Defeating dictators : fighting tyranny in Africa and around the world

278 Pages·2011·1.88 MB·English

by  George

DEFEATING DICTATORS
FIGHTING TYRANNY IN AFRICA AND AROUND
THE WORLD
GEORGE B. N. AYITTEY
ALSO BY GEORGE B. N. AYITTEY
AND AVAILABLE FROM PALGRAVE MACMILLAN
Africa Betrayed
Africa in Chaos
Africa Unchained
DEFEATING DICTATORS
Copyright ©, George B. N. Ayittey, 2011.
All rights reserved.
First published in 2011 by PALGRAVE MACMILLAN® in the United States—a division of St. Martin’s
Press LLC, 175 Fifth Avenue, New York, NY 10010.
Where this book is distributed in the UK, Europe and the rest of the world, this is by Palgrave Macmillan, a
division of Macmillan Publishers Limited, registered in England, company number 785998, of Houndmills,
Basingstoke, Hampshire RG21 6XS.
Palgrave Macmillan is the global academic imprint of the above companies and has companies and
representatives throughout the world.
Palgrave® and Macmillan® are registered trademarks in the United States, the United Kingdom, Europe
and other countries.
ISBN: 978-0-230-10859-2
Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data Ayittey, George B. N., 1945– Defeating dictators :
fighting tyranny in Africa and around the world / George B.N. Ayittey.
p. cm.
Includes bibliographical references and index.
ISBN 978-0-230-10859-2 (hardback)
1. Democratization—Africa. 2. Regime change—Africa. 3. Dictatorship—Africa. 4. Africa—Politics and
government—1960–5. Democratization. 6. Regime change. 7. Dictatorship. I. Title.
JQ1879.A15A98 2011
320.96—dc23
A catalogue record of the book is available from the British Library.
Design by Letra Libre Inc.
First edition: November 2011
10 9 8 7 6 5 4 3 2 1
Printed in the United States of America.
Dedicated to the freedom activists who have died in the last few years fighting
tyrannical regimes Abdelbaki Djabali, Ahmed Benchemsi, Lounes Matoub
(Algeria)
Oleg Bebenin (Belarus)
Wang Bingzhang, Hu Jia, Gao Zhisheng, Liu Xiaobo, Yu Jie (China)
Delphie Namuto, Caddy Adzuba, and Bruno Koko Chirambiza (Congo DR)
Khaled Mohamed Saeed, Salaheddin Mohsen, Saad Eddin Ibrahim (Egypt)
Matewos Habteab, Amanuel Asrat, Medhanie Haile, Yusuf Mohamed Ali,
Saïd Abdelkader, Fessehaye Yohannes, Yusuf Mohamed Ali, Saïd
Abdelkader, and Medhanie Haile (Eritrea) ShiBire Desalegn, Tensae
Zegeye, Habtamu Tola, Binyam Degefa, Behailu Tesfaye, Kasim Ali
Rashid, Teodros Giday Hailu, Adissu Belachew, Milion Kebede Robi,
Desta Umma Birru, Tiruwork G. Tsadik, Elfnesh Tekle, Abebeth Huletu,
Regassa Feyessa, Teshome Addis Kidane, and Birtukan Midekssa
(Ethiopia) Deyda Hydara, Sarata Jabbi, Pa Modou Faal, Pap Saine, Ebrima
Sawaneh, Sam Sarr, and Abubacarr (The Gambia) Sanah Jaleh, Mohamad
Mokhtari, Neda Agha-Soltan, Klan Tajbakhsh, Muhammad-Reza Ali-
Zamani (Iran) Idrees Boufayed, Daif Al Ghazal, Abd al-Raziq al-Mansuri,
Fathi Eljahmi, and the rebels (Libya) Kamsulum Kazeem, Tunde Oladepo,
and Tunde Salau (Nigeria)
Hwang Jang Yop and other pro-democracy activists (North Korea) Anna
Politkovskaya, Anastasia Baburova, Natalya Estemirova, Stanislav
Markelov, Mikhail Beketov, Oleg Kashin, Anatoly Adamchuk, and others
(Russia) Jean-Leonard Rugambage, Andre Kagwa Rwiserek, and Victoire
Ingabire (Rwanda) Yousif Kuwa Mekki (Sudan)
Tal al-Mallohi (Syria)
Mohammed Bouazizi, Lahseen Naji, Ramzi Al-Abboudi, Mohamed
Ammari, Chawki Belhoussine El Hadri (Tunisia) Jimmy Higenyi, Dr.
James Rwanyare (Uganda)
Godknows Dzoro Mtshakazi, Gift Tandere, Shepherd Ndungu (Zimbabwe)
CONTENTS
Acknowledgments
INTRODUCTION Advancing the Cause of Liberty
CHAPTER 1 Despotic Regimes Today
CHAPTER 2 Traditional Societies
CHAPTER 3 Indigenous Curbs Against Despotism
CHAPTER 4 The Modus Operandi of Despotic Regimes
CHAPTER 5 The Demise of Despotic Regimes
CHAPTER 6 Stirrings for Freedom
CHAPTER 7 The Strategy
CHAPTER 8 Reversals in Revolutions—And How to Avoid Them
CHAPTER 9 International Impotence and Hindrance
CHAPTER 10 Epilogue
Notes
Bibliography
Index
ACKNOWLEDGMENTS
IN MY STRUGGLES, VARIOUS PEOPLE, both Americans and Africans, as
well as foundations, institutes, and agencies have provided me with support and
encouragement. I owe each one of them a huge debt of gratitude.
The Earhart Foundation in Ann Arbor, Michigan was helpful with funding to
enable me to complete this book. The J. M. Kaplan Fund in New York was
extremely helpful, as was the Cato Institute in Washington, DC.
The Board of Directors of The Free Africa Foundation, its staff, scholars, and
associates must also be mentioned. Keith Colburn of North Brook, Phil Harvey
of DKT International, Mary Kaplan of New York, and Ed Claflin, my literary
agent, among others, have been extremely supportive.
There are many others (Americans, Canadians, South Africans, and other
nationalities) to whom I still owe a debt of gratitude: Lynne Criner, John Fund
(The Wall Street Journal), Georgie Ann Geyer (nationally syndicated
columnist), Ashleigh Emmerson, Elizabeth Dickinson of Foreign Policy, Sandy
and Margaret Matheson, Maggie Beddow, Luba Ostashevsky, Alan Bradshaw,
and others were particularly helpful.
Last but not least have been the numerous Ghanaians and other Africans who
have shown unflappable support for my work and writings. Worthy of mention
are Dr. Shaka Ssali of “Straight Talk Africa,” Mohamed Idris, Karanta Kalley,
Dr. Charles Mensa, Ablorh Odjijah, Rev. G. B. K. Owusu, Vivian Boafo, and
many, many others.
A special gratitude is owed to Emmanuel Odamtten, an administrative
assistant at The Free Africa Foundation, for his diligence, steadfast support, and
research.
In the final analysis, however, the views expressed in this book are my own,
and any errors or misstatements are my sole responsibility.
George B. N. Ayittey, Ph.D.
Washington, D.C.
USA
July 2011
INTRODUCTION
ADVANCING THE CAUSE OF LIBERTY
DEMOCRACY HAS SUFFERED A STEADY DECLINE five consecutive
years in a row. In its 2011 annual report, Freedom House describes this as a
continuing “freedom recession.” It suggests that conventional ways of fighting
dictators are not working and that a re-evaluation is imperative. Despots are
gaining the upper hand; they have learned new tricks and honed their skills to
beat back the democratic challenge.
The purpose of this book is not to present a catalog of grotesque atrocities and
scandalous human rights violations that despots around the world perpetrate
against their own people. The singular purpose is to advance the cause of liberty.
There are millions of people—in Africa, Asia, Central Asia, the Middle East,
and South America—who still labor under the yoke of tyranny and who yearn to
be free. This book seeks to help liberate them. It may seem like a formidable and
impossible task that is strewn with obstacles. But it depends upon the way the
problem—dictatorship—is viewed and tackled.
In the past, and even conventionally, much effort, money, and time have been
spent to reason with, persuade, cajole, or bribe dictators, or even threaten them
with sanctions. Western governments have spent billions in this effort to no or
little avail. A new way of thinking or a different approach is imperative. Leave
the dictators alone for now. They are stone-deaf and impervious to reason.
Railing daily about their abuses of human rights, acts of brutality, and violence
will not alone bring about change. It is time to think about the other side, the
opposition, the prodemocracy activists and reformers. That is the focus of this
book.
Dictators have proliferated, especially in postcolonial Africa, not so much
because of their ingenuity but because of the nature and character of the
opposition forces—both domestic and international—arrayed against them. To
be sure, dictators are crafty, evil geniuses with awesome firepower at their
disposal. They are also brutally efficient at intimidation, terrorism, and mass
slaughter.
However, a force is able to dominate because the counterforce is either
nonexistent or weak. Despots have prevailed for decades because the opposition
forces are weak or crumbling. The purpose of this book, based in part upon my
own personal experience and on lessons garnered from several developing
countries, is to strengthen the opposition forces.
Too many in the West have become complacent or tolerant of despots,
especially in African nations. The standard arguments are, “They have no
democratic tradition”; “Despotism is part of the political culture”; “Dictatorship
is acceptable to them”; and, as French president Jacques Chirac once said,
“Africa is not yet mature enough for Western-style democracy.” Such
misconceptions, resulting from mythology and false assumptions, have informed
many Western policies and foreign aid programs that have failed miserably after
costing hundreds of billions of dollars. The intentions of the policies and
programs might have been laudable, but it is absurd to seek to help a people one
doesn’t understand.
Despotism is not a new political phenomenon to the people of the developing
world. They have encountered it in their traditional societies and devised various
measures to check and deal with it. Chapter 2 takes a look at these traditional
societies, many of which still exist—their social structures, political
organizations, and governments—in which kinship is the articulating principle.
The chief, king, or ruler is not chosen by voting but is appointed with the
approval of a council; governance is based upon consultation with councils, and
decisions are reached by consensus. This appears to be the near-universal style
of governance among the natives of the developing world. Despotism is
incompatible with such systems and is fundamentally alien to most of the natives
of developing countries. Yet the fact that the natives were very much aware of
the threat of despotism suggests that the proliferation of despots in modern times
is the result of the near-total absence of the curbs and checks and balances that
exist in traditional systems. Chapter 3 looks at these curbs.
This way of looking at despotism is different from the conventional and has
two advantages. First, it dispels the offensive notion held by some in the West
that “despotism is acceptable to these people.” It has never been acceptable!
Second, it frames the arguments against despotism in cultural terms, not the
standard Western narrative. This approach invokes a sense of cultural betrayal
by the despots and inoculates the case for freedom against the charge of being
“Western sponsored.” Casting the cause for freedom in a Western or religious
framework polarizes the debate and detracts from the basic issue of liberty. The
West should not tolerate despotism in the developing countries; nor should