The book interrogates the African postcolonial condition focusing on the liberation predicament and the long standing crisis of dependence (epistemological, cultural, economic, and political) created by colonialism and coloniality. A sophisticated deployment of historical, philosophical, and political knowledge in combination with the equi-primordial concepts of coloniality of power, coloniality of being, and coloniality of knowledge yields a comprehensive and truly refreshing understanding of African realities of subalternity. How global imperial designs and coloniality of power shaped the architecture of African social formations and disciplined the social forces towards a convoluted ‘postcolonial neocolonized’ paralysis dominated by myths of decolonization and illusions of freedom emerges poignantly in this important book. The book is distinguished by its decolonial entry that enables a critical examination of the grammar of decolonization that is often wrongly conflated with that of emancipation; bold engagement with the intractable question of what and who is an African; systematic explication of the role of coloniality in sustaining Euro-American hegemony; and unmasking of how, paradoxically, the ‘postcolonial’ is interlocked with the ‘neocolonial’. To buttress the theoretical arguments, detailed empirical case studies of South Africa, Zimbabwe, DRC and Namibia completes this timely contribution to African Studies.
Sabelo J. Ndlovu-Gatsheni is Professor and Chair of Epistemologies of the Global South with Emphasis on Africa at the University of Bayreuth in Germany. He is former Head of the Archie Mafeje Research Institute (AMRI) and Professor in the Department of Development Studies at the University of South Africa. He has taught in universities in Zimbabwe, United Kingdom and South Africa and has published extensively on African history and politics.
ISBN: 978 2 38234092 CODESRIA 2022
Out Of Stock
Politics, Religion and Power in the Great Lakes Region covers the political, religious and power relations in the contemporary Great Lakes States: Uganda, Rwanda, Burundi, the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC), Tanzania, Kenya and the Sudan. The work is important because of the nexus between these countries' shared present and past - their political, socio-economic, cultural and historical aspirations. In terms of regional cooperation, they are the countries, save for the DRC and the Sudan, which form the current East African Community (EAC).
The book reflects on the complex dynamics and strategies of the ensuing power struggle, bringing forth a unique set of fascinating revelations of patterns of primitive capital accumulation, resistance, human rights violations and the political compromises between traditional enemies when confronted by a common (foreign) enemy. A critical analysis of the political distortion the region suffered brings to light the relevance of these divisive tools on the current trends in the African countries, drawing inferences from the African Great Lakes Region (GLR).
The study highlights how the conflicts were finally resolved to avert a serious war, thus bringing about new reforms. This history is instructive to the contemporary reader because of the frequent skirmishes caused by ethnic and religious differences, political and territorial conflicts as well as resource and leadership disputes in the GLR.
Murindwa-Rutanga is a professor of Political Science at Makerere University. He holds a Bachelor of Arts Degree in Political Science from Makerere University, and a Master of Art Degree in the same discipline from the same University. He has a one-year postgraduate certificate in Research Training methods from the prestigious centre for studies in Social Science, Calcutta and a degree of Doctor of Philosophy (PhD) in Political Science from Jadavpur University, Kolkata, India. He is a former Head of the Political Science Department, Makerere University and he is serving as external examiner for different universities. He has authored numerous articles and published widely locally, regionally and internationally. He co-edited three volumes of Confronting Twenty-First Century Challenges. His fields of specialisation include politics, labour and social movements, as well as agrarian, gender, subaltern, religious and cultural studies.
ISBN: 978 286978 492 5
CODESRIA 2011