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The Palgrave Handbook of African Politics, Governance and Development pp 321–333Cite as

Palgrave Macmillan

Identity Politics and Wars of Secession in Africa

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Abstract

The chapter seeks to assess the critical narrative surrounding identity politics on the African continent. I argue that the politicisation of identity groups, usually mobilised along race, language, ethnicity, indigeneity and religion, often intensifies in areas where the control of established states has disappeared or seems to be lacking. Identity politics is the by-product of the varied nature and interpretation of our existence as a human race. In essence, identity politics cannot function without the underlying assumption that it very much matters who I am, who you are and what possibilities are open or closed for us to form a collective. The chapter concludes that if identity politics is not properly addressed, it could lead to armed conflict and in some cases outright secession.

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Notes

  1. 1.

    Eisenberg, Avigail. & Kymlicka, Will. 2011. Bringing Institutions back in how Public Institutions Assess Identity, in Eisenberg, Avigail. & Kymlicka, Will (eds) Identity Politics in the Public Realm: Bringing Institutions Back In. UBC Press, Toronto, p. 1.

  2. 2.

    Clapham, Christopher. 1998. Introduction: Analysing African Insurgencies, in Clapham, Christopher. (ed) African Guerrillas. James Currey, Oxford , p. 6.

  3. 3.

    Mamdani , Mahmood. 1996. Citizen and Subject: Contemporary Africa and the legacy of late Colonialism. Princeton University Press, New Jersey, p. 24.

  4. 4.

    Eisenberg, Avigail. & Kymlicka, Will. 2011. Bringing Institutions back in how Public Institutions Assess Identity, in Eisenberg, Avigail. & Kymlicka, Will (eds) Identity Politics in the Public Realm: Bringing Institutions Back In. UBC Press, Toronto, p. 1.

  5. 5.

    Stanford University, 2002. Identity Politics available @ http://plato.stanford.edu/entries/identity-politics/ accessed on 15/08/16.

  6. 6.

    Alcoff, Linda Martin. & Mohanty, Satya. 2006. Reconsidering Identity Politics: An Introduction, in Alcoff, Linda, Hames-Garcia, Michael, Mohanty, Satya. & Moya, Paula. (eds) Identity Politics Reconsidered. Palgrave Macmillan, New York. p. 2.

  7. 7.

    Ibid.

  8. 8.

    Eisenberg, Avigail. & Kymlicka, Will. 2011. Bringing Institutions back in how Public Institutions Assess Identity, in Eisenberg, Avigail. & Kymlicka, Will (eds) Identity Politics in the Public Realm: Bringing Institutions Back In. UBC Press, Toronto, p. 2.

  9. 9.

    Ibid.

  10. 10.

    Lloyd, Moya. 2005. Beyond Identity Politics: Feminism, Power and Politics. Sage Publications, London. p. 5.

  11. 11.

    D’Cruz, Carolyn. 2008. Identity Politics in Deconstruction: Calculating with the Incalculable. Ashgate Publishing Limited, Hamsphire, England, p. 11.

  12. 12.

    Melvern, Linda. 2000. A People Betrayed: The role of the West in Rwanda’s Genocide. Zed Books, New York. p. 8.

  13. 13.

    Ibid. p. 9.

  14. 14.

    Salem, Claude. 1975. Pluralism in the Ivory Coast: The Persistence of Ethnic identities in a one party state. PhD Thesis, University of California, Los Angeles, p. 2.

  15. 15.

    Melvern, Linda. 2000. A People Betrayed: The role of the West in Rwanda’s Genocide. Zed Books, New York. p. 13–14.

  16. 16.

    Ibid. p. 16.

  17. 17.

    Salem, Claude. 1975. Pluralism in the Ivory Coast: The Persistence of Ethnic identities in a one party state. PhD Thesis, University of California, Los Angeles, p. 4.

  18. 18.

    Ibid. p. 5.

  19. 19.

    Ibid. p. 6.

  20. 20.

    Ibid. p. 7.

  21. 21.

    Mustapha Abdul, Raufu. 1998. ‘Identity Boundaries, Ethnicity and National Integration in Nigeria’, Nnoli, Okwudiba (ed), Ethnic Conflicts in Africa , Dakar: Codesria, p. 27.

  22. 22.

    Ibid. p. 28.

  23. 23.

    Ruiters, Michele. 2008. ‘Contested Politics in Africa: The state, identity and resources’, Global Insight, Issue 77, p. 3.

  24. 24.

    Akindes, Francis. 2004. The Roots of the Military-Political crises in Cote d’Ivoire’, Uppsala: NAI, Research Report no128, p. 27.

  25. 25.

    Ruiters, Michele. 2008. ‘Contested Politics in Africa: The state, identity and resources’, Global Insight, Issue 77, p. 3.

  26. 26.

    Akindes, Francis. 2004. The Roots of the Military-Political crises in Cote d’Ivoire ’, Uppsala: NAI, Research Report no128, p. 29.

  27. 27.

    Ibid. p. 28.

  28. 28.

    Mamdani , Mahmood. 1996. Citizen and Subject: Contemporary Africa and the legacy of late Colonialism. James Currey, London, p. 25.

  29. 29.

    Ibid.

  30. 30.

    Pool, David. 1998. The Eritrean People’s Liberation Front, in Clapham, Christopher. (ed) African Guerrillas. James Currey, Oxford, p. 22.

  31. 31.

    Ibid.

  32. 32.

    Johnson, Donglas. 1998. The Sudan People’s Liberation Army and the problem of Factionalism, in Clapham, Christopher. (ed) African Guerrillas. James Currey, Oxford, p.53.

  33. 33.

    Ibid. p. 55.

  34. 34.

    Ibid.

  35. 35.

    Ibid. p. 58.

  36. 36.

    Clapham, Christopher. 1998. Introduction: Analysing Africa Insurgencies, in Clapham, Christopher. (ed) African Guerrillas. James Currey, Oxford, p. 18.

References

  • Akindes, Francis. 2004. The Roots of the Military-Political Crises in Côte d’Ivoire’. NAI, Research Report No. 128, Uppsala.

    Google Scholar 

  • Alcoff, Linda Martin, and Satya Mohanty. 2006. Reconsidering Identity Politics: An Introduction. In Identity Politics Reconsidered, ed. Linda Alcoff, Michael Hames-Garcia, Satya Mohanty, and Paula Moya. New York: Palgrave Macmillan.

    Chapter  Google Scholar 

  • Clapham, Christopher. 1998. Introduction: Analysing Africa Insurgencies. In African Guerrillas, ed. Christopher Clapham. James Currey: Oxford.

    Google Scholar 

  • D’Cruz, Carolyn. 2008. Identity Politics in Deconstruction: Calculating with the Incalculable. Hamsphire, UK: Ashgate Publishing Limited.

    Google Scholar 

  • Eisenberg, Avigail, and Will Kymlicka. 2011. Bringing Institutions Back in How Public Institutions Assess Identity. In Identity Politics in the Public Realm: Bringing Institutions Back In, ed. Avigail Eisenberg and Will Kymlicka. Toronto: UBC Press.

    Google Scholar 

  • Johnson, Donglas. 1998. The Sudan People’s Liberation Army and the Problem of Factionalism. In African Guerrillas, ed. Christopher Clapham. Oxford: James Currey.

    Google Scholar 

  • Lloyd, Moya. 2005. Beyond Identity Politics: Feminism, Power and Politics. London: Sage Publications.

    Google Scholar 

  • Mamdani, Mahmood. 1996. Citizen and Subject: Contemporary Africa and the Legacy of Late Colonialism. New Jersey: Princeton University Press.

    Google Scholar 

  • Melvern, Linda. 2000. A People Betrayed: The Role of the West in Rwanda’s Genocide. New York: Zed Books.

    Google Scholar 

  • Mustapha, Abdul Raufu. 1998. Identity Boundaries, Ethnicity and National Integration in Nigeria. In Ethnic Conflicts in Africa, ed. Okwudiba Nnoli. Dakar: Codesria.

    Google Scholar 

  • Pool, David. 1998. The Eritrean People’s Liberation Front. In African Guerrillas, ed. Christopher Clapham. Oxford: James Currey.

    Google Scholar 

  • Ruiters, Michele. 2008. Contested Politics in Africa: The State, Identity and Resources’. Global Insight, Issue 77.

    Google Scholar 

  • Salem, Claude. 1975. Pluralism in the Ivory Coast: The Persistence of Ethnic Identities in a One Party State. PhD Thesis, University of California, Los Angeles.

    Google Scholar 

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Author information

Authors and Affiliations

  1. Africa Institute of South Africa, Human Sciences Research Council, Pretoria, South Africa

    Nicasius Achu Check

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  1. Nicasius Achu Check
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Editors and Affiliations

  1. Thabo Mbeki African Leadership Institute, University of South Africa, Johannesburg, South Africa

    Samuel Ojo Oloruntoba

  2. Department of History, University of Texas at Austin, Austin, Texas, USA

    Toyin Falola

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Check, N.A. (2018). Identity Politics and Wars of Secession in Africa. In: Oloruntoba, S., Falola, T. (eds) The Palgrave Handbook of African Politics, Governance and Development. Palgrave Macmillan, New York. https://doi.org/10.1057/978-1-349-95232-8_19

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