Having had a deep reflection over recent happenings these past couple of days, I guess now is the time for me to also have have my say on the senseless and heartless lynching of George Floyd. As much as the act was dastardly and heartlessly executed, it also reveals one thing that the human being has become. This image of the human being is well captured in the 4th stanza Oswald Mbuyiseni Mtshali’s poem entitled ???????? ?? ?????? where he states categorically and in unambiguous terms that “??? ??? ?????? ?? ?? ???! ??? ??? ?????? ?????! ??? ??? ?????? ????!
Yes, indeed that these are a representation of what the human being has become; and Oswald Mtshali could not have said it any better. However, Frantz Fanon in his numerous publications on the true meaning of decolonization stated as follows; “?? ?ℎ?????? ????? ?? ?? ???????: ?? ?? ?????-???????? ????????, ?? ???????? ?????, ???????? ???????, ?ℎ? ??????, ??? ?????? ?? ????????? ?? ???????? ?? ??????? ?????, ?????????????? ?? ???? ?????? ?ℎ? ??????????? ?? ??? “???????” ?? ??? ?? ????ℎ?? “???????” ?? ???.” And he goes on to explain further that “???ℎ??? ??????????, ?ℎ??? ?? ?????, ????????, ???????? ????????????.
Following from the above, the point Frantz Fanon tries to nail home is that the unusual importance of decolonization is that it constitutes, from day one, ??? ??????? ?????? ?? ??? ?????????. To tell the truth, the proof of success of decolonization lies in a ?????? ???????? changed from top to bottom; and the extraordinary importance of this change is that it is ??????, ?????????, ???????. The need for this change exists in a ???, ????????? and ???????????? ?????, in the ?????????? and in the ????? ?? ????????? ??? ??? ?????. But the possibility of this change is also experienced in the form of ? ?????????? ?????? in the consciousness of another “???????” of men and women: ??? ?????????.
Decolonization, which proposes to change the world order, is, as we can see, a program of absolute disorder, as is currently being witnessed in the United States. The current world order as we have always had it since the emergence of new nation-states in Africa, parts of Asia, Latin America and the Middle East can be likened to a form of ? ?????? ????????????. In this global colony, there is, for instance one “???????” of men often referred to as “?????? ?? ?????” or simply “????? ??????”; often dominated and abused by another “???????” of men very often referred to as “????? ????????????”
And so as Fanon again rightly puts it, decolonization never goes unnoticed because it concerns the ??? ????? ?????, it fundamentally modifies the ??? ????? ?????; thus, it transforms spectators crushed with inessentiality and subjugation into ?????????? ??????, ?????? ?? ?? ?????? ????????? ??? ?? ??? ???? ?? ???????. It introduces into the human being a proper rhythm, brought by the new men, a new language, and a new humanity. ?????????????? ?? ????? ??? ??????o? ?? ??? ???. But this creation does not receive its legitimacy from any supernatural power: ??? ????????? “??????” ??????? ??? ?? ??? ???? ??????? ?? ????? ??? ?? ?????.
In decolonization, there is therefore a requirement for a complete questioning of the colonial situation. Its definition can, if we want to describe it precisely, fit in the well-known phrase: “??? ???? ???? ?? ??? ?????.” Decolonization is the verification of this sentence. This is why, in terms of description, any decolonization is a success.
And while the whole world join in one voice to condemn the senseless and heartless slaughter of George Floyd, even including personnel of ?????’? ???????? ???????? especially the ????? ?????? ??????? and the ???-??????? ??????? ???????? ???????? ??????????, it is worth reminding you are as guilty as the murderous police officers in the Police Department of the State of Minnesota; as you are on record of brutalizing your own citizens and even sometimes killing innocent civilians you took an oath to protect. The call for a reform in policing and the broader national security architecture must apply to you too.
By Andrew Muniru Nantogmah
The writer is a Development Communications Practitioner and a Conflict Peace and Security Analyst