Mr Chairman

Your Excellencies

Distinguished Guests

Ladies and Gentlemen

I feel highly honoured to have been invited to present a paper before such a distinguished audience of politicians, diplomats, writers, scholars, thinkers and Pan-African activists. The topic before us today is: Mass Communications Media and African Politics in The New Millennium.

When discussing the role of the media in politics, we should always, first describe or define the envisaged future or the nature and objectives of such politics and only after then, can we meaningfully suggest what the role of the media should be. I will not directly describe very much the present political situation and problems in Africa for reasons of space in my paper. I also think the situation and problems of Africa are obvious and clear to us all. So the issue is: what is to be done politically, and what should be the role of the media in turning such a political vision into reality.

The problem of Africa are serious, and most parts of Africa are going backwards and not forward. The majority of our people are living in abject poverty. They are suffering and getting poorer and poorer. What is required now to get Africa out of this situation, is a Second Liberation Struggle.

The First Liberation Struggle led to the independence of Africa. This historical period then was aimed at the achievement and consolidation of Africa's independence and development. The objectives were achieved but in many ways, only to some extent. Much has been written on what has gone wrong with post-colonial Africa. The gains of African independence and the reality of independence itself has been visibly eroded. The achievements of Africa's First Liberation Struggle have been found to be difficult to consolidate in most parts of Africa. Vigilance, unity, democracy, commitment and vision have been largely lacking. The international political and economic system (as controlled by the West and for the benefit of the West) has also been determined to make sure that Africa does not go anywhere, except backwards. This is in order for the West to make money at the expense of the majority of the African people with the convincing of certain sections of our national elite.

There has always been some African governments which have admirably and bravely tried to keep-up the fight against neocolonialism, re-colonisation and for African unity, independence and development based on collective self reliance. Such Governments are becoming fewer and fewer and are engaged in this struggle in different ways, at different levels and their paces are not the same either. But these forward looking governments must be supported and encouraged to widen and intensify the struggle.

The situation has become so pathetic and desperate that it has resulted in a new period in the history of Africa which is now fast emerging. This period may best be called the Second Liberation Struggle of Africa which mean its second re-awakening for independence, democratisation, unification, and development. Its origin is both local and international. During the First Liberation Struggle, the enemy was mainly foreign. In the Second Liberation struggle, the enemy is now both local and foreign. The forms or methods of the Second Liberation Struggle will not necessarily be the same as those of the First Liberation Struggle. The progressive internal and external forces combined, are now spearheading this Second Liberation Struggle. It is a new historical period which will take Africa deep into the 21st Century.

Liberation should always be seen as a permanent process with historical stages like the First and Second Liberation Struggles. Liberation therefore is not an event that comes and goes. It is an endless process and in many different ways, it is a way of life for all human societies. It goes from one form to the other. The same applies to the socio-economic development of societies or countries. Very often the contradictions develop into crises like the current political and development crisis in Africa. The resultant struggles are either low or high in their intensity depending on the level of contradictions in the society and these also change form from time to time.

The point is that there is nothing perfect and no permanent solution in human structures, systems, procedures and processes. The danger of degeneration and a reversal of any progress and gains made is always there in any society. In order to avoid this, there has to be a continuous fight for continuous improvements and progress in the socioeconomic system. The Second Liberation Struggle is therefore based on this reality and thinking.

The kind of New Africa that is aimed at in this paper would be a continent which is capable and committed to putting in place an irreversible and systematic movement for the speedy and progressive reduction, and eventual elimination of mass poverty, squalor, endemic diseases, illiteracy, unemployment, injustice, corruption, ethnic wars, rural neglect, and other under-development problems which characterise most of the post-colonial societies, especially in the African continent.

The New Africa that is envisaged here must, therefore, be based on the principles of Pan-Africanism; Afro-Arab unity; South-South co-operation; Third World solidarity; progressive internationalism; socioeconomic democracy; open debate on all public issues; mass participation in all the development projects and the decision-making processes; people-oriented and environmentally sustainable development; collective self-reliance; both economic and social human rights; women" rights; freedom of the press and association; probity, accountability and transparency in both the public and the private sectors; moral rearmament of the people; pluralism in matters of politics and religion; a permanent liberation process; and, checks and balances in the socioeconomic system. Solidarity with the poor, oppressed, discriminated and disadvantaged peoples internationally will be unwavering. The satisfaction of the basic human needs will become the number one priority in such a New Africa. Production and development will be based mainly on domestic demand. Indigenous designed growth models will, for a change, be given a chance.

In such a New Africa, the movement against corruption, nepotism, regionalism, ethnic chauvinism and the foreign domination of Africa economics, cultures and values together with the struggle for socio-economic democracy and human-centred development will be recognised and promoted by the state and the people as a permanent process. New Africa will, at both local and continental levels, have a permanent and effective mechanism for conflict prevention, control and resolution. As a genuinely independent and united entity, New Africa will, by its very nature, have the capability of making a decisive contribution to world peace and to the re-structuring and the democratisation of the international relations system. Africa then, will have put itself in a position in which it would be impossible for the international relations system or the current World Order to marginalise it.

In mobilizing all the resources of Africa for the Second Liberation, it is always essential to include the African Diaspora. The contribution of the African Diaspora or the people of African origin internationally is crucial to the realisation of a New African. They played such a role in the First Liberation Struggle. Just to mention the names of Marcus Garvey, George Padmore, W.E.B. Du Bois and Franz Fanon illustrates the point. It is therefore essential that apart from the usual progressive friends of Africa internationally, the Africa Diaspora needs to be fully mobilised as a priority. Their own freedom and dignity is inseparably linked to that of Africa. This is why the concept of Pan-Africanism was first fully popularised and accepted among the black people of USA and the Caribbean Islands and only later in Africa itself. Africa is their natural home and this symbiotic relationship will prove crucial to the realisation of a New Africa during its Second Liberation period.

The Mass Communications media must be relevant to this kind Africa that we are talking about. The media must stand up and be counted. In other words, the media must support this process of the Second Liberation of Africa. But this may be difficult or unacceptable to some of them if they are owned by Westerners or by the enemies of African liberation and development. Media ownership is therefore a very crucial issue because it decides the political orientations of the media.

The media are an essential sector in society. They are essential for our communication processes and social change. We cannot do without them and we desperately need them in order to effective in support of the aspirations of our people and their struggles. We must stop our media from mouthing the slogans and philosophies of the enemy. We must stop them from being instruments of the oppressor, the enemy of the Western forces which once enslaved us and are now using neo-colonialist strategies and tactics to keep us down. Their aim is to continue exploiting the resources of our continent for their benefit and that of some sections of our elite at the expense of the African majority. Because of the importance of the media and their sensitive role in society, we should not allow foreign investment in the media sector. The media sector should be reserved for the citizens and the governments of our countries in Africa.

The Governments should have their own mass media of communication. They have constitutional obligation to properly and effectively inform the people about their thinking, their plans and activities. This can best be done through their own media especially if the private media are hysterically antigovernment. But governments should also put legislation in place which guarantees the right of citizens to own and operate private owned media.

The most healthy situation is for both the private sector and the state to own their respective media. The more mass communication media exist the better for society. We are also aware that our economies are so small that only a limited number of mass media can be supported by the advertising expenditure of our economies. But all the same, it would be counter productive to allow foreigners to invest in the media sector. Very often, their motives would be political since this is hardly a profit-making sector.

Some of the private sector media have a tendency to ignore developmental issues because they are not as exciting and sensational. Sensationalism improves newspaper circulation which also improves attraction for advertisers. But the state related media have the obligation or an easily be made depending on the nature and orientation of that government to promote the full mobilisation of all the forces for social, political and economic change, and development. This is the meaning of the Second Liberation struggle of Africa.

It is important to point out that the level of development and the nature of the organisation of the media is usually determined by the levels of development of a particular country. If a country is underdeveloped, its media is likely to be underdeveloped too. If a country is at war or in a civil war or in a crisis, that is also reflected in the nature of the media. In other words, the media do not exist in a vacuum. They are an integral part of society. They have to operate under the law and are directly affected by the ups and downs of politics and the economy.

The question of Freedom of the Press is another concept which is often discussed in a confused manner. It does not exist in a vacuum either. It is relative and not absolute, and is freedom under the law and is affected by the other pressures of society. It is not easy for the Editor to have an orientation which is diametrically opposed to that of the owner of the newspaper. The Editor cannot be easily independent from the owner of the paper. He who pays the piper plays the tune! Can the reporter be independent from the Editor? Who is in charge in a newsgathering organisation? How far can the journalists be independent from the Editor and the owner of the paper? How far can one be independent from the law, the advertisers, the economy and the other pressures of society? Press Freedom and independence should not be seen only in relationship to the Government. What about with its relationship with the private sector company which may be the owner?

Every society has its own priorities or causes which change from time to time. Taking Africa as one region, our current priorities or causes can be described as liberation, democratisation and Socioeconomic development. Liberation, democratisation and socioeconomic development are all seen here in this paper as continuous processes rather than events. When we have moved far or achieved high results in these processes then our priorities and causes will change into something else. At the moment, and including much of the new millennium, our lives in Africa will be dominated by issues to do with the processes of liberation, democratisation and socioeconomic development. The independence, unity and development of Africa will depend on how far we succeed with our priorities and causes.

The role of the mass communication media is not only to support and promote our priorities and causes as defined here. The media must also continuously point out the excesses and abuses in these processes and ensure that all deviationist tendencies are exposed for all to see so that they may be corrected. In that respect, the media must play their role of supporter and watchdog of the people's aspirations and interests. It is very easy for causes to be deviated, loose direction, infiltrated and highjacked. It should be the duty of the mass media of communication to inform and expose without being petty, personal, emotional or hysterical. By being petty, personal and emotional or hysterical or sensational the media will loose their persuasive power and impact. But for Africa to develop such a sophisticated, powerful, responsible and constructive mass communication media, we need to put a lot of resources into training of our media practitioners. Very often we loose many of our best journalists to other sectors which give more respect to their professionals. One of the major reasons is that we do not pay them well in view of the importance and high-profile role that we want them to play in the sociopolitical process or in comparison to what professionals in other sectors earn. Well-funded and appropriate levels of training and reasonable levels of remuneration could do wonders in the transformation of our communications systems, their role and impact.

Our socio-political systems must evolve out of our own experiences or as a result of the inter-play of contradictory forces in our societies. We as Africans, should learn not to be always ready to accept prescriptions from our former colonial masters. After having oppressed and enslaved us for centuries, they cannot easily be our teachers on democracy, human rights, Freedom of the Press and good governance. We must learn from our own experience and struggles and then proceed with our own independently drawn conclusions and prescriptions for our future.

My view of African politics in the new millennium is therefore that issues of liberation, that is, social, political and economic change, democratisation and development will dominate. As a result of this, my view of the role of mass communications media in this kind of politics is liberationist, developmental and openly patriotic. This is the stage at which Africa is and if Africa is to succeed, all its resources especially the mass media have to be fully utilised and geared to it. They have to be part of an supportive of the process. We know that their agitational and persuasive power is immeasurable and pervasive. Let us utilise them fully.

In the development of any such struggle or process as the Second Liberation of Africa, the mass dissemination of agitational information and the spread of ideas at both popular and scientific levels are crucial [see Africa and the Internet]. Research, publishing and general mass communication work have an essential role to play in the conscious and mobilisation of the people. New Africa support organisations or the liberationist forces and individual activists need to realise that mass communications media can be very effective in raising consciousness and aspirations: focusing attention: widening mental horizons: giving legitimacy to values and institutions: conferring status and validity. They can encourage informed debate, help to set the agenda of the national and international levels, expose injustice, unfairness and corruption: attach retrogressive forces and tendencies, and counteract the enemy's propaganda and misinformation. New Africa support organisations and activists will, therefore, need to be fully engaged in mass communication work utilising the relevant media techniques and strategies at both the local and the international levels in the struggle for a New Africa.

Thank you

Send all enquires relating to the above article to Brother Chen Chimutenwende PRESIDENT OF NEW AFRICA INTERNATIONAL NETWORK, at P.O. BOX 472, HARARE, ZIMBABWE, TEL + (2634) 704066, FAX + (2634) 883616

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