Citizen Movements, Praetorian Restorations and New International Configurations

Un colloque organisé par Cornell University, Northwestern University et Sciences Po, en partenariat avec la revue Politique africaine et la coalition Tournons la page.
Co-organized by Cornell University, Northwestern University and Sciences Po in partnership with Politique africaine and Tournons la page

In the 2010s, African civil society organizations got increasingly involved in public debates about constitutional changes (especially on the limitation of presidential terms), and the freedom of expression. Civic movements tried to coalesce and bring about new debates about the meaning of democracy and whether it actually had delivered in their country. With some differences, they elaborated new narratives on the legacy of colonial time that further questioned foreign military interventions and the essence of their national sovereignty.

In the 2020s, mobilization against French engagement rose all over the Sahel region. This was the unsurprising outcome of these debates as well as a surge in defiance of France’s policy towards Africa and new activism on social networks. Military take-over in several West African countries was met with ambivalence by these activists. How to account for this growing uncertain relation between citizen movements, praetorian restorations and new international configurations? This conference will tackle these controversial issues by bringing together academics and civic movements activists, mostly members of the pan-African coalition Tournons la page.

Pour accéder à plus de contenu sur l'argument général et les abstracts de chaque panel, merci de cliquer ici. / To access more content on the general argument and the abstracts of each panel, please click here.