8/3/2019 Africa_ Joao de Pina-Cabral

1/1

L O N D O N G R I P . . . Politics & Society

ART EXHIBITIONS ONLONDON GRIP:

James N. ButcherWatercolours:

A Late-Life Adventure

Charles GirdhamPhotography

Adam HahnPortraits in oil

David Hirschowitz

Photography

Michael HorovitzRetrospective Art Exhibition

Phillip KotokwaSculpture from Zimbabwe

Zygmunt Nowak-SolinskiPhotography

Cathy MacAulay-Cornishinstallation:

Walking in Bloomsbury

Daphne PlessnerGirlie Paintings

Jacques TouitouPaintings

Sandra Walker, R.I.Watercolours

_______________EXHIBITIONS

Michael Davenportreviews SEDUCED

Teresa HowardArt in ROMANIA:on Cantacuzino

Duncan ProwseHadrian & Babylon at the

British Museum

Ruth RosengartenPainting & Photography

Storm Thorgerson,maker of

Pink Floyds image

_______________FILM, THEATRE, MUSIC

Helen Donlon on femalesexuality inBrian De

Palma'sThe Black Dahlia &Body

DoubleHelen Donlon on filmdirector Philippe GarrelHelen Donlon on Ibiza

opening seasonmid-season

closing seasonHelen Donlon on Savage

Grace

Patricia Morrisreviews Redacted -Brian de Palmas

latest film on Iraq

Pamela Nomveteinterviewed by Jessica

Campbell

B.J.Rahn onShakespeares

Midsummer NightsDream

_______________POLITICS, ECONOMICS

& SOCIETY

ECONOMYMichael Davenport on the

recession

AFRICA

Joo de Pina-CabralRacialised Africa

My May 68London Gripcontributors

Duncan ProwseThe 1960s

BRAZILRuling about Race -

Joo de Pina-Cabral, a social anthropologist, is Research Coordinator at the Institute ofSocial Sciences of the University of Lisbon (Portugal). He has published extensively onnorthern Portugal, Macao, Mozambique and Brazil.

When he was sent a copy of the Open Letter to Africas leaders, signed by the currentArchbishop Tutu Leadership Fellows (see below, left), he was moved to respond in kind andquery each of their five recommendations of change.

The Tribes, the Leaders, the Millionaires:R A C I A L I S E D A F R I C A

an open letterby

J o o d e P i n a - C a b r a l

Each year, twenty high potential individualsfrom across sub-Saharan Africa are awarded theprestigious Archbishop Tutu Leadership Fellowship,following a rigorous competitive selection process.The Awards are aimed at the cream of thecontinents future leaders, specifically targeting thenext generation of Africas leaders in all sectors ofsociety, between the ages of 25 and 39. Thefellowship programme is coordinated by the African

Leadership Institute, and it includes a training programme coordinated by the SAID BusinessSchool at Oxford University.

See www.alinstitute.org

_________________________

Archbishop Desmond Tutu Leadership FellowsFebruary 10, 2008

AN OPEN LETTER TO AFRICAS

PRESENT AND FUTURE LEADERS

This continent has suffered too much. We need theassistance and commitment of young leaders to continue tospeak up on behalf of the poor and the marginalized, and seeka better life for all.--- Archbishop Desmond Tutu, April 2007

From Angola to Zimbabwe, questions abound aboutAfricas present state. All capitals listed betweenAbidjan to Zanzibar, are not new to the rising voicesof Africas sons and daughters who wish to know thefate of their land. Some express this concern throughsilent hope, others through evident fear, and manyothers look in no other direction than that of theirleaders those we have come to know as thecaptains of the ship of the state. Others even arguethat Africas answers remain with future leaders, andnot todays. But there has been a crisis of leadershipin Africa. The hopes and dreams of the citizens ofthis continent have been dashed by our post colonialleaders from the heroes of the liberation strugglesthrough to the leaders of opposition parties thatsubsequently emerged. The citizens of Africa deservea brighter future, and that begins with visionaryleaders who can answer the challenges that Africafaces as part of a global community in the 21stcentury. Recent events across the continent arecause for serious concern: from the crisis ofcorruption in Nigeria, the political tensions in SouthAfrica leading to the 2009 election, or the politicalcrisis in Kenya which is turning a once prosperouscountry into one that is marred by bloodshed and

ethnic tensions. The ongoing conflict in Sudan, thecurrent crisis in Chad, or the socio-political andeconomic meltdown obtaining in Zimbabwe have allcaused great instability in the lives of millions ofAfricans across the continent.

We do not seek to play the usual game of just listingthe problems but join our voices to that of over 920million Africans to demand fair play in politicalprocesses. Though all of our democracies are youngwe expect our leaders to be men and women ofexcellence who respect the electoral process and assuch the wishes of the people. As young people inAfrica who are leaders in politics, business, healthand information technology, we stand together andrecommit ourselves to the ideals of true leadership,and we make the following recommendations:

(a)The establishment of a high-level African Union ledcampaign to fight tribalism and inequality in all itsforms across the continent. Each country shouldestablish a Commission Against Tribalism and

Inequality (CATI) t o fight the scourges, and to protectvulnerable minority groups. CATI should bringpoliticians using ethnic manipulations to perpetrateviolence to justice and stop them from participating infuture political contests;

(b)Political leaders must be servant leaders and usetheir power and influence as a tool for socio-economic change rather than oppression and fuelling

Joo de Pina-Cabral:

Thank you for sending me the recent Open

Letter of the 2007 Archbishop Desmond Tutu

Leadership Fellows, which I read with a shared

sense of urgency. Many of us feel daily deeply

distressed about what is going on in Africa. So,

my African-self shares these peoples sense that

if Kenya goes, what will remain? It would seem

that everyone in the world right now is scared

with what might happen there.

Unfortunately, over the years, my ideas about

the whole thing have evolved and, frankly, I can

no longer agree with the proposed solutions of

the people who write this manifesto. I think that

new thought is needed because the old grooves

have been proven wrong. The courage to have

that new thought does not seem to be about,

however. In any case, let me dialogue with their

five points.

(a) Concerning the need to fight tribalism

and inequality, I get really worried to see

them tying up together two things that do

not belong together. That only increases

the confusion. Tribalism is not going to go

away, in Africa or anywhere else in the

world just wishing wont help, as we have

seen. Throughout the twentieth century,

we watched the beast growing on every

continent and much as we fight against it,

it seems to be staying alive. No one in

their right mind can believe that the

problem of tribalism will just dissolve into

thin air. One might as well work at trying

to transform it into a force for good.

Tribalism in Africa needs to become a form

of African regionalism and, that way, it

might be harnessed. In any case, there is

no such thing as one tribalism there are

as many tribalisms as there are tribalized

contexts in Africa. If the genuine historical

meaning of collective identities is taken

away from them by means of rhetorical

tricks like this one, they will continue to

surprise us in the unreason of their

repeated explosions. If tribalism does not

get transformed into a kind of benevolent

parochialism, it will continue to be

murderous. What makes it monstrous is

that it was never taken into account to

start off with.

(b) Political leaders are people in Africa,

as in Europe, as anywhere the problem is

not with the lack of moral force of the

individual politicians, the problem is withthe const itut ional nature of the

post-colonial regimes. Politicians must feel

that they are part of the people in an

organic way, an historically constructed

way collectives should only be politically

represented by persons who feel that they

home

londongrip

international

cultural magazine

to subscribe

email

londongrip@mac.com

ca: Joao de Pina-Cabral http://www.londongrip.com/LondonGrip/Africa:_Joao_de_Pina-Cabral...

1 07-12-2010 07:58