{"id":32639,"date":"2021-09-17T07:08:05","date_gmt":"2021-09-17T03:08:05","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.mauritiustimes.com\/mt\/?p=32639"},"modified":"2021-09-17T07:08:05","modified_gmt":"2021-09-17T03:08:05","slug":"shadow-states-are-the-biggest-threat-to-democracy-in-africa-fresh-reports-detail-how","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.mauritiustimes.com\/mt\/shadow-states-are-the-biggest-threat-to-democracy-in-africa-fresh-reports-detail-how\/","title":{"rendered":"Shadow states are the biggest threat to democracy in Africa: fresh reports detail how"},"content":{"rendered":"

\"\"<\/em><\/span><\/h4>\n

<\/h4>\n

The extent of democracy capture varies markedly between countries. It\u2019s much higher in states such as Zimbabwe, where the government has never changed hands<\/em><\/span><\/h4>\n

\"\"The militarisation of the Zimbabwean government raises serious questions about who really wields political power – President Emmerson Mnangagwa or army leaders.\u00a0Mujahid Safodien\/AFP via Getty Images<\/span><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/p>\n

The capture of democratic political systems by private power networks is arguably the greatest threat to civil liberties and inclusive development in Africa. That\u2019s the conclusion of two new reports that address the issue of threats to democracy on the continent.<\/span><\/p>\n

The first\u00a0report\u00a0is published by Ghana\u2019s\u00a0Centre for Democratic Development. It focuses on the capture and subversion of democratic institutions in Benin, Ghana, Kenya, Mozambique and Nigeria.<\/span><\/p>\n

These case studies reveal that even in more democratic states such as Benin and Ghana, ruling parties can \u201chijack\u201d democracy and appropriate its benefits. They do this by capturing the institutions of democracy itself. This includes electoral commissions, judiciaries, legislatures and even the media and civil society.<\/span><\/p>\n

The net effect is to undermine transparency and accountability. This in turn facilitates the abuse of power, especially in more authoritarian contexts.<\/span><\/p>\n

The second\u00a0report\u00a0was curated by\u00a0Democracy in Africa\u00a0and takes a slightly different approach. It looks at how unelected networks can infiltrate and subvert state structures.<\/span><\/p>\n

In particular, it maps the emergence of shadow states in the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC), Uganda, Zambia and Zimbabwe. These case studies show that networks of unelected businessmen, civil servants, political fixers and members of the presidents\u2019 families wield more power than legislators.<\/span><\/p>\n

By mapping how these networks are organised across different groups and countries, the report reveals how influential and resilient certain groups have become. It also shows how many shadow states have been integrated into transnational financial and \u2013 in some cases \u2013 criminal networks.<\/span><\/p>\n

This is not an \u201cAfrican\u201d issue. Similar processes have been identified in a number of different countries and regions. These include\u00a0Bangladesh,\u00a0Brazil\u00a0and the\u00a0US. But this does not mean that the need to recognise and confront these issues is any less pressing.<\/span><\/p>\n

States with higher levels of democracy capture are prone to becoming more authoritarian, corrupt and abusive.<\/span><\/p>\n

Democracy capture and the shadow state<\/strong><\/span><\/p>\n

According to politics professor\u00a0Emmanuel Gyimah-Boadi, democracy capture\u00a0occurs when ‘a few individuals or sections of a supposedly democratic polity are able to systematically appropriate to themselves the institutions and processes as well as dividends of democratic governance’.<\/em><\/span><\/p>\n

In other words, democracy capture expands the idea of \u201cstate capture\u201d to include all political institutions and democratic activities including civil society and the media.<\/span><\/p>\n

The term is widely used in South Africa to refer to the undue influence of special interest groups\u00a0over state institutions.<\/span><\/p>\n

Indeed, what is striking about this process is the well-structured networks that encompass a broad range of individuals from government to the security forces, traditional leaders, private businesses, state-owned enterprises, and their family members. According to a\u00a0separate study\u00a0by South African academics\u00a0Ivor Chipkin\u00a0and\u00a0Mark Swilling, what distinguishes these actors is their privileged \u201caccess to the inner sanctum of power in order to make decisions\u201d.<\/span><\/p>\n

One helpful way of conceptualising these networks is the idea of\u00a0shadow states\u00a0developed by the influential political scientist\u00a0William Reno.<\/span><\/p>\n

For Reno, a shadow state is effectively a system of governance in which a form of parallel government is established by a coalition of the president, militias, security agencies, local intermediaries and foreign companies. In extreme versions such as\u00a0Sierra Leone\u00a0real power no longer lies in official institutions of government such as the legislature.<\/span><\/p>\n

This kind of shadow state is characterised by the existence of private armies and a severely limited, almost imaginary, formal state.<\/span><\/p>\n

More recently, researchers have identified manifestations of the shadow state in\u00a0countries\u00a0that are not in the middle of civil war and have stronger formal political systems. Good examples include\u00a0Kenya\u00a0and\u00a0Zambia.<\/span><\/p>\n

In these cases, the shadow state is more oriented towards hampering the activities of opposition parties and ensuring impunity for its members.<\/span><\/p>\n

Africa is not a country<\/strong><\/span><\/p>\n

The nine case studies featured in the two reports show that the extent of democracy capture varies significantly. It is lower in states like Ghana, where robust electoral contestation among rival parties has seen multiple transfers of power. It\u2019s much higher in states such as Zimbabwe, where the government has never changed hands.<\/span><\/p>\n

The shape and resilience of unelected power networks also varies in important ways. In Uganda, the shadow state is run by an axis of President Yoweri Museveni\u2019s family, a \u201cmilitary aristocracy\u201d and interlocutors in the business community.<\/span><\/p>\n

In Benin, President Patrice Talon has exploited the weakness of the legal system, the judiciary and the legislature to expand his power. Through this process he has turned one of the continent\u2019s most vibrant democracies into a near political monopoly.<\/span><\/p>\n

The picture is different again in the DRC. International military alliances were critical to the way that former presidents\u00a0Laurent Kabila\u00a0and\u00a0Joseph Kabila\u00a0took and held power. This led to a shadow state that has been more profoundly shaped by transnational smuggling networks and\u00a0the activities of the security forces.<\/span><\/p>\n

The situation in Zambia is also distinctive. Under former president Edgar Lungu, the security forces were less relevant than the nexus between politicians, government officials and businessmen. This led to rampant corruption and mismanagement. But it did not prevent a transfer of power\u00a0in 2021.<\/span><\/p>\n

In contrast, in Zimbabwe the government has been progressively\u00a0militarised, penetrating further areas of the state and the economy. This raises serious questions about whether President Emmerson Mnangagwa \u2013 or army leaders \u2013 holds real power.<\/span><\/p>\n

It is, therefore, important to map the shadow state on a case-by-case basis because no two networks are the same. The differences between them reveals who really holds power.<\/span><\/p>\n

The consequences<\/strong><\/span><\/p>\n

Shadow states have a negative impact on democracy and accountability. But the damage they do goes well beyond this. It undermines inclusive development through three related processes:<\/span><\/p>\n

    \n
  • creating a culture of impunity, which facilitates corruption and diverts resources from productive investments<\/span><\/li>\n
  • manipulating government expenditure and other public resources and opportunities to sustain the patronage networks and ensure the shadow state\u2019s political survival<\/span><\/li>\n
  • creating monopolistic or oligopolistic conditions that increase prices and enable companies with links to the shadow state to make excessive profits.<\/span><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n

    The result is that resources and investment are systematically diverted into private hands.<\/span><\/p>\n

    In Uganda, Museveni issues\u00a0tax waivers\u00a0to business allies in return for election support. This denies the treasury hundreds of millions of dollars in revenue.<\/span><\/p>\n

    In Zimbabwe,\u00a0companies in league with the ruling party\u00a0and the military have used these connections to establish near monopolies in key sectors of the economy that exploit the public. In one case, this led to\u00a0severe fuel shortages\u00a0that artificially inflated prices.<\/span><\/p>\n

    When added to the billions of dollars lost through straightforward corruption, theft and fraud, it is clear that these processes represent one of the most significant barriers to inclusive development in Africa. Unless these networks are challenged, they will continue to keep citizens in poverty while enriching those connected to the shadow state.<\/span><\/p>\n

    Nic Cheeseman<\/strong><\/span>
    \nProfessor of Democracy, <\/span>
    \nUniversity of Birmingham<\/span><\/p>\n

    \n

    * Published in print edition on 17 September 2021<\/span><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

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