Coercion-Contention Processes and Citizenship in Africa

The work of Charles Tilly outlines the evolution of states in Europe through the interplay of coercive force and various forms of contention between rival peoples. Investigating to what extent do coercion-contention processes create notions of citizenship in Africa?, I argue that the theory only has limited applicability and yields different results in a non-European context. This paper argues that the colonial demarcation of ‘states’, peoples and cultures created fault lines which impedes the homogenisation process inherent in coercion-contention theory. While Tilly’s analysis is predicated on ‘natural’ state divisions (either along territorial/geographical borders or through cultural differences created over time), African states were artificially created through colonial expediency. Further, colonial divide and rule strategies and the corresponding allocations and designations by race, creed, culture and territory created new environmental parameters in which the coercion-contention process occurred, and which still impact the development of citizenship norms today. The legacies of this external exploitation mean that coercion-contention can be most meaningfully seen at sub-state, trans-state and non-state levels. The key finding of the paper is that coercion-contention processes do occur in Africa, but on non-state levels which undermine formal state structures.