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In The Roots of Ethnicity, Ronald R. Atkinson argues that although colonial rule and its aftermath have played a major role in shaping the particular manifestations of ethnicity in Africa, many sociohistorical developments crucial to current expressions of ethnicity can be traced to a past long before the colonial period. Atkinson develops his argument through an exhaustive examination of the origins of the collective identity of the Acholi of present-day northern Uganda. His study makes clear that by the time of European conquest the essential foundations and the crucial parameters for the evolution of Acholi society and ethnic consciousness had long been established. In presenting his argu...
Patrick William Otim argues that the Acholi people of northern Uganda, who helped Europeans spread colonial rule and Christianity, were far more politically savvy than previously understood.
First scholarly treatment of Uganda's first elected ruler; offers new insights into the religious and political history of modern Uganda.
Ethnicity and Nationalism in Africa features a series of 'constructivist' contributions by leading scholars in the field of ethnicity and nationalism, and explores the differences among those who have come to be known as 'constructivists'. The contributors reflect upon ongoing methodological debates in ethnography, historiography, and political theory. They demonstrate the diversity of concepts and methods within constructivism, and assess the political implications of the concepts themselves. The debate between them is inter-disciplinary, critical and innovative, and should be of value to anyone interested in the study of ethnicity and nationalism.
Many developing countries find themselves in seemingly intractable internal conflicts, hindering them from moving on into a more stable, secure and wealthy environment. It seems that underdevelopment and conflict go hand in hand. Underdevelopment most often implies large streams of development aid channeled into countries at war. The work evaluates to what extent an increase in development aid affects conflict ripeness. The research shows that the effect is ambivalent: it depends on the conditions of provision whether it is positive or negative. In general, an ‘increase in development aid’ decreases the intensity of one of the ingredients to conflict ripeness: the mutually hurting stalemate. However, if embedded into a smart strategy, an ‘increase in development aid’ enhances the second ingredient to conflict ripeness: the sense of a way out. By that it counterbalances the negative effect and thus fosters the phase of ripeness, creating an ideal starting position for a subsequent peace process.
A bottom-up analysis of what displaced people need rather than what states want
An ethnographic examination of how northern Ugandans understand and attempt to control their moral universe and material circumstances in the midst of civil war.
The Raging Storm: A Reporter’s Inside Account of the Northern Uganda War, 1986-2005 is a highly personal and inside account of the northern Uganda war by a young woman whose early encounter with the conflict was as an on-the-ground war correspondent. Caroline Lamwaka’s experiences as a war-time journalist inform the narrative, the research and the broader perspective of an academically trained war and peace researcher. The book examines four phases of the northern Uganda war. These are: the war in Acholi, Lango and Teso; the peace efforts to end the war; the impact of the war; and coping with the impact of insurgency. Caroline Lamwaka joins other authentic voices examining the northern Uganda war.
A history of a political practice through which East Africans have sought to create calm, harmonious polities for five hundred years. “To speak and be heard” is a uniquely Ugandan approach to government that aligns power with groups of people that actively demonstrate their assent both through their physical presence and through essential gifts of goods and labor. In contrast to a parliamentary democracy, the Ugandan system requires a level of active engagement much higher than simply casting a vote in periodic elections. These political strategies—assembly, assent, and powerful gifts—can be traced from before the emergence of kingship in East Africa (ca. 1500) through enslavement, c...
This history of African motherhood over the longue durée demonstrates that it was, ideologically and practically, central to social, economic, cultural and political life. The book explores how people in the North Nyanzan societies of Uganda used an ideology of motherhood to shape their communities. More than biology, motherhood created essential social and political connections that cut across patrilineal and cultural-linguistic divides. The importance of motherhood as an ideology and a social institution meant that in chiefdoms and kingdoms queen mothers were powerful officials who legitimated the power of kings. This was the case in Buganda, the many kingdoms of Busoga, and the polities of Bugwere. By taking a long-term perspective from c.700 to 1900 CE and using an interdisciplinary approach - drawing on historical linguistics, comparative ethnography, and oral traditions and literature, as well as archival sources - this book shows the durability, mutability and complexity of ideologies of motherhood in this region.