NEW HOPE FOR THE BLEEDING CONTINENT OF
AFRICA
Bennie
van der Walt
From
27 April to 1 May 1992 the Institute for Reformational Studies
offered an important Pan-African conference at the Potchefstroom University for
Christian Higher Education. It was attended by 150 people from South Africa and
15 other African countries - from as far away as Nigeria and Ghana.
(Participants also came from four other continents.)
I
would now like to give a few general impressions of positive change on the
continent. In spite of the fact that many believe that Africa is a “lost
continent”, I gained new hope. New and wonderful things are happening, of which
I would like to give ten flashes.
·
A second liberation
Africa
has now gone through the following phases: the pre-colonial, the colonial, the post-colonial
(liberation and independence, a period of (mainly) one-party government, and at
present some countries are already in or moving towards the phase of
democratisation (or so-called second liberation). Most African countries
realize today that, although they might have been released from one form of
oppression (colonialism) they were never really liberated politically (because
of oppression by their own people) and in any case not economically.
‘Liberation”
should take place on different levels. It is also not merely a negative concept
(free from), but should in the first place bold a positive connotation (for
example, free towards development). It is to be hoped that we have now reached this new, positive stage.
·
Democracy only a means towards a better
future
The
realization has also come (probably not among all the people) that democracy is
merely a means to an end (such as a more just society), and not an end in
itself. It is not a magic concept that will resolve all Africa’s problems in
the wink of an eye – injustice can still be committed, even in the name of
democracy.
·
New private initiative
This
goes hand in hand with a growing realization that the so-called state culture
did not offer a real solution. Too much has been expected of governments, viz,
to create and order the whole of society and to have direct control over all
facets of life and to provide in every need. The whole of life (also in South
Africa) was politicised, because the principle of sovereignty in its own sphere
of societal relationships was not respected.
A
fundamental depoliticalization of society is therefore needed. This is
happening in Africa - not necessarily as a result of a correct societal
philosophy, but simply because governments have dumped their countries in chaos
- and in more than simply economic chaos. Africa learnt the hard way that one
of its leaders, Kwame Nkrumah, was totally wrong when he declared: ‘First seek
the political kingdom and all the other things will come of themselves’.
Private
initiative in various fields (as against earlier state absolutism) is therefore
becoming not only a possibility, but an absolute necessity for survival.
·
Re-awakening of a more radical and
encompassing Christianity
Christianity
and the churches are one of the facets showing signs of awakening at present.
The earlier tendency towards pietism is being exchanged for a greater
reformational invo1vement in the fields of politics, society and economics.
Christians,
for example, are raising their voices against injustice in politics, and
Christian actions are being organized across denominational borders. As a
result of the respect which most people in Africa still have for Christianity,
a politician’s mouth can be shut, but a prominent Christian leader’s cannot.
Rightly, one of the conference participants from Africa said that “Christians
do make a difference in Africa. And I am proud to be one of them.”
Two
examples (which emerged during the conference) can be cited in illustration of
this: In Kenya there will soon be no less than six Christian colleges which
came into being through the private initiative of the church. (Because: “Our
universities in Africa arc killed by our own leaders for political reasons”.)
In Zaire, after the medical faculty of the university of Kinshasa closed down,
forty different churches came together to start their own (Christian) medical
university.
Do
we really realize what this means? This means that the field is also open to,
without state intervention, establish really free Christian (higher)
educational institutions.
Indeed
(once again in the words of a conference participant):
The
time has arrived for Christians in Africa to act’.
·
End of the wars between East and West
Because
the East and the West have ceased their ideological war - and especially their
efforts to fight it out on the African continent - our continent might now
taste the necessary peace to give attention to more constructive matters than
war (should it also be able to avoid its own ethnic clashes.) Perhaps the
East-West struggle did teach Africa not to expect its salvation from outside
its own borders. And Africa also learned the lesson that ideologies are
destructive and cannot give peace, provide jobs or feed hungry people.
This
brings me to the following point:
·
Self-reliance as the solution
The
people of Africa have no more illusions about help from the East, the West or
the North in order to help Africa out of the mire. During the conference it was
repeated like a refrain that
(l)
the so-called new World Order should not invoke false hope in Africa, and
(2) we have to help ourselves, for if we should not do that, we will surely go
under - finally.
This
brings us to the next sign of hope for the bleeding continent
·
Openness towards self-criticism
At
international conferences in the past we often had to hear - ad nauseam - how
Africans piled all the guilt for the terrible conditions in Africa squarely on
the shoulders of either colonialism (of at least 25 years ago) or
neo-colonialism (especially the multi-nationals). Of course they were not 100%
wrong.
I
have, however, over the past two years noticed a healthy change, a greater
openness towards self-criticism, instead of always accusing others.
Somebody,
for example, said at the conference: “There
are outside factors, e.g. international. But most of our problems ate our own
creations - the results of bad leadership.’ And three other speakers did not
hesitate to expose the exact conditions of university Life in Africa publicly
even though criticized by other participants from Africa as not being loyal and
fitting. Their response to such criticism of co-Africans was that we can only
make progress if we are willing to face up squarely to realities.
·
A new spirit of reconciliation
In
conjunction with the previous comments, it is clear that Africa is tired of all
the struggle and warring. A new spirit of reconciliation - even towards white
South Africans - has settled on people. “One does not kill a human being when
one differs with him. One reconciles with him”, one conference-goer said
pertinently. Al the same time, however, it has become clear that reconciliation
is never cheap. The three r’s cannot be seen in isolation from each other: they
are reconciliation, repentance and restitution.
·
High expectations of South Africa
Another
tendency that struck me was the extent to which all eyes (even from as far away
as the numerically strong Nigeria) are fixed on South Africa. At times the
expectations centring on the “new” South Africa are unrealistic. This does not
eliminate the fact, however, that very high expectations are held of South
Africa
in general, and of the Potchefstroom University for Christian Higher Education
in particular.
However
it may be, the doors to Africa are - finally - opening for us. The question is
whether we are going to use these open doors? This brings me to the final
tendency which I would like to highlight.
·
South Africa is also changing
Fortunately
things have begun to change not only for Africa but also for South Africa in
the final decade of this highly fraught century. It would seem to me that
people have finally begun to realize that South Africa as well as white South
Africans are an inherent part of Africa, and not a coincidental Western bastion
at the Southern tip of the continent.
It
is a pity that the process of becoming aware of this should still be a
nightmare experience for many white South Africans. (If they have not yet
realized that we are part of Africa, they will soon become more aware of it -
whether they want to or not.) For me personally (and I have had the privilege
of travelling widely in Africa) the awareness has been a blessing and not a
curse. Because now I need not hesitate any longer about whether I am an African
or a European. I know that I am a (white) African. I also know that I will
never really be at home in Europe or in America. Almost along the lines of a
friend from Zimbabwe whose poster said -l am a Zimbabwean - and proud of it”, I
want to say “I am an African - and proud of It”. May this become the attitude
of the majority of (especially white) South Africans.
Many to Many Issue 3 February 1993