CONTENTS | ANB-BIA HOMEPAGE | WEEKLY NEWS
by Alain Agboton, Senegal, August 1999
THEME = FUNDAMENTALISM
Is Senegal slipping dangerously, insidiously and imperceptibly
into fundamentalism?
Many are the disquieting signs leading to this conclusion
In just one week, two mosques have been burnt, a journalist physically threatened and his house set on fire by the followers of a local marabout who took offence at his articles attacking them. His brother was abducted for a dozen hours, then released. An Imam has been roughed up and reporters insulted. All this in a climate reminiscent of the Inquisition.
A marabout has called for civil disobedience. Some "soldiers of the Faith" (Mourides) besieged a prison calling for the release of one of their members. The latter was imprisoned last May for refusing to receive a government delegation come to pay their respects for the feast of Magal. The siege was only lifted on the order of their leader, the Khalif of the Mourides, who is chief of one of the largest Muslim Brotherhoods in the country.
It should be noted that all this is taking place during the run-up to the presidential election due in February 2000. There's a great danger of trouble to come which could spell an erosion of the State's authority. In fact, both the State and the political parties are assiduously courting the religious leaders (especially the Mourides), falling under their every whim, hence their arrogance and impertinence. And besides - the religious leaders' town, Touba, is nothing less than a state within a state.
What has been perceived as "fundamentalist excesses" has been strongly condemned by the Press, humanitarian organisations, civil rights groups, and the civil society. Faced with such a show of disapproval, the State, no less than the political parties, continue to astonish and confound the body politic with their deafening silence. All in all, a fine show of unanimity bloated with shameful resignations, hidden back-trackings and petty ulterior motives.
All this bears witness to a situation which should be, at the very least, subject to scrutiny, and which lends itself to some kind of in-depth sociological examination. One has the right to react by declaring: "Senegal! You can keep what you take for tolerance! As far as you're concerned, all you're doing, is allowing in the name of religion, such shabby acts to take place that even the least of "banana" republics would reject. Obscuritanism and fanaticism lie in wait to trap us".
All this is just another episode, symptomatic of the "great dangers" which threaten social disintegration, leading to general chaos and the implosion of the State. This causes some to recall what happened in Algeria.
From now onwards, what's taking place in Senegal appears to be the rule of untamed and ruinous individualism. It's also the rule of desperation orchestrated by distress, mistrust and individual fears. Whence the visible anarchy and lack of authority at the level of government. What seems to be shaping up today, is the loss of the State's authority vis à vis its responsibility for maintaining public order.
A reputable Senegalese political analyst puts it this way: "The State is decaying in the face of religious pressure. As the State declines, so religious power becomes even stronger. Basic liberties are in danger. Today, Senegal has broken up into several power blocks which authority can't knit together, resulting in its impotence and turpitude. The race for political power entails concessions to the religious leaders. Discredited, the State is usurped by other authorities. And the citizen picks up the tab. Impunity is a sure thing. And because of having given in to some other authority on so many points, the State finds itself with its back to the wall. The State with all its authority has got to be re-established. That's a priority!"
He continues: "What's happening is downright detrimental to democracy and the rule of law. And what's the result? Those who strive to keep our country on the road to democracy and those who work for progress, live in fear. Even more serious is a certain cowardice among people who should know better."
And where does civil society stand in this whole sad mess? In rejecting what is going on, it proposes a manifesto and plan of action which will enable a presidential election to take place which is open, peaceful and achieving results which cannot be challenged.
Will it be a brighter future for Senegal and the democratic process? Only the local population can answer that one!
END
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