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Feminism and Pan Africanism Issue 20 | 2015 Feminism and Pan Africanism Feminist Africa 20 Feminism and Pan-Africanism Issue 20: July 2015 First published in 2015 by the African Gender Institute All Africa House University of Cape Town Private Bag Rondebosch 7701 © in published edition: African Gender Institute, University of Cape Town, South Africa, 2013 ISSN: 1726-4596 All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system or transmitted, in any form or by any means, electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording and/or otherwise without permission in writing from the publisher. Published with the support of the African Women’s Development Fund. Typesetting, printing and cover design: COMPRESS.dsl | www.compress.dsl.com Cover photograph: Women Demanding the Release of Angela Davis from Prison in Somali capital Xamar (Mogadishu), 1972. Photographer unknown. Source: http://sinbarras.org/2013/03/12/88/ Distribution: AGI staff Feminist Africa is a scholarly journal accredited by the South African Department of Education. ii | Feminist Africa 20 Editorial policy Editor Feminist Africa is guided by a profound Amina Mama commitment to transforming gender hierarchies in Africa, and seeks to redress injustice and Issue 20 editors inequality in its content and design, and by Amina Mama its open-access and continentally-targeted Hakima Abbas distribution strategy. Feminist Africa targets gender researchers, students, educators, Reviews editor women’s organisations and feminist activists Simidele Dosekun throughout Africa. It works to develop a feminist intellectual community by promoting Copy editors and enhancing African women’s intellectual Anne V. Adams work. To overcome the access and distribution Simidele Dosekun challenges facing conventional academic publications, Feminist Africa deploys a dual Proofreader dissemination strategy, using the Internet Premilla Michelle Chetty as a key tool for knowledge-sharing and communication, while making hard copies Editorial team available to those based at African institutions. Jane Bennett Two issues are produced per annum, in Selina Mudavanhu accordance with themes specified in the calls for contributions. Editorial advisory group The editorial team can be contacted at The editorial advisory group of Feminist [email protected] Africa consists of scholars and researchers, located in different fields in the social sciences Acknowledgements and humanities, who offer their expertise The Feminist Africa team acknowledges to the development and dissemination of the intellectual input of the community of Feminist Africa as an innovative African- African feminist scholars and the Editorial focused journal. Advisory Board. Advisory group members are: We thank the African Women’s Akosua Adamako-Ampofo, Bibi Bakare- Development Fund for their financial support Yusuf, Teresa Barnes, Kum-Kum Bhavnani, towards production and publication. Hope Chigudu, Tsitsi Dangaremba, Carole Boyce Davies, Simidele Dosekun, Amanda Disclaimer Gouws, Pregs Govender, Pumla Dineo The views expressed by contributors to Gqola, Shireen Hassim, Desiree Lewis, Zine Feminist Africa are not necessarily those Magubane, Takyiwaa Manuh, Helen Moffett, of the Editors, Editorial Advisory Board, the Chandra Mohanty, Patricia Mohammed, African Gender Institute, or our partners. Patricia McFadden, Ruth Ochieng, Margo While every reasonable effort is made to Okazawa-Rey, Awino Okech, Charmaine check factual accuracy in published material, Pereira, Jennifer Radloff, Rhoda Reddock, the contributors are ultimately responsible Vasu Reddy, Kopano Ratele, Ebrima Sall, for verifying claims made in their writings. Fatou Sow, Chinyere Oparah, Sylvia Tamale, Neither Feminist Africa nor the African Dzodzi Tsikata, Zenebeworke Tadesse, Gender Institute will be responsible for errors Muthoni Wanyeki and Paul Zeleza. or inaccuracies in contributions. Feminist Africa 20 | iii Manuscript submissions Distribution Feminist Africa has a submissions policy Adams Campus Bookshop determined by its continental focus on University of KwaZulu-Natal feminist studies and activism. Periodic calls Howard College Campus for contributions along particular themes Durban, South Africa guide submissions. All contributions must tel: 27 31 261 2320 register the centrality of feminist politics and fax: 27 31 261 6053 critical gender analysis to past, present and email: [email protected] ongoing processes of social, political and cultural change in Africa. We regret that we Clarke’s Bookshop cannot respond to all unsolicited submissions. 211 Long Street Please submit contributions electronically Cape Town 8001 to [email protected]. We regret that South Africa we do not currently have the capacity to tel: 27 21 423 5739 consider contributions in languages other than fax: 27 21 423 6441 English. email: [email protected] All submissions to Feminist Africa must web: www.clarkesbooks.co.za use the FA style sheet, and should not include graphics. International subscriptions Feature articles should not exceed 6 500 EBSCO Subscription Services words. Other contributions should not exceed P O Box 749 2 000 words. Cresta 2118 South Africa Editorial procedure tel: 27 11 678 4416 Contributions submitted to Feminist Africa fax: 27 11 678 4464 are considered by the editorial team. Feature email: [email protected] articles are peer-reviewed by readers with web: www.ebsco.com/home/southafrica expertise in relevant areas. Editorial discretion in relation to submitted work resides with the editorial team. Copyright and reproduction The authors and artists hold individual copyright. Overall copyright is held by the African Gender Institute. Material, artwork extracts and articles from Feminist Africa may not be reproduced in any form of print or electronic publication without the permission of the Editors, who can be contacted at [email protected]. Requests for permission to reproduce material will not be granted until one calendar year after first online publication in Feminist Africa has lapsed. Feminist Africa 20 | v Contents Editorial: Feminism and Pan-Africanism – by Amina Mama and Hakima Abbas 1 Features In Search of the State? Neoliberalism and the labour question for pan-African feminism – by Lyn Ossome 6 Making a Difference: Embracing the challenge of women’s substantive engagement in political leadership in Uganda – by Josephine Ahikire, Peace Musiimenta & Amon Ashaba Mwiine 23 Between Theory, Activism and Change: A case study of creating women’s leadership for peace and security in the greater Horn of Africa – by Cheryl Hendricks 43 Ama Ata Aidoo’s Woman-Centred Pan-Africanism: A reading of selected works – by Delia Kumavie 57 Archives and Collective Memories: Searching for African women in the pan-African imaginary – by Brenda Nyandiko Sanya and Anne Namatsi Lutomia 69 Standpoint When Exploitation is Camouflaged as Women Empowerment: The case of Joyce Banda as presidential running mate and vice president in Malawi – by Juliet Kamwendo & Gregory Kamwendo 77 vi | Feminist Africa 20 In Conversation Weaving Pan-Africanism at the Scene of Gathering The Weaving Kenya Women’s Collective 83 Reviews Feminism, Empowerment and Development: Changing Women’s Lives – by Sehin Teferra 101 Migrant Women of Johannesburg: Everyday Life in an In-between City – by Kerubo Abuya 105 In Idi Amin’s Shadow: Women, Gender and Militarism in Uganda – by Gabeba Baderoon 109 Concerning Violence: Nine Scenes from the Anti-Imperialistic Self-Defense – by Luam Kidane 116 The Art of Ama Ata Aidoo – by Helen Yitah 123 Claim No Easy Victories: The Legacy of Amílcar Cabral – by Claudia Gastrow 127 Contributors 132 Editorial | 1 Editorial: Feminism and Pan-Africanism Amina Mama and Hakima Abbas This 20th issue of FA sets out to continue documenting and reflecting on feminist contributions to pan-Africanism, and the implications of pan-Africanism for feminism in Africa. Issue 19 indicated the variety of discourses and contributions of feminists in pan-Africanism. In this issue, our contributors explore just some of the ways in which neoliberalism and neo-colonialism have distorted and obscured feminist articulations of the pan-Africanism dream. While the previous issue clearly underlined the role and contribution of women in the pan-African intellectual and activist project (see Rhoda Reddock, Carole Boyce-Davis features in FA19), it became clear that post-colonial engagement on the continent comes out of a very different set of conditions. Today the continental mainstream pan-African agenda is dominated by powerful men who are mostly concerned about using conservative pan-African rhetoric to the service of their often anti-democratic purposes. The varied grassroots pan-African movements of the past have been reduced into a hegemonic pan-Africanism narrative that has become an institutionalised support for patriarchal values. Though the Organisation of African Unity transformed itself into the African Union in 2001, the institution remains dominated by the old boy’s club of Presidents who utilise oppressive political cultures to remain in office beyond their constitutional terms, despite the mass resistance that we have witnessed this year in Burundi. Other leaders are engaged in conflicts that make a mockery of grassroots pan-African ideals dedicated to a liberated continent. The new hegemonic meanings of ‘Africa’ are being articulated by presidents from Mbeki to Mugabe who at times poetically expound on the renaissance of an African dream for freedom
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