Africa money-making democracy

Democracy is a political system that most African people have contested, challenged, questioned and ultimately perceived as flawed. According to generally accepted definition, democracy is government of the people, by the people and for the people. The fantasy of a people-led state is romantic and utopic enough to make the poorest of the poor, now termed the precariat (“precarious proletariat”), desire such a system. But these beliefs hide the sharp rich-poor and gender divide that make the often male-dominated minority wealthy class the sole proprietors of governance, muddled as democratic. Despite its talk of freedom and equality, democracy maintains a chaotic, capitalistic society in which love for riches, wealth and power outweighs our humanity. No capitalistic state respects indigenous communities beyond its borders if doing so comes in conflict with profit-making and power-brokering – and China is no different from Western countries in this regard.

Terence Njogu's opinion piece in the Daily Nation of April 17, 2014 titled Ethics that China can teach African States implores Africa to learn and appreciate Chinese “non-interference” policy. Mr. Njogu states, “Despite its rising global status, China has remained humble and respectful to other developing countries and values the principle of equality and non-interference.” Yet to whom does this respect extend? Respect for local communities and Kenyan society in general? Or respect and humbleness toward the well-connected government officials who issue Chinese companies with business licenses, give them community-owned land for mining or farming, and facilitate the displacement of thousands of people around Africa? And consequently a strategy to build tensions between Africa and the west, who are also profit driven- this deserves a whole different analysis by itself.

An ideal African democracy would be home-grown from the grassroots, an alternative to governance in partnership with capitalism, whether Western or Eastern. Such democracy might borrow and learn from other continents, but importantly it would learn from the African past and present to build a stable future in all social spheres. But today, Africa's restless majority of the poor and marginalized people are easily swayed by political rhetoric, effortlessly manipulated into extremism and xenophobic sentiments, and encouraged to act on behalf of elites with whom they share nothing in common. Very few attempt a deeper analysis of how local and international economic interests use regional politics to achieve their profit-making objectives.

A September 17, 2013 BBC story asked the question, Is China’s non-interference policy sustainable? This policy, developed by Premier Zhou Enlai during the 1950s, upholds values such as respect for other nations' sovereignty, non-aggression and peaceful co-existence. In fact, modern Africa-China relationships date back to about the same time, when most African nations were gaining independence. This was a strategic move for China in a period when the African continent sought allies in its liberation struggles.

But during the same era, China had already begun its involvement in neighbouring countries. In her book Word on Fire: How Exporting Free Market Democracy Breeds Ethnic and Global Instability, Amy Chua records that “1 percent Chinese in Vietnam controlled an estimated 90 percent of non-European private capital and dominated Vietnam’s retail trade, its financial, manufacturing, and transportation sectors, and all aspects of the country’s rice economy.”

There are indeed lessons worth learning from the Chinese. For instance, the state implements policies to support the welfare of the Chinese people. Just like in any setup, such support and stability enables a majority Chinese to venture into enterprising industries all over the world.

It is this inflow of Chinese entrepreneurs that today causes panic among the poor indigenous majority in Africa. Ruffling the feathers of hustling Kenya, hawkers went to the streets in August 2012 to protest what they claimed was an “invasion” of downtown shops and informal markets operated by Chinese people The hawkers insisted that they did not hate the Chinese – they were only concerned for their own economic wellbeing.

Such protests have been experienced elsewhere. In Namibia, an increasing number of Chinese businesses had been established, outraging local businesspeople over concerns of unfair competition regarding State tenders. The trade and industry minister, Hage Geingob, took a stand to ban foreign investments in hair salons and public transport. The government “introduced a permit system for new shop - owners,” reported Tessa Thorniley in Chinese Entrepreneurs in Africa, Land of a Billion Customers. In Gabon, Chinese businesses ventured into rural areas, selling cheap Chinese goods in regions most investors would not dare penetrate due to infrastructural and market challenges. The influx of Chinese entrepreneurs increased tensions with local businesses competing for the same market.

In his collected essays Popular Struggles for Democracy in Africa, Prof. Anyang Nyong'o notes that despite repressive regimes in Africa, the people will always fight for liberation. But it is vital to note that such liberation means not only a struggle against repressive African regimes. It is also a struggle against international imperialist, capitalist and neo-colonial structures and their local allies. When these systems are shattered, then Africa can stand tall and move toward a localized democracy.

Unfortunately, international economic and political systems are often analysed separately vis-à-vis African democracy. Consider the sensitive issue of land. Land is one great resource all over the world. Land has wreaked havoc, been a cause of wars and the death of millions. Most African people depend on land for livelihood, but when such a resource is taken away from the people by a minority wealthy elite both from Africa and abroad, democracy will remain a dream. How do the African states and the international community expect millions of people to sit back, talk of human rights, dignity and democracy, and yet quietly endure institutionalized systems and relationships promoting massive exploitation of people around the world? Surely, this is not “respectful”.

Yet it is exactly what China has done. A minority of powerful, and often corrupt, African elites offer market privatization and favourable conditions for Chinese business, making pursuit of profits in Africa by Chinese companies more extreme than ever. Returning to Kenya, China has chosen to ignore cases of human rights abuse, unlike the West, and does not outrightly protest issues such as corruption. The Sino-Kenya relationship coined by former president Mwai Kibaki has seen current president Uhuru Kenyatta further court the Chinese. In 2011, a delegation from China's Lanzhou University visited Kenya at the invitation of the Director of the Kenya Agricultural Research Institute (KARI). The visit's purpose was to have the university assist KARI in devising sustainable farming practices. Professor Fengmin Li of Lanzhou University told the audience, “We hope the Kenyan Government will prioritise support for an initiative which will give Chinese researchers access to new facilities.”

In October 2013, Lanzhou University researchers again visited, this time through the Jomo Kenyatta University Faculty of Agriculture. But to what extent are local communities involved in such high-level meetings, dealings and contracts?

The current government looks up to China to provide prudent, modern agricultural methods and small loans to farmers. Provision of raw materials and natural resources by Africa helps China fuel its heavy industrial economy. What would happen to local and indigenous communities if they protested the Chinese influence over most major sectors of the Kenya economy?

History records the 1989 June Fourth Incident, when Chinese military massacred student protesters in Beijing's Tiananmen Square. The demonstrators had been calling for “accountability, freedom of press and speech, and restoration of workers' control over industries.” In the aftermath of the attack, the international community imposed sanctions and arms embargoes on China. And since then, Chinese foreign policy engagement has shifted from the West toward Africa.

Whether instituting bilateral trade policies or learning from China, the East, or the West, African states must rethink democratic approaches contextualized to the people’s most crucial needs and interests- not maximum profit to the few.

* Wairimu Gitau is a writer/researcher/photographer and founder of www.mathareradio.com She blogs as wairimugitau.blogspot.com

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