Democratic Primitivism
Kenya, the Rift Valley, the Leakey family; mother, father, sons paleoanthropologists extraordinaire. Louis Leakey was born in Kenya, was inspired by Darwin to look for evidence that humankind's crucible lay in his country of birth. It was his equally talented wife Mary who discovered the Zinjanthropus cranium at Olduvai Gorge, launching the modern science of paleoanthropology, the study of human origins.The government of Kenya took special pride in their home-grown scientific family of world wide repute. Moving now into the third generation of exploration in this science of human origins. Africa, as the cradle of homo sapiens. A paleolithic history the details of which are still awaiting discovery. Out of that cradle came a people, starting humankind off on its long journey toward self-discovery and self-realization.
European missionaries, it is true, interfered with the natural process in the modern era of the many tribes of Kenya finding their way toward accommodation with one another. Who can say whether their introduction to Christianity hindered or furthered them in their progress, leveraging them away from their traditional beliefs in tribal gods? Colonialism sat uneasily on the tribes, while urging them from their tribal war-culture.
When Great Britain finally relented in the reality of enlightened modernism and Kenya, along with all the other countries of Africa in succession, became self-ruling as imperialism died its last gasps, it was considered a success, despite being ruled by a despot. It's natural wealth carried it into a future that may have arrived earlier because of its colonial status than might have been achieved had that experience not been theirs.
Today Kenya, like many another of its neighbours, considers itself a relatively progressive country measured by the yardstick of the continent's long haul out of a fragmented, subsistence existence. Yet centuries of exposure to the possibilities obtainable when a people distinguishes itself as a nation, have not resulted in wresting the social-political culture away from its primitive tribal allegiances.
And decades of corrupt rule replaced by good intentions succumbing to yet other corrupt rulers have not rescued its people from a truly self-defeating dedication to tribal connections. As go the fortunes of the tribe, so go the fortunes of those who belong to that tribe. Resulting in the current situation of tribal chaos, fury and murderous rampages.
One tribe triumphing over the others. A majority-population tribe leading the reluctant others, angry that their turn at governance has been put on hold, yet again. Modernity evades the country, even as it goes through the clockwork motions of democratic machinations to grant itself credibility to the world at large looking on, charged by adversaries with vote-rigging and other irregularities.
Resulting in a paroxysm of violent tribalism expressing the most primitive will to destroy the enemy. Mobs assemble to give courage of numbers to their outrage in the expression of their collective will and they rampage, burning down buildings, civic infrastructures, vehicles, homes, churches. A conservative estimate of those so far killed through mindless revenge killings stands at several hundred.
Tens of thousands of civilians have fled their homes in panic, heading for police compounds and churchyards for safety, terrified for their lives and those of their children. Despite which an assembly of hundreds of tribal men descend upon those whose intent to flee was yet unrealized, burning down a church where the frightened people took shelter. Many were burned to death, mostly children, cowering in fear.
Aerial footage of the destruction reveals hundreds of houses set on fire, farms ablaze, road blocks set up every 10 kilometres, where only the "right" ethnic group is permitted to cross. Tribal campaigning during democratic elections is forbidden, but ethnic violence is a volatile component of the reality in a country of 40 distinct tribes, all competing at the polls for political power.
The current head of state, President Mwai Kibaki is of the Kikuyu tribe, Kenya's largest ethnic group, and thanks to their dominance they also dominate politics and business in this East African state of 37 million people. The situation is explosive and threatens to become even more dire, as passions continue to flare and the election results are roundly denounced.
The international community is desperately attempting to persuade both President Kibaki and his chief rival, who claims to have succeeded in garnering more votes - Raila Odinga, of the Luo tribe - to come to terms, share power, exert their considerable influence on their people to cease and desist. President Kibaki is determined to retain power, just as Mr. Odinga is determined to gain access to power.
Neither appears willing to submit their personal ambitions to solving the dreadful situation by co-operation, to sacrifice their personal intentions for the good of the country and the safe harbour that such a settlement may offer their frightened, vulnerable people in this friable atmosphere.
Labels: Human Fallibility, Social-Cultural Deviations, World Crises
posted by Pieface @ Wednesday, January 02, 2008
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