AFRICAN JOURNAL OF POLITICAL SCIENCE ' REVUE AFRICAINE DE SCIENCE POLITIQUE NEW SERIES Volume 1 Number 1 June 1996 srtLlAL EDITION: PAN AFRICANISM IN THE 21' GUEST EDITOR: Horace G. Campbell African Journal of Political Science Revue Africaine de Science Politique New Series Vol. 1 No. 1 June 1996. A Journal of the African Association of Political Science (Published twice yearly.) ©African Association of Political Science June 1996 Typeset by Southern Africa Printing and Publishing House (SAPPHO) (Pvt) Ltd. Harare. Printed for SAPPHO by Natprint Kwame A. Ninsin Editor Subscription: African Institutions Non-African Institutions Individual (Non-AAPS Members) US$15 US$20 US$15 (airmail) (airmail) (airmail) All inquiries about subscription and related matters should be addressed to: The Editor African Journal of Political Science 19 Bodle Avenue, Eastlea P.O. BoxMP 1100, Mt. Pleasant HARARE, ZIMBABWE Email: aapp@harare. iafrica. com Notes for Contributors The African Journal of Political Science is published twice — June and December — of each year. Contributions may be submitted in English or French, should be not more than 8,000 words, and must be accompanied by an abstract of not more than 300 words. The author's name, rank and institutional affiliation and address should be on the title page, separate from the manuscript to ensure anonymity in the review process. Diagrams, graphs, etc. accompanying manuscripts should come camera ready to avoid delays in production. All contributions should be submitted on a diskette [5.4" or 3.5"], preferably in Microsoft Word or WP 5.0,5.1,6.0,6.1, accompanied by two hard copies of the manuscript, typed double spaced. All references to books and articles should be identified in the text by the surname of author, year of publication and page reference, placed in parenthesis; e. g., (Mendy 1994:95). If the author is mentioned in the sentence or section only the date of publication of book or article plus page reference should be given. Where there is more than one reference to the same author with materials published in the same year the references should be distinguished sequentially as for example, (Mendy 1994.a: 95; 1994.b: 100-120). Short quotations should be distinguished by the double quotation mark; but quotations of more than three lines should be indented and separated from the main paragraph. These do not need quotation marks. End notes (no footnotes) should be kept to a minimum, numbered consecu- tively, and placed at the end of the text. This should be followed by a list of References arranged alphabetically, with the surname of author first, followed by her/his initials, date of publication, full title of book, place of publication and name of publisher. For journal articles, the author's surname and initials should precede the date of publication, full title of article, name of journal, volume, number and page referenced). Contributions should be addressed to: The Editor African Journal of Political Science A. J. P. S. 19 Bodle Avenue, Eastlea P. O. Box MP1100, Mt. Pleasant Harare, ZIMBABWE. Telephone: 730403 Email: aapp @harare. iafrica. com AFRICAN JOURNAL OF POLITICAL SCIENCE (Formerly African Journal of Political Economy) uaesi tiuuor: Horace campoeu CONTENTS / SOMMAIRE Guest Editor's Introduction Rebuilding the Pan African Movement: A report on the 7th Pan African Congress Ernest Wamha dia Waniba Pan Africanism, Democracy, Social Movements and Mass Struggles Bonita Harris Caribbean Women and Pan Africanism Fanon Wilkins Which Way for Africans in The United States? The Seventh Pan African Congress and Beyond Zaline Makini Roy Campbell Pan African Women Organising for the Future: The Formation of the Pan African Women's Liberation Organisation and Beyond Patricia O. Daley Regaining Control Over the Environment: A Pan Africanist Agenda Patricia A. Made Defining An African Women's Agenda Beyond Beijing Horace Camplrell Pan African Renewal in the 21st Century Micere G. Mugo Poem: Mother Afrika'sMatriots Mahfoudha Alley Hamid Kanga: It's More Than What Meets the Eye — A Medium of Communication iii 1 9 21 34 45 58 73 84 99 103 Conference Resolutions Women and Peace, Position of African Women in Beijing, September 1995 Resolutions of the Plenary of the 7th Pan African Congress, Kampala, 1994 List of Pan African Organisations 110 113 134 IV Preface This issue of the African Journal of Political Science carries a number of papers which were written within the context of the debates of the 7th Pan African Congress. As one can see from the articles, the question of the emancipation of women emerged as a dominant theme in the conference. The discussions were heated and reflected a turning point in the struggles of the Pan Africanmovement. Despite the fact that the meeting was hosted by an African government, the discussions flourished without interference by the government. Many different views were articulated in the meeting, and the pieces in this special issue seek to capture some of the ideas which are now being contested in the movement. The introduction by the guest editor brings out the three main achievements of the meeting and the establishment of the Global Pan African Movement along with the creation of the Pan African Women's Liberation Organisation. The birth of these two organisations was a testament to the disquiet over the survival of state centered Pan African organs such as the OAU and the Pan African Women's Organisation. There are over one hundred Pan African organisations which seek to work for greater co-operation among professionals. B ut apart from the popular organisations which organise the African Cup of Nations, most of these organisations are not known by the ordinary African. The challenge which faces the Global Pan African movement is to give meaning to the far reaching resolutions which came out of the discussions in Kampala Both the resolutions and a list of the professional Pan African organisations are reproduced in this volume. The paper by Wamba dia Wamba focuses on the relationship between democracy and Pan Africanism. Wamba critiques the western concept of democ- racy and places the tasks of the Pan African movement in the context of a world "in a rising motion." It is a philosophical statement on "Pan Africanism, Democracy, Social Movements and Mass Struggles." It is a conscious effort to theorise the conception of Pan Africanism from below to present his conception of Pan Africanism as a form of global consciousness, " the realisation that no black person will be free until all black people are free." He presented a new insight of defeat through victory to underscore how political victory of African liberation movements have been undermined by the imperial restructuring of the African economies to reinforce the artificial divisions created in the Berlin conference. Wamba argued that democratisation or re-democratisation has to be conceptualised at the level of the whole planet earth. He uses the term imperial democrats to identify those who "are now regrouped in the gang of the G7 and other Northern democracies and who consume more than 2/3 of the worlds resources." He sees this consumption as undemocratic and contends that "no vi Preface meaningful desire is rising in these countries to democratise the situation," i.e. to shift power relations in favour of the redistribution of world wealth at all levels." In the context of the world economic crisis, there has been the tendency to reduce politics to economics. In the words of Wamba, "democracy is reduced to market economy and the economy becomes the sole permanent political problem." Drawing from the experiences of Congo-Zaire in the context of the cold war, Wamba spoke of the issues of democracy and the second liberation of the continent. The presentation by Fanon Wilkins poses the question, "Which Way Africans in the United States? The Seventh Pan African Congress and Beyond." In this short presentation written as apersonal statement, Fanon Wilkins highlighted the impact of individualism, leaderism and the undemocratic behaviour of those who claim leadership of the Pan African movement in the USA. He reinforced his critique by drawing attention to the break in the traditions of Pan Africanism which is being supported by the US government with the attempts by the US administration to use Africans in its commercial struggles with Europe. He drew attention to the African American summits which brought leaders of the African American business community in alliance with conservative African leaders. It is within this same context that he raised questions of the aspirations for leadership by the Nation of Islam and its spokesperson, Louis Farrakhan. Drawing attention to the tour of Africa by this leader, he was particularly critical of the way in which this leader wanted to defy the democratic struggles of the Nigerian peoples by endorsing the political programme of the military leaders. Fanon Wilkins pointed out the importance of the Million Man March in the US A, and sought to bring to the attention of the readers some of the contradictions in this form of "theocratic" leadership. The presentation by Bonita Harris is different in style, content and presenta- tion. It represents a new form of writing by feminists, and challenges the very foundations of the ideas of Pan Africanism and the traditions of the male centered movement. She used the example of Mr. Mckenzie, one of the activists in the 5th Pan African Congress, to draw attention to male activists who are progressive in organising meetings, yet dominate their spouses and do not support their children. In this presentation, she is forcefully arguing that there can be no distinction between the public and the private sphere. Bonita Harris not only critiques the male centered history of Pan Africanism in the Caribbean, she offers insights into the new forms of organising by women which cuts across political and ethni c lines. She raises questions of sisterhood and race in multi ethnic and multi racial societies, issues which are central to the future of the movement. This position of presenting a new concept of politics is reinforced by the preoccupation with the question of the emancipation of women. Preface vii She questioned: What can Pan Africanism be about if not first and foremost the fate of women and children? She answered by saying that, "the struggle for our economic independence, for the right to be paid for work, must take precedence over all other struggles. This is notmerely an expression of choice (which it is too; freedom of choice, ranking high on any list of essential human rights), but also an expression of good sense, since the free-Africa goal of "an Africanists will never be won unless the unshackling of women, the producers and reproducers of labour power, becomes an absolute priority of all organisers, freedom fighters and would-be liberation parties. How can women be expected to play an effective and genuine role in the wider movements needing their talents and energies when they are hemmed in by life itself? When they are constrained by multiple social oppression which are not the active concern of Pan African movements? Imagine a Pan Africanism vibrant with social truth and peopled with free women." B onita Harris took this conception of free women to Kampala and worked with other women in the formation of the Pan African Women'sLiberation Organisation (AWLO). The paper of Zaline Makini Roy-Campbell brought out the issues of "Pan African Women Organising for the Future." This presentation provided the historical background of women in the Pan African movement and complements the presentation of Bonita Harris which highlighted the fact that Pan Africanism has historically been the articulation of the male voice, "great men" and a few "outstanding women." In outlining the work of the women in Kampala in trying to form the embryo of this movement, the paper argued why it was necessary to have an organisation which focuses on the liberation of women from all forms of oppression. This paper outlined the objectives of PAWLO and spoke of the tasks necessary for building this force in the next century. One of the current concerns of PAWLO is the way in which war and violence affects women in all parts of the Pan African world. This issue of AJOPE reproduces the recommen- dations of African women at the Fourth World Conference on Women on the question of "African Women and Peace." The relationship between domestic violence and political violence is an issue which African women are highlighting. The paper by Pat Made is an attempt to define "An African Women's Agenda Beyond Beijing" in the context of the politics of power in (he global women's movement. Her paper reviewed the historical context of the UN decades for women and the realities of the conditions of African women. She drew attention to the way in which governments endorsed international covenants on the elimination of discrimination of all kinds at meetings, yet reverse these gains in legislation which reinforces the position of women. She pointed out how at the level of information many in the women's movement were not fully aware of the far reaching agenda of the Africa platform which was agreed on in Dakar prior to the Fourth World Conference on Women in Beijing in 1995. * viii Preface What became most evident in Beijing was that women world-wide have joined forces to develop common strategies for the advancement of women. The strength of this global network was visible in Beijing, as the non-govemmental organisations effectively lobbied to ensure that governments did not develop selective amnesia on gains made in other UN conferences leading up to Beijing. The three most contentious issues in the negotiations of the Beijing Platform were summed up by Patricia Licuanan, chair of the Main Committee, as "the three R's": Rights, Reproduction and Resources. The Vienna Declaration, for example, states that women's rights are universal human rights. The document which came out of Cairo also stated that women should have control over their sexual and reproductive rights. However, many government delegations from predominanUy Catholic countries and the Muslim world came to Beijing intent on reversing these gains in the Beijing Platform. Pat Made pointed out the global solidarity between women of the world, drawing particular attention to the lessons to be learnt from the activism of women in Latin America and Asia who face similar conditions as women in Africa and the Caribbean. She argued (hat, "The high stakes of international policy require visibility, lobbying and advocacy at the international level, all currently weak points in Africa. But there is no need for African women entering the arena to re- invent the wheel. There are many lessons to learn from women in Latin America and Asia, regions which experience many of the same developmental problems as Africa, and these are also regions where women have had to confront similar traditions, attitudes and discriminatory practices which have held women back." One important lesson that women from Asia and Latin America brought to Beijing was the need for women's NGOs to build a strong constituency base in both the rural and urban areas. Women with education, skills and expertise have channelled their efforts into uplifting their rural counterparts. This has been seen as the first step towards building a foundation for the sustainability of their programmes. By identifying and working with women at the community-based level to transfer skills, even though the organisation may be based in the urban centre, it has created a network in the rural areas which continues to work on the ground among the majority of people to change attitudes. This imbalance between women in the rural and urban areas must beovercome in the wider Pan African movement She argued that women's voices must be heard at all levels, and that, "Women's voices must be part of the global agenda if we are to see change in the 21st century. Women must redefine the fundamental questions of democracy, development, peace and the environment" This question of the environment and how Africans could control their environment is the subject of the contribution of Patricia Daley. In critiquing the over population thesis on Africa, she pointed out the important linkages between Pan Africanism, development and the environment. Patricia Daley explored the Preface ix crucial land question, and pointed out the impact of the commoditisation of land in a context where communal land systems represent the most suitable and sensitive form of land use management She pointed out the centrality and importance of indigenous knowledge in the process of reconstruction and how African women must be at the centre of the reorganisation of the priorities of the African societies, m this sense, the links between the presentations of Pat Made, Zaline Makini Roy-Campbell and Bonita Harris point out why the issue of the African woman is at the centre of Pan African liberation. PatriciaDaley raised the crucial issue of a research agenda for the emancipation of women. My own contribution raises the issue of renewal. It draws attention to the problem of the break between the spiritual and the material, and the implications of this break for a Pan African philosophy. This paper explored the issues of liberation in the twentieth century, and pointed out some of the same questions of defeat through victory which were raised in the presentation of Wamba Dia Wamba. The paper went back to some of the definitions of Pan Africanism, and drew heavily from the ideas of Eusi Kwayana, the veteran Guyanese Pan African activist. In the conclusion, there was an attempt to draw lessons from the rise of religious fundamentalism and how a new form of spiritual reflection is necessary to tap the wealth of Africa. Because in the main this issue is tied to the question of Pan Africanism and African women, there is a piece reproduced to highlight the differing forms of expression by African women. The piece on the Kanga draws attention to the different messages which could be communicated by wearing the Kanga. The poem by Micere Mugo is another expression of the urgent task of engendering Pan Africanism, our historical memories, our language and concepts. The reproduction of the recommendations on "African Women and Peace" and the resolutions of the plenary of the 7th Pan African Congress are self explanatory. These are reproduced so that they can receive wider circulation. The guest editor.