This is what Isaac’s friend has to say: "Isaac, please tweet this for me if you can”.
Breastfeeding puppies: Don’t use it to attack African values
By Jenn Jagire
THE breastfeeding of puppies might not be such a big issue elsewhere as Ugandans think. I have seen animal lovers or animal rights activists who might argue otherwise. What Ugandans might call bestiality is practiced by pet lovers in the West, for example, the kissing of pets, etc.
Of course as a Ugandan, I take a big issue with a woman being forced to breastfeed puppies. In addition, I do not condone violence against women, either by husbands and jilted lovers through acid attacks, the political system, relatives or simply the physically or financially stronger people. However, to blame Nathan Asoloi’s action of forcing his wife to breastfeed puppies solely on the culture of bride price might be limiting.
There may be other reasons for Asoloi’s power action. His action was particularly troubling because it gives those who believe that nothing good can come out of Africa the opportunity or moment to justify their stereotypes.
The Western NGOisation and internationalization of African women’s rights actually denies grassroot African women the voice that they are looking for. It was Alupot who took the initiative to speak out about her bad relationship with her husband. It was also her experience. But right now Alupot’s situation has suddenly been NGOised and internationalised so that other perspectives are coming out of it.
The attention, the seizing of, or appropriation of Alupot’s voice is driving out her potential as a subject to claim agency to address her situation meaningfully. Why were these NGOs and international organisations, who have all the facilities for research not in a position to prevent something like that?
A representative of an international agency from a Western perspective will start generalizing the culture of Alupot’s people as primitive to justify a civilising mission.
Suddenly, someone has suggested that because Abraham Lincoln who was a white man ‘freed’ Black slaves, it should take a man to free a woman. This is problematic in many ways.
African-Americans will be shocked to read such a statement published in Africa. If Abraham Lincoln took the initiative to sign into law the outlawing of slavery, it must have been because of the resistance that the former slaves put up against slavery.
The resistance of the former slaves should be held dear by anyone who reads race into the attitudes of those who take messianic credit for ‘liberating’ slaves. Such a statement about the power of whiteness in liberating Black African slaves should be most demeaning to Africans or their descendants everywhere.
People are free to think what they want, but such thoughts should not continue reproducing what colonialism or imperialism had universalised as the ultimate knowledge for everyone on the planet earth.
Bride price may have its limitations as we have debated before, and many people, especially Africans recognise so. But, should it take a person with a Western perspective to forcefully show us how to change it? Don’t we also need an African or local solution to what Asoloi did to Alupot?
Where is our independence from colonialism? It is quite tempting to agree with pan-Africanists that those international organisations, whose representatives in Africa are from the West, still have the agenda to reproduce differently what colonial projects did not have time to complete effectively.
As Africans, we have to decolonise our minds, so that we do not speak about our people, what even most white supremacists do not have the guts to speak. We should not simply say things that make us look like we hate ourselves, even as we anticipate funding for development activities on the continent.
The writer is a Ugandan living in Ontario, Canada
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ORDER NOW AT: www.amazon.com and www.barnesandnoble.com : Inter-African development is possible through an array of alternative strategies. This book is suggesting some forms of revolution that has to take course due to human misery of poverty, economic hardships and wars in developing countries of Africa. It’s good readings for political science students, international development students, economics students, science students, environmentalists, governments, NGOs, entrepreneurs, scientists, economists, agriculturists, farmers, and peasants in developing countries in order for them to discover their potentials within their weaknesses.
SYNOPSIS FOR INTER-AFRICAN DEVELOPMENT VOL. 1
CHAPTER 1. Addresses land use and management in Africa
In Africa, land use has become one of the most seriously contested problems ever to be reckoned in the history of Africa. Land is both security and economic confidence for the many landless or marginalized persons in the world. African governments’ concerns should be obligatory in finding lasting solutions to resolve issues of land degradation resulting from human activities and land management. How then do we frame land issues? The issues that can be addressed are such as ecological foot prints and tragedy of the commons. Therefore, African countries need to harness reforestation programs in order to subdue the ever-increasing risks posed by global warming and desert encroachment.
CHAPTER 2. Addresses the history of grabbing fertile lands. The history of land extortion dates back to Europe and continued in Africa through colonial era. Land grabbing has its economic implications: Access to land and violent conflicts in Africa have economic as well as political implications. Thus, because of the economic and political implications, Land represents security and economic confidence. Therefore, reforms in land ownership must be implemented so that the landless may also have a share in land tenureship.
CHAPTERS 3, 4, 5, 6 & 7 . Addresses democracy and economic development issues towards sustainability as well as identifying culprits of development retardation; IADF’s strategies for regional economic development; development modalities. Modalities that need to be adopted by African governments are such as: import substitution model strategies, export lead growth industrialization, emulation of Chile’s example, Mexico’s example, the adoption of India’s software industry style, Japan’s Export Growth Model, importance of an Industry’s location, and other infrastructural development modalities. Address issues arising from economies that are driven without democracy and security. And the importance of approaching sustainable development with single currency.
CHAPTERS 8,9and10 . Address the benefits of single currency, the importance of printing single currency within Africa and emphasis upon how assets for banking system through IADF should be implemented.
CHAPTERS 11, 12, 13 & 14 . Address how establishing free trade can impact economic growth in neighbouring countries. One of the modalities of approaching such trading policies is the Harmonization of consumer price indices; harmonization of continental trade indices with emphasis on Terms of trade, which is an index of the price of a country's exports in terms of its imports. “The terms of trade are said to improve if that index rises”; modalities for harmonizing trade indices. Trade harmonization is an equal treatment among trading partners; and how world trade affects poor nations’ economy and how to avert from goods dumping.
CHAPTERS 15, 16,17,18,19,20,21,22&23. Addresses how trade imbalances are defined by unfair trade, issues pertaining to trade-related intellectual property rights (TRIPS), Political issues with emphasis on Governance issues and Guidance, theories behind the Inter-African development fund (IADF), issues as to whether an all-African senate political system will help solve Africa’s political instabilities?; emphasis on infrastructure development and how this will impact economic development; questions authorities, as to whether governments are part of the problems and solutions? Questions how disparate and desperate are African nations? How disparity can be narrowed between the rich and the poor or whether other alternatives can be applied? And makes analysis on how adopting Ricardo’s comparative advantage may impact manufacturing and then how it may lead to sustainable economic development of the regions.
CHAPTERS 25,26,27 & 28. Addresses natural resources, as conflicting resources; what are the factors and ambivalence to African problems? Emphasis on health crises in Africa with the advent of HIV/AIDS and encouraging new ideas and discoveries in health sciences in which claims for cure of HIV/AIDS have been pronounced, which is something Africa could take pride in.
The major challenges African governments will face are the issues of globalization and the internal self-inflicted oppressive forces of bad politics. Governments must resolve land issues that generate political as well as economic issues. Also, whether or not blocs of nations can envision solidarity economics; implement political union and economic independence through economic democratization, as there are some economic blocs that already exist.
SYNOPSIS FOR INTER-AFRICAN DEVELOPMENT VOL. 2
This book postulates inventive or innovative philosophies for African governments, environmentalists, entrepreneurs, commercial farmers and peasants on how to enhance their attitudes in participating in the corridors or as insiders of globalization. Also, it makes comparative analysis of development trends in Africa to those in other developing countries and what developed countries can offer African countries with regard to industrial as well as technological developments in order to achieve sustainable economic development of the regions.
The major areas this book has addressed include GLOBALIZATION AND ENVIRONMENT, which lays emphasizes on the need for Protection of resources (Chapter 1) Benefits of economic integration (Chapter 2). Also, it tackles issues of Globalization that is currently under criticism (Chapter 3), and addresses Environmental issues (Chapter 4).
In the area of AGRICULTURE, how can Sustainable agricultural development be achieved? (Chapter 5)
CHAPTERS 6,7,8,9,10,11. Addresses issues of Bio-piracy and intellectual property rights; how Revolutionizing agriculture will impact food production; how Revolutionizing agriculture with comparative methods can impact agricultural production in Africa; how new water treatment technologies can impact agricultural development as well as human health. This includes piping methods that needs to be adopted by African governments. For example using vinyl pipes in water transfer is safer than corrosive iron pipes. The need for use of Greenhouse technologies in Africa is highly recommended, which will impact vegetable production in providing citizens with nutritive food throughout the year. This will eliminate food-related illnesses among poor population if mass production is achievable and food prices are relatively affordable for the poor. It will be the duty of the African governments to feed her people, but not always expect food from the industrialized countries. The need for use of organic nutrients for agricultural development is vital and how Mechanization of agriculture in Africa can impact food production both on small and large scale.
A number of approaches that can lead to sustainable development include: The need for stopping wars is of paramount importance because wars squander resources (i.e. Too much money is used in alleviating war induced catastrophe), management of the environment, and being conscious about environmental issues. African governments must budget for an array of industrial revolution through indigenous corporations [See also appendix for a list of manufacturing companies from which African governments with their entrepreneurs can purchase heavy industrial machinery and adopt some of the appropriate technologies from industrialized countries]. Also, in being conscious of the benefits of economic integration, what impacts will globalization have on their economies if governments, entrepreneurs, etc. ignore their rights in the global arena? With regard to agriculture, what will the need for revolutionizing agriculture with comparative methods become in food production? How will new water treatment technologies impact public health and food production?
The need for revolutionizing overall industrial sectors of various sectors is the key to alleviating poverty, as governments and corporations produce sufficiently for mass consumption. In addition, the need to recognize that rule of law and good governance are the keys to regulating levels of corruption.
SECURITY: What will security mean to economic stability in African countries? Chapters 13-15 address security issues. The need for maintaining security in all African countries will be the key to economic stability, as free trade and mobility of businessmen and women can guarantee rise in competitiveness index in terms of trade or in stimulating economic growth in neighboring countries. The recognition that killing can destabilize governments is the notion that military industrial complex from arms race have taken control of governments or have fostered rebellions in African countries. African governments must now recognize that their countries must be in the drivers’ seat and not to be driven by imperial centres that impose policies to protect their own interests through cartel groups with regards to economic development policies towards sustainability.
TECHNOLOGY: CHAPTERS 16-21. Address technology issues that will impact African governments’ and their private sectors in achieving sustainable economic development.
The major challenges for African countries to evolve with sustainable economic growth will depend upon establishing free trade, maintaining peace and political stability, resource protection, environmental engineering and management.
Also, the need for training indigenous population in use of new technologies in order to enhance an overall industrial revolution in the entire continent will have promising impact towards sustainable economic development.
For more information see the next URL: http://www.amazon.ca/Inter-african-Development-Fund-Iadf-Alternative/dp/1426916868
Also you can order it from the following URL:
Ottawa International Poets and Writers for human Rights (OIPWHR)
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