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National
Consciousness,
Nation-State and the Problem of Economic Development
Discussion
Paper for Seminar presented to the Conference on Good Governance,
Peace,
Security, Sustainable Development in Ethiopia & the Horn of Africa,
from April 9-11
Introduction
In
times of a highly globalised world the essence of a Nation-State does not
seem to be an issue for many developing countries. Since many developing
countries, especially sub-Saharan African countries are depending on
foreign aid, the question of nation-state and its relevance in maintaining
social cohesion within given boundaries is not a question to be studied
and discussed. It seems that many intellectuals and the political elite in
many sub-Saharan African countries are not aware of the relevance of such
a crucial question. The economic policies of the last six decades which
many African countries had practiced and globalisation have practically
eroded the issue of nation-sate from the minds of many leaders.
In this highly complicated and
globalised world the issue of national identity and nation-state become
more urgent than ever before. Since many African leaders including the
Ethiopian government(EPRDF government) are not governing their own affairs
any more, even the uneducated
people ask themselves, whether they are living in a sovereign country or
not. Many people in Ethiopia ask themselves what could be left for the
future generation if political vandalism becomes the order of the system.
Leaving aside the problem of other African countries, what is going on in
Ethiopia, Eritrea and Somalia needs deep studies and scientifically
validated answers if all these three nations will have in the future a
functioning government, a dynamic economic system and a social order which
can accommodate all groups in all these countries. Since the problem in
Somalia directly and indirectly affects Ethiopia, we Ethiopians cannot
ignore if things are out of control in Somalia. That does not mean that
any Ethiopian government must interfere in the internal affairs of
Somalia. What I want to say is the chaotic situation in any neighbouring
country will have damaging effects for the stability of the entire region.
As long as there is no durable peace the people of the region will be
compelled to live in poverty and hunger.
The issue of terrorism
and economic globalisation and now land grabbing on a higher scale are
putting many countries in a defensive position. Especially the war in
Somalia which is going on in the name of fighting terrorism and the
displacement of innocent people, and the bleak situation in Ethiopia and
Eritrea are worrying some which attract many nations to convert the region
to a permanent war field. Therefore
it is our task to study the causes of war, hunger and underdevelopment so
that we can give proper and durable solution. Political vandalism as we
see in Ethiopia and Eritrea is culturally rooted in our society, and it is
the result of unsolved and accumulated problems. In societies where
integrated and well functioning economic structures and a social order do
not exist, such kind of situation is suitable for political vandalism. In
regions or countries where political disorder is the rule of the system,
where political and social consciousness is not developed, foreign forces
use the weak situation of such countries and try to manipulate the leaders
to be dragged into war. The result will be dislocation of innocent people
and wasting of human and natural resources. In this case what is going on
in Somalia and the intervention of Ethiopia in the internal affairs of
Somalia and the war between Eritrea and Ethiopia destabilise all the
people who are living in that region. If we closely study the situation,
the war in this region is a proxy war. The
people of these countries are simply the victims of their ignorant
leaders, who do not understand social history, and who are not capable of
creating a system where all the people could freely exercise their
creative power.
In order to
understand the complex situation that the region faces, we have to connect
the problem of consciousness with the issue of economic development and
this with the question of nation-state formation. I maintain that only
social, cultural and political consciousnesses are the true foundation of
genuine economic development and nation building. In the absence of
national consciousness and deep understanding of historical and social
processes, no country can build a viable nation-state.
The
Issue of National Consciousness
Let me ask some questions. Is
there anything that can happen without the involvement of the mind?
Isn�t it the mind which guides and controls us to do things in a
way we like and plan or is it something else? What kinds of things shape
our minds to behave irrationally or rationally? How do we perceive the
role of culture in shaping our minds? I think these are some of the
questions which we have to pose if we want to understand the role of
consciousness in our relationship to a particular nation.
In the academic circle, especially
among Ethiopians there is a common belief that the absence of a democratic
system is responsible for the plight of our people. Some of us may think
that our leaders are by nature brutal and are not shaped by the cultural
circumstances which prevail in our country.
We have been accusing the Military regime to be brutal without
taking into account the social and cultural context in which the military
leaders are brought up. We forget that before the military leaders in
Ethiopia became `socialists` they were trained by a military ideology
which was produced outside the socialist block countries. The present
regime of Meles Zenawi is being accused for his dictatorial, dived and
rule system without trying to understand the circumstances in which Meles
and his compatriots are brought up or were socialized. Such kinds of
simplistic approach will not solve the problem in which our country finds
itself in. We cannot get answer for such complex problems and irrational
behaviour from the perspective of political science as if the issue is a
pure political problem. In other words, even if we have a certain kind of
`democratic rule` as we wish, the problem of underdevelopment and poverty
will not easily be solved. Nor can one cope with the issue of war and
hunger. If we want to get a definite answer we have to go beyond
conventional politics and supposed democratic rules.
It is not without reason that
since three thousand years philosophers and psychologists have tried to
investigate the role of the mind in understanding the way human beings
feel, think and handle. They have well understood that without taking into
consideration the role of the mind and the cultural situation of a given
country, one could not grasp the nature of political leaders. From
pre-Socratic philosophers to Socrates and Plato, and until the 17th
century, the main occupation of philosophers was to investigate the
different parts of the mind. Since human beings are different from
animals, because they can think rationally and are able to change their
environment, some are not in a position to use this God-given mental power
to pose questions and behave rationally. They will be driven by emotion
and their own will and destroy their own nation. Freud teaches us that
there are three parts in our minds which are responsible for our
behaviour. The first one is the oldest and most primitive part of the
mind. In this part human beings have all sorts of wishes and primitive
thinking. This part is devoid of any rational order and is guided by
simple egoistic motive. The second part is the part which shapes and
characterises the personality of an individual. It can be shaped by
circumstances in which certain persons are brought up and are socialized.
The role of teachers and parents play crucial roles in shaping this part
of the mind. Through time and any kind of positive changes this part will
be more and more socialised and becomes conscious. Its thinking and
handling will be controlled by the given social circumstances which are
prevailing in a given country. There is a permanent struggle between the
egoistic or irrational part and the socialized part. In this case the
third part takes the role of mediation and tries to balance both of the
parts. In other words the egoistic part will be compelled to adapt to the
given situation and handles in a way what the given social circumstance
expects. According to Freud, the third part is responsible for cognitive
thinking of the human mind, planning and decision-making. The problem here
is that in certain circumstances the appetitive part will dominate, and
irrational behaviour becomes the rule of certain groups. We have seen in
history that though certain rulers are brought up in civilized
circumstances their thinking and handling become irrational. Hitler is a
vivid example of why even education cannot change the already fixed
attitude of hate and aggressiveness. Thousands of scientists,
philosophers� musicians and men of theatre blindly followed Hitler and
believed in his Nazi propaganda of eliminating the Jews and other minority
groups.
Human beings are like monads. They are
active and perfect. They are self-contained, independent and act by
themselves. They have internal power. Whereas the monads do not have
windows, human beings can be influenced by external circumstance. If they
are not in a position to question and analyse they will be victims of
false ideology. In most cases human beings do not use their internal power
to develop as an independent agent and act actively. Due to false
education and ideology, the inner power that each possesses by nature will
be eroded. In this case individuals will become the victim of false
ideology, and their minds will be intrigued by hate and anger. They are
not conscious any more of what they are doing. Even if they are educated
they lack profound thinking. They will become suspicious and are not ready
to accept criticism. Their minds will be closed for new ideas. Because
they already have a fixed idea, they distance themselves from the masses.
The lack of self-confidence makes them traitors and they are ready to sell
their mother land. Such people do not understand the role of an individual
in shaping its society and the relationship between an individual and the
society in general. Concepts, such as society, individual freedom, genuine
economic development and nation-state are not integrated in their minds.
They think that a society is a loosely organised structure, in which
everybody comes and does whatever he/she likes. When any country is
governed by such kinds of unconscious elements, and when it has thousands
of so-called educated people, the country in question cannot be an arena
in which the citizens exercise their true freedom. Unfortunately, Ethiopia
is governed since immemorial by such kinds of elements, and there are
thousands of Ethiopians who become the victim of such kinds of manipulated
education system.
Now
we can come to the role of culture in shaping the human mind. It is well
investigated and studied that in early childhood stage proper education
has a positive impact on the thinking capacity of a child and its
handling. Likewise the entire circumstance, environment, school system,
the role of parents and teachers, neighbourhood and other factors have
roles in shaping the mind of a growing child. The humanness of a person,
his love for others and his country and his entire environment depends on
the education system in which one is brought up from the beginning of
childhood. Especially the love of the parents is imminent in shaping the
behaviour of a given child. One cannot regain the lost opportunity once a
person is matured enough. By chance or with special therapy it may be
possible to positively shape the character of an individual.
To
be concrete, when it comes to our country, why does Ethiopia have to
experience such bloody years? Why its people have been suffering all the
last four decades by those forces who are born, grown and went to school
in Ethiopia? Though going to school means to get proper education in order
to behave properly and humanly, why did those children become murderous? What
motivates some to become agents of foreign forces which are struggling to
dismantle Ethiopia? Why did they raise arms in the name of freedom though
there are other means to bring smooth changes into our society? Can we
blame as we usually do that a particular ideology did play a role in
masterminding the so-called revolutionaries to behave irrationally?
In our country and even in many earlier socialist countries
communism as an ideology is being blamed for what happened in all these
countries. The relative prosperity in many western capitalist countries
including the United States over the last 5 decades has blinded our minds.
We all have forgotten the atrocities committed by these so-called
civilized countries against Africa and other Third World Countries. The
First and the Second World War, though it is not a world war in the true
sense of the word, had happened in the civilized Europe. It is become
common to accuse a certain ideology in order to cover ones` own agenda.
Though ideology has a certain role in shaping the human mind, those
persons who became acquaintance with the socialist ideology at the age of
twenty or more had a different historical background which is fixed in
their minds. In this case I do not blame Marxism for the political
vandalism and murderous act that the student movement had inflicted and
the Military government including the present have done against our
beloved country. I maintain that the cultural context in which we are
brought up, that is the rigid feudal attitude is responsible for our
inflexible and inhuman attitude. With this the education system, with
which we are brought up makes us anti-nationalistic and subversive.
Regardless of what the leaders of the student movement wrote on their
banners, in essence they have created a situation for anti-Ethiopian
sentiments. What matters is not the intention in this case. The
bloody war which was committed in the name of the revolution bothers many
people. The deaths of their children and relatives have wiped all the joys
form their minds and they are condemned to live in permanent sadness. On
the other side all ethnic based so-called freedom fighters had one thing
in their minds. If we take all
the organisations which rose arms in the name of freedom their intention
was and is to dismantle Ethiopia. Undoubtedly they became victims of
foreign forces, and were mislead to destroy their own people. They are at
the same time the victims of their unconscious act. They could not pose
questions, or try to behave like normal people to check their thinking and
handling. As Freud said they
are driven by their irrational motives to take power and install their own
dreams. All what is identified as Amhara culture is associated with
Ethiopia. Ethiopia as an �Empire state� must be vanished from the map
of the world. Though culture and the formation of nation-sates are like
biological processes, these so-called freedom fighters could not
understand why the supposed Amhara culture had its beginning in the north
and could spread southwards. All nations and cultures had taken more or
less the same path. When we
study and understand the formation of states, we can understand the
necessity of building a nation-state.
What makes our country unique
is the incomplete nation-state building and the unconscious role of our
rulers and the special circumstances that our country has been
experiencing over the last thousand years. All these factors including the
so-called modern education system are responsible for misguided thinking
and handling. In this case our consciousness and our love for our country
cannot be seen isolated from the entire socialization process within which
we are brought up. The question arises: How can we turn these bad
circumstances in which we are finding ourselves, and can behave normally
and play a positive role to build a democratic and strong Ethiopia. When
certain groups still believe that Ethiopia in general has been ruled over
the last thousand or so years by Amharas and Tigrians, how could we
convince them that this was not the case and that the situation must be
studied thoroughly through a different prism. The issue of ethnic
nationalism is not the problem of the masses. It is an elite problem,
which cannot understand its own role, and is being languished by an
inferiority complex. The Ethiopian masses in general do not have any
problem in identifying themselves with their culture and country. The
masses are ready to learn new things and change themselves, whereas the
elites of different nationalities are not ready to do so.
The Issue of Nation-State
The
concept of nation-state is a historical concept and it must be seen as a
biological process. In Europe, where the nation-state formation has taken
more or less a unique path it is not problematic for the people of Europe
to identify themselves with their own nation. In countries like Ethiopia,
where some think that the formation of the Ethiopian nation is abnormal
and not a historical necessity, it is very difficult to make them
understand that all countries have passed difficult roads to come to the
situation that we witness today.
By historical
chance, some groups or nationalities develop some kinds of division of
labour. They develop a language and by that a culture. The development of
a certain culture, division of labour, and written languages are sometimes
accidental, because some groups may have contacts at earlier time with the
outside world. These kinds of cultural developments cannot and will not
remain fixed in one area. Through trade relationships and through various
kinds of movements, because human beings are mobile, there come contacts
with other communities. The expansion and intermingling of culture and
language will become a historical necessity. Since all groups could not
develop equally, because of social and cultural uniqueness of the various
groups, the developed culture will be taken by other groups. In this way
all cultures across the glob could develop and march towards the formation
of any kind of state system. The development of state, social structure
and nation-state are a historical necessity. Since
human beings are condemned by nature to live within a community and are
compelled to form any kind of social organization, individual
self-realization can only be achieved within a given community. For
various reasons, like lack of cultural and historical consciousness, the
group that holds political power cannot bring the necessary development.
In this case, and due to external manipulation and pressure, certain
countries could not develop into an accomplished nation-state. The case of
our country is a vivid example, why especially the elites of various
nationalities do not feel that they are belonging to Ethiopia. They think
like this because they misread history and they overstate the
consciousness of the political elite that had shaped the history of
Ethiopia over the last 800 years.
The
Ethiopian feudal system was a unique social structure that did not allow
the development of division of labour. Handicraft activities and trading
were seen as activities which could only be carried out by inferior
groups. The taste and the limited need of the ruling feudal elite could
not pave the way for the development of various kinds of commodities.
Manufacturing activities were not known. In areas where it was not
possible to develop a division of labour based on manufacture activities,
it was not possible to develop cities. The absence of a generalised
division of labour blocked social mobility. As the people remained
confined to their areas, the development of language and culture on a
higher scale was practically impossible. Accordingly they could not become
creative, and transform their lives. Added to these Ethiopia did not have
trade and cultural relationships with the outside world. All these
circumstances and the rigid nature of the political system could arrest
the entire society. As a consequence poverty, hunger and mass dislocation
became the stigma of the society. The
ruling classes could not see beyond their own circumstances. Though there
were attempts by certain rulers to modernize the system, some had resisted
because they felt that their status will be diminished. The transformation
and modernization of the Ethiopian society must be postponed.
One
could observe that starting in the 14th century there were
attempts to expand the imperial systems to various regions without
modernizing the economic foundation. From the 17th century
onwards the struggle became fiercer and nation-state formation became
inevitable. With Atse Yohannis, Atse Tewodros and Emperor Menilik II, the
crystallization of the system became clearer and Ethiopia was marching
towards a kind of nation-state. Atse Tewodros and Emperor Menelik II had
clearly understood that without changing the social system and without
modernization it was not possible to build an imperial system. Menelik II
had laid the real foundation to build Ethiopia as a nation-state. But due
to various historical circumstances and because of the changing
international politics, it was not possible for him to go further. There
were no social forces which could develop his idea and accomplish his
mission. Ethiopia did not have any middle class and intellectual force
which could grasp the idea of Menelik II and put it into practice. There
were no well established social structures in other areas on which one
could expand the system of nation-state building.
It is therefore unwise to accuse our leaders for what had happened
during the middle and late middle ages. We have to understand the nature
of social history through the prism of nation-state formation in Europe.
One could admit today
that Emperor Haile Selassie did not understand his role as a ruler. Nor
did the bureaucracy understand its role. First of all Emperor Haile
Selassie had re-installed feudalism and the feudal structure after the
defeat of the Italian fascism. Secondly, he let the British steal which
the Italians had built over 60 years. The British imperialists had stolen
all the infrastructure and industries that the Italians built within a
couple of years. Because Emperor Haile Selassie was only interested in his
power, he could not understand what steps he should take to build a
coherent nation-state on the basis of science and technology. His
alignment with America and other western powers did not help him to build
a strong and developed Ethiopia. The monetisation of the economy could not
pave the way for the development of capitalism. The economy becomes
peripheral and subsistence in general. The social structure was
contradictory and there was no social cohesion among the various groups
and nationalities. There was no cultural development which makes the
people creative and innovative. Such
a contradictory system gave room for unconscious elements to put their
evil dreams into practice. The student movement was born out of this
contradictory situation not to challenge the nation-state concept but to
build a modern and egalitarian Ethiopia with the help of the ideology of
Marxism-Leninism. I do no want to dwell on what went wrong with the
student movement. Only professional historians and critical researches
could answer this part. I want to affirm that the student movement in
general is not anti-Ethiopian. Its an uncritical approach to social
history and misreading of the Ethiopian history and its meagre
understanding of human psychology compelled it to solve the problem by
means of arms. This is the greatest crime that the student movement had
inflicted upon our society. The past is past. We do not have time to
lament on things what happened in the past. Our historical role is to
study the Ethiopian social system through a different prism and struggle
for a nation-state based on science and technology. Our mission is not to
be caught with revenge and accuse against each other. Our main agenda must
be to struggle for a nation-state where science and technology flourish
and our people live in peace and prosperity. For that we must have a clear
understanding of economic mechanisms which help us to shape Ethiopia as a
modern and dynamic social structure.
The Issue of Economic
Development
As we misread nation-state and the
necessity of nation-state we also have problems in understanding the
meaning of genuine economic development. This is because we all are
trained within the neo-classical paradigm which reduces everything to
scarce resources and satisfaction of human needs. As
far as I know nobody has tried to attach the problem of economic
development with nation-state formation. If we do we completely
misunderstand the meaning of economic development, and detach it from
nation-state formation and building a genuine social order. In our
concepts economic development becomes equivalent to market economy. Not
only we Ethiopians have problems in understanding the nature of genuine
economic development. The elite of many Third World countries have
problems in understanding the true meaning of a genuine economic
development. In the time of globalisation, the problem is multiple,
economic development is seen dissociated from true human civilization.
Globalization is a great challenge for many developing countries, and
millions of people are thrown to slave like labour to satisfy the global
capitalist system. Third World countries, especially African countries are
hindered to see beyond the conventional wisdom of market economy. They are
not allowed to formulate an inward looking strategy which enables them to
mobilize all the available resources in order to build a coherent and a
chained economic structure.
Without
having a developed economic structure based on science and technology the
concept of nation-state is inconceivable. The true foundation of a
nation-state and a well functioning social system is to develop a science
and technology based economic system. Only through science and technology
could any country become dynamic and will be integrated from within. Only
with a developed economic and social infrastructure any nation can be
respected. The development of culture on the basis of science is only
possible when there is an effort of creating a science and technology
driven economic development. True individual freedom can be achieved only
through science and technology. People of a given nation will get mental
power when they are able to understand the meaning of science and
technology. The development of well structured cities and villages is the
prerequisite of an integrated home market. In short, without science and
technology there is no social transformation. Those countries which still
rely on the production of agricultural products and mineral resources will
never see the true meaning of civilization. They will remain the victim of
their own leaders and foreign forces.
Until now the struggle on a
world wide scale is to get supremacy on all fields. Only few countries
have taken for granted that they have a monopoly on science and technology
while the rest of humanity remains as supplier of raw materials. School
books are deliberately written, and teachers are masterminded to spread
such kinds of propaganda. The international division of labour and trade
system become the foundation of this misconceived ideology, and this
becomes equal to science. Science becomes synonymous with exploitation,
and enslaving the labour of Third World countries. Unfortunately we are
condemned to think in this category. Those who think differently and fight
for a science and technology driven economy are seen as abnormal and their
approaches is taken as an unscientific. I think we have to reverse this
ideology of brainwashing and must unmask the true mission of
neo-liberalism. In my capacity I have tried to clarify some of the
misconceived ideas in my recent article, in �The Great Confusion�. For
further and elaborative clarification, the works of Professor Erik
Reinhardt and Prof. Gunnar Myrdal are very interesting and should be
studied.
It is important to understand the market economic
philosophy of the IMF and the World Bank if we want to bring a science and
technology driven social transformation in our society.
Experiences in many countries have taught us that the IMF and the
World Bank policies do not bring the necessary transformation what we
need. The Chinese have clearly demonstrated that without the intervention
of the IMF and the World Bank experts they could build a strong economy
within three decades. Since the Chinese have the will to develop they
could mobilise all the resources that they have at their disposal.
Especially a country like Ethiopia, which becomes the victim of
international finance oligarchy headed by the IMF and the World Bank,
needs genuine transformation based on a holistic approach. As I have tried
to analyse in my work, only a conscious economic policy based on
philosophy and sociology can help Ethiopia to bring some kind of economic
dynamism. With this, as Gunnar Myrdal clearly demonstrates, institutional
reform is needed if we want to achieve a dynamic economic structure.
The present
Ethiopian government which has sold its soul for the international
financial oligarchy has thrown our country into an economic system which
is mere service oriented. According to the philosophy of the regime, only
trading activities and export of unprocessed agricultural products must be
the basis of economic development. Ethiopia must not build a strong home
market on the basis of science and technology. The economic policy of the
Meles regime is a policy of quick acquisition of money. It is not based on
a long term strategy to bring real development through technological
development in all areas. The �strategic� part of the economy is being
controlled by the ruling class, and the system hinders the development of
capitalism. It seems that the government works in the service of foreign
forces so that no genuine economic development takes place. Fertile land
is allocated for flower plantation and crops which could serve to extract
diesel. Peasants are
deliberately compelled to divert their attention to crop farming and
flower plantation for the world market. On the other hand the government
imports dehydrated cereal products from the European community and
America. Instead of building an internal market, by creating linkages in
all areas the government deliberately destroys the production capacity of
the society. Over the last 20 years the country has produced an omnivorous
class which absorbs the wealth of the society and lavishly spends the
money in bars. This unique and uncultured class becomes a kind of bridge
for the infiltration of bad culture from abroad. With its arrogant
behaviour and spreading of bad habit it destroys the mentality of the
youth. The system becomes out of control.
More or
less the situation seems like this, and the Ethiopian people are
frustrated by the vulgar nature of the system. They are longing for a
system which transforms their lives and make them self-reliant. It is our
duty to show the road to true civilization. In this case we have to
challenge the neo-liberal economic paradigm which is presented as the only
panacea of solving economic and social problems. Over the last 30 years
many African countries have been practicing the so-called structural
adjustment program of the IMF and the World Bank. None of them could build
a dynamic and free economic structure. All countries that have applied
this program could not transform the lives of their people. I think this
must be a lesson to us. The history of nation building proves that
poverty, hunger and underdevelopment cannot be eradicated by market
economic instruments, but only through conscious state economic policy. We
can eradicate poverty and hunger if we accept this fact and open our mind
to new ideas. The experiences of Western Europe after the Second World
War, the great efforts of Japan and South Korea are good examples which
help us to draw lessons. All these countries could build strong economies
not by applying a pure market economic policy but through the combined
activities of state intervention and private initiative.
Thank you for your understanding
Fekadu Bekele, April 9, 2010
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