Ethnicity
refers to the social group of people who identify with each other based on
common ancestral culture, social or national experience.[1]Memberships
of ethnic tend to be associated with shared culture heritage, history homeland
or ideology and with symbolic system such as religion, dressing style, physical
appearance and mythodology.
Ethnized
politics is the situation in which political
activities in the particular society is characterised by ethnic/ tribes basis
such as way that each ethnic group fight/ struggle to acquire political power.
Normally it is featured by regionalism and tribalism.
The
struggle for independence is the product of European advent and power in
Africa. The European advent created the territorial boundaries that have
constituted the geographical basis of nationalism. Before the advent of this
physical expressions or basis of today’s nationalism was no- existent.
Creation of these territories in African land
especially inter-tribe territories created regionalism, and tribalism that lead
to the struggle for independence based on ethnic groups even after independence.
For
the purpose of this discussion our case study will only focus in Kenya.
The
struggle for independence in Kenya developed into two main phases which are
proto-nationalism and mass nationalism as explained bellow;
Proto-
nationalism. This was the movement of people existed before 1945, to fight against
colonial domination. Proto- nationalist organization in Kenya based on ethnic groups
culminated into the Mau Mau war against British colonial and the settler
community. Proto- nationalism was ethnically based on the sense that each group
fought for their own interest for example kikuyu was one of the ethnic group
who fought against British land alienation and forced labour. Apart from kikuyu
there were other tribes who fought for their alienated land these include
Kipsigis, Maasai, Abuluhya and Kamba. For example about 12,200 square miles or
5.5 percent of the total land area was alienated.[2]
Therefore, due to the problem above, the Africans lost their right to own their
land as the result led to masses with no land. Also the landless people in
Kenya were now used as forced labourers to British settler farms with low wages
something that made then to organize in ethnic group to fought against land
alienation and forced labour.
The
war had a considerable impact in acceleration the struggle and achievement of independence.
The proto-nationalist movement had progressive tendencies in the sense that
they all made considerable contribution to the anti-colonial struggle.
With
the formation of political parties’ proto-nationalist as well as civil society
become very important in mobilizing nationals struggle, but most of them based
on ethnic which led the foundation for the emergence and growth of ethnized
political parties and therefore ethinized politics, which began take place in
1950’s. Examples of such organizations include the Kalenjin political alliance,
the Maasai united front and the Abuluhya political union.[3]
From 1960’s the Kenya nationalist politics had already been ethnized. Even when
country wide or political parties such as KANU ( Kenya Africa national union)
and KADU ( Kenya African democratic union were formed they were still characterised
as ethnic parties as oyugi state;
The lifting of the ban
on territorial political organization in 1960 came at a time when Kenya body
politic was already ethnized. Formation of country wide political parties was
as would be expected treated with suspicion by those who would not control
them. In deed the proliferation of ethnic
based parties between 1955-1962 was an attempt by such actors to establish a
frame-work within which to bargain if not compete at the centre. It is against
that background that both Kenya Africa national union (KANU) Kenya African
democratic union (KADU) emerged as ethnic political parties.[4]
It
is no doubt that KANU and KADU were Jomo Kenyatta was rest ethnical based
parties because KANU was supported by kikuyu and Luo alliance while KADU (
Kenya African Democratic Union) was supported by Maasai, coastal ethnic groups
and the Luhya.
Furthermore
, both KANU and KADU had a character of territorial nationalist political
parties as they played very important role during the struggle for independence
to mobilize all Kenyan people into anti-colonial struggle within the context of
ethicized politics.
At
independence Kenya had a multi-party system with three political parties namely
Kenya Africa national union (KANU), Kenya African democratic Union(KADU) and
Africa people party (APP) whereby all of these political parties based on ethnic
character. This means that APP was based on Kamba, KADU was based on minority
ethnic group and KANU was based on Kikuyu and Luo.
This
ethnic politics increased even when Kenya attained her independence in 1963-
under multiparty system like KANU, KADU, and APP. Soon after independence, KANU
become a ruling party under the control of President Jomo Kenyatta. After entering
into office, Kenyatta take stapes which make it difficult for the opposition
political parties to operate. Example of the steps taken by President Jomo
Kenyatta was restricting provision of government financial support to the
opposition political parties. This led to the opposition political parties to
dissolve themselves in 1964.
Following
withdraw of the opposition political parties; Kenya became Mono-party under
President Jomo Kenyatta.
The
action taken by President Kenyatta contributed much ethnized politics in Kenya
which result to ethnic scramble started taking place within KANU. This
situation led to the split of KANU and emergence of other political party
namely Kenya people’s Union (KPU) under the control of Oginga Odinga in 1966. The split of KANU was
due to the fact that since KANU was support by kikuyu and Luo but later on
president Kenyatta favoured kikuyu and left Luo hopeless something that led
to dissatisfaction of Luo- as the result
Luo decided to form their own political party known as KPU under the leadership of Oginga Odinga.
After
the rise of KPU as other political party in Kenya under Luo lead to the rise of
conflict between KANU leaders and KPU leaders. About 1969 Tom Mboya the
secretary general of KANU was assassinated. His assassination provoked ethnic
tension between the Luo and the kikuyu. Following this event, resulted into the
arrest and detention of Odinga and other KPU leaders, also KPU was banned by
the government. The banning of KPU, made the kikuyu to enjoy privilege in
politics matters.
Following
the death of Jomo Kenyatta on 22 august 1978, vice president Daniel Arap Moi
become president formally after he was elected head of KANU, in June 1982, the
national assembly amend the constitution that claim officially Kenya to be
mono-party state.
The
leadership of Moi was embraced by all Kenyans with hope and high expectation that
he will change the existing ethnic politics but unfortunately Moi introduce
what so called footsteps.
Moi
stated clearly that “he is going to follow the foot step of Kenyatta” which
granted the expectation of the citizen futile.[5] “As Kenyatta had used a kikuyu power based of
promoting disproportional for his community, the Kalenjin. KANU soon became a
vehicle to promote Kalenjin political sentiments. By 1990, most senior position
the govern-owned corporations’ were held by Kalenjin.”
After
the shift of the power based from the kikuyu to Kalenjin the mono-party system
under Moi was highly associated by abuse of human right, economic corruption
and sharp political patronage. All these lead to the ethnic tension and
consciousness as marginalization and dipertispation of many powerful ethnic
groups into political and social economic system grew, these was first
reflected by the formation of ethnic associations which thought their objective
was welfare issues. Some of ethnic associations are such as Gikuyu-Embu-Meru
associations (GEMA), the Luo union and new Akamba union were formed during
1980’s
Following
the formation of ethnic associations lead to the movements demanding democratization
and multipartism although the government resisted. But in 1991 the government
made it possible multipartism due to pressure from within and international
donor community.
In
1991 while demands and struggles for multipartism were taking place, violent
ethnic clashes erupted in October 1991 in the rift valley province which
comprises western province districts these clashes were started by the Kalenjin people who comprise of the Nandi, Tugen, Markwet,
Kipsigis and Sabact, they use spears, bows and arrows and other weapons they launched
the attack on kikuyu, Luo, Luhya and Kisii who since the colonial period had settled
in the rift valley province[6]
The
ethnic clashes were very serious. It caused death and injuries, internal
displacements, destitution and intensive destruction of resources. The
agricultural, economic and social infrastructure was highly affected. Crops,
livestock and other properties were destroyed and cause starvation to the
people. Houses were burnt and some people had to abandon their farm and home
resulting into more than 250,000 internally displaced people.[7]
At
the mid of 1992, 1500 people had lost their lives, 600 people were injured,
56,000 families lost their property and about Kshs,
210 million (4 millions us dollars0 worth of property was destroyed.
The
ethnic politics during the regime of president Daniel Arap Moi continued until 2000 where by different
ethnic groups support the political parties of their side something that led to
the political instability, tribalism and regionalism among the Kenyans.
Generally,
the ethnized politics in Kenya is the historical phenomenon which has been
emerged since the struggle for independence. Thus made the Kenyans to fight for
themselves resulted into deaths, regionalism and tribalism. This ehthized politics
is evidenced even today despite the fact that the international communities
like United Nations Organisation (UNO)
and Africa unity (AU) put much effort to ensure that Kenya ethnized politics is removed for
example in the 2007 general election Kenya entered into conflict that costed
the life of thousands of people after orange democratic movement under Laila
Odinga to mobilize his Luo tribe to refuse the election outcomes in which Mwai
Kibaki worn the voters under the National Rainbow Coalition (NARC). Ethnized
politics is not only the problem of Kenya but this problem is also affect most
African countries as we see it in Nigeria currently.
REFERENCES
Gaudence,P.
Mpangala(2002). Ethnic conflicts in the
region of great lake: origins and prospects
For
change. Dar es Salaam: instate of Kiswahili
research.
Preeti
patel(2001). Multiparty politics in Kenya:
volumes xxi/no.1; research fellow. London
www.south
sudan news agency.com ethnic politics in Kenya. A history of south sudan should
lear from kuach. Y. Tu tkat, 2014/24, January. 23:40
Wikipedia
2014/24 January 16:30
[2] Gaudence,P. Mpangala(2002). Ethnic
conflicts in the region of great lake: origins and prospects for change.
[3]
Oyugi Ibid. Pg 52
[4] Ibid.
Pg 53
[6] Ayot in Gaudence,P.
Mpangala(2002). Ethnic conflicts in the region of great lake: origins and
prospects for change. Pg 55
[7] Wamue in Gaudence,P.
Mpangala(2002). Ethnic conflicts in the region of great lake: origins and
prospects for change. Pg 56
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