International Development in the Democratic Republic of Congo and Sierra Leone - Research Paper Example

? Culture, Ritual and Religion Number Due Introduction Culture, rituals and religions have shaped social, economic and political development of various nations across the globe. This is attributed to the role that such cultural practices or religious affiliation are imparting knowledge and passing societal norms from one generation to the other. In Africa, countries have experienced recurrent and various forms of armed conflicts and violence due to power struggles and control over natural resources. Sierra Leone and Democratic Republic of Congo have bore the brunt of violence and armed conflicts in past decades, a fact that has led to development mishaps and stagnation. This paper examines the role of ritual, culture and religion in the shaping up of the social, economic and political stability of Sierra Leone and Democratic Republic of Congo. It further explores the role of violence and conflicts in the development process. Cultural, Religious and Rituals Sierra Leone is located on the west Coast of Africa on the Atlantic Ocean and it is bordered to the North with Guinea, Liberia on the Southeast and Atlantic Ocean on the Southwest (Harris, 1992). Different ceremonies were held in Sierra Leone as part of the culture and religion of the people. One of the ceremonies that were more conspicuous was the movement in rings or circles during ceremonies to honor ancestors (Harris, 1992). The movement of people in circles during ceremonies defined the art and religion of most communities in Sierra Leone. It is reported that the culture and tradition was seen as heathen by the missionaries and as such, they searched for strategies of eliminating and eradicating the practice. The missionaries did not succeed in eradicating the practice due to the strong influence that culture had among communities in Sierra Leone. Various cultural traditions and rituals were used and some are continued to be used by communities in Sierra Leone to mark and perform different activities. For example traditional cultural practices were extensively used in healing process for people who were engaged in war and for the reintegration of war survivors back into the society. The most widely used cultural traditions and rituals for above purposes included story telling, singing of songs, drumming and dancing, pouring of libations, cleansing ceremonies, proper burials, respect for the dead and forgiveness (Kaarsholm, 2006). The traditional cultural practices and rituals have played significant roles in the development process of Sierra Leone. Modern development strategies have incorporated traditional cultural practices in various health and human welfare initiatives such as fight against HIV/AIDS, ending of harmful traditional practices such female genital mutilation, understanding of human rights and other initiatives that are associated with human welfare and development in Sierra Leone (Burnell, 2008). The uptake and use of various traditional cultural practices and rituals in modern human development initiatives in Sierra Leone has been premised on the notion that the use of culturally appropriate interventions that are drawn from the experience and knowledge of communities has the potential of increasing the long-term self-reliance of communities, families and children (Francis, 2006). In addition, the use of traditional practices and rituals encourages community members to take active roles in identification of development problems that affect them and formulation of strategies and solutions to mitigate such problems. The role of culture and traditions of Sierra Leone communities was relevant and instrumental in the truth and reconciliation process that paved way for political stability and tranquility. Most of the healing activities and initiatives were based on the culture and traditions of the people of Sierra Leone. The Truth, Justice and Reconciliation Commission of Sierra Leone relied on the assistance and help from traditional and religious leaders in resolving conflicts and promotion of healing, forgiveness and reconciliation (Sierra Leone Forgiveness Project, 2009). Traditional leaders and religious also played crucial roles in participation of people in various ceremonies of forgiveness and reconciliation. Many forgiveness and reconciliation ceremonies were presided over by chiefs who led the whole community in acknowledging the wrongdoing and providing an enabling environment for perpetrators and victims of the war to live together and harmoniously. For instance during such ceremonies that were often held in villages, a former rebel member would sprawl in the dirt as a way of asking forgiveness for himself and on behalf of other rebel fighters in front of the Chief and Headman. After the rebel leader asks for forgiveness by sprawling on the ground, the Chief or the Headman would then touch his head and accept him back into the community (Sierra Leone Forgiveness Project, 2009). Elders in Sierra Leone society were responsible for the education of the youth and children and they performed this task through story telling. Story telling, song and dances were examples of community activities that were used by the elders and chiefs to transfer cultural knowledge to younger members of the community and they also provided chances and opportunities for the community to engage in leisure and religious expressions (Deegan, 2009). Marriage in Sierra Leone was and is still a significant cultural feature in the society. Marriage formed the basis upon which family and tribal or ethnic alliances were influenced and formed and it also served as way of increasing cohesion among social relationships. In traditional cultural settings of Sierra Leone society, marriages were arranged and male suitors presented gifts to the bride and her family for purposes of securing the marriage and formalizing the marriage (Ferne,n.d). Although most of the marriages in Sierra Leone were monogamous, some were polygamous. Violence Sierra Leone has experience series of violence and conflicts that are majorly linked to emergence of spring civil war. The spring of civil wars erupted in Eastern Sierra Leone in 1991 but the situation stabilized temporarily in 1996 when former UN diplomat Ahmad Tejan Kabbah was elected as the president of the Country. In 1997 rebels consolidated power and took control of major villages and countryside, a situation that led to the President to be overthrown (Tehranian & Lum, 2006). This led to the emergence of power struggles and war between the rebels and the overthrown government of President Kabbah. The consequences of the civil war included deaths of thousand people, hundreds of thousands people were maimed, mutilated and disabled while close to two million people were displaced from their homes (Deegan, 2009). People from Sierra Leone became refugees in other neighboring countries while others were internally displaced as was evidence by the occurrence of internally displaced persons camps around and in the capital city of Freetown (Picciotto & Weaving, 2006). It is approximated that close to 400, 000 people were displaced to neighboring countries such as Guinea and Liberia while more than1 million people were displaced. The Sierra Leone civil war had devastating effects on development and growth of the nation. It impacted on health, education, human development and economic growth of Sierra Leone. The facts are supported by United Nations survey on human development that found that the life expectancy of Sierra Leone to be 42 years in 2007 and 2008 representing one of the countries with the lowest life expectancies in the world (Kotze, Solomon, & Africa Institute of South Africa, 2008). Sexual violence was rampant during the conflict period and its perpetrators were drawn from all sides of the divide. Forms of sexual violence in Sierra Leone included rape, gang rape, abduction of girls and women for forced labor and sexual slavery, forced marriage to combatant, forced impregnation and abortion, insertion of objects into genital cavities, forced incest and sexual mutilation with burning wood and oil (Aolain, Haynes, & Cahn, 2011). The cultural belief among Revolutionary United Front (RUF) combatants that rape only applied to virgins which made them to commit the act to several young girls (Kaarsholm, 2006). Democratic Republic of Congo The African cultural concept of Ubuntu was evident in Democratic Republic of Congo and it acted as a perfect example of how culture was used to foster peace and harmonious living. The concept of Ubuntu underscored the need or respect of human dignity, group solidarity, human interdependence, caring and sensitivity to human needs (Mpofu, 2011). The cultural concept was further based on common humanity, interconnectedness of generations and spiritual connectedness. The cultural concept of Ubuntu argues that the community has a core role in shaping and defining identity of individuals and that it is the community that gives opportunities and in-roads for individuals to realize their potential and in turn use such potential and experience to help others and the community at large. The concept of Ubuntu among various communities of DRC has led to the development of modern counseling approaches that are tailored to meet the needs of people from the country and from the wider African ancestry (Mpofu, 2011). The language culture of many young Kwaangolese changed between the period of 1960s and 1970s due to the effects of modernization. During this period most Kwaangolese youths embraced new languages and tend to shun their conventional ethnic dialects. Most of them adopted the new lingua franca of Kinshasa and used it in their day to day conversations and they hardly spoke their mother tongues or local dialects (Devisch, 1995). This period also was dominated by the influx of many youths into the city (Kinshasa) as a result of rural-urban migration that was instigated by the need for the youth to break away from the backward mentality of their fore-fathers and parents. As a result, most youths that had migrated in Kinshasa agreed to be assimilated by adopting French language and embracing new behaviours that were majorly associated with formal education. The assimilation of the youths promoted integration efforts of the city immigrants with modernity that was brought by the French colonialists. Although the successful integration and adoption modernity and Christianity was seen as a successful venture, most of the people that emigrated from rural areas to the city were faced with huge problems and struggles. The assimilated group of people became alien to their initial cultures, family group and their traditional mode of life including education and community cohesiveness (Devisch, 1995). It can be argued that the process of assimilation and acculturation of the immigrants that led to the emergence of the hybrid identity was significant towards the development of the present day Democratic Republic of Congo. The transition of the part of the population from rural settings or rural lifestyles to urban context signified a shift a long the social space ladder where the culture of Zairians moved upwards. The assertions are supported by the simple reason that the people shifted from village context to urban and also from tradition to modernity. The vertical progression Democratic republic of Congo promoted African apparel as a way of affirming African culture and enhancing nation-building initiatives. President Mobutu Sese Seko associated politics and dressing and this greatly influenced people in DRC to buy their own African apparel (Allman, 2004). This was a significant boost to the economic growth of the country as many clothing manufacturing companies in DRC reaped from the rise in demand of African apparels within the domestic market. The promotion of African dresses was also evident among singers from DRC. For instance, Papa Wemba, a renowned musician in DRC appeared on national television wearing some African dresses and the following day, thousands of people flocked the market to have the same kind of clothes. The concept also worked when fans of a local dance group paraded were shown on the television wearing a local African mini skirts known as Bionda and what followed was the invasion of the markets by female buyers (Devisch, 1995). The promotion of African culture through dressing as exhibited in DRC was beneficial to the economy as various vendors and apparel designers reaped from the loyalty of consumers and expanded domestic market. Violence The Democratic Republic of Congo has experience and endured a series of conflicts since its independence in 1960. The reason for the occurrence and the upsurge of the conflicts is linked to natural resources and territory control. The Tutsi rebels overthrown the Mobutu regime that existed from 1965 to 1997 and Laurent Kabila became the president (Burnell, 2008). Another series of armed conflicts and violence erupted in 1998 when government forces of DRC together with the support of other nations such as Angola, Zimbabwe, and Namibia were engaged in war with the rebels who were supported by Uganda and Rwanda. Although significant progress were made towards the suppression of the conflicts through the signing of Lusaka peace agreement in 1999 and deployment of United Nations peace keepers, most parts of DRC continued to experience conflicts and war. Similarly to the case in Sierra Leone, violence and conflicts in DRC led to the death of more than 3.8 million people and several people continue to die from diseases, malnutrition and conflict related causes (Rotberg, 2004). Displacement of people also occurred as massive number of people were either internally displaced or displaced to neighboring countries. Sexual violence was rampant during the war period at it was committed by both parties, that is, the government forces and the rebel forces. Cases of sexual violence in DRC included public rape in front of family and community, forced rape between victims, the introduction of objects into victims cavities, poring melted rubber into women’s vagina, shooting women in the vagina and inducing abortions using sharp objects (Tehranian & Lum, 2006) (Kotze, Solomon, & Africa-Institute-of-South-Africa, 2008). The major reasons why the perpetrators of sexual violence engaged in this practice were due to revenge for previous sexual violence, as a morale booster and ethnic cleansing (Isike & Uzodike, 2011). In DRC, ritualized rape was committed where the combatants upheld that the rape of a virgin conveyed magical powers and invincibility. Human development in DRC has been hampered by retrogressive cultures and traditions that are inherent within the communities. Examples of such cultures include polygamy, wife inheritance and female genital mutilation (Rotberg, 2004). Comparison of Sierra Leone and DRC In both countries, women were faced with other types of violence due to their surbodinate status and roles in the society. Majority of laws and customary practices also seeked to entrench or confirm the surbodinste role of women status in various issues and aspects such as legal, social and economic. Customary practices such as polygamy. Virginity testing and female genital mutilation or cutting exposed women in the two countries to various forms of gender based violence. According to United Nations, gender based violence refers to the violence involving men and women in which the female is usually the victim and it results due to unequal power relationship between men and women (Francis, 2006). The fact that women in Sierra Leone and Democratic Republic of Congo played subordinate status in the society exposed and increased their vulnerability to violence. Soldiers perpetrated high levels of violence against women in the respective and this act directly or indirectly exposed women to HIV infection. Due to intensified conflicts and wars in both countries, civilians and in particular women were the main victims of gender based violence. According to World Bank survey, close to 94 percent of displaced households in Sierra Leone experienced sexual assaults including rape, torture and sexual slavery. The situation is further compounded by the fact that women remain unarmed and unprotected during war or conflict situations and due to the disregard of traditional forms of moral, community and institutions are disintegrated thereby giving way for arms to proliferate and make women more vulnerable to violence (Fage & Tordoff, 2002). The disruption of the social order and traditional institutions in both countries during the time of wars led to increased frequency of gender based violence. Sex was therefore seen as a reward that unpaid, underfed and drugged fighters demanded (Hoeffler, 2008). Conflicts in Sierra Leone and DRC resulted in increased and severe economic dislocation and disruption in the provision of public services such as health, education, water supply, and food. This in turn led to the emergence of economic crisis and abject poverty in both countries. The conflicts and wars are majorly responsible for the poor and low performance of Sierra Leone and DRC in the global or regional economic, political and social environment even though there are abundant natural resources in a country such as DRC. Security, financial stability and service delivery is often jeopardized in cases of armed conflicts. Development is also hampered as a result of losses in human capital that is associated with the direct and indirect impacts of the civil wars and armed conflicts in both countries (Ferreira, 2008). Violence, conflicts and retrogressive cultures experienced and practiced in Sierra Leone and DRC has been a major impediment to the development of the two nations. Sierra Leone and DRC have lagged behind in terms of development due to greater percentage of their population languishing in poverty. Violence in both countries has impacted negatively on development and has widened the poverty reduction gap between them and countries that have not experienced violence. Social development process has also been hindered and this is evidenced by the poor outcomes of human development indicators in both countries (World Bank, 2011). In Sierra Leone and DRC, seizing and retaining of power was closely linked to direct violence. In DRC for example, the elite deliberately started war and used the prevailing insecurity conditions to maintain and impose particular political system or order. Various regimes in DRC have constantly equated violence and force to power and most have relied on foreign support that has further entrenched the culture of violence in international frontiers (Picciotto & Weaving, 2006). The economic growth of these countries has been jeopardized by the recurrence of conflicts that puts political governance at stake. In most cases the state is unable to provide basic services such as food, shelter and to provide adequate mitigation and protection measures to the population. Food crisis is often eminent in Sierra Leone and DRC due to occurrence of conflicts that the population from engaging in farming and agricultural activities. Since most of major economies in Africa are relying on agriculture, economic growth and development in these countries remains elusive with the recurrence of conflicts. Sierra Leone and DRC have been without a stable central government for over a long period due to several years of civil war and this led to the stagnation and relapse of economic growth in both countries. It has been anticipated that a year of conflict has the potential of reducing the economic growth rate of a country by 2.2 percent and that it can take up to ten years during the post-war recovery for a country to gain a 1 percent gain in economic growth (Hoeffler, 2008). The welfare of population in Sierra Leone and DRC were affected and reduced due to channeling of resources from social and economic development to war. Violence usually concentrates political and economic resources on the hands of a few people thereby resulting in inequalities across the general population. Although Sierra Leone and DRC have considerable mineral resources and other natural resources including timber, political instability has impacted negatively on the post-independence economy of these countries. Mineral mining in both countries has failed to contribute to the economic growth of the two nations due prevalence of illegal mining activities and smuggling. The recurrence of civil wars in both countries affects national accounts and subsequently the collapse of management and exploitation structures of mineral resources. The persistence of low economic growth rates in Sierra Leone even after the return of normalcy can be attributed to the difficulty of the countries in assuring both domestic and foreign investors (World Bank, 2011). Conclusion Series of violence and conflicts that has erupted in Sierra Leone and Democratic Republic of Congo have impacted negatively on the social, economic and political instability of both countries. The armed conflicts in both countries have been attributed to the need for control of resources and maintenance of preferred political systems. International development of countries should be based on the prevailing cultural and religion practices that can enhance peace and sustained stability in the long run. It is also evident from the paper that certain cultural practices are crucial in peace building and re-integration of people in post-conflict period. International peace and reconciliation processes should therefore take cognizant of the existing cultural, ritual and religion that are embraced by the communities. For sustained social, economic and political international development initiatives should focus on the development and provision of basic conditions that can allow citizens of both countries to access good quality of life in terms of education, health, water and sanitation, gender equality and job creation. Women need to be incorporated in the peace building processes since they form part of the development processes. References Allman, J. M. (2004). Fashioning Africa: Power and the Politics of Dress. 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