Primary patriotism, shifting identity: hometown associations in Manyu Division, south-west Cameroon

Evans, Martin

doi:10.3366/afr.2010.0003

Cited by 3 publications

(4 citation statements)

References 13 publications

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“…Within countries, seasonal migration is limited by sedentarization and the often exclusionary claims of rights and entitlement over land by non-Fulani groups brandishing flags of indigeneity and "primary patriotism" in relation to places and spaces they claim as "bona fide sons and daughters of the soil" (Evans 2010;Geschiere and Gugler 1998;Geschiere andNyamnjoh 1999, 2000;Mouiche 2011;Nkwi 2011b;Nyamnjoh and Rowlands 1998;Pelican 2009). An alternative, for some Fulani, especially those in regions where the harmattan is less harsh, has been to occupy vast amounts of nonfarm land up in the hills and mountains, near water sources.…”

Section: Pulaaku or The Contested Art Of Being Fulanimentioning

confidence: 97%

The Nimbleness of Being Fulani

Nyamnjoh¹

2013

Africa Today

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Section: Pulaaku or The Contested Art Of Being Fulanimentioning

confidence: 97%

The Nimbleness of Being Fulani

Nyamnjoh¹

2013

Africa Today

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“…The growing economic significance of the diaspora in remitting money for livelihoods and development in the village has rendered its relationships with its neighbours less important, making each village increasingly autonomous. In Nigeria, van den Bersselaar (2005) also observes the role of the diasporic community in shaping the spatial form of the village, a process similarly noted in neighbouring Cameroon down to sub-village level (Evans 2010). Beyond the diaspora, however, less consideration is given to the role of external forces in local politico-spatial dynamics as such.…”

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confidence: 94%

Contested spaces, new opportunities: displacement, return and the rural economy in Casamance, Senegal

Evans¹

2014

Displacement Economies in Africa

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IntroductionCasamance is the southwesternmost part of Senegal, largely separated from the rest of the country by The Gambia to the north and bordering Guinea-Bissau to the south. As the scene of West Africa's longestrunning civil conflict, now some 30 years old, Casamance provides a case of displacement economies on a relatively small scale but of long duration. The focus here is on human displacement, understood as the enforced physical dislocation of people, the dynamics of their return and resettlement, and the economic, political and social effects related to these processes. Much of the long-term human displacement in the conflict has occurred in the relatively narrow band of territory between the south bank of the Casamance River and northern border districts of Guinea-Bissau. Following flight and protracted exile from this border area in the 1990s, however, the 2000s and beyond have mostly seen people return, driven by economic and social desperation coupled with generally improved (though still at times volatile) security conditions, and supported by international aid for reconstruction.Building on field research conducted over twelve years, the chapter considers the emergent economic and political landscape of the border area. It shows how this landscape is the result of layers of displacement over two decades, situated within a deeper historical context of migration. From a theoretical perspective, it seeks to understand these dynamics through the concept of 'relational space', formulated in human geography and beginning to be used, if not always explicitly, in studies of displacement. Displacement and Relational SpaceSpace matters, and at the smallest scale; but from a theoretical perspective, it is sometimes all too apparent that different disciplines talk about space in different ways. The analysis presented here takes from human geography the notion of 'relational space' in the sense of David Harvey (2005) and Doreen Massey (2005). This is space constituting and constitutive of social relationships. As Harvey explains, '[p]rocesses do not occur in space but define their own spatial frame. The concept of space is embedded in or internal to process' (2005: 273; emphasis in original). While proponents of relational space (as analytical tool) admit that it is difficult to work with, and impossible to 'map' in any Cartesian or absolute sense, they argue that it is, as social reality, the space in which all people actually operate. Massey (2005: 9) describes this … space as the product of interrelations; as constituted through interactions, from the immensity of the global to the intimately tiny… space as always under construction. Precisely because space on this reading is a product of relations-between, relations which are necessarily embedded material practices which have to be carried out, it is always in the process of being made… Perhaps we could imagine space as a simultaneity of stories-so-far. This highlights two further points about how the concept of relational space works in real contexts. The...

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“…These processes induced the typical rural to urban labour migration, which resulted in the birth of multi-ethnic urban environments where migrants founded mutual aid and home town associations to build solidarity among people hailing from the same village or region, and to contribute to the development of the place of origin, in order to maintain the link with ‘home’ (Little 1957: 581–3; Barkan et al 1991: 461–2; Woods 1994: 466; N'Sanda Buleli 2005: 92–3; Evans 2010: 397–8). These associations fostered a sense of belonging, descent and common culture among urban dwellers, consolidating ethnic identities which were already bureaucratically institutionalised by colonial rulers who classified African communities by assigning to them a unique tribal identity and geographic location (Berman 1998: 321; Evans 2010: 410). In contrast to the static view of primordialists postulating that ethnic identities are given, natural and immutable, Berman (1998: 305) sees modern African ethnicity as ‘a social construction of the colonial period through the reactions of pre-colonial societies to social, economic, cultural and political forces of colonialism’.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Ethnicity and autochthony discourses have great mobilising power because elections rouse fear of being outvoted by ‘strangers’ (Ceuppens & Geschiere 2005: 389) 1 . In this perspective, ethnic and hometown associations have resurged as vehicles for the politics of belonging (Geschiere & Gugler 1998: 313; Evans 2010: 398; Hickey 2011: 42). Elections in Ivory Coast motivated leaders of hometown associations to contest the official land policy which protected migrants by making autochthony claims to gain electoral support of their local base (Chauveau 2000: 113).…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Ethnic associations in Katanga province, the Democratic Republic of Congo: multi-tier system, shifting identities and the relativity of autochthony

Gobbers¹

2016

J. Mod. Afr. Stud.

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This article unravels the world of ethnic associations in Katanga that emerged as a result of rural-urban migration. These associations constitute a multi-tier system reflecting ethnic, provincial and national identity levels. Primarily meant to organise mutual aid and foster cultural values, they have behaved as interest groups since democracy was re-established in the s. Representing ethnic communities, they try to influence the distribution of spoils through lobbying activities, emphasising the right of 'autochthons' to be prioritised regarding employment and development. Political and socio-economic changes trigger identity shifts and ethnic associations adapt by inventing alternative 'autochthony'/'allochthony' dichotomies, causing friction between communities. The multi-tier system provides forums where ethnic differences can be negotiated and ethnic communities can integrate. In its current manner of functioning it is only effective at mitigating acute crises. In order to resolve more complex political issues, it would benefit from a preventive approach within a permanent framework of consultation between associations and authorities.

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Primary patriotism, shifting identity: hometown associations in Manyu Division, south-west Cameroon

Cited by 3 publications

References 13 publications

The Nimbleness of Being Fulani

The Nimbleness of Being Fulani

Contested spaces, new opportunities: displacement, return and the rural economy in Casamance, Senegal

Ethnic associations in Katanga province, the Democratic Republic of Congo: multi-tier system, shifting identities and the relativity of autochthony

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