L'emprise de l'occulte sur la légitimité de l'état et l'aide à la démocratisation en Afrique

Abstract

The impact of occult belief on legitimacy of the state and on aid for democratization in Africa: Among politicians and development experts in Africa alike there is a growing awareness of the never decreasing importance of the belief in magic and witchcraft on political decision making since pre-colonial times. Demonstration of the control of occult forces as a means of enhancing legitimacy of traditional or charismatic rule had been considered for over a century to be the prerogative of traditional chiefs and their marabouts; now it proved to be effective for the modern political elite and the state as well. An increasing number of African states officially recognized the existence of magic and witchcraft, and they adapted the imposed colonial law accordingly. In addition magic-religious belief systems, as represented by the vodun or African independent churches (e.g. the Kimbanguists), boasting to control witchcraft, are promoted by African political leaders to enhance legitimacy both of the political class and of state governance. At the same time, development experts tried to take into account the socio cultural dimension of development; they called for an "endogenization" of development aid. This call was justified, because endogenization should be considered as a pre-requisite of sustainable aid; however, under certain conditions it may be ambiguous and dangerous as well. Concerning the consideration of occult belief it may lead to the promotion of illegitimate rule and violation of basic human rights. - Version révisée et améliorée de l'auteur en français de: (1997): Zum Einfluß des Okkulten auf staatliche Legitimität und Demokratisierungshilfe in Afrika, Sociologus, 47, 1997, 1, p. 24-50. Layout revised, hyperlinks to sources added, 13 janvier 2022.

Unter Politikern und Entwicklungsexperten in Afrika wächst das Bewusstsein für die immer geringer werdende Bedeutung des Glaubens an Magie und Hexerei für die politische Entscheidungsfindung seit vorkolonialer Zeit. Die Demonstration der Kontrolle über okkulte Kräfte als Mittel zur Stärkung ihrer Legitimität war über ein Jahrhundert lang das Vorrecht der traditionellen Herrscher und ihrer Marabouts. Heute ist es auch für die moderne politische Elite und den modernen Staat wirksam. Immer mehr afrikanische Staaten haben die Existenz von Hexerei und Magie offiziell anerkannt und passen das auferlegte Kolonialrecht entsprechend an. Neben magisch-religiösen Glaubenssystemen, vertreten durch Vodun oder unabhängige afrikanische Kirchen (zum Beispiel die Kimbanguisten), die von der Kontrolle der Hexerei profitieren, werden von afrikanischen politischen Führern gefördert, um die Legitimität sowohl der Klassenstaatspolitik als auch der Regierungsführung zu stärken. Gleichzeitig haben Entwicklungsexperten versucht, die kulturelle Dimension der soziokulturellen Entwicklung zu berücksichtigen. Sie forderten eine "Endogenisierung" der Entwicklungshilfe. Diese Forderung war berechtigt, weil die "Endogenisierung" als Voraussetzung für nachhaltige Hilfe zu sehen ist. Unter bestimmten Bedingungen kann es jedoch auch mehrdeutig und gefährlich sein. Bei der Berücksichtigung okkulten Glaubens kann dies zur Förderung des illegitimen Staates und zur Verletzung grundlegender Menschenrechte führen.

Among politicians and development experts in Africa alike there is a growing awareness of the ever decreasing importance of the belief in magic and witchcraft on political decision-making since pre-colonial times. Demonstrating control over occult forces as a means of strengthening their legitimacy had been the prerogative of traditional rulers and their marabouts for over a century. Today, it is effective for the modern political elite and the modern state as well. A growing number of African states have officially recognized the existence of witchcraft and magic, and they are adapting the colonial law imposed accordingly. In addition to magico-religious belief systems, represented by vodun or independent African churches (for example, the Kimbanguists), benefiting from controlling witchcraft, are promoted by African political leaders to strengthen the legitimacy of both the class state policy and governance. At the same time, development experts have tried to take into account the cultural dimension of socio-cultural development. They called for an "endogenization" of development aid. This call was justified, because "endogenization" should be seen as a prerequisite for sustainable aid. However, under certain conditions it can be ambiguous and dangerous too. Regarding the consideration of occult belief it can lead to the promotion of the illegitimate state and the violation of basic human rights.