Violence Pol Power in Africa

3 Credits · Level: Graduate, Juris Doctor

More than five years ago, in January 2020, France and the G5 Sahel (Burkina Faso, Chad, Mali, Mauritania, and Niger) declared in a meeting in Pau, France that Islamic State in Greater Sahara (ISGS) was the most significant security threat in West Africa. Several years before the Pau meeting, the Islamic State (IS) was still new to Africa. However, in a short time it eclipsed the threat from al-Qaeda, whose history on the continent dates to Usama bin Laden’s 1991 arrival in Sudan. Nevertheless, al-Qaeda still has its own affiliates in Africa, including in Somalia, where al-Shabaab controls territory; Mali, where its fighters clash with and often overpower ISGS; and Nigeria, where its fighters have cooperated and conflicted with IS’s largest province globally—Islamic State in West Africa Province (ISWAP). Fast forward five years, and the G5 Sahel is now a relic of a bygone era. No longer is France the region’s “security guarantor”. Rather Russia, especially through its Africa-focused private military contractor affiliate, Africa Corps, is the predominant external military power in the Sahel, if not Africa more broadly. Africa Corps is exerting influence throughout the continent mostly in Francophone countries like the Sahelian states, Central African Republic, and Chad, but also in East African countries ranging from Sudan to Mozambique. While French influence has diminished at the expense of Russia’s, there are also a number of “middle powers” now becoming more active economically, politically, and, indeed, militarily on the continent, such as Türkiye, the UAE, and Iran, not to mention the “dragon in the room”—China. The US role on the continent as well as the question of whether the priority should be economic empowerment, democratization, human rights, or counterterrorism, both remain the subject of debate. Besides the constellation of militant groups and former, emerging, and great powers in Africa, there are also dozens of other civic movements that seek their own economic or political empowerment, the defense of their lands and livelihoods, or the end to discrimination and exploitative practices by government forces. Many are challenged by the unmet expectations of the “Arab Spring” more than a decade and a half since those movements spread throughout northern Africa. In addition, the pro-Russian juntas in the Sahel and repressive crackdowns on civic movements by ostensible democracies, including in countries ranging from Nigeria and South Africa, are also key factors affecting politics and power in Africa. Given the complexities on the continent, this course will examine contemporary African political and armed movements. It will also explore democratic, military, and authoritarian governments and whether there is anything distinctly “African” about them. Further, the course will assess advantages and limitations of militaristic, economic, and diplomatic approaches to engage with African governments and support or counter protest, militant, and other movements. Lessons from class will be applied in immersive exercise simulations.