Critical Analysis of the Challenges Faced by Au in Achieving Continental Unity

The key obstacle to OBOR in Africa is the state of constant warfare experienced throughout the continent. For as far as can be remembered, war and conflicts have burdened Africa's development. The five types of conflicts that have afflicted Africa include anti-colonial, imperial, international, inter-state and intra-state conflicts. Up to today, many countries in Africa have experienced/are experiencing wars of "regime change" with the Democratic Republic of Congo being a perfect case study, as well as the "War of Devolution" of Greater Sudan that led to the North and South divide. As time passed, South Sudan has also started experiencing its own internal war in what was called "inter-communal insurrection". In addition, African states such

Although African countries are facing many severe problems including weak national identities and limited governmental capabilities, war might not be the only way to strengthen the state and develop national identities. When we consider the intense globalization undertaken by the world, collaboration by African unification provides another choice

Ikechi Mgbeoji’s book, Collective Insecurity examines the hidden causes of West Africa’s civil wars and addresses an important question: “Why has the U.N. system not worked to protect people and to enhance their welfare, as intended, in Africa and elsewhere?” In his book, Mgbeoji proposes, “the solution to African political instability lies in a structural rearrangement of the African polity for the purpose of legitimate governance of African peoples.”

From 1914 to the present, one of the most powerful trends of the postwar era was the importance of the developing world and their desire for independence. Nationalism was an important factor in the growing independence movements in Sub- Saharan Africa. Regardless of political changes, social conflict and tensions remained a problem. Tensions between Europeans and Africans, which had been a problem since the Europeans’ arrival and social unrest in communities didn’t change.

The thesis essentially implies that certain parts of the world, mainly the Global South, “are populated by irrationally violent and uncivilized peoples” (Bau 2010, 23). The ‘New Barbarism’ thesis is exemplified in Robert Kaplan’s “The Coming Anarchy.” Contrastingly, Paul Richards’ Fighting for the Rainforest sought to undermine the arguments behind both “The Coming Anarchy” and the ‘New Barbarism’ thesis. The dominant representations of conflicts in Africa are found through Western media coverage, which have simplified and distorted complex situations by reducing the cause of conflicts to ethnic antagonisms. “Mainstream media often report African wars in terms of a reversion to an earlier state of development” (Ellis 2003, 39). In doing so, conflicts in Africa, such as those in Rwanda and Sudan, are presented under the false premise of conforming to ‘New Barbarism,’ leading to international actors addressing the wrong problems or simply loosing hope in Africa altogether

In a Western perspective, Africa is perceived as a poor, insecure, and violent continent. Although this statement is ignorant and disregards the multidimensional issues that are in each of the 54 countries, security and violence is a general issue in most African countries. African countries have not endured an easy history, and their history continues to create present conflicts. Their violent colonial past has left certain countries with ethnic rivalries and left their legacies with agents of security. Although the colonial past of African countries have been the leading cause of many of their current problems, they cannot be blamed for everything. Additionally, there is a positive correlated relationship between the state and the violence

Civil war constantly plagues Africa and can be the cause of tribalism, rival warlords fighting for control, and foreign influence to name a few. I will start off with civil war due to tribalism. The

The occurrence of conflict is an issue that societies have faced since the genesis of human beings. Take, for example, the country of Sri Lanka. For years, Sri Lanka has been torn apart by the conflict between the Buddhist Sinhalese, who constitute the majority of the population, and the Hindu Tamil, who are the minority of the population. The country gained independence from the European rule in 1948. Since then, the country became a symbol of economic prosperity, political stability and harmony, particularly amongst third world countries (Peace Direct 2015). However, this glory was short-lived as the prevalent tensions between the two ethnic groups tore the country apart. The country has endured over three decades of political unrest, armed conflict and societal disruption accrued to this conflict (Peace Direct 2015). Sri Lanka is but an example of the many disastrous impacts of conflicts within the society. The devastating and often recurring consequences of conflicts have resulted in the formulation of several theories regarding conflict resolution.

Through this research, I found that there are pros and cons in the organization and its attempts to create peace and security between the two countries it was considered necessary to intervene in resolving internal issues in a proper manner. But because of the resolutions, the Charter and the laws of the Organization that provide for non-interference in these problems. This has led to increased chaos and problems throughout Africa. A negotiator should be able to deal with the worst humanitarian crises and use a way to convince some countries Prevent the existence of poverty and debt in Africa by quickly dissolving political corruption and the development of strict laws to prevent the establishment of secret accounts for members of the Organization Strong entry into European markets and opportunity to sell their agricultural

The wider ramification that this thesis attempts to show is how to best understand how countries interact with each other, there needs to be exploration of the nation’s state interests. The problem with international relations is that it often ignores the uniqueness of African states by categorising them as part of the ‘third world’ or part of more powerful nation’s schemes for their own interests. The different interpretations of realism are seriously affected by dismissing the power politics of Africa in regional, continental or global international politics. Additionally is the reinforcement of a double standard of how states operate. To say that some states operate in self-interest but others do not because of their weak political position in the global theatre is problematic. This is just as problematic of designating one policy trait, such as the genocide guilt card, as the only one of a nation. The complexities of the international sphere can only be properly understood through examining the nations that compose it. Thus this case study allows structural realism to build itself in a region, which had not been previously interested because of Cold War politics and Euro-centric focus. The rise of African power nations in the post-Cold War era is an opportunity for realists to be able to test their theories with nations that follow many of realism’s

Centuries of colonial rule left its mark on nearly every region of the African continent; minus that of Ethiopia, which remained independent, and free from foreign subjugation. Comparatively, the face of conflict throughout the rest of Sub-Saharan Africa, however, has evolved drastically over the last half-century.

Furthermore, root causes of conflict on the continent are often associated with internal issues or an ‘African problem’. Alison Ayers discusses the false perception of civil war and ‘failed states’ that have been created and implemented by the West (Ayers 2012). She disputes that civil war is internally instigated and only portrayed this way due to western representations of Africa through media. Ayers states that these efforts are made by hegemonic powers and are ‘ideologically and politically convenient’ (Ayers 2012, 261). Her implications here suggest that these ideological subjugations render African regions vulnerable for the use of exploitation and continuous dependency on external powers. This becomes the norm of African perception

What has been a great factor in my ability to expand myself educationally are the implications of my country’s civil war. I am from Angola; a country that was struck with war almost immediately after it gained its independence from Portugal. The war ended back in 2002 however its effects can still be felt by its entire people. These effects come in a myriad of ways; from those who lost families or their livelihood, to those who had the patriotism shaken. To me the war has made the rebuilding of my country’s glory a responsibility which I wish to uphold. Now due to the war, many families were displaced and forced to leave their homes. As a child, parents sent me to live in South Africa in the hopes I could have life away from the war; however

Whatever the exact nature of the various African ethnogenesis processes, the states gaining independence were populated by groups which had differing loyalties. This scenario would fall foul of many theories of the state, in which the absence of the coherent link between the population and the power structure of the state calls it into question. Ethnic cleavages has been a factor in many of the numerous coups d'etat and armed conflicts throughout Africa, as rival groups see the power of state apparatus as a prize worth fighting for(Warner 2001, p89).

The end of World War II, the formation of the United Nations and increased sense of nationalism worldwide prompted the end of colonialism. During the surge of independence movements in the late 1950s and early 1960s, Kwame Nkrumah led 32 African nations to form the Organization of African Unity in May 1963 (“Creation of the OAU). The OAU aimed to promote unity on the continent in order to support the political and economic autonomy of the newly independent African countries and ensure that Africa had a strong voice in the global arena.