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Freedom – an ideal that everyone desires, but no one quite knows what it looks like; the words of Tom Ginsburg. In South Africa, April is designated as Freedom Month. For this year – 2022 – the Government says the following: “The Freedom Month celebrations offer us an opportunity to reflect on progress made thus far in transforming our society, while also examining our challenges.” But what is freedom essentially, and what exactly is being celebrated in South Africa? If the words of Ginsburg are anything to go by, then freedom can mean different things to different people. If we then see freedom as the power of choice, the choice to decide how one acts, thinks, and speaks, then the South African people would be celebrating the power of choice, the power to chart their destiny – their sovereignty.

Freedom and democracy never fulfilled
The enjoyment of people’s freedoms in any given polity, resonates with the ideals of democracy – the form of governance where human rights are recognised and there is accountability of all before the law. In the wake of the third wave of democratisation that swept across Africa in the 1990s, one could easily find commitments to the ideals of democracy in the various African constitutions. Many of these states, South Africa included, have undertaken fundamental reforms to their constitutions, which inter alia included the codification of the freedom of assembly, expression, the right to a fair trial, the institutionalisation of presidential term limits, and commitment to the rule of law – all aimed at democratic consolidation.

At the time, the prospects for democracy in Africa were bourgeoning. Looking at 30 years later, South Africa is celebrating Freedom Month, but what about the rest of Africa? Was it not Dr Nkwame Nkrumah who remarked on the eve of the celebration of Ghana’s independence: “Our independence is meaningless unless it is linked up with total liberation of the African continent?” I therefore contend that our celebration of freedom in South Africa is meaningless unless it is linked to the total liberation and enjoyment of freedom by peoples on the African continent. Freedom Month here in South Africa provides an opportune moment to review the state of freedoms on the African continent.

Africa marred by coup d'états rather than development
The ‘coup’ is currently en vogue in Africa and has proven in recent years to be a powerful adversary to the enjoyment of freedom and democratic consolidation. It is amoebic and has taken the form of a coup d'état when power is seized, government overthrown unconstitutionally, and the constitutional order is usurped.  Subtly, it manifests as a constitutional coup whereby presidents manipulate the constitutions to abolish their term limits and extend their mandates, silence critics and stifle dissent, minimise political opposition, and entrench presidential absolutism and impunity.

In North Africa, Tunisia’s president suspended parliament in July 2021 and assumed its functions of legislating by way of decree in a move he argues is in accordance with the constitution. In March 2022, he finally dissolved parliament, citing the ‘preservation of the state and its institutions as his motive’. So far, he has seized control of the judiciary and is reported to have jailed critics and weaponised the police against disgruntled masses.  

Egypt too had a coup d’état in 2013, and since then the country has been gradually but deeply entrenched in authoritarianism. Civil liberties, including press freedom and freedom of assembly, are tightly restricted and expressions of dissent can draw criminal prosecution and imprisonment. Security forces are said to engage in human rights abuses with impunity. Since the coup d’état that removed Ghaddafi from power in 2011, Libya has been in a state of chaos, with factions of the state under the control of various armed groups.

The ordinary citizens have no role in Libya’s political affairs. which are currently dominated by armed groups, foreign governments, oil interests, and smuggling syndicates. Also, citizens and civilian political figures are subject to violence and intimidation.

West Africa has been the hotbed for attempted and actual coup d’états in contemporary Africa. Mali, Burkina Faso, and Guinea are all under military rule after successful coup d’états; in fact, Mali had two just eight months apart. The citizens of these countries are not in control of their political destiny and have little room to enforce accountability for their rulers. In February this year, there was an attempted coup d’état in Guinea Bissau and last year in Niger.

In Central Africa, following the death of Chad’s long-term ruler Idriss Déby, who ruled the country for more than three decades, the military – in total disregard of the constitutional order that required elections – seized power. The elected government and the National Assembly were dissolved, and the Constitution was scrapped and replaced by a new charter. In the Democratic Republic of the Congo, citizens cannot freely exercise basic civil liberties.

Cameroon and Equatorial Guinea have witnessed the manifestation of constitutional coups, where presidential term limits have been discarded. The presidents of these countries have both been in power for more than 40 years. The so-called democratic ideal of frequent elections has now been used as a smokescreen to consolidate their sustained rule. African presidents organise charades in the name of elections, which give legitimacy to their infinite stay in power.

East Africa a fertile ground for war crimes
In East Africa, Sudan is currently under military rule after a successful coup d’état in 2021. Meanwhile in South Sudan, the government is accused by the United Nations of committing war crimes, including abuses against children. Uganda and Rwanda have mastered the craft of constitutional coups and have successfully discarded presidential term limits in order to sustain the prolonged leadership of the incumbents.

Freedom in Uganda and Rwanda is heavily stifled, with dissent quickly suppressed and torture commonly employed. The Ugandan government is reported to have carried out human rights abuses with impunity. Meanwhile, Somalia has failed to establish a functioning state in about 30 years. No direct national elections have been held in this period, and the citizens are sidelined; the country is controlled by rival military factions and internationally supported national government. Eritrea is another country where citizens are not allowed to enjoy a host of fundamental freedoms. It is an authoritarian militarised state that has not held elections since 1993. In 2001, all independent media was shut down.

Southern Africa, a hope for the African continent
In Southern Africa, Zimbabwe recently witnessed a coup d’état when erstwhile president Mugabe was removed from power. Currently, Zimbabwe, Angola, and Eswatini are ranked among the worst globally in terms of press freedom. It is, however, commendable that in Southern Africa, countries such as South Africa, Namibia, and Botswana – like their counterparts in West Africa, such as Ghana and Senegal – various peoples are at liberty to enjoy their freedoms.

From this continental overview of freedoms, it can be seen that the constitution has been discarded in some countries, or it has been manipulated in order to entrench authoritarian rule, thus curtailing freedoms, while in other cases it has been simply disregarded with impunity. This shows that freedom, or if you would rather call it democracy, is on a decline in Africa. So, should the South African people really be celebrating freedom while its continental counterparts are being subdued? Yes, I think it should be celebrated, but we must remember that our celebration is meaningless until it is linked to the total liberation of the African continent. After we have done celebrating our Freedom Month, we should hold a candlelight vigil for the decaying state of freedoms on our continent.