The crisis of French imperialism: debating military coups in Africa
Ndongo Samba Sylla
Abstract:Since 2020, the African continent has witnessed a series of nine successful military coups, prompting the narrative of a ‘return of coups’ and a ‘democracy backslide’. This article argues that this view is flawed: it is based on data that are both superficial and devoid of historical contextualisation. These putsches, instead, signal first and foremost the crisis of French imperialism in Africa, as they have mostly happened in former French colonies. This article also analyses how these coups differ from those… Show more
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