East Africa after Liberation
Conflict, Security and the State since the 1980s

A novel, far-reaching analysis of contemporary history and politics in East Africa, focusing on the crisis in the region's postcolonial political order.

Jonathan Fisher (Author)

9781108494274, Cambridge University Press

Hardback, published 5 March 2020

342 pages
23.5 x 15.7 x 2.6 cm, 0.59 kg

'East Africa after Liberation is not simply a historical chronology of four liberation movements and their changing faces when they came to power. It is a convincing analysis of the regional security arena through a rare glimpse behind the curtain of elite mindsets and cross-state affinities … it is a must read for scholars and practitioners …' Tim Glawion, Perspectives on Politics

Between 1986 and 1994, East Africa's postcolonial, political settlement was profoundly challenged as four revolutionary 'liberation' movements seized power in Eritrea, Ethiopia, Rwanda and Uganda. After years of armed struggle against vicious dictatorships, these movements transformed from rebels to rulers, promising to deliver 'fundamental change'. This study exposes, examines and underlines the acute challenges each has faced in doing so. Drawing on over 130 interviews with the region's post-liberation elite, undertaken over the course of a decade, Jonathan Fisher takes a fresh and empirically-grounded approach to explaining the fast-moving politics of the region over the last three decades, focusing on the role and influence of its guerrilla governments. East Africa after Liberation sheds critical light on the competing pressures post-liberation governments contend with as they balance reformist aspirations with accommodation of counter-vailing interests, historical trajectories and their own violent organisational cultures.

Introduction
Part I. Insurgency: 1. East Africa's post-liberation elite and the legacy of insurgency I: movement, state and society
2. East Africa's post-liberation elite and the legacy of insurgency II: from rebellion to government
Part II. Liberation: 3. From rebels to diplomats: pragmatism, aspiration and mistrust, 1986–1995
4. Reinventing liberation: revolution and regret in Congo and Sudan, 1995–2000
Part III. Crisis: 5. The disintegration of the Liberation Coalition,1998–2007
6. From regional conflict to domestic crisis: regime consolidation and the fragmentation of the Old Guard, 2000–07
Conclusion.

Subject Areas: Revolutions, uprisings, rebellions [HBTV], National liberation & independence, post-colonialism [HBTR], African history [HBJH]