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| Title: | Multiparty democracy and socio-political development: the argument for focusing the practice of multiparty politics on chiefdom collectivities |
| Authors: | Tembo, Kafuwe C. Phiri, Titus B. |
| Year: | 1996 |
| Periodical: | The Society of Malawi Journal |
| Volume: | 49 |
| Issue: | 3 |
| Pages: | 24-34 |
| Language: | English |
| Notes: | biblio. refs. |
| Geographic terms: | Malawi Africa Central Africa Great Britain |
| Subjects: | nationalism ethnicity colonialism politicians traditional polities multiparty systems politics political science Pluralism history |
| External link: | https://www.jstor.org/stable/29778946 |
| Abstract: | The introduction of indirect rule between 1891 and 1896 in the British Protectorate of Nyasaland legitimized ethnic/tribal identities rather than a national character. Although African politicians grasped the principles of Western democracy, they faced resistance from tribal rulers in their efforts to mobilize the masses. The politically minded African educated elite came to understand sociopolitical problems differently from the chiefs and the masses. This led to rivalry and a conflict of interests between tribal rulers and politicians. To command the support of the chiefs, the politicians preached the unity of tribes as a nation and fought for independence in order 'to replace whites by blacks, not to change African society as it had developed under colonial rule'. This tactic did not threaten the status quo of the chieftaincy structures and the organizational ambivalence to which it testifies may well have provided the basis for the subsequent introduction of the one-party system, in which the educated leaders became super chiefs. The reintroduction of multipartyism in Malawi in the 1990s has revived the real powerbroking capacity of chiefs. One way ahead for political parties is to recognize the influence of the chiefs and their ethnic chiefdoms. Bibliogr. |
