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Palgrave Macmillan

Secessionism in African Politics

Aspiration, Grievance, Performance, Disenchantment

  • Book
  • © 2019

Overview

Editors:
  1. Lotje de Vries

    1. Wageningen University & Research, De Bilt, The Netherlands

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  2. Pierre Englebert

    1. Pomona College, Claremont, CA, USA

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  3. Mareike Schomerus

    1. Overseas Development Institute, London, UK

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  • Explains why and how secessionism continues to play a divisive role in politics in many African countries
  • Provides insights in the interplay between the international legal order, geopolitical interests, and everyday politics of secessionism in Africa
  • Explores the topic of secessionism in Post-Colonial African politics in a comparative perspective

Part of the book series: Palgrave Series in African Borderlands Studies (PSABS)

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Table of contents (16 chapters)

  1. Front Matter

    Pages i-xxiii
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  2. Africa’s Secessionism: A Breakdance of Aspiration, Grievance, Performance, and Disenchantment

    • Mareike Schomerus, Pierre Englebert, Lotje de Vries
    Pages 1-20

  3. Aspiration: Dreams of Independence

    1. Front Matter

      Pages 21-21
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    2. Tuareg Separatism in Mali and Niger

      • Baz Lecocq, Georg Klute
      Pages 23-57

    3. Anglophone Secessionist Movements in Cameroon

      • Piet Konings, Francis B. Nyamnjoh
      Pages 59-89

    4. Ethiopia, Somalia, and the Ogaden: Still a Running Sore at the Heart of the Horn of Africa

      • Sarah Vaughan
      Pages 91-123

  4. Grievance: Postcolonial Confusion

    1. Front Matter

      Pages 125-125
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    2. Western Sahara and Morocco: Complexities of Resistance and Analysis

      • Matthew Porges
      Pages 127-149

    3. Secessionism in Anjouan, Comoros: Internal Dynamics, External Decisions

      • Gregor Dobler
      Pages 151-178

    4. Zanzibar in the Tanzania Union

      • Greg Cameron
      Pages 179-205

    5. The Front(s) for the Liberation of Cabinda in Angola: A Phantom Insurgency

      • Joseph Figueira Martin
      Pages 207-227

    6. Against the Grain: Somaliland’s Secession from Somalia

      • Markus Virgil Hoehne
      Pages 229-261

  5. Performance: Secessionism as Politics by Other Means

    1. Front Matter

      Pages 263-263
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    2. The Mouvement des Forces Démocratiques de Casamance: The Illusion of Separatism in Senegal?

      • Vincent Foucher
      Pages 265-292

    3. United in Separation? Lozi Secessionism in Zambia and Namibia

      • Wolfgang Zeller, Henning Melber
      Pages 293-328

    4. Biafra and Secessionism in Nigeria: An Instrument of Political Bargaining

      • Johannes Harnischfeger
      Pages 329-359

    5. Katanga’s Secessionism in the Democratic Republic of Congo

      • Miles Larmer, Erik Kennes
      Pages 361-391

  6. Disenchantment: The Aftermath of Success

    1. Front Matter

      Pages 393-393
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    2. “We Didn’t Fight for This”: The Pitfalls of State- and Nation-Building in Eritrea

      • Alexandra Dias, Sara Dorman
      Pages 395-422

    3. A State of Contradiction: Sudan’s Unity Goes South

      • Mareike Schomerus, Lotje de Vries
      Pages 423-454
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Keywords

About this book

Secessionism perseveres as a complex political phenomenon in Africa, yet often a more in-depth analysis is overshadowed by the aspirational simplicity of pursuing a new state. Using historical and contemporary approaches, this edited volume offers the most exhaustive collection of empirical studies of African secessionism to date. The respected expert contributors put salient and lesser known cases into comparative perspective, covering Biafra, Katanga, Eritrea and South Sudan alongside Barotseland, Cabinda, and the Comoros, among others. Suggesting that African secessionism can be understood through the categories of aspiration, grievance, performance, and disenchantment, the book's analytical framework promises to be a building block for future studies of the topic. 

Reviews

“This book offers a vast compendium on secessionism on the African continent. Every single case is narrated in good detail and I find it a wonderful contribution to African Studies, International Relations, and studies of nationalism and conflict in general.” (Yusuf Serunkuma, African Affairs, Vol. 118 (472), July, 2019)

Editors and Affiliations

  • Wageningen University & Research, De Bilt, The Netherlands

    Lotje de Vries

  • Pomona College, Claremont, CA, USA

    Pierre Englebert

  • Overseas Development Institute, London, UK

    Mareike Schomerus

About the editors

Lotje de Vries is Assistant Professor at Wageningen University, the Netherlands.

Pierre Englebert is H. Russell Smith Professor of International Relations at Pomona College, USA.

Mareike Schomerus is Senior Research Fellow at Overseas Development Institute, UK.


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