalcross-bordertradeandmigration,particularlyintoSouthAfrica,apracticethathasbeenfacilitatedbytheopeningofborderstoformaltradeandcapitalflowsunderneoliberalrestructuring(Williams&Carr,2006,p.
3).
Inresponsetoincreasingin-migration,SouthAfrica104Nokoko1Fall2010hassoughttostemthecross-bordermovementofinformaltrad-ersthroughareassertionofstatesovereigntyandtheborderwithheavypolicingmeasuresandanexclusionarymigrationpolicy(Pederby,2001,p.
16).
Thereassertionoftheborderhashadtheeffectoffreezingregionalrelationsanddetractingfromthecon-structionofregionalidentitybyfurtherentrenchingnotionsofdifferenceandotherness,contributingtorisinglevelsofxeno-phobia(p.
29).
This,then,wouldseemtoruncountertotheself-proclaimedlogicofregionalismbytheSADCandcontradictSouthAfrica'ssupposedcommitmenttoandsupportofintegra-tionasameansofpromotingequitableregionaldevelopmentandpeace,asrepeatedlyandpubliclyproclaimedbyformerPresidentThaboMbeki(Taylor,2003,p.
311).
MyintentinthisarticleistouseSouthAfricaasacasestudytohighlighttheprob-lemofneoliberalregionalismintheSADC.
TheSADC'smove-menttoaneoliberalintegrationpolicyhascreatedasetofinfor-malmicroregionalprocesseswhich,ifmetbyanunresponsiveorrestrictivepolicyenvironment,havethepotentialoffurtherfrag-mentingtheregionanddetractingfromtheoverallgoalsofpeace,growth,andequitabledevelopment.
Theremainderofthisarticleisorganizedasfollows.
First,Isituatethecurrentproblem,asitpertainstoregionalism,withinthetraditionofthenewregionalism(s)approach(NRA).
TheNRAschoolofthoughtisderivativeofcriticalinternationalpoliticaleconomy,andassuchemphasizestheimportanceofsituatingregionalism(s)asafactorintheoverallstructureandforcesatplayintheinternationalpoliticaleconomy.
Thisisparticularlyusefulfortheargumentbeingadvancedhere,astheveryprob-lemsofSADCregionalismbeingaddressedareindialoguewiththelargerprocessesofglobalrestructuringunderneoliberalhe-gemony.
Second,Idemonstratehowshiftsinthestructureandcharac-teroftheinternationalpoliticaleconomyhaveinfluencedacon-TheneoliberalturnintheSADC/JessicaEvans105comitantshiftinSADCregionalism,namelythatofashifttoneo-liberalorthodoxy.
Tothisend,Iexaminehowissuesofstructureandagencyhavecontributedtothisshift.
Third,IreviewhowthisshiftinagendahasimpactedSADCregionalismwithreferencetoanincreaseininformalcross-bordertradeandmigrationasanemergentdimensionofinformalmicro-regionalism(s)andthesubsequentreactionofSouthAfricainevokinganexclusionarystatiststanceonmigrationpolicies,thushamperingandfragmentingregionalrelations(Mulaudzi,2009,p.
49).
Last,Idemonstratehowtheseprocessesareproductsofandresponsestoglobalneoliberalhegemony,soastorevealthepro-pensitytowardsdisintegrationthattheSADCfaces.
TheNRAandCriticalInternationalPoliticalEconomyTraditionalintegrationtheorybeganfromanontologicalpresumptionofstatesasthefixedlocusofpowerintheinterna-tionalsystem,negotiatingbetweenthemselvesoptimaleconomicinterstaterelations.
WithinthecontextoftheColdWarandas-sumptionsofglobalstructuralfixity,regionalismwascharac-terizedasanintrovertedprocessofprotectionismcoordinatedatasupranationallevel,withthedepthandbreadthofinterstateorganizationbeingthedeterminingfactorsofsuccessfulintegra-tion(Sderbaum,2004a,p.
21).
However,fromthemid-1980sonwards,a"newregionalism"hasemergedinthecontextof"comprehensivestructuraltransformationoftheglobalsystem"(Hettne&Sderbaum,2000,p.
457).
Thisnewregionalismischaracterizedbyamultiplicityofcomplexanddynamicprocessesinvolvingstateandnon-stateactorsengagedintransnationalnet-worksandistakingformastheresultofemergingglobal,re-gional,national,andlocalsocialforces(Sderbaum,2004a,p.
50).
106Nokoko1Fall2010Asaresultofthepost-ColdWarconsolidationofneoliberalhegemonyandacceleratedprocessesofsocial,political,andeco-nomicglobalization,itisimpossibletoisolateonelevelofanaly-sisasdominant,asthelevelofimportanceandnatureofinterac-tionsbetweenthevariouslevelscanchange,contingentuponaparticularprocess'spatio-temporalsituation(Hettne&Sder-baum,2000,p.
457).
Tothisend,thestudyofnewregion-alism(s)ismostcomfortablyandappropriatelysituatedwithinthetraditionofcriticalinternationalpoliticaleconomy.
AsSderbaumnoted,Criticalinternationalpoliticaleconomy(IPE)providesausefulanalyticalperspectiveforthisendeavour,becauseittranscendsstate-centricontol-ogyandrationalistepistemologyandisconcernedwithstructuralandsocialchange;historicalpowerstructures,emphasizingcontradictionsinthem;andchangeandtransformationexpressedinnormativeterms.
.
.
.
[It]doesnottakestatesasgivens,butneitherdoesitwishthemaway,whichisimportantinaccountingforthechanginggovernancestructuresintoday'sglobalpoliticaleconomy.
(2004b,p.
419)Ascriticalinternationalpoliticaleconomyemphasizesanexamin-ationofthehistoricalcontingencyoftheglobalstructuralcondi-tionsthatinfluenceanddefinetheparametersofpolitical-economicbehaviour,processesofregionalismmustbeunder-stoodwithinthecontextofpost-ColdWarstructuraltransforma-tionsintheglobalpoliticaleconomyandhowthesetransforma-tionshaveshiftedthecompositionandcharacterofregionalism(s)andtheparticularcompositionofthestate-societycomplexinthecontemporaryglobalorder.
Insodoing,thestudyofnewregion-alism(s)allowsforaconsiderationofhowregionsaresociallyconstructedandtherebypoliticallycontestable.
TheprojectoftheNRA,ratherthanfixatingonregionalorganizationsandstateac-tors,istodescribetheprocessesbywhichageographicalareaistransformedintoanactivepoliticalsubjectandhowvariousactorsareconstitutedintheseprocessesasactiveagentscapableofarti-TheneoliberalturnintheSADC/JessicaEvans107culatingcollectiveinterestswithintheemergingregionalandglo-balorder(Hettne&Sderbaum,2001,p.
461).
AsidefromtheglobalorexogenousemphasesoftheNRA,thereisaconcomitantanalyticalshifttotheendogenousforcesofregionalism.
RegionnessisapivotalconceptfortheNRAanalysesoftheendogenousforcesofregionformation.
Regionnessisto"definethepositionofaparticularregionintermsofregionalcohesion,whichcanbeseenasalong-termhistoricalprocess,changingovertimefromcoercion…tovoluntarycooperation"(Hettne,2005,p.
551).
Regionnessasaconceptallowsonetounderstandhowavarietyofformalandinformalsocial,political,andeconomicactorsinterprettheideaoftheregionandtowhatextentthesemultipleinterpretationsofregionfindcongruenceorcontradictionwitheachother(Sderbaum,2004a,p.
47).
ThenotionofregionnessisperhapsthemostsalientfeatureoftheNRAthatbridgestheexogenousandendogenousforcesofregionalization.
Althoughtheexogenousforcesofglobalorderbearinfluenceontheformalmacroregionalproject(oftenstate-ledandinstitutionallydefined),theseveryinfluencesarealsore-sponsibleforwhattheNRAseesastheunbundlingofthestatethroughneoliberalglobalization.
AsTaylornoted,Macroregionsinvolveamonumentalexpansionintheproportionofaregionalmarket,whileatthesametimediminishingtheauthorityofpo-liticalunits….
[B]ecauseoftheirscale,macro-regionsaremostlikelytogeneratethegreatesttensionsandcontradictions,andareleastsuscep-tibletotheconstructionofanyformofregionness.
(2003,p.
315)Thisunbundlingmakesthestatebutoneactoramongapluralityofformalandinformalregionalactors(Sderbaum,2004a,p.
50).
Networksformedbytheseinformalactorsmayinclude,butarenotlimitedto,transnationalcorporations,ethnicbusinessnetworks,civilsocietyorganizations,privatearmies,andthein-formalborderpoliticsofsmall-scaletrade,bartering,smuggling,andcrime.
Theseinformalnetworksreflectmicroregionalpro-108Nokoko1Fall2010cessesthataremorebeholdento"realprocessesonthegroundandconstitutetheinterfacebetweentop-downandbottom-upregionalprocesses(Sderbaum&Taylor,2003,p.
3).
Attimes,theseformalandinformalactorsofregionalizationactinopposi-tiontoeachother,whileatothertimes,myriadpartnershipsmayexistbetweentheformal,stateactors,andinformalactors(Sder-baum,2004a,p.
51).
Tothisend,theformalandinformalmo-dalitiesofregionalizationmustbeanalyzedwithinthesametheo-reticalframeworkratherthanarbitrarilyseparated.
Multiplere-gionalprocessesareoccurringatmultiplescalesatagivenplaceandpointintime.
SimonexpressedsimilartheoreticalviewpointsastheNRAwhenhenotedthatitwouldbefaultytoassumeasinglefuturefordevelopmentandregionalisminSouthernAfrica.
Rather,hemaintained,itisimportanttoconsiderregionalprocessesasdi-verseandpluralwithdivergentandconvergentfutures(Simon,1998,p.
4).
TheneoliberalturnofregionalismintheSADC,asafactorinlargerglobalrestructuringprocesses,willimpactdifferentspacesinanasymmetricalandvariegatedfashion(Taylor,2003,p.
314).
Ratherthanproducingatotalizingtendencytowardshomogenization,asproponentsof(neoliberal)globalizationclaim,theunfetteredmovementsofcapitalwillproduceunevengeographicaldevelopments,reflectedinthe"differentwaysinwhichdifferentsocialgroupshavemateriallyembeddedtheirmodesofsocialityintotheweboflife"(Harvey,2006,p.
77).
Astheregionalcentreofcapital,SouthAfrica'soutwardexpansionof(oftenspeculative)capitalprojectsintoSouthernAfricaasameansofdispersingitsapartheidinheritanceofcrisesofaccumulationhashadtremendousimpactuponthemyriadmicroregionalpro-cessesemergingwithintheSADC(Bond,2000,p.
49).
ThesemicroregionalresponsesmanifestasPolanyian-typeresponsesofsocietalself-protectiontounevengeographicaldevelopmentsproducingbothconvergentanddivergentregionalimaginariesTheneoliberalturnintheSADC/JessicaEvans109(Harvey,2006,p.
114).
WithintheSADC,highlightingtheseplu-raltendenciesofregionalismmayhelptoidentifythesourcesofcontemporaryxenophobia,whilealsorevealingspacesforemer-gentcontestationtoneoliberalorder.
FromSADCCtoSADC:GlobalTransformationandtheNeoliberalTurnTheSADCCwasestablishedin1980byacoregroupoflib-eratedSouthernAfricanstates,Angola,Botswana,Lesotho,Malawi,Mozambique,Swaziland,Tanzania,Zambia,andZim-babwe(Lee,2003,p.
45).
GiventhegeopoliticalcontextofSouthAfricaandtheTotalStrategy,theprioritiesoftheSADCCweretoreducedependentrelationsingeneral,thoughparticularlyuponSouthAfrica,andfosterregionalcooperationanddevelopmentamongliberatedstatesthroughadeliberateandpoliticallystra-tegiccoordinationofdonorfunding(Sidaway&Gibb,1998,p.
166).
Marketintegration,ascontemporaryregionalismwasbeingpractised,wasnotanobjectiveoftheSADCC(Hentz,2005,p.
28).
ThiswaslargelyduetothefactthattheeconomiesofSouth-ernAfricalackedtherequisitediversification(asmoststatesre-mainedprimaryproductexporters),comparativeadvantage,andinfrastructuretofacilitateanymeaningfuleconomicintegration(Lee,2003,p.
47).
Forthesereasons,regionalcooperationanddevelopmentwereseenasanecessaryprecursortomarketinte-gration.
2TheSADCwasestablishedin1992followingtheendoftheColdWarandtheproclaimedvictoryoftheWest.
AtthistimetheAfricanNationalCongress(ANC)wasnegotiatingitsascensionofpowerinSouthAfrica.
FortheSADCC,theimplicationsofthese2SeeSeidman(1989)foradetailedanalysisofthestructuralconditionsthatformedthebasisforSADCC'semphasisoneconomiccoordinationandcooperationratherthanintegration,andsomeofthealternativestrategiesbeingtabledatthistime.
110Nokoko1Fall2010geopoliticaltransformationswasacontractionintheoptionsfordonorassistanceoutsideofWesternstatesandinternationalfi-nancialinstitutions,where,duringtheColdWarandduringthereignofapartheid,suchalternativeshadbeenavailable(Tsie,1996,78).
TheSADCCanditsmemberstatesneededtoacquiesceinordertostayafloat;alone,theysimplydidnothavethere-sourcestocontinue.
Additionally,withtheendingofapartheid,theSADCCcouldnolongerpositionitselfinoppositiontoSouthAfrica,andthusneededtoprepareforinclusionintheregionalbody.
Althoughthesegeopoliticaltransformationsweresignificant,manyofthefundamentalstructuralconditionsremainedthesameinSouthernAfrica.
Mosteconomiesremainedweakandundiver-sifiedandtheregionlackedtherequisiteinfrastructureandcom-parativeadvantagetomakemarketintegrationsuccessful(Lee,2003,p.
47).
Perhapsmostimportant,SouthAfricaremained(anddoestothisday)themostindustrializedstateintheregion,leadingpopularmediaandscholarsaliketoassertthatSADCmemberswerelikelymoredependentuponSouthAfricathantheyhadeverbeen(Sidaway&Gibb,1998,p.
166).
TheroleofexternalactorsininfluencingtheshiftinSADCre-gionalism,inaccordancewiththeglobalstructuraltransformationthatoccurredinthe1990s,issignificantbecausetheSADCanditsmemberstateshavebeenlargelydependentonforeignassistanceanddebtrelief.
Importantly,massiveexternaldebtinSouthernAfricahasbeenasignificantfactorintyingtheregion,politicallyandeconomically,totheWest.
Between1986and1990,AfricancountriespaidbackmoretotheInternationalMonetaryFund(IMF)thantheyreceivedinnewassistance(Tsie,1996,p.
76).
This,inadditiontotheglobalrecessionofthe1980s,provokedaseriousdebtcrisisinSouthernAfrica.
Theneoliberalpoliciespur-suedbymanygovernmentsofadvancedcapitalistsocietiesduringtheglobalrecessionhadtheeffectoffurtherindebtingSouthernTheneoliberalturnintheSADC/JessicaEvans111Africanstates.
Dollar-denominateddebt,setagainstconsistentlydepreciatingnationalcurrencies,renderedSouthernAfricalargelyunabletodetachitselffromtheexternalpoliticalcontroloftheWest,asitcontinuedtobereliantonforeignaidanddebtrelief(Tsie,1996,p.
77).
TheSADCitselfisalmostentirelyreliantonexternalsupport.
AccordingtoLee,approximately86%oftheSADC'sfundingisderivedfromWesterngovernmentsandinternationalfinancialinstitutions(2003,p.
48).
Thiscontinuedtrendofforeignde-pendency,coupledwithalackoffeasiblealternatives,hassituatedtheregioninahighlyvulnerableandsusceptibleposition.
Givenspaceconstraints,itisnotpossibletoprovideacomprehensiveoverviewofthespecificarrangementsandagenciesinvolvedinthisexternallyimposedtransformation,butIhighlightbelowafewkeymomentsinthetransformationwithregardtotheSADCregionanditsmemberstatesprimarydonorcommunity:theIMF,theWorldBank,theEuropeanUnion,andtheUnitedStates.
First,theWorldBankandtheIMF,whilepreviouslyscepticalofsupportingregionalisminSouthernAfrica,insteadfavouringseparatefunctionalprogrammesandstate-specificliberalizationstrategies,begantoshifttacticalstrategiesduringthe1990s.
TheIMFandWorldBankhavesincecometoembraceopenregion-alismasameansofovercomingthefragmentedopeningoftheregiontotheworldeconomy,seekingtocreate"asub-regionalunified,openeconomicspaceforthefreemovementofgoods,services,capitalandpeople[and]moveawayfromunsuccessfulimportsubstitutionstrategies"(Sderbaum,2004a,p.
92).
Second,theEuropeanUnionhasbeenakeyactorinpromot-ingthenewSADCregionalism,aswellasinshiftingtheWorldBankandIMF'sregardforregionalism.
AccordingtoSderbaum,itwastheEUthatattemptedtodrawattentiontothenegativespil-lovereffectsofuncoordinatedstructuraladjustmentprogrammes,whichwasinstrumentalinchangingtheWorldBank'sandIMF's112Nokoko1Fall2010attitudetowardsregionalism(2004a,p.
94).
TheEUemphasizedthatregionalismdoesnothavetobeanalternativetoglobalmar-ketintegration,butcanbecongruentwithit,claimingthat"suc-cessfulintegrationrequiresamarket-friendlyeconomicenvi-ronment[and]opennesstothirdcountries"(Sderbaum,2004a,p.
95).
Third,beginningin1996,therehasbeenareorientationinAmericanpolicytowardstheSADC,whichhasshiftedengagementwithaidtoarelationshipmorefocussedontrade(Lee,2003,p.
48).
TheUnitedStates'AfricanGrowthOrganizationprovidesin-centivesintheformofdebtrelief,loanguarantees,businesspart-nerships,andaccesstoAmericanmarkets,conditionalupontheSADC'sconformitytothenormsofdemocratization,liberaliza-tion,andprivatization(Sderbaum,2004a,p.
93).
TheUnitedStatesAgencyforInternationalDevelopment'sspecialInitiativeforSouthernAfricaclaimsSouthernAfricaisa"promising"region.
Theobjectiveoftheinitiativeistoopenmarketsandexportssoastopromoteafocusongrowth-orientedreformsandthereintegra-tionofSouthAfricaintotheregionaleconomyonmutuallybene-ficialterms(Sderbaum,2004a,p.
93).
ThebriefoverviewabovedemonstrateshowcrucialexternalforceshaveapproachedaidandtradepartnershipswiththeSADCusingamarkedlyneoliberalstrategy.
However,SouthAfricaandBotswanastandoutasanomaliesinthisscenario.
Theydidnotcedetoexternallydictatedstructuraladjustmentprogrammes,butneverthelessundertookstructuraladjustmentvoluntarily"underthethreatoflosinginternationalcredit-worthiness"(Bond,2003,p.
67).
Importantly,SouthAfrica,astheregionalhegemon,hasbeeninstrumentalinbothembodyingandconveyingthehege-monicnormsofneoliberalismonanationalandregionalscale.
WhentheANCcameintopowerin1994,itreceivedwidepopularandelectoralsupport,andwasregardedasanallianceofBlacknationalistswithsocialistunionsandradicalsocialmove-TheneoliberalturnintheSADC/JessicaEvans113ments,seekingradicalsocial,economic,andpoliticalchange(Peet,2002,p.
54).
Assuch,theANC'sinitialandformaleco-nomicpolicywasgrowththroughredistribution.
Notlongafterthefallofapartheid,however,theANCgraduallybegantoshiftgears,adoptingstringentfiscalandmacroeconomicpolicieswithanaimofpromotingredistributionthroughgrowth.
AlthoughSouthAfricahasreceivedforeigndebtreliefandassistance,mostnotablythe1993$850millionIMFCompensatoryandContin-gencyFinancingFacility,ithasbeenuniqueinthatitwasnotsub-jecttothestructuraladjustmentpoliciesunderwhichalmosteveryotherSADCmemberstateundertookneoliberalrestructuring(p.
73).
Rather,theANCgovernmentundertookaself-imposedstruc-turaladjustmentintheformofits1996Growth,EquityandRe-distribution(GEAR)policy,amacroeconomicpolicypackagethatwasdecidedly"Thatcherite"initsorientation,asThaboMbekioncepubliclyannounced(Bond,2000,p.
82).
Criticalofwageandserviceexpenditure,theANCthroughGEARsoughtaregres-sivetaxonconsumption,increasedliberalizationofexchangecontrols,wagefreezes,supply-sideincentivestopromoteinvest-mentandexportcompetitiveness,andarestructuringofstateas-setsthroughprivatizationandjointpublic–privateventures(Bond,2000,p.
80).
Althoughconceivedofdomestically,givingittheairofahomegrownmacroeconomicpolicy,GEARwasmostlytheproductofideologicalpressurefromtheinternationalfinancialinstitutions(mostnotablytheWorldBank)aswellasthecomplexofdomesticinterfacesbetweenelitesandkeyconstituen-cies(Bond,2000,p.
189).
AstheANCwasnegotiatingtheliberationofSouthAfricainthe1990s,itswell-knownsocialistleaningshadbeguntoconcerntheWest.
PreviouslyastrategicregionalbastionofliberalandWesternnorms,thenewlyindependentSouthAfricacouldpoten-tiallybecomeacounterhegemonicnodeintheSouth.
Notably,114Nokoko1Fall2010Bondargued,theabilityofSouthAfrica'sLeftandprogressivefor-cestodistancethemselvesfrominternationalfinancialinstitutionborrowingwasidentifiedasakeythreatbytheWorldBank(2000,p.
155).
Tothisend,theearly1990ssawanincreasedscrutinyofSouthAfricabytheWorldBankandtheIMF,wherebytheWorldBankcourtedleftistANCmembersunderthepretencesof"trust-building"exercisesandadvisoryroles(Peet,2002,p.
73).
Gumededescribedindetailthesecourtingsessions:During1992and1993severalANCstaffers,someofwhomhadnoeco-nomicqualificationsatall,tookpartinabbreviatedexecutivetrainingprogrammesatforeignbusinessschools,investmentbanks,economicpolicythinktanksandtheWorldBank,wheretheywere"fedasteadydietofneoliberalideas.
"Itwasadizzyingexperience.
Neverbeforehadagovernment-in-waitingbeensoseducedbytheinternationalcom-munity.
BoththeWorldBankandIMFsoughttoinfluencetheANC'seconomicpolicy,frequentlywarningagainstpursuing'unorthodox'poli-cies.
(2005,p.
73)Notably,theincumbentANCministeroffinance,TrevorManuel,hadbeensponsoredbytheWorldBankandIMFfortraininginorthodoxinternationaleconomics,andPrimeMinisterNelsonMandelaandhissuccessorThaboMbekiwereinfrequentdiscus-sionwithinternationalfinancialinstittuionelitesandprominentWesternpolicyadvisors.
The1994ReconstructionandDevelop-mentProgrammeandthesubsequent,highlyreformattedGEARwerereviewedbyaconstellationofsuchelitesandadvisorsoftheWestandtheinternationalfinancialinstitutions,includingformeradvisortotheUnitedStates'DemocraticParty,StanGreenberg,whobecametheANC-appointedpolicyadvisor(Gumede,2005,p.
76).
However,toreducetheANC'stransitiontomereideologicalcourtship,asoutlinedabove,wouldbefartoosimplisticandwouldignorethecomplexitiesofinterwovenagencyandvulnera-bilitythatplaguedtheANC.
Theapartheidstate'spoliticalecon-omyhadbeenpredicatedonanaccumulationstrategyfuelledbyTheneoliberalturnintheSADC/JessicaEvans115theexploitationofcheapBlacklabourformineralextractionandtheproductionofluxurygoods.
Thisraciallyinscribedaccumula-tionstrategy,however,failedtomatchmassproductionwithmassconsumption,leadingtoanacutecrisisofoveraccumulation,alegacywithwhichtheANChadtocontend(Bond,2000,p.
5).
Onthelevelofactingelites,invitingtheWorldBanktotakeonassessmentandadvisoryroleswasviewedasanecessarymeasurefordealingwithSouthAfrica'scapitalcrisiswhilekeepingthebankatarm'slength.
Inbuildingamacroeconomicpolicythatwas,ostensibly,toenabletheavoidanceofdebtcrisesthroughliberalization,privatization,financialization,andtheregionaldispersionofoveraccumulatedcapital,leadingANCarchitectsofGEARsoughttodecreasethepotentialconditionsthatwouldne-cessitateacceptinganinternationalfinancialinstitutionloan,whichwouldbeconditionallyattachedtothemorestringentmac-roeconomicstructuraladjustmentpackages(Bond,2000,p.
10,p.
190).
Throughacombinationofinternationalideologicalpres-sureandtheANC'svulnerablepositionintheemergentpost-ColdWarglobalorder,SouthAfricaundertookvoluntaryalignmentwiththeWashingtonConsensusandglobalneoliberalhegemony.
FormercommunistandANCnegotiatorMacMaharaj,speakingtotheideologicalcornerintowhichtheANCwasbacked,claimed,"Wecouldnotgoitalone.
Countriesthatdidthis,suchasSweden,hadthespacetodosowiththeColdWarstillragingandtheworldbeingbipolar.
TheANCcametopowerattheendoftheColdWarinaunipolarworld.
Wehadnoroomtoma-noeuvre"(Gumede,2005,p.
76).
BythetimeGEARwastabledin1996,MandelaandMbekibothcontendedthatinorderforaBlackgovernmenttobetakenseriouslyandgainrespectintheWest,itneededtotoethelineoforthodoxy(Gumede,2005,p.
73).
Inthecontextofachangingglobalorderinthepost-ColdWarenvironment,theSADCCfacedtremendousexternalandinternal116Nokoko1Fall2010pressuretoconformthecontentofitsregionalismtothenormsandexpectationsofthenowunipolarglobalorder.
TheSADCCwasthustransformedintotheSADCandcametoembraceneo-liberalorthodoxyandmarketintegrationasthemeansforre-gionaldevelopment,promisingredistribution,development,andpovertyalleviationthroughgrowth.
ThisshiftwasaffectedbytheroleofinternationalfinancialinstitutionsandkeyWesterndonorstatesinbothdirectlyandindirectlyimposingthehegemonicnormsofeconomicorientationontoindividualstatesandtheSADCasawhole.
AlongwiththeimpactofinternationalfinancialinstitutionsandWesterndonorsinreframingtheSADCagenda,theroleofSouthAfricahasalsobeenpivotal.
Tobesure,al-thoughtheadoptionofneoliberalorthodoxyviaGEARseemedtoanticipatehowSouthAfricawouldcometoenvisionitsregionalrelations,thislineofexplanationisnotunproblematic.
Hentz,forexample,hasarguedthattheevolutionofSouthAfrica'sapproachtoregionalismhasbeentheresultoftheANC'snegotiatinga"complexpoliticalmatrix'"betweendomesticlabourandbusinessinterests(2005,p.
44).
Cross-BorderMovementsandRegional(Dis)IntegrationintheSADCSouthernAfricaisaregionimbuedwithdeeplyhistoricalmi-grationpatterns.
Throughoutthe20thcentury,patternsoflabourmigrationwere,possibly,thesinglemostimportantfactorcon-nectingthevariouscoloniesandcountriesintoaregionallabourmarket(Crushetal.
,2005,1).
ItisnotanexaggerationtostatethatthepoliticaleconomyofSouthernAfrica,duringthistime,couldonlybeunderstoodwithreferencetolabourmigration(Andersson,2006,p.
375).
TheSouthAfricanmigrantlaboursystemwasthemostprolificandfar-reachingmodel,recruitingmigrantstoworkintheminingandcommercialagriculturesectorsfromnearlyeveryothercoun-TheneoliberalturnintheSADC/JessicaEvans117tryintheregion,throughoutthe20thcentury.
FiguresforSouthAfrica'scontractlabourmigrationrangefrom99,950in1920,toashighas233,808in1960,taperingoffinthe1990sat192,044(Crushetal,2005,p.
3).
TheSouthAfricanmodelofcontractmigrantlabourbecameamodelfortheregion,lateradoptedbyBotswana,Namibia,Swaziland,Zambia,andZimbabwe(p.
4).
Althoughthecontractlaboursystemwasadoptedelsewherethroughouttheregion,thepatternsandbenefitstobeaccruedfromsuchasystemremainedlargelyskewedinfavourofSouthAfricaanditsmomentumtowardsindustrialization.
SouthAfrica'sambitionsofbecomingasecondaryproducerandescapingwhatseemedtohavebeenthefatesofmanyotherAfricancountries,marginalizedintheglobaleconomyasprimaryproducers,neces-sitatedthecreationofeconomiclinkageswithneighbouringcountries(West,1990,p.
117).
TherealityoftheSouthernAfri-canregionhasbeeneffectivelypredicatedonthesehistoricalpat-ternsoflabourmigration.
ThoughmigrationhashistoricallycharacterizedSouthernAfrica,thenatureandcompositionofmigrationinthecontempo-rarypost-apartheideraisalsofundamentallyaltered.
Mobilepopulationsremainafundamentalcomponentoftheregion'spolitical-economy,thoughthelate20thandearly21stcenturieshavewitnessedanincreasinginformalizationofmigrants.
Apar-theid'saccumulationstrategy,premisedlargelyoncheapandex-ploitableBlackmigrantlabourintheextractionofnaturalre-sourcesandproductionofluxurygoods,hadproducedanacutecrisisofoveraccumulation(Bond,2000,p.
5).
Inordertodealwiththiscrisis,theANCgovernmentundertookanumberofpo-liticalandeconomicmeasuressuchastheformalpromotionofdomesticjobcreationandlabourstandardsinSouthAfrica,andastrategyofmovingoveraccumulatedcapitalintoinfrastructuralandspeculativefinancialventures,whichconcomitantlyledtoasignificantreductionintheneedforunskilledcontractlabourmi-118Nokoko1Fall2010grants(Adepoju,2001,p.
45;Andersson,2006,p.
377;Bond,2000,p.
49;Crushetal,2005,p.
6).
Asaresultofthisreduc-tion,theprimacyofcontractlabourintheregion'spoliticalecon-omyhasbeenincreasinglysupplantedbytheinformalsector,whichisneverthelesslargelycontingentonmobilepopulationssuchascircularmigrantsandinformalcross-bordertraders(Iheduru,2003,p.
48;Boas,2003,p.
34).
Whereas,previously,alargeproportionofmigrantpopulations(thoughhighlyex-ploited)followedaformalizedprocess,contemporarymigrationpatternsintheregionareincreasinglyplacedoutsideofthepa-rametersofsupranationalinstitutionalconsideration.
Thispointstoamarkeddisconnectbetweenformalregionalisminpracticeandtherealitiesoftransnationallinkagesontheground.
HavingtracedtheshiftintheSADCanditsmemberstates'policiesfromgrowththroughredistributiontoredistributionthroughgrowth,inthisfinalsectionIdemonstratehowtheneo-liberalturnhascreatedinternalantagonismsthroughbottom-upregionalpressuresandasubsequentreassertionofthestateattheborder.
Risingunemploymentrates,wagefreezes,andmassivepublicsectorretrenchment,coupledwiththeopeningofborderstoflowsoftradeandcapital,havecreatedtheconditionsforasignificantexpansionoftheinformalsectoreconomy,increasinglycharacterizedbycross-bordermovements(Tripp,2001,p.
1).
RecentSADCreportshavesaidthatover45%ofthetotalpopula-tionwithintheSADCregionlivesonlessthan$1perday,dem-onstratingtheneedofalmosthalftheregionalpopulationforasocialsafetynetofsomesort(SADC,2008,p.
1).
Intheabsenceofsuchsocialsafetynetsinmuchoftheregion,theinformalsec-torandinformalcross-bordertradeandmigrationhavegrownandbecomepivotalsitesoflivelihoodstrategiesintheliberaliz-ingtheSADC.
Popularestimatesnowassertthatinformalcross-bordertradeconstitutesapproximately30to40percentofthevalueofSADC'sformalregionaltrade,thoughbecauseofitsclan-TheneoliberalturnintheSADC/JessicaEvans119destinenature,thebottomlineislargelyunknown(Johnson-Nunez,2009,p.
11).
Thesegrowingcross-bordermovementsareasignificantfactorofregionalizatonandrepresentwhatSder-baumandTaylorhavelabelledinformalmicro-regionalism(s),theresultofadisconnectbetweentheformalprojectofregion-alismthroughtheSADCandtheactuallivedpracticesandpercep-tionsofregionallinkagesontheground(2003,p.
3).
Totheex-tentthattheseformalandinformalprocessescontradictratherthansupporteachother,theprospectsofconsolidatingregion-nessareweakened.
Intheprocessofgrowingformalandinformalinterstatelink-ages,therehasbeenanincreasedemphasisonthesecuritzationoftheborderandmigrationpoliciesintheSADC.
Althoughthebordersofstatesarebecomingmoreporoustothemovementoftradeandcapital,andthustopeopleaswell,therehavebeensig-nificantattemptstoreifythepoliticalborderthroughexclusionaryandoftendiscriminatorymigrationpoliciesinordertoshutdownthemovementofpeoples(Crushetal.
,2006,p.
31).
Yet,signifi-cantresearchhasidentifiedinformalcross-bordertradersandmi-grantsasanintegralmechanismforpromotingregionalintegra-tion.
Theactivitiesundertakenbyinformalcross-bordertradersandcircularmigrantsservetodismantlethestructureoftradedominancebiasedtowardtheformercolonialnationsandinsteadstrengthenintra-SADCtradebyphysicallydemonstratingtheexistenceofacommonmarketbybringingthecon-ceptofregionaleconomicintegrationdowntotheindividuallevel.
(Johnson-Nunez,2009,p.
31)Furthermore,inastudyofZimbabwe'sfemalecross-bordertrad-ers,Muzvidziwanotedthepropensityoftheiractivitiestonecessi-tateandcontributetothecreationofatransborderculturethattranscendsnationalityandethnicdifferencesbyemphasizingcommonalitythrougheconomicinterdependenceandcooper-ation(2001,p.
72).
TheSADCprogrammeofactionclaimsto120Nokoko1Fall2010seekpolitical,social,andeconomicdevelopmentthroughthebuildingofregionalties,acommonvaluessystemandcollectiveregionalidentity(Mulaudzi,2009,p.
50).
YettheSADC'sina-bilityandunwillingnesstoprovideasafeandfacilitativeenvi-ronmentforthesemicroregionalprocesses,whichhavethepoten-tialtolaythegroundsfortherealizationofsuchobjectives,haspromotedregionaldisintegrationratherthanintegration.
ThecaseofSouthAfricacanbeusedtoillustratetheseinternalantagonismsforanumberofreasons.
BecauseSouthAfricaisthemajorindustrialcentreoftheSADC,itfunctionsasthecentripetalforceoftheregion.
Theasymmetricalpatternsofgrowthwithintheregion,exacerbatedbyaregion-wideadoptionofneolib-eralism,havelargelyaccruedtoSouthAfrica,makingitaprimarydestinationforinformalcross-bordermovementsandtrade.
Offi-cialgovernmentfiguresasofMay2010citeaSouthAfrica-SADCtradesurplusofnearlyR2.
3billion(DepartmentofTradeandIndustry,2010).
Unevenlydevelopedmarkets,largelyderivedfromSouthAfrica'sexportdominanceintheregion,haveresultedinsignificantpricedifferencesanddifferingavailabilityofcom-modities,providingtheeconomicincentiveandrationaleforundertakingcross-bordertradeactivities(Johnson-Nunez,2009,p.
12).
Coupledwithgrowingregion-wideunemployment,therelativestrengthoftheSouthAfricaneconomyhasmadeitacen-tripetalforceintheregion,attractinginformalcross-bordertrad-ersandcircularmigrants,whouseformalandinformalroutesofentryintothecountry(Akokpari,1999,p.
4).
Second,thewidespreadfailuresofneoliberalismtopromoteredistributionthroughgrowth,bothregionallyandinindividualstates,canbeseenasarootcauseoftheevocationofrestrictionistimmigrationpolicies.
AlthoughSouthAfricahasfaredbetteratthemacroeconomiclevelunderregionalliberalization,theimple-mentationofdomesticliberalizationthroughtheGEARpolicyhas,nevertheless,resultedinmassiveinternalunemploymentandTheneoliberalturnintheSADC/JessicaEvans121drasticcutstosocialservicesandpublicsectorwagefreezesandretrenchment(Mulaudzi,2009,p.
56).
TheSouthAfricanstate'sinabilitytomeettheneedsofitsnationalpopulationhasbeenasignificantimpetusforscapegoatinginformalcross-bordermi-grantsandtraders,accusingthemofunderminingthenationalpopulation'saccesstotheSouthAfricaneconomyandsocialser-vices.
RatherthanaddressingthesystemicdeficienciesofGEARforalleviatingnationalpovertyandraisingstandardsofliving,SouthAfricanofficialsdeflectcriticalattentionbyaccusing"illegal"for-eignersofbeingimpedimentstothesuccessfulimplementationofGEAR.
Informalcross-bordertradersandmigrantsareaccusedofsubverting(declining)formalemploymentopportunitiesandlegislationfornationalsbyagreeingtoworkatlowerunregulatedwages,crowdingouttheinformalsectoreconomiclivelihoodsofnationalsbysettingupinSouthAfricanurbanmarkets,anddrain-ingthecapacityof(alreadypaltry)publicservices(Pederby,2001,p.
24).
Inresponsetoin-migration,SouthAfricahasestablishedanextremelyrestrictionistimmigrationpolicyreminiscentoftheapartheidera,centredonadraconianapproachtoborderandheartlandpolicingandattemptstocontrolandhaltbothlegalandundocumentedmigration(Pederby,2001,p.
16).
SouthAfrica'sexclusionaryimmigrationpoliciescanbeseenasanattempttorestorestatelegitimacyinthe"lastbastionofsovereignty"underneoliberalism(thedomainofsecurity),whereitotherwiselackssuchsovereigntyunderausterityreforms(Sderbaum,2004b,p.
433).
Tothisend,ariseinxenophobiaamongthenationalpopu-lationhasensued,promotingthereificationofdifference,ratherthanfosteringacommonregionalidentityandvaluesframework.
TheriseofxenophobicattitudescanbeevidencedinthenumberofviolenteruptionsthathaveoccurredinSouthAfricaagainstforeigners,ingeneral,andinformaleconomicoperators,inpar-ticular.
IncidencesofxenophobicattacksinSouthAfricahavebeen122Nokoko1Fall2010resurgentsinceshortlyafterthedemocratictransition.
Theongo-ingincidencesofxenophobiahaverangedfromtheriotsagainststreetvendorsinJohannesburgin1997;tothetwo-week-longxenophobicattacksthatspreadlikewildfireacrossSouthAfricainMay2008,leaving62deadandmorethan100,000displaced;tothecurrentpost-WorldCuphostility,documentedbythreatstoforeignersbycitizensandpublicservantsalikeandtheevictionsofforeignersinorderto"getridofthemakwerekwere[derogatorynameforBlackforeigners]"(Johnston,2010).
Theeffectofthesecircumstancesonregionalismisaviolentotheringthatfragmentstheidentificationandconsolidationofacommonregionaliden-tityandvaluesframework(regionness),fromwhichmeaningfulregionalcooperationanddevelopmentcouldotherwiseemerge(Mulaudzi,2009,p.
56).
Third,thecriminalizationofSADCcross-bordermigrantsandtradershasgeneratedanillicitinformaleconomyattheborder.
Ahostofilliciteconomicactivitieshavesprunguparound"assist-ing"informalmigrants'entryintoSouthAfrica,includinghumansmuggling,bribespaidforentryortoescapedeportation,bribespaidforvisas,etc.
CorruptionhasbecomeendemicatmostSouthAfricanborderposts(Crushetal.
,2006,p.
8).
Theseillicitbordereconomiesareinstructiveastothecomplexlinkagesbetweenformalandinformalactors,asstateofficialselicitingbribesattheborderareintertwinedwithregionalandtransnationalcriminalnetworksofhumansmugglers,suchasthemagumaguma.
Theseactivitiesinthemselvesareindicativeofinformalmicro-regionalism(s)articulatedthroughcomplexstate-criminalnetworklinkagesandhighlightwhatsomehavearguedistheincreasingcriminalizationofthestateunderneoliberalism(Vigneswaran,2008,p.
6).
Additionally,theseeconomicactivitiesthriveonthemaintenanceofastringentandexclusionarymigrationregime.
Totheextentthatpublicofficialsareabletoextractrentsfromclan-destinemigration,thereisaninformaleconomicincentivetoTheneoliberalturnintheSADC/JessicaEvans123subvertregionalinitiativesforaSADC-widefacilitationofmove-mentandharmonizationofmigrationpolicy(Vigneswaran,2008,p.
13).
Finally,SouthAfricaholdsasignificantamountofswayintermsofthetypesofregionalarrangementsthatarepassedthroughtheSADC.
SouthAfrica'sposturetowardsregionalmi-grantshasbeensignificantinhamperingtheimplementationofaregionallyharmonizedmigrationpolicy.
TheproposedSADCFreeMovementProtocolof1996,whichwastoconfertherightsofemployment,residence,andestablishmenttoallSADCcitizensandestablishaSADCbodyofoversightspecificallyfortheen-forcementandimplementationoftheprotocol,wasvociferouslyrejectedbySouthAfrica(Williams&Carr,2006,p.
11).
There-sultantFacilitationofMovementProtocol,whichleftthedefini-tionsofemployment,residence,andestablishmentsubjecttodomesticlegislation,madenorequirementsforimplementationandprovidednobodyofoversightandenforcement,waslargelytheresultofSouthAfricanmanufactureandcoercion(Oucho&Crush,2001,p.
150;Williams&Carr,2006,p.
11).
Theresultofthishasbeentorenderregionallygovernedmigrationpolicyim-potent,sothatmigrationpolicyremainsfirmlywithinthejurisdic-tionofthestate.
Failingaregionalmigrationpolicy,thecross-bordermovementsofpeopleswillcontinuetobecouchedintermsofbordercontrol,security,andexclusionarynationalcitizenshipratherthandevelopmentandintegration,furthercriminalizingforeignersandpromotingregionaldisintegrationratherthanintegration.
ConclusionTodate,regionalismintheSADChaslargelyfailedtodeliveronitsprogrammeofaction,topromoteequitableregionaldevel-124Nokoko1Fall2010opment,raisethestandardsofliving,andalleviatepoverty.
Understandingthisfailurerequiresmovingbeyondafunctionalistapproachthatassumesstructuralfixityandseesinterstatenegotia-tionsandinstitutionsasthedeterminantfactorsinsuccessfulre-gionalconsolidation.
AsIhavedemonstratedhere,tolookatre-gionalisminthecontemporaryglobalpoliticaleconomyrequiresmovingbeyondformalinterstaterelations.
Althoughfunctionalistanalysiscanprovidesomeinsightintohowregional-levelpoliciesarenegotiated,implemented,andenforced,itfailstoconsiderhowmultipleregionalprocessesareoccurringatmultiplescales,pursuedbydifferentactorstowardsdifferentends.
InapproachingregionalismintheSADCthroughthelensoftheNRA,onecanuncoveramyriadofregionalprocessesoccurringsimultaneously,promotedbybothformalandinformalactors.
BysituatingthetransformationoftheSADCCintotheSADCwithinthewidertransformationsoccurringintheglobalpoliticaleconomy,IhaveshownhowtheSADCC,whichwascautiousofWesterneconomicorthodoxyandmarketintegrationasthemeanstoregion-widedevelopment,wastransformedintotheSADC,whichhascometoembraceeconomicorthodoxyandaus-teritymeasures.
AlthoughtheconditionsthatunderpinnedtheSADCC'srationalefordistinguishingitselffromtheWesternmodelofintegrationhadnotchanged,globalpressurestocon-formtoneoliberalhegemonyaffectedapolicyshiftinthere-gionalbody'smodusoperandi.
Thus,attheformallevel,aparticularformofregionalismhasbeenpursued,heavilyinfluencedbyneo-liberalhegemonyandtheinterestsofglobalcapitalandregionalelites.
TheshifttoneoliberalorthodoxywithintheSADCasawhole,andwithinindividualmemberstates,however,hasinturnpro-ducedbottom-upinformalregionalpressuresthroughthecre-ationofanenvironmentconducivetoaproliferationofinformalcross-bordermovementsandtrade.
TheseinformalmovementsTheneoliberalturnintheSADC/JessicaEvans125andeconomicactivitiesrepresentthelivelihoodstrategiesofthemajorityoftheSADCpopulation,whichtrickle-downgrowthhasyettoreach.
Thisisenabledbyincreasinglyporousborders,ris-ingunemploymentratesthathaveresultedfromregion-wideandstate-ledliberalization,andtheregion'sunevengeographicalde-velopment(Bond,2000,p.
9).
AsTaylornoted,informalmicro-regionalprocessesrepresenttheinterfacebetweenelite-drivenagendasandthepopularreac-tionstheyelicit,makingmorereadilyidentifiablethe"imminentpossibilitiesoftransformativecounter-movements"(2003,p.
316).
Asbottom-upprocesses,informalcross-bordertradersandcircularmigrantsaremoreintimatewithandresponsivetotheparticularsocioeconomic,labour,andculturalneedsofSouthernAfrica'speoples(Johnson-Nunez,2009,p.
12-13).
Theycan,ifproperlyfacilitated,representnotjustlivelihoodstrategies,butalsospatialpracticesthatcanchallengeandtransformtheunevengeographicdevelopmentofSouthernAfricaatthemicrolevel,aswellasfosteracommonidentityandvaluesframeworkpremisedonsolidarityandinterdependency.
YetthepolicyenvironmentintheSADC(mostnotablySouthAfrica)has,todate,marginalizedandcriminalizedsuchintegrativepotentialsamongstmobilepopulations.
SouthAfrica,asamajordestinationforregionalcross-bordermigrantsandinformaltraders,ratherthanenablinggreaterintraregionalmovementtofacilitatecloserregionalintegration,hasattemptedtostemtheflowofmigrantsthroughacriminaliz-ingandrestrictionistmigrationpolicy.
Thisrestrictionistmigrationpolicymightbeseenasanattempttoreassertstatelegitimacyintermsofsecuritizedborders,andisotherwiseeffectivelyimpo-tent.
Thecriminalizationofcross-bordermigrantsandinformaltradershascontributedtoariseinxenophobicattitudes,thusde-tractingfromtheconstructionofacommonregionalidentityandvalues,andprovidedeconomicincentiveforthecontinuedcrimi-126Nokoko1Fall2010nalizationofmigrantsthroughamaintenanceofrestrictionistmi-grationpolicies.
Thus,theshifttomarketintegrationintheSADChasproducedconcomitantprocessesofintegrationanddisintegra-tion.
AstheNRAemphasizes,regionalismcannotsimplybere-ducedtointerstatenegotiationsandtradeliberalization.
Cross-bordermigrationandinformaltradehavebeenlong-standingfeaturesoftheSouthernAfricanpoliticaleconomy,becomingallthemoreprevalentunderliberalizationmeasures,albeitindif-ferentforms.
Acogentanalysisofthepossibilities,limitations,andactualitiesofregionalismmustmovebeyondformaleco-nomicandpoliticalmeasurestoalsotakeintoconsiderationtheinformalmannersthroughwhichregionalism(s)isconstructed.
Insodoing,itbecomespossibletoidentifythepotentialcounter-forcesandagentsoftransformationthatarearisingwithincon-temporaryglobalrestructuringandtakingformthrougharticula-tionsofculturalidentity,self-organization,andself-protection(Sderbaum&Taylor,2003,p.
16).
Transformativecounterforcesofself-organizationandself-protection,however,willnotnecessa-rilybeprogressiveintheiragendas.
Thispointismostamplydemonstratedthroughthereactionaryarticulationsofxenopho-bia,whichareemergentfeaturesofthepost-liberalizationSADCenvironment.
Studyinginformalcross-bordertradersandcircularmigrantsasmicroregionalactorsmaybetterenablescholarsandpolicymakerstopromotetheprogressive,transformative,andintegrativepotentialstherein,whileidentifyingwheresuchpro-cessesmightelicitreactionaryanddisintegrativemovements.
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NokokoInstituteofAfricanStudiesCarletonUniversity(Ottawa,Canada)Fall2010(1)"Settingtheagendaforourleadersfromunderatree":ThePeople'sParliamentinNairobi1WanguiKimari&JacobRasmussenInKenyathesocialmovement(BungelaMwananchi)concepthasgrownorganicallyandspreadintownsacrossthecountry.
TheoldestgatheringbeingJeevanjeegroundswheremembersmeeteverydayformorethan15yearsnow.
AmongstthetownsthatthemovementhasgrownareMombasa,Kisumu,Eldoret,NakuruandKakamega.
Theuniquethingaboutthemovementisthatmembershipisvoluntaryandonecanpar-ticipateinactionsanytimeanddisengageatwill.
Thishasenabledthemovementtosurvivebeinghijackedbydonorsorinfiltrationbystatese-curityagents,whoapparentlyarenotamusedwhenordinarycitizenshavetheaudacitytotakeamatteraffectingthemintotheirownhands—ACalltoLiberation,BungelaMwananchi(2009)1ThearticleisdedicatedtothememoryofourfriendandengagedactivistinBungelaMwananchi,JacobOdipoOdhiambo,whopassedawayonNovem-ber4th,2010.
132Nokoko1Fall2010InaparkintheheartofNairobi,membersofBungelaMwanan-chi,whichmeans"thepeople'sparliament"inSwahili,meeteveryday.
Fourbenchesplacedinthecoolshadeofbougainvilleatreesformthephysicalbaseoftheparliament,orBunge,asitismorecolloquiallyknown.
Eachday,heateddebatesabouttopicalissuesconcerningKenyanpoliticsandtheoccasionalscandaltakeplace.
Thedailygatheringsarepublicdebatingforums,opentoalleth-nicgroups,genders,occupations,andpartyaffiliations.
Byvirtueofthisinclusivity,BungelaMwananchitransgressesmanyoftheboundariesthatroutinelyframeKenyanpolitics.
2BungelaMwananchiisoneofthemostvocalgrassrootsorga-nizationsinNairobianddefinesitselfasasocialmovement.
Thereisnoformalmembershiprequiredandthemovementismadeupofwhoeverchoosestobepartofit.
Nevertheless,thereareanincreasingnumberofpeoplewhosesustainedpresenceandpracticehaspermittedforthemtoberegardedasessentialmembers,anditisfromthesepeoplethataceremonial"leader"32Evenwiththisinclusivityandtheoutreachthathasbeendonetoensureasmuchdiversityaspossible,thetypicalBungememberismale,between25and45yearofage,andofanypossibleethnicaffiliation.
Toourknowledge,therearenotmanypeopleofdifferentabilities/disabledwhoparticipateinBunge.
Nevertheless,withinthelasttwoyears,sincetheBungewomen'smovement(thesearewomeninBungeandintheBungesaroundNairobi)hasbeguntogainmoreground,thereismoreandmoregenderdiversitywithinBunge.
3AlthoughthemembershipofBungeisinconstantlyinflux,thereisagroupofcoremembers(acorethatisconstantlyincreasing)whohavebeenattendingBungethelongest.
WhenwerefertoBungewerefernottojustthiscoregroupbuttotheincreasingnumberofpeople,whoalthoughtheydonotcometotheparkeveryday,identifyasbeingpartofBunge.
Toourknowl-edgetherehasneverbeenanattempttocountallofthesepeople,butacon-servativeguessisthatleast5000peopleidentifyasbeingpartofBungeinNai-robi.
ItisimportanttonotethattherearealsootherBungesacrossthecoun-trywithamembershipthatisgrowingandeachoftheseBungesareorganisedaccordingtocommunityrequirements.
Inaddition,Bungeisintentionallyde-hierarchicalandtheaforementionedcoregroupofmembersholdnoformalpositioninthemovement,buttheirexperiences,dedicationandcontribu-tionsarehighlyvalued.
Itisusuallyfromthesememberswhoareconsistentlypresentattheparkthataceremonialleader(whocanalsobecalledAmbassa-dor,President,ChairmanorSpeaker)ischosen.
Theroleofthisleaderisforthemostparttopresentthefaceofthemovement–bothformembersand"Settingtheagendaforourleadersfromunderatree"/WanguiKimari&JacobRasmussen133ischoseneverytwoyears.
ThemajorityoftheparticipantsinthemovementcomefromthelowersocioeconomicstrataofKenyansociety,andconsequentlyitwouldseemthatBungelaMwananchiisatthemarginsofKenyansocietyandpolitics.
However,thefocusofthisarticleisnottodiscusswhetherBungelaMwananchiismarginalornot.
RathertheaimistounderstandtheeverydaypracticesandtransgressionsofpoliticalboundariesofBungelaMwananchibylookingatthecreativeprocessesofalternativepoli-ticsitsmembersemployinacountrywherethecommonperson'saccesstotheformalpoliticalsystemislimited.
Suchanendeavourdoesnotdenytheexistenceofhegemonicpoliticalhierarchiesandcentre-peripheryrelationsthatframeKenyanpolitics,butin-steadithighlightstheeverydaypoliticalpracticesofBungelaMwananchitorevealhowmemberspracticeapoliticswithoutboundaries.
Acentralassumptioninthearticleisthattobeabletoclaimapoliticswithoutboundariesandtofocusanalyticallyonthechal-lengesandtransgressionsoftheboundaries,onemustrecognizetheexistenceofboundaries.
Bearingthisinmind,itisimportanttonotethat,despiteouruseofthenotionofmarginswhende-scribingBungelaMwananchi,ouremphasisisonhowmembersdeliberatelyuseandreproducetheirmarginalpositiontotrans-gressandovercomenotonlythemarginalityofthesocialmove-ment,butpoliticalboundariesingeneral.
Essentially,welookathowmembersofBungelaMwananchicontinuouslystruggleforspacewhileconcomitantlychallenginghegemonicpre-definedperceptionsofspaceintheirwork,workthatendeavourstoestab-lishandfortify"infrastructuresofresistance"thattheyrecognizeasengenderingthealternatedemocraciesneededbytheKenyanpeople.
Here,spaceisunderstoodasbothphysicalandpolitical.
forobservers–asdecisionsarenevertakenbytheleaderalone.
Howevertherearealsosomememberswhomaybechosenasleadersofaspecificactiv-ity.
ThepresentceremonialleaderofBungeatJeevanjeegardensisayoungwomancalledDinahAwuor.
134Nokoko1Fall2010BeforewedetailthehistoryofBungelaMwananchianden-gageinananalysisoftheirpoliticalpractices,weneedtooutlinetheunderstandingofpoliticalengagementandpoliticalpracticethatframesouranalysisofBungelaMwananchi'sactions.
Theanalysesinthesectionsfollowingthetheoreticaloutlinefocusprimarilyontheappropriationofspace(physicalandpolitical)andtheoftennon-conformistandcounterhegemonicapproachestopolitics.
Thearticleisbasedonethnographicmaterial,whichstemsfromKimari'son-offengagementinBungelaMwananchi'sactivitiesbetween2007and2010andfromRasmussen'scumula-tiveyearoffieldworkinNairobibetween2008and2010.
Ourcollaborativeeffortcombinesthegazesoftwodifferentlyposi-tionedanthropologists,whocouldbeconceptualizedasanin-siderandanoutsider,butperhapsarebetterdistinguishedasanobservingparticipantandaparticipantobserver.
BeingPoliticalAshasalreadybeenmentionedintheintroduction,ourfocalconcernishowthemembersofBungelaMwananchiarepolitical.
Nevertheless,beforewecaninvestigatetheirpoliticalpracticesinmoredetailweneedtooutlinehowwecantheoreticallyunder-standtheirwaysofbeingpolitical.
Inthisregard,wehavefoundgreatinspirationinIsin's(2002;2005)philosophicalapproachtowaysofbeingpoliticalandarealsoinformedbyGramsci's(1971)discussiononhegemony.
Inhiswork,Isinisconcernedwithwhatheterms"thecityasadifferencemachine"andwith"investigatingcitizenshiphistoricallyasageneralizedproblemofotherness"(2005,p.
374).
Akeypointinhisargumentisthedistinctionbetweenpoliticsandbeingpolitical(Isin2002;2005).
Thoughourconcernisnotwithcitizenshipandothernessassuch,norwiththecity,wedoinvesti-gateBungelaMwananchimembers'attemptsatpoliticalinclusion"Settingtheagendaforourleadersfromunderatree"/WanguiKimari&JacobRasmussen135(fromaperceivedoutsiderposition)throughtheirvariousevery-daypracticesinthecityofNairobi.
Nevertheless,weareprinci-pallyinterestedinaspecificelementofIsin'sanalysis,namelyhisperceptionofeverydaywaysofbeingpolitical,whichwefindpar-ticularlyhelpfulinunderstandingBungelaMwananchianditsmembers'activities.
Isindefinesbeingpoliticalasrelationalandasexpressedthroughpeople'severydayactivities(2005,p.
382).
Thisdoesn'tmeanthatanyeverydayactivityqualifiesasawayofbeingpoliti-cal;oneonlybecomespoliticalwhenone'sactivitiesquestionthevirtuesofthedominantorwhentheyrevealthearbitrarinessofthisdominance(Isin,2002,p.
21).
Thiscanbedonebymakingclaimsofjusticeeitherasdissent,affirmation,orresistance(Isin,2005,p.
382).
Itistheactionsthatchallenge,expose,andre-definethepreviousmeaningandorderofexistingpoliticaldomi-nationthatqualifyaswaysofbeingpolitical(Isin,2002,pp.
21–22).
Inotherwords,beingandbecomingpoliticalisdynamicandmomentary,temporalandfluid,andisasmuchaboutagencyasitisaboutclaimingrightsandjustice.
4Inhisdiscussionofwhatconstitutesthepolitical,IsindrawsonavarietyofdisparatethinkerssuchasHeidegger,Foucault,Weber,Elias,andSimmeltonamejustafew.
Thoughourconcernhereiswiththeaboveoutlineofhowonebecomespolitical,thisoutlinewouldmakelittlesenseifwefailedtointerrogatehowIsinarrivesathisdefinitions.
Inshort,hearguesthatcitizenshipisrelational;itisaboutthedominantgroupsofthecityarticulatingtheirvirtues,morals,andidentitiesascitizens,thusdefining4Isin'sargumentismorecomplexthanthesummaryhere;forexamplehesug-geststhatforms(orientations,strategies,andtechnologies),modes(solidaristic,agonistic,andalienating)andpositions(citizen,outsider,stranger,andalien)togetherformwaysofbeingpolitical(Isin,2002;2005).
Thoughwetalkofformsintermsofstrategies,modesinformofresistance,andpositionsinformsofmarginalization,wearemoreinterestedinapracticalapplicationofIsin'sideasintheanalysisofeverydaypoliticalprocessesandpracticesthanindistinguishingspecificforms,modes,andpositions.
136Nokoko1Fall2010themselvesagainstothers(strangers,outsiders,andaliens).
How-ever,Isinarguesthatthesedominantarticulationsdonotconsti-tutepoliticsinitselfnoraretheyexamplesofwaysofbeingpoliti-cal,asoneonlybecomespoliticalinthemomentwhenhierarchi-calpositionsarequestioned,redefined,reversed,andre-evaluated.
Itisthiselementofbeingandbecomingpoliticalthatrendersimperativethequestioningofthearbitrarinessofdomi-nance,whichwecomplementwithGramsci's(1971)discussionsonhegemony.
Bungemembers,intheirrejectionofthehegemonic"com-monsense"ofpoliticsinKenya—acommonsensethatisalsosharedbythecivilsociety—actinwaysthatareoftencounterhe-gemonic,becausetheyseektocreatealternateinstitutionsandastrongandquestioningcivilsocietythatisnotthevanguardofa"passiverevolution"butratherresiststhehegemonyofthedomi-nantclass(seeCoxandSinclair,1996,p.
129).
Thereareexcep-tionstothis,suchaswhenalliancesaremadewithmembersofthecivilsocietysuchasNGOs,asseenduringtherecent2010campaignforanewKenyanconstitutioninKenya.
Nevertheless,intheirday-to-daypracticesinbothpoliticalandphysicalspace,seekingtounderminethehegemonicpoliticalandsocialstruc-turesthathavebeenputinplace,Bungemembersmoreoftenthannotactinwaysthatarecounterhegemonicintheirinsistence(bothintheoryandpraxis)thatwhatisreallyrequiredarethenegationofthehegemonic"commonsense"politicandrathertheimplementationofalternateformsofdemocracy.
Therefore,wefinditfittingtousebothIsin's(2002;2005)discussionsonbeingpoliticalthatarepartofhisdiscussionsofhistoricalcitizenshipaswellasGramsci's(1971)conceptofhegemonyinordertounder-standpoliticalpracticeatthegrassrootslevelinKenya.
ThoughIsinhasthehistoricalWesterncityasthelocusofhisanalysis,hisambitionistochallengethenotionthatcitizenshipcouldhavedevelopedonlyinWesterncities,thusrefutingthe"Settingtheagendaforourleadersfromunderatree"/WanguiKimari&JacobRasmussen137notionthatitisonlyinthesespaceswherepeoplehavestruggledtoconstitutethemselves(Drummond&Peake,2005,341-342).
WethereforefindsomesupportforourattemptatapplyingpartsofhisargumentinanempiricallydifferentsettingandcontextthantheWesterncity.
WetaketheriskofnotonlysimplifyingIsin'stheoreticalandphilosophicalargumentbutalsoturningawayfromhisfocusoncitizenshipandinsteadlookingatonlyoneaspect,namelytheprocess-orientedanddynamicpoliticalpractice.
WeclaimthatourexegeticreadingofIsin,comple-mentedbyGramsci'sdiscussionofhegemony,providesuswithaframeworkforunderstandinghowBungelaMwananchimemberspracticeapoliticswithoutboundaries.
JeevanjeeGardensandBungeLaMwananchi:IncarnatingDemocraticParticipationintheCityTheparkthathostsBungelaMwananchi'sverylivelydailydebatesiscalledJeevanjeeGardens.
Therakedpathsandwell-keptlawnsaretheresultofarecentrejuvenationofthesite.
Withtheshadeofbougainvilleaandjacarandatrees,theparkprovidesarestingplaceforofficeworkersandstudentsfromthenearbyNai-robiUniversity,orwhoeverchoosestopassthroughfromthebustlingcitycentre.
Inthecentreofthepark,twosmallstatuesguardeachsideofthecommongreenspace.
Theseimperialbustsarereminiscentofadifferenttime,portrayingQueenVictoriaandtheoriginalfounderofthisrecreationalspace,AlibhaiMullaJeevanjee.
BungelaMwananchimembershavetheirparliamentinthequietnortheasterncornerofthislocation.
Ithasnotalwaysbeenthisquietthough,forbothBungelaMwananchiandtheparkhaveovertheyearsbeenatthecentreofstrugglesovertheirrighttoexist.
IfBungelaMwananchirepresentsagrassrootsalternativetopoliticalparticipation,JeevanjeeGardensconstitutesanalternative138Nokoko1Fall2010politicalspaceasithasbeenacontestedsitesinceitscreationin1906(Patel,1997,p.
211).
Likemanyothercolonialcities,Nai-robiwasplannedasasegregatedcity,whereareasweredesig-natedhierarchicallyforthedifferent"racial"groups:theEuro-peans,theIndians,andtheAfricans.
Thefounderofthepark,theIndianbusinessmanJeevanjee,hadtheambitionofcreatingapublicleisureareaforurbanresidentsandnotonlytheEuro-peans.
Asanhomagethatwouldmakeitdifficultfortheimperialgovernmenttoopposethepark,thestatueoftheBritishqueenwaserectedatthecentreofJeevanjeeGardensasanhonourtotheBritishroyalfamily.
ThoughJeevanjee'sgrandchildZarinaPatelhasdescribeditasasincererespectpaidtotheroyalfamily,thestatuealsostandsasanexampleofcreativeresistanceagainsttheotherwiseexclusivepoliticsofspaceinNairobiatthetime.
Intheearly1990s,motivatedbythelaissez-faireapproachtourbanplanninginNairobi,developersplannedtobuildanundergroundcarparkatJeevanjeeGardens,andtheparkwasthreatenedwithdemolition.
Atthattime,JeevanjeeGardenswasconsideredano-goareainhabitedbystreet-preachers,homelessfamilies,andcriminals.
AcampaignleadbydescendantsofA.
M.
Jeevanjee,andsupportedbythewinnerofthe2004NobelPeacePrizeWangariMaathai,managedtomobilizepeopleindefenceoftheparkandagainstthegrabbingofpublicland(Patel,1997,p.
216).
Atthattime,beforethemulti-partyelectionsof1992whenpublicdebateandpoliticalgatheringwerenotwithoutrisk,theparkwasprotectedthroughthesupportandprotestsofadi-versityofpeople.
Incelebrationofthisfeat,theJeevanjeefamilydonatedanumberofbenchestothepark.
Inthelatterpartofthe1990s,peoplefromvariousinformalforumsaroundthecity(busstagesandstreetwalks)tooktheirdebatestothepark,astheNairobiCityCouncillaunchedacrack-downonstreethawkers,vendors,preachers,andpoliticalagita-torsinthedowntowncoreofthecity.
Thedebatestookplaceon"Settingtheagendaforourleadersfromunderatree"/WanguiKimari&JacobRasmussen139twoofthedonatedbenchesthatfacedeachotherandwerein-itiallyreferredtoassimply"aplacetosit"butquicklybecameknownasthe"people'sgatherings.
"ThesedebatesmarkedthebeginningofBungelaMwananchi,whosememberstodaymeetaroundfourbenches.
Duringtheearlyhoursoftheafternoon,thesebenchesaresurroundedbyconcentriccirclesofpeoplelis-teningtoandengagingincommunaldiscussions.
DespitehavinggatheredinJeevanjeeGardenssincethe1990s,BungelaMwananchigaineditsnamein2003,whenthemovementhelditsfirstelectionsasamockeryoftheparliamentaryelectionsthatwereheldinDecember2002.
Theseelectionssignalledthebroadeningofanationalspacethatpermittedfreerpublicdia-logueanddebate,butinnowaydidtheyhastenthedecriminali-zationofdissent.
Until2002,theassociationalspaceinKenyahadbeenlimited,despitethefirststepstowardsfreeassemblythatweretakenwiththeintroductionofmulti-partydemocracyin1992(Nasong'o,2007,p.
33).
Nevertheless,BungelaMwanan-chimembersstillfindtheirmeetingsoccasionallyinterruptedbythepoliceandasignificantnumberoftheirmembersunderfre-quentsurveillance5(seeSukumaKenya,2009,andHumanRightsHouse,2010).
ThedailymeetingsintheparkhavebecomeaninstitutioninNairobiandhaveestablishedanalternativepoliticalspaceinthecity.
Theyhavebecomeapublictraininggroundforbothpolitical5ItisbecomingincreasinglyfrequentforBungelaMwananchimeetingstobedisruptedbythepoliceandmemberstobearrestedfor"idlinginthepark"orbeingpartofan"illegalone-manassembly"oran"illegalmovement,"despitethefactthataffairsareconductedintheopen(Nyongesa,2009).
EvenwhennotatJeevanjeeGardens,membershavebeenarrested.
OneexampleofthisoccurredonFebruary22,2009whenGachekeGachihi,along-termmemberofBungeLaMwananchi,wasarrestedthatSundaymorningwhilehewasdrink-ingteainalocalrestaurantinhisneighbourhood(SukumaKenya,2009).
Onthemoreextremeendofthissurveillanceandpersecution,somememberssuchasSamsonOwimbaOjiayoandGodwinKamauWangoehavebeenab-ductedandharassedandtheirfamilieshavebeenthreatenedasadirectresultoftheirpoliticalwork(HumanRightsHouse,2010).
140Nokoko1Fall2010debateandagitationandaspaceforcreativepoliticalpractice.
Inabidtoexpandthesespaces,BungelaMwananchiisinthepro-cessofsettingup"congresses"alloverKenyaandaroundthedif-ferentneighbourhoodswithinNairobi.
Evenso,theforuminJeevanjeeGardensretainsaspecialpositionwithinthemovement.
InNairobi,JeevanjeeGardensisoftenjustreferredtoas"Bunge"(Parliament).
Insidersusethiscolloquialtermtorefernotonlytothepark,butalsotomarktheparticularBungefactionmeetingthereasthemainpartofthemovement.
Inmanywaystheparkandthemovementhaveadialogicalrelation,asJeevanjeeGar-denshistoricallypresentsitselfasaplacethatnotonlyencouragespoliticalbeingbutalsoasaplacewhoseexistencehasreliedonpeople'sresistancetodominance—ontheirbeingpolitical.
BungelaMwananichimembersdefinethemselvesaspartofasocialmovement,butcontrarytomembersinmanyothersocialmovements,theyacceptaffiliationtopoliticalpartiesacrossthespectre(BungelaMwananchi,2009;cf.
Castells,1983).
BungelaMwananchi'ssomewhatorganicgrowthoutoftheparkalsosetsitapartfrommanyothertraditionalsocialmovements,inthere-spectthatithasnotevolvedintoasocialmovementfromafightforaspecificlocalizedgoal,suchaslocalserviceprovision,hous-ingrights,andlocalenvironmentalissues(seeCastells,1983).
ThisisthecaseofmanyofBungelaMwananchi'sAfricanallies,suchastheSouthAfricanslumdwellersmovementAbahlalibaseMjondolo,whichgrewoutofthefightagainstevictions.
WhatBungelaMwanachishareswiththeseothermoretraditionallyfoundedsocialmovementsistheirgrassrootsorientation,theirun-hierarchicalorganization,theirpartialitytomassactionandactivism,andtheirrevocationofclassaspects,understoodasaconflictualrelationtothestate(seeCastells,1983;Ferrarotti,2007;Melucci,1989).
"Settingtheagendaforourleadersfromunderatree"/WanguiKimari&JacobRasmussen141"TheKenyaweDONOTwant"ThepoliticalactionsandeverydaypracticesofBungelaMwananchimembersrelateinonewayortheothertotheirover-allaimsandobjectivesasamovement.
Inordertodiscusstheirpoliticalpracticesandtheirwaysofbeingpolitical,weneedtocontextualizethemovement,byconveyingitshistoricalback-ground,aims,andobjectives.
In2009,BungelaMwananchimembersarrangedanalterna-tiveworkshopcalled"TheKenyaweDONOTwant"inresponsetoahighlypublicizedandexpensivegovernmentconferencetitled"TheKenyawewant.
"ThisworkshopwasmotivatedbywhatBungemembersperceivedasthegovernment'sneglectofsalientissuessuchaspoverty,highfoodprices,corruption,andhumanrightsabusesinitsrecentlypublishedvisionforKenya(BungelaMwananchi,2010).
Thealternativeeventanditssarcastictitlere-vealthearbitrarinessofthegovernment'sagendaandtheconten-tionoverwhoisthe"We"thatisspokenof,acontentionthatil-lustratesthedivisionbetweenthepoliticaleliteandtheordinarypeopleofKenya.
TheworkshopisbutoneexampleoftheactivitiesofBungelaMwananchimembersthatexpressdissatisfactionwiththegov-ernmentandthepresentstateofthings:the"commonsense"thatprevailsinKenyanpolitics.
Inpamphletsarephrasessuchas"acallforliberation"and"dreamingofanotherKenya,"aswellas"WeaspiretomobilizeoneKenyanatatimeintoastrongpoliti-calforcethatwilltransformKenya'spolitics"(BungelaMwanan-chi,2010,p.
8).
Intheiractivitiesandintheirwrittensources,itisapparentthatmembersareworkingtocreate"infrastructuresofresistance"toengenderthesocietalchangeneededforpoliticaltransformationinKenya.
Theoverlappingdesiresforpoliticaltransformationareexpressedandemployedinthemembers'dailydebatesandactionsinthepark.
142Nokoko1Fall2010Furthermore,BungelaMwananchi'smissionstatementreiter-atesthesamequestfor"aKenyawherecitizensenjoyunfetteredsovereigntytoorganizesoastofreethemselvesfromallformsofoppressionanddomination;areawareoftheirsocio-economicandpoliticalrightsandresponsibilities,demandaccountability,andhaveaccessibleopportunitiesandresourcestorealizetheirfullpotential"(BungelaMwananchi,2010,p.
10).
TheveryfoundationofBungelaMwananchi,thequestforchange,andthewilltofightfortransformationbychallenging,redefining,andexposing,isconsistentwithIsin's(2002;2005)ideasofbeingpolitical,asitisaboutquestioningtheauthorityofleadersbymakingclaimsoffreedom,rights,andjustice.
Thegoalthatisfer-ventlypursuedischange,inclusion,andinfluence,anditisaboutsettingtheagendafortheleadersfromunderatree.
APoliticswithoutBoundariesandBureaucracyBungelaMwananchiisnotregisteredwiththeNon-GovernmentalOrganisationCo-ordinationBoardofKenyaasanNGO,norwiththeDepartmentofCultureandSocialServicesoranyProvincialAdministrationasacommunity-basedorganiza-tion.
Inaddition,themovementisnottheprojectofanyorgani-zation,business,orpolitician.
Consequently,BungelaMwanan-chihasoftenbeencriticizedfornothavingaformalorregisteredstatus.
Itisaccusedforbeingamovementthatisnotexpresslyanchoredinthegovernmentalityofa"liberaldemocracy,"6andofmerely"doingnoise"andbeingnobetterthan"mobsters,"7as6TheassumptionthatKenyaisanysortofdemocracywouldbesneeredatduringanyBungelaMwananchimeeting.
7OnaKenyanDiscussionPlatformcalledJukwaa,Bunge'scallfortheresigna-tionofmembersoftheKenyancabinetwhohadvotedagainstthenewcon-stitutionwasbeingdiscussed.
OnecontributortothisdiscussionKamalet,inthevoicingofhisdiscontentagainstthiscallbyBungecalledthem"mobsters.
"ThiscanbefoundonthefollowinglinkfromtheJukwaProBoardssite.
"Settingtheagendaforourleadersfromunderatree"/WanguiKimari&JacobRasmussen143oneobservernoted.
Despitethis,BungelaMwananchimembershavechosentoremainorganicandinformal,regardlessoftheferventcriticismthisprovokes(BungelaMwananchi,2010).
Whatarethereasonsforthisrejectionofformality,thedis-avowalofaninstitutionalizedstatusthatwouldconferlegitimacyandallowforthenegationofthe"noisemakers"titleInthissec-tionweanalyseindetailthereasonsfortheaversiontoinstitu-tionalization.
AlthoughBungelaMwananchimembersareinsis-tentaboutnotregistering,theystillconsenttoallianceswithmanyoftheformalorganizationsthatconstitutethe"EuroDollarChaserIndustry,"asthemovementmembershavedubbedtheNGOsandothercivilsocietyorganizationswhoseintentionstheyoftenholdsuspect(BungelaMwananchi,2010).
ThereluctanceofBungelaMwananchimemberstoinstitu-tionalizationindicatestheirconcernwiththestringenciesthatwouldresultfromsuchaformality.
Forthepurposesofthisarti-cle,theseconcernsarecapturedinthreebroadandoverlappingthemes.
First,thereisarecognitionbymembersofBungelaMwanan-chithattheregisteringbodythatwouldconfertothemaninstitu-tionallegitimacyispartoftheverysamegoverningstructureand"historicalbloc"(Gramci,1971)thatcontributestotheirmargi-nalityandtheseverehumanconditionsthatmostKenyanslivein.
Therefore,participationinthissystemwouldrenderthetaskofquestioningthearbitrarinessofdominanceincreasinglydifficult,ataskIsin(2002)assertsasimperativeforbeingandbecomingpo-litical.
ThisisbecauseregistrationinanynationalorganizationwouldregulateandrestrainBungelaMwananchi'sactivitiesmuchmorethantheperiodicdisruptionoftheirmeetingsbythepolice,thushinderingthecounter-hegemonicstrategiesandtechnologiesthatareessentialtothemovement(cf.
Gramsci,1971).
Further-http://jukwaa.
proboards.
com/index.
cgiboard=general&action=display&thread=4374144Nokoko1Fall2010more,thisiscoupledwiththerealitythatalargemajorityoftheorganizationsthatareregisteredoftenbecomepartofwhatShivji(2007)termsthe"neo-colonialoffensive"andwhatBungelaMwananchimembersdeemthe"Euro-DollarchaserIndustry"(BungelaMwananchi,2010).
Inregardstothelatter,theBungelaMwananchisecretariatasserts,Themainstreamcivilsocietyhasturneditselfinto"Euro-Dollar"chaserindustryfocussedonchampioningWesterninterestsatallcosts.
Thisre-pugnantbehaviourhasturnedcivilsocietyintoanelitesocietyofacad-emicianswritingproposals,papers,holdingworkshopsandpressconfer-encesoneaftertheother,withoutmuchoranythingtoshowforitintermsofpositivechange.
Itistheimpatiencewiththissadstateofaffairsandanappreciationofafunctionalcivilsocietyasstrongpillarinafunc-tionaldemocracythatformedthecruciblethatcrystallisedBungelaMwananchiasanorganicmovement.
Themovementisaninitiativetoleveragepeople'sindividualpassionstocreatecollectiveactionandtoputahumanfaceondepersonalizedpolicydiscussionsoncomplexsocio-economicproblemsbedevillingamajorityofourpeople(BungelaMwananchiSecretariat,BungeLaMwananchi,2010).
Nevertheless,itisimportanttore-emphasizethatBungelaMwananchimembersoftencreateallianceswithsomeofthese"Euro–DollarChaser"organizations.
Isinpointsoutthat"whilethelogicsofexclusionwouldhaveusbelieveinzero–sum,dis-creteandbinarygroups,thelogicsofalterityassumeoverlapping,fluid,contingent,dynamicandreversibleboundariesandposi-tionswherebeingsengageinsolidaristicstrategies"(2002,p.
17).
Thesealliancesareforgedinaccordancewithasolidaritystrategy,withtheultimategoalofpoliticaltransformation.
BungelaMwananchi'smissionisdefinedbythefollowingthreeenter-prises:"organizingcitizenry,settingtheagenda,transforminglives"(BungelaMwananchi,2010).
Second,ashasbeendiscussedearlier,BungelaMwananchiisamovementthatbeganthroughinformalandorganicembodiedpracticesthatwerenottheimpetusofanyinstitution.
Akinto"Settingtheagendaforourleadersfromunderatree"/WanguiKimari&JacobRasmussen145manyofthehistoricalresistancemovementsinKenya,BungelaMwananchiwasmerelycontinuing"thecultureofcomingtogetheramongKenyans,formallyorinformally,inneighbourhoods,atthemarkets,ontheroadside,underatreeetctodialogueonper-tinentcommunityissues"(BungelaMwananchi,2010).
Membersassertthatitisthistypeofcomingtogether"thatfomentedpoliti-calconsciousnessamongKenyansforselfdeterminationtowardsdemocraticrule"andmoreoverthatThispolitics-motivatedcomingtogethercanbetracedtothe80sand90s,duringtheagitationformultipartydemocracy,whenitwasdifficulttofreelyorganizepoliticalmeetingsinfearofformerPresidentMoi'suseoftheKenyaPolicetoterrorisedissentingvoices.
Duringthisperiodofter-ror,Kenyansinvolvedintheundergroundstruggleforchangewouldholdsecretmeetings,especiallyintheparkssuchasJeevanjeeGardensParkinNairobitoexchangeviewsonKenya'spoliticalproblems(BungelaMwananchiSecretariat,BungeLaMwananchi,2010).
Aformalizedstatuswouldnotsustaintheinformalitythatischar-acteristicofthistypeofgrassrootsorganizing.
TheformalizingofBungelaMwananchi,andthehierarchythatwouldbeimposedbyinstitutionalization,wouldworktonegatetheintentionalper-sonal-communityandinclusivedynamicthatprevails,adynamicthatpermitsforpeoplefromallwalksoflife—"progressiveuni-versityintellectuals,consciousstudents,politiciansandthedis-empoweredpopulationofworkers,peasantsandunemployed"(BungelaMwananchi,2009)—tocometogether.
Ratherthanallowingfor"therealityofthesocialworld[where]intheevery-dayexperiencesofbeings,therearenocleargroupboundariesandgroupidentificationsoraffiliationsanddisassociationordif-ferentiationsaremultiple,fluidandoverlapping"(Isin,2002,p.
16),theregistrationofBungelaMwananchiwouldleadtotheprivilegingofsuchfactorsaseducation,professionalism,nationalidentificationdocuments,hierarchicalstructures,andregistrationfees.
Thiswouldcreatebothtacitandvisiblelimitationstopartici-146Nokoko1Fall2010pation,engenderingrupturesbetweenthisorganicsocialmove-mentandthehistorythatprovokeditsbecoming.
Inaddition,theissuesthatareinterrogatedandthe"directpoliticalaction"employedbyBungelaMwananchimembers(BungelaMwananchi,2010)wouldnotbepossibleifthemove-ment'sactionshadtobeapprovedbyanoverseeingbody.
Asaconsequenceoftheirdeliberateinstitutionalmarginality,mem-berscanfreelydiscussKenya's"flagindependence"and"im-perialistallies.
"Andtheycansupportandcontextualizecom-mentsontheirwebsiteaboutbeing"governedbymostlymentallyillorbankrupt,definitelyinallcasesstupidself-servingpoliti-cians,eachaspiringtobetherichestlazyfoolintheworldsittinglikeanover-fedbaboonatopthetallesttreeinourdevastatedandrottingvineyard,savouringtheirexploitsamidstsqualor,hungeranddecayingcorpse"(Osahon,2010).
IfBungelaMwananchiwereregisteredoraprojectofacivilsocietygroup,theexplicitandunrelentingopinionationanddirectpoliticalactionem-ployedbymemberswouldmostlikelybevetoedbyagoverningbodyoranorganizationaccountabletoaninternationaldonororthenationalgovernment.
Itsinformalstatus,whichinitiallyappearstoemphasizetheboundariestopoliticalparticipation,converselyworkstotheben-efitofBungelaMwananchi.
Foritisintheroleofoutsiderswithina"passiverevolution"thatmembersareabletomoreeffi-cientlyandcreativelyquestionthearbitrarinessofthemunicipalandnationalgovernments.
Aswehaveseen,BungelaMwananchimembersareabletoparticipateinbothformalandinformalset-tings,andtheynavigateandtransgresstheseboundarieswithanimmenseknowledgeofthecity,withresourcefulnessanddeter-minationtocarryouttheirpoliticalagenda.
Isinarguesthat"wemayowetheexistenceofpoliticsnottocitizensbutto[…]out-siders"(Isin,2002,p.
26),andinthisregardwecanthinkofBungelaMwananchimembers'intentionalmarginalityinrelation"Settingtheagendaforourleadersfromunderatree"/WanguiKimari&JacobRasmussen147toKenyanformalpoliticsasapositionalstrategy,onethatallowsthemtomoreinsightfullychallengethehegemonyofthedomi-nantpoliticalclass.
The"MwananchiFreedomfromHungerTrain":DebatingtheCityWhenRasmussenpassedbyJeevanjeeGardensonaFebruarydayin2010,therewasaheateddebateabouttheconstitutionaldraftthatwasbeingassessedbythegovernment.
Agroupofmenwereconcernedaboutrumoursthatrightsforhomosexualswouldbeintroducedintheproposedconstitution.
Inresponsetothisconcern,othersarguedthatitwasastrategiccardplayedbycleverpoliticianswhowantedtodivertpeople'sattentionfromthe"realissues"byintroducingacontroversialthemesuchasgayrights.
Onapreviousoccasion,thedebatehadbeenaboutfoodshort-agesinremoteareasofKenya,andanotherdayithadconcernedhousingandcivicrights.
Onalloftheseoccasionstherewascon-sensusthatthe"realissues"offoodshortagesandhousingpoli-ciesweregraveandrequiredimmediateresolution.
Despitethisconsensus,therewasdisagreementabouthowbesttosolvetheproblemsandwheretoplacetheresponsibilityfortheirpersis-tence.
DespiteBungelaMwananchi'sdeclaredopennesstoallpartyaffiliationsandethnicidentities,issuesofwhotoblamesometimesbroughtaboutaccusationsofethnicallymotivatedpolitics,whichthenfuelleddebatesaboutethnicityinternallyinBunge.
ThoughthedebatesinJeevanjeeGardensareoftenvibrant,detailed,andwellinformed,theyaremoreoftenthannotcharac-terizedbydisagreement,andfewdecisionsandagreementsareactuallymadehere.
ManypeoplefromJeevanjeeGardensmeetinsmallgroupsinrestaurantsandteahousesaroundthecitybeforeoraftergoingtothepark.
Itisofteninthesesmallgroupsoflikemindedpeoplethatactivitiesareplannedanddecisionsare148Nokoko1Fall2010taken.
Afterbrainstormingbeforehandaboutwhatactivitiesshouldtakeplace,thesegroupsthenintroducetheirideasinJeevanjeeGardensinordertogainwidersupportintermsofmo-bilizingpeopleorraisingfunds.
Nevertheless,regardlessofthepopularityofproposedideas,theyusuallydonotremainuncon-tested.
AnumberofthesedifferentgroupingsaffiliatedwithBungelaMwananchicollaboratewithcivilsocietyorganizationsandNGOs,whichinturnareintentonmakingallianceswiththisincreasinglypowerfulandubiquitousgrassrootsmovement.
BungelaMwananchimembershavebeeninvolvedinspearheadingademonstrationforaproposedfreeinformationbillinparliament.
Theyhavebeencommentatorsatpublicdebatesatculturalinstitu-tionssuchastheGoetheInstituteandfiercecriticsofimpunityatdebatesarrangedbyReleasethePoliticalPrisonersandKenyansAgainstImpunity.
Furthermore,oneeveningwhileRasmussenwatchedapublicdebateonTV,aparticipantfromtheaudiencewhohadaskedcriticalquestionsintroducedhimselfasamemberofBungelaMwananchi.
Asbrieflyillustratedbytheaboveexam-ples,themembersofBungelaMwananchiarenegotiatingandpushingtheirwayintodebatesalloverthecityandtheytakeeveryopportunitytogettheirmessageacross.
FrenchphilosopherdeCerteau(1988)haswrittenabouthowtheordinarypersoncanchangeandinfluencethecityspacebytakingadvantageoftheopportunitiesofferedbythemoment.
Hedefinesspaceasrelational,thatis,themeaningascribedtoacer-tainspacedependsonthepeoplepassingthroughthisspaceandtheeventsthattakeplacethere.
Therefore,spaceisnotdefinedonlybyitsimmediatefunctionsorbytheintentionsascribedtoitbyplannersandlawmakers.
CentraltodeCerteau'stheoryofman'sappropriationofspaceisthatitistemporal.
DeCerteauarguesthattheordinarypersoninfluencesspacethroughhersorhispracticesinit,buttheseactionsonlyredefinethemeaningofa"Settingtheagendaforourleadersfromunderatree"/WanguiKimari&JacobRasmussen149certainspaceforashorttimeasthespaceopensitselftootherinfluencesandotherinscriptionswhenthepersonleaves.
Inotherwords"whathegainshecan'tkeep",butthisdoesnotdiminishthepowerofwhathasbeengainedinthatmoment.
WhenBungelaMwananchimembersuseeventsotherthantheirowntomaketheirvoiceheard,theytakeadvantageofthemoment,redefinethespace,andmakeittheirs.
WhenmovingwithinandaboutNairobitoattendvariousevents,theytakead-vantageofwhatthecityhastoofferintermsofpublicplatformsandinthiswaytheyexpandtheiruseofspacebeyondJeevanjeeGardens.
Regardlessofwhethertheirappropriationsofcityspacearetemporary,theychangethemeaningofspacesandeventsbyusingthemasplatformsfortheirpoliticalagenda.
ItisimportanttonotethatBungelaMwananchimembersarenotonlyusingandtransformingthecitybycapitalizingonothers'forums,theyareabovealltryingtospreadtheirdebatealloverthecityandthecountry.
ThemembersthatcometoJeevanjeeGardenscomefromeverycornerofNairobianditssurroundingestates(neighbourhoods),anditisthroughthesemembersthatthedebatingforums(so-calledcongresses)willbesetupintheaforementionedlocations.
Alignedtothispursuit,BungelaMwananchimembersinitiatedwhattheycallthe"MwananchiFreedomfromHungerTrain.
"Fromvariousoftenpoorandperipherallocationsaroundthecity,acommutertraincarriespeopletoworkincentralNairobiandtheindustrialareaeverymorningandbackhomeintheeve-ning.
Ononeoccasion,likelyfamiliarwiththetrain'swindingjourneysandthesheernumberofpassengersthataccompanyitonitslongsojourn,somemembersofBungelaMwananchiboardedthenightcommutertrainwiththeintentionofengagingtheNairobiworkersinpoliticaldiscussion.
Theycarriedwiththem2,500leafletstitled"WhyarePresidentKibakiandPrimeMinisterRailiabeggingForeignerstofeedKenyans"(BungeLa150Nokoko1Fall2010Mwananchi,2010)thathighlightedthegravefoodsituationthatmanyKenyansfaced.
Theseleafletsdiscussedthefoodcrisisinthecountryandprovidedsalientinformationtothecommuterswhilealsoactingasanicebreakerofsortsfortheseactivists.
Withactivi-tiessuchasthese,BungeLaMwananchimembersaretakingtheirpoliticaldebateoutoftheparkandbringingittotheresidentsofNairobi,inthiswaydebatingthecity.
Ontheonehand,theyaredebatingaspecifictopic—thecity—bydiscussingissuesthataffectthemajorityofNairobiansandKenyans.
Atthesametime,theyareactivelycarryingoutthepracticeofpoliticaldebate,thatis,debatingalloverthecitywhilemovingthroughit,whileengag-ingtheresidentswhocomposethelifethatisdebatedinthecity.
Throughthispoliticalpraxis,membersofBungearemobiliz-ingotherstobecomepolitical.
Whilemobilizingpeopletopar-ticipateinpoliticaldebatesandwhilecreatingpoliticalawareness,theytrainpeopletoargueandagitatefortheirpoliticalview-points,viewpointsthatintheirdifferencefromtheprevailing"commonsense"arethemselvescounter-hegemonic.
Further-more,indebatingthecity,BungelaMwananchimembersaretransformingthemeaningofcityspace,aswhatusedtobeacommutertrainforworkersissuddenlyturnedintoarollingpo-liticaldebateforum.
Asimilarpointcanbemadeaboutthecon-gressessetupinthe"slums,"foracorneratthemarketplaceinMathareslumnolongerremainsjustatradingspacebutisrapidlyconvertedintoavenueforpoliticaldebate.
Whilenavigat-ingthroughtheformalandinformalpublicpoliticalspacesofNairobi,themembersofBungelaMwananchiareworkingonthecity,democratizingit.
Theypracticeapoliticswithoutboundariesbychallenging,transgressing,andexpandingthenotionsofwhatagivenspacemeansbytemporarilyturningitintoapoliticalspace,andthesemomentsofspatialappropriationaresimulta-neouslymomentsofthepolitical(cf.
deCerteau,1988,&Isin,2002).
"Settingtheagendaforourleadersfromunderatree"/WanguiKimari&JacobRasmussen151WritingontheeverydaypracticesinurbanAfrica,urbantheo-ristSimoneconcludesthatpowerinurbanAfrica"increasinglyderivesfromacapacitytotransgressspatialandconceptualboun-daries,erasingcleardistinctionsbetweenprivateandpublic,terri-torialborders,exclusionandinclusion"(2006,p.
357).
Throughmemberscounter-hegemonicactionsthattransformbothpoliticalandphysicalspace,BungelaMwananchi,similartootherAfricanorganizationssuchastheaforementionedAbahlalibaseMjon-dolo,isbecomingincreasinglymorepowerfulasagrassrootsor-ganizationandconferringknowledgeabouthowtotransgresspo-liticalandspatialboundaries,whileaboveallengenderingalter-nativewaystoseekinclusionforthosewhoareputatthemostatriskbydominantpoliticalinterests.
IronicPractices:InvertingtheMeaningofArrestsIsinreferstoWirth,theChicagoSchoolsociologistwhostatesthatgroupswhoareconsciousoftheiroppressionandtheirrightsareapoliticalforcetobereckonedwith(2002,p.
20).
Weob-servedthisdialecticrelationbetweenrightsawarenessandpoliti-calpowerinanumberofencountersbetweenBungelaMwanan-chimembersandthepolice.
Membersofthemovementarticu-latedthepolice'sinterferencewiththemovement'sactivitiesandmeetingsasanexampleofthestate'sviolationoftheircivicrights,butalsoasthestate'simplicitrecognitionofthemasapoliticallyinfluentialforce.
Everynowandthen,thepoliceinterfereinthedailydebatesattheparkinordertostopordisturbtheplanningofcomingevents,orassomeparticipantsofthemovementstated,"toscarepeople"fromengagingintheforum(BungelaMwanan-chi,2010;HumanRightsHouse,2010).
Thoughthepoliceinter-ferenceshadtheimmediateeffectofdispersingmostattendants,theinterferencesalsoprovokedcreativeresistanceagainstthisvio-lentmanifestationofstatecontrol.
152Nokoko1Fall2010However,notallconfrontationswiththepoliceareaboutex-istingrights.
Theymayalsobeaboutgainingnewrightsbychal-lengingthelegalsystem.
ActivistsfromBungelaMwananchihavebeenarrestedatdifferenttimesandchargedwithincitementtodisobedience,idling,anddisorderlybehaviour,perfunctorychargesoftenlaidwhenthepolicerespondtoresistancetothestate'sdominance.
Whensucharrestsoccur,othermembersofBungelaMwananchicontactsupportivelawyersandoftentrytomobilizepeopletogotocourtandtorallyinsupportofthear-restedoutsideofthecourthouse.
OnedayinDecember2008outsidetheKiberaCourt,asmallcrowdofBungelaMwananchisupportersawaitedthehearingofsomeoftheir"comrades"whohadbeenarrestedforincitementatademonstration.
Asthearrestedwerereleased,oneofthemcon-veyedthatshewasnotconcernedaboutthearrest.
Itwasherthirdpendingcaseandshehadkeptalowprofileuntilrecently,whileanothercasereacheditsconclusion.
"Icanonlyaffordthreecasesatthetime,"8shesaidinamatter-of-facttone.
Ittookashortin-vestigationtorevealthatsomeofthemoreengagedactivistmem-bersofBungelaMwananchideliberatelygotthemselvesarrestedatpublicgatheringsanddemonstrationsinordertoputpressureonthejudicialsystemintermsofextraworkloadandextracostsforrunningminorcases.
Thesedeliberatearrestsareaimedatexposingwhattheactivistsperceiveastheabsurdityandunjust-nessofalegalsystemthatcriminalizesdissent.
Asaconsequence,thesemembersofBungelaMwananchiseektoinverttheoutcomeofthearrestsbyturningameansofgovernmentrepressionintoaburdenforthejudiciary.
Therefore,whatonthesurfacemayap-peartobeamechanicalarrestbyapoliceofficerinordertomaintainlawandorderisinfacttheresultofapoliticalstrategyaimedatchange.
8BW,personalcommunicationDecember2008.
"Settingtheagendaforourleadersfromunderatree"/WanguiKimari&JacobRasmussen153Inrhetoricandlinguisticsstudiestheactofinvertingthemeaningofagivenwordinordertorevealanunderlyingmean-ingiscalledirony(Burke,1969,p.
512).
Thequalityofironynotonlymakesitanobvioustoolforutteringoractingoutacritique,italsoincludesacreativeelementthroughitsabilitytotransformthemeaningofanutteranceoractintoadifferentsignificance.
Ifthisdefinitionofironyisappliedtotheactivists'deliberatear-rests,theseactionscanbeseenasenactmentsofironyorironicpracticesthatareresourcefulwaysofchallengingexistingpolitics(cf.
Isin,2002,p.
26).
BungelaMwananchimembers'useofironyisnotonlyex-pressedinsubtlewayssuchasarrests;theironicmockingofthepoliticaleliteiscentraltothemovement'scounter-hegemonicfoundationandisdiscernableeveninitsname.
Asmentionedintheintroduction,theEnglishtranslationofBungelaMwananchiisThePeople'sParliament.
Byclaimingtobeaparliamentforthepeople,themovementcritiquestherealparliamentfornotrepre-sentingtheordinaryKenyanpeople,acritiquethattheyactoutintheirdailypractices.
BungelaMwananchiholdselectionseverytwoyears,andanybodywhosignsupinadvancecanvote.
AttheAugust2009electionsinJeevanjeeGardens,theballotboxesweremadeoftransparentplastic,anintentionalgesturethathighlightedtheac-cusationsofriggedballotboxesduringthegeneralKenyanelec-tionsofDecember2007andtheoveralllackoftransparencyinKenyanpolitics.
ArewordingoftheKenyannationalanthemre-vealsfurtherironiccommentary.
Ontheirwebsite,BungeLaMwananchimembershavereworkedthesecondverse,whichisfullofcallsforpatriotism,nationalservice,andsincerity.
Thenationalanthemhadbeenwrittenhastilyinabidtoreplace"GodSavetheQueen,"whichhadbeentheanthemoftheBritishEm-pire.
ThesecondverseofKenya'sEnglishnationalanthemreads:154Nokoko1Fall2010LetoneandallariseWithheartsbothstrongandtrueServicebeourearnestendeavourAndourhomelandofKenyaHeritageofSplendourFirmmaywestandtodefend.
TheBungelaMwananchi,versionhowever,evokesalesspatrioticfervour:LetallpoliticiansariseWithscamsbothwilyandfoolproofEatingbeourearnestendeavourAndourcake–standofKenyaHeritageofPlunderMaywefightforevertoperpetuate(BungelaMwananchiSecretariat,BungeLaMwananchi,2010)AfurtherexampleofBungelaMwananchi'sattemptsatturningthingsontheirheadthroughtheuseofironyistheaforemen-tionedworkshop,"TheKenyaweDONOTwant.
"Inaddition,in2007whenNairobihostedtheWorldSocialForum,aglobalgrassrootsevent,BungelaMwananchimembersarrangedasuc-cessfulMockSocialForumforthelocalcivilsocietyandgrassrootsorganizationsnotincludedintheofficialevent.
Inanthropologicalstudiesofpoliticalrhetoricandeverydayresistance,ironyandironicpracticesarecategorizedasatoolforoppositionandasaweaponoftheweak(deCerteau,1987;Herzfeld,1997;Paine,1981;Scott,1985).
Theambiguouschar-acterofironythatpermitsforawordoranactiontomeansome-thingotherthanwhatitseemstomeanimpliesthatironyandironicactionsarebestsuitedasresponsestootherpeople'sstate-mentsandactions,asitisdialecticandthereforedependsonex-istingstatementsandactionstorevealitsdualisticpotential(Burke,1969;Paine,1981).
Mostoppressed,subjugated,andoppositiongroupsareinpositionswheretheyarenotinchargeoftheoverallagendabutarechargedtoreactandrespondtothe"Settingtheagendaforourleadersfromunderatree"/WanguiKimari&JacobRasmussen155workandactionsofadominantother.
Theuseofironyasapo-liticaltoolthen,requirestheabilitytotakeadvantageofthemo-mentandthechanceopeningsincreativeandspontaneouswayssuchaswhenthemembersofAbahlalibaseMjondolo,inre-sponsetoadeclarationthattheywerecriminaland"outoforder,"ferventlyassertedthat"whenordermeansthesilenceofthepoorthenitisgoodtobeoutoforder"(AbahlalibaseMjon-dolo,2010).
Similarly,BungelaMwananchi'suseofironyispo-liticalasittransgressesandchallengestheboundariesestablishedbyahegemonicpoliticandthussucceedsinrevealingtheexclu-sion,thehiddenagendas,andthearbitrarinessofthe"common-sense"meansofgovernanceinKenya"SettingtheAgendaforOurLeadersfromunderaTree"InthispaperweendeavouredtoconveythetransgressionsofpoliticalboundariesthatareevidentintheeverydaypoliticalpracticesoftheKenyangrassrootsmovementBungeLaMwanan-chi.
Inthispursuitwehavehighlightedhowmembers'creativeandoftencounter-hegemonictechnologiesandtransgressionsaredependentonspaceinthecity(bothpoliticalandphysical)andhowtheyconcomitantlyworktoredefine,transform,andreclaimthesespaces.
Inthisregard,thepublicparkJeevanjeeGardens,whichhostsdailydebates,hasacentralpositionandprovidesfortheotherwisegrassrootscharacterofthemovementandtherela-tivefluidityofactivities.
ThoughthelocationofBungelaMwananchimeetingscouldbeanywhere,JeevanjeeGardens'par-ticularhistoryofresistanceanddemocraticstrugglesucceedsinenrichingthecounter-hegemonicprocessesofBungelaMwanan-chi,asitisillustrativeofthepossibilitiesthatcanbegarneredbyastronginclusivepoliticalpraxis.
ThisanalysiswasanchoredinIsin's(2002;2005)discussionofthepolitical,whichdefinespoliticalbeingastheresultofpo-156Nokoko1Fall2010liticalactions,meaningtheabilitytoquestionthearbitrarinessofdominantgoverningandgovernance.
WehaveattemptedtoturnspecificaspectsofIsin'sgenealogicalandphilosophicalargumentintoapplicabletoolsforunderstandingandinvestigatingeverydaypoliticalpracticesandprocesses.
AsIsin'sargumentdepartsintoadiscussionofthenotionofcitizenshipasrootedinthecity,wehaverelatedhisideasofbecomingpoliticaltodeCerteau's(1988)notionsofeverydayurbanresistanceandstrategiesofspa-tialappropriationtounderstandnotonlyhowbecomingpoliticalislinkedtothecityasahistoricalinstitution,butalsotorevealhowthecityasaphysicalandpoliticalspaceisinformedbypeo-ple'sbeingandbecomingpolitical.
Inaddition,inordertoarticu-lateBungelaMwananchi'spracticesmoreprofoundly,illustratingtheiractionstowardsrevolutionarychangewhilealsohighlightingthelocalandinternationalpowerrelationsthatframeKenyanpolitics,wefeltitwasimperativetoincludesomediscussionsofhegemonyasarticulatedbyGramsci(1971).
ItisthroughthesecomplementaryscholarlydialoguesthatwehaveendeavouredtoillustrateBungeLaMwananchi'spraxis,theiractionstopieceto-getherstructuresofresistance,whichinthenot-too-distantfuturemayfinallyensurethealternateformsofdemocracythatarefoughtforbymembersofthisgrassrootsmovement.
BungeLaMwananchimembers,aswehavediscussed,per-ceiveandpositionthemovementasanoutsider,butasanout-siderinsearchofinclusivechangeratherthananoutsiderinsearchofinclusionwithinthestatehegemony.
Thefactthatnon-registrationisadeliberatestrategyandnotaforcedpositional-lowsBungelaMwananchitotransgresstheboundariesbetweenformalityandinformalityandtoseekwaysofquestioningandrevealingthearbitrarinessofthegovernmentbyactivelyplayingontheambiguityofbeinganoutsiderworkingontheinsideorviceversa.
Aswehaveseen,boththemarginalityandthecontra-dictionsinherentinthephysicalandpoliticalspaceofthemove-"Settingtheagendaforourleadersfromunderatree"/WanguiKimari&JacobRasmussen157mentcontributetothesuccessinpursuingapoliticsthatisboundless.
Thisiscoupledwiththemembers'knowledgeofthecity,aknowledgethatallowsforthecreativepursuanceofapoliti-calagendathataboveallutilizesthetemporalandmomentaryinordertoinscribetheirmessage.
Inpursuitofthispoliticswithoutboundaries,BungeLaMwananchiisplacedinadialogicalrelationshipwiththecityandinthisprocessbothusesandcreatesthecity.
Itisinthiswaythatmembersareabletomotivate,mobilize,debate,andnavigatetheblatantandtacitobstaclesthatareinherentinanypoliticalculturethatprivilegesthenarrativesofthedominant.
AsanthropologistsDasandPoole(2004)haveargued,itisoftenatthemarginsofthestatethatalternativepoliticalpracticesareinstitutedandwherepoliticalcreativityisvisible.
Itisthroughsuchdeliberatemarginalpositioning,locatedunderatree,thatBungeLaMwananchimembers,throughtheirresourcefulpoliticalpractices,seektosettheagendaforthepoliticalleadersinKenya.
Whileevokingimagesofage-oldAfricanauthorityandelders'councilsgatheredunderatree,itisfromunderatreeinacityparkBungelaMwananchimembersperformandengenderalternativepoli-tics,thusbridgingtraditionandcounter-hegemoniccreativityinaninclusivepoliticswithoutboundaries.
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htmlNokokoInstituteofAfricanStudiesCarletonUniversity(Ottawa,Canada)Fall2010(1)PoliticsAcrossBoundariesPan-AfricanismSeedsforAfricanunityGachekeGachihiSpeakingatafarewellpartyorganizedbyChamachaMapinduzi1inTanzaniaonhisbehalf,MwalimuNyererechallengedAfricanleadersonthequestionofAfricanunityandtheexistingcolonialboundariesthatdivideAfricancommunitiesandwhichhavear-restedtheirgrowthanddevelopmentinthe21stcentury.
Mwalimustatedthattheboundariesthatwereimposedbycolo-nialforcesduringthepartitioning/portioningoftheAfricanconti-nentdividedmotheragainstchild,aswellasbrotheragainstbro-ther,andhinderedthesocialdevelopmentofAfrica.
HegavetheexampleoftheMaasaicommunityinKenyaandTanzaniawhoweredividedbetweentwocolonialforces,theBritishandtheGermans.
ThisiswhytodayyouwillfindcommunitiesinAfricasuchastheMaasaiwhoaredividedbycolonialboundariesal-thoughtheybelongtothesamefamily:theycarrydifferentpass-1ChamachaMapinduzimeansPartyoftheRevolutioninSwahili.
162Nokoko1Fall2010portsandidentificationcards,butultimatelyaretiedtogetherbyaculturalandhistoricalconnection.
ThisexamplemanifestsitselffromtheimmigrationcentresofKaduna,whichconnectsRwandaandUganda,orNamanga,whichconnectsTanzaniaandKenya.
Itisherethatyouwillfindwomencarryingbabiesandbananasontheirbacksastheytrytocrossbordersthatareusuallyfortifiedbythepolice.
Theircrossingismademoredifficultastheymademoredifficultastheyattempttobalanceimmigrationpaperworkwiththesebabiesandbananas,andattempttonavigatethein-numerableformsaskingforoccupation,identityandreasonfortravelling.
Onthe12thand13thofApril2009,IhadtheopportunitytoattendtheMwalimuNyerereIntellectualfestivalasacommunityorganizerwiththeBungeLaMwananchisocialmovement.
Atthisforum,Pan-Africanismwasdebated.
WediscussedhowAfricacanstandonthisunifiedpoliticalmovementofPan-Africanism,andorganizeontheunityofAfricatowardspolitical,economicandculturalliberationin21stcentury.
ThisintellectualfestivalinjectedfreshbreathintoAfricanpolitics,whichhavebeendominatedbyneoliberalpoliciesfortwodecadessincethefalloftheBerlinwallandsinceFrancisFukuyamadeclared'theendofhistory'andthetriumphoffreemarkets.
Sincethisperiod,thepoliticalspaceinAfricahasbeendominatedbyneoliberalpoliciesthatcamewithneoliberalmodelpackagesofprivatization,'goodgovernance,'multi-party-ism,'humanrights,'allinthenameofsavingAfricafromthepoliticaldespotismthatexistedintheeraoftheColdWarandafter.
TheseneoliberalpoliciesdemobilizedtheAfricanmassesandtheprogressivemiddleclassthatwasorganizingresistanceunderaPan-Africanmovement.
Furthermore,theprogressiveideologi-calpoliticswereattackedandAfricawaslecturedonhowtoim-plementWorldBankandIMFpolicies.
Incontrast,duringtheleadershipsofKwameNkrumah,MwalimuJuliusNyerere,Amil-PoliticsAcrossBoundaries:Pan-Africanism/GachekeGachihi163carCabralandAgostinoNeto,thisAfricanleadershipharnessedandforgedthePan-AfricanpoliticalinstrumentthatgavebirthtonewleadershipinAfrica,whichspearheadedthestruggleforin-dependence.
TheAnnualMwalimuNyerereIntellectualfestival,whichisorganizedbytheMwalimuNyerereChairofPan-AfricanstudiesatDaresSalaamUniversity,2createsaspaceforreflectionandseekstodrawlessonsfromthepast,fromthesocialstrugglesthatwereanchoredinaPanAfricanmovement.
ThelastPanAfricancongress—whichwasthe7th—washeldinUgandain1994.
Unfor-tunately,we,theyoungergeneration,havenotbeenabletoreadandimproveonthePanAfricanresolutionsthatwereagreeduponatthiscongress,whichhadbeenorganizationalinstrumentsfortheindependenceeraliberationmovements.
AsAfricadevelopsameansoftransportthatwillbelinkingmanyofitscapitalcities,theyounggenerationwillinteract,politi-calrelationshipswillbeforged,andnewfruitfulcontradictionswillcontinuetoshapedailylives.
ThiswillbeagreatandmuchneededopportunityforanewgenerationinAfricatoforgeaunitedfrontincreatinganalternative,borderless,Pan-Africanistpoliticalleadership.
2ThefirstandcurrentchairisDrIssaShivji.