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Similar to Power In International Negotiations Envisioning A Healthy Africa China Relationship
Similar to Power In International Negotiations Envisioning A Healthy Africa China Relationship (11)
Power In International Negotiations Envisioning A Healthy Africa China Relationship
- 1. POWER IN INTERNATIONAL NEGOTIATIONS: ENVISIONING A HEALTHY AFRICA-CHINA RELATIONSHIP José Cossa, Ph.D. Copyright 2010©by José Cossa
- 2. The African Renaissance Agenda Africa’s equitable participation is contingent on an abandonment of the prevailing current Western constructs and an affirmation of indigenous perceptions of reality. The only way Africa will have an equitable participation is to affirm itself independently of the West and its constructs by abandoning the prevailing current Western constructs such as nation-state, development, republic, international, etc., and re-defining itself in constructs that reflect relevant African indigenous perceptions of reality. Copyright 2010©by José Cossa
- 3. Asymmetries with China The argument for Africa’s equitable participation is essential in determining the terms of the relationship between Africa and China, which is asymmetric in its very nature Copyright 2010©by José Cossa
- 4. China’s Policy on Africa: Key Condition The one China principle is the political foundation for the establishment and development of China's relations with African countries and regional organizations. The Chinese Government appreciates the fact that the overwhelming majority of African countries abide by the one China principle, refuse to have official relations and contacts with Taiwan and support China's great cause of reunification. China stands ready to establish and develop state-to-state relations with countries that have not yet established diplomatic ties with China on the basis of the one China principle. Copyright 2010©by José Cossa
- 5. China’s Policy on Africa: African Regional Organizations China appreciates the significant role of the AU in safeguarding peace and stability in the region and promoting African solidarity and development. China values its friendly cooperation with the AU in all fields, supports its positive role in regional and international affairs and stands ready to provide the AU assistance to the best of its capacity. China appreciates and supports the positive role of Africa's sub-regional organizations in promoting political stability, economic development and integration in their own regions and stands ready to enhance its amicable cooperation with those organizations. Copyright 2010©by José Cossa
- 6. A critical aspect of this policy is its claim of an equitable bi-lateral pursuit, yet its discourse suggests a one-sided approach to the relationship. The overwhelming scenarios provided in the policy are those in which China will contribute to Africa, but hardly (if at all) are there scenarios in which Africa will contribute to China. It is this asymmetric power relation that concerns this research. China’s Policy on Africa: Education Copyright 2010©by José Cossa
- 7. Potential Consequences of the Asymmetric Relationship No Advantage for African Schools: Replacement of the current Filter Effect with a Chinese-based Filter Effect No Advantage for the African People: Replacement of the current power dynamics with new power dynamics Copyright 2010©by José Cossa
- 8. Schools in Country B Schools in Country A African Governments China Schools in Country C Filter Effect Theory Applied To the Africa-China Context Copyright 2010©by José Cossa
- 9. Conveyance of interpreted information Interpretation of agreement Agreement Source (Spirit of the agreement) Schematic Representation of Hermeneutical Power (SRHP) Copyright 2010©by José Cossa
- 10. Informational Power Copyright 2010©by José Cossa
- 11. Manipulative Power Submission and Power logical configuration of a relationship characterized by semi-voluntary submission: A perceives B to possess a good that is indispensable for A’s survival Aware of this perception, B imposes conditions on A to fulfill in order to acquire the good A accepts the conditions, unconditionally, and opts to strip of personal power to will Aware of the extent to which A is willing to give up personal power to will, B figures out creative ways to perpetuate a position of power over A Unaware of the implications of B’s position, A consents to this perpetuation of B’s power Copyright 2010©by José Cossa
- 12. Manipulative Power (Cont.) Image and Power Discourses of protection take two forms: protection of self (one’s organization) and protection of another. However, these are both an ultimate concern with protecting self. Copyright 2010©by José Cossa
- 13. Monetary Power Monetary power results from the unequal share of wealth that consequently allows some to enjoy concurrently purchasing power and lender/donor privileges, while others endure borrower/recipient status. Copyright 2010©by José Cossa
- 14. My Books E-mail: mozambicanscholar@gmail.com Blog: http://mozambicanscholar.blogspot.com/ Copyright 2010©by José Cossa
Editor's Notes
- To embark in a prospect that a healthy relationship between Africa and China is possible is to embark in a journey of faith and assumptions: a faith that it is possible to have a healthy relationship between entities with asymmetric powers and the assumptions that both parties are interested in developing a healthy relationship.
- For Africa, as a continent attempting to define itself in the world and to participate as an equitable player, it is imperative that theoreticians and practitioners embark on a journey to reconcile their views. Education, therefore, plays a major role since it is here where researchers and practitioners are trained. Consequently, without an education by African design which teaches theories and practices that are inherently African (or, at least, are guided by African principles such as Ubuntu), Africa will be susceptible to new forms of colonization.
- Africa is a continent and China is a country; Africa has several governments, China has one government; Africa is not a united entity, China’s fundamental and unwavering condition for the relationship with Africa is Africa’s respect of the One China Principle; Africa operates under socio-political traditions inherited from former and neo-colonial powers, and, China defines its socio-political traditions. Africa’s territorial delimitations have been determined by a group of individual countries defending their own interests in the Berlin conference; Africa relies on foreign policy of individual donor countries to survive and to shape its own socio-economic policies; African organizations depend on developing nations and their organizations for donations and guidelines to function; African educational institutions depend on foreign systems for guidelines to function and direction of reforms; African scholars rely on developments in developed nations scholarship to shape their own research agendas in ways that will guarantee them funding; many new partnerships between African scholars and institutions with those of developed nations are driven by unilateral funding arrangements, with the African parties as recipients; Africa, in large part and in various ways, continues to serve as a reservoir of raw materials and a source of continual progress for developed nations; and, the very concept of development continues to be defined in terms that allow no possibilities for Africa to reach the status of a developed continent.
- This position of ‘appreciating the significant and positive role…’ seems promising, but its evasive nature provides no clarity as to its meaning and implications for Africa’s future. As a continent that has suffered from colonial and neo-colonial policies, it is imperative that Africa does not succumb to buying into evasive policies and amicable discourse. Suspicion and assertion are qualities required for Africa’s escape from the vulnerable position that have led it to direct and indirect domination and continual dependency. All superpowers can claim to appreciate and support Africa’s role and participation as a player in the global community, but appreciation and support do not presuppose equity of participation. The only escape for Africa, therefore, seems to be contingent to a deep scrutiny of power relations that are implied in the China’s Africa Policy” and other agreements as well as a re-visit of a Pan-African vision and its latter form characterized as an African Renaissance—this re-visit presupposes the adoption of this vision as a lifestyle, not as a project.
- The Chinese Government will give full play to the role of its "African Human Resources Development Foundation" in training African personnel. It will identify priority areas, expand areas of cooperation and provide more input according to the needs of African countries so as to achieve greater results.Exchange of students between China and Africa will continue. China will increase the number of government scholarships as it sees fit, continue to send teachers to help African countries in Chinese language teaching and carry out educational assistance project to help develop Africa's weak disciplines. It intends to strengthen cooperation in such fields as vocational education and distance learning while encouraging exchanges and cooperation between educational and academic institutions of both sides.
- One can say that protection is the obvious result of a sense of individual worth and a sense of misperceived identity and consequent labeling by others, but I argue that along such protection of identity and worth there is a protection of one’s position of power, thus rendering the discourse of protection into a discourse of power. The strategy is that, since imposition is not acceptable, the only way to legitimize power or influence over others is to seek integrity through discourses of protection. Once an entity succeeds in convincing the other parties of its genuineness in interactions and is able to relegate undesirable aspects of interaction to misperceptions, then it is able to navigate in discourses of power without suspicion or resistance. This free navigation in discourses of power is possible because it is, even if only assumed, based on the newly constructed perception of mutual trust and transparency.Good imaging as an instrument to legitimize power is a strategy for extending the already existing power rather than gaining power from a position of not having any. [For instance, China helped many African countries to achieve independence]
- The relationship lender-borrower is characterized by the fact that while the lender may respect the borrower as an independent entity, as soon as a transaction is negotiated or takes place the locus of power shifts to the lender, since, although seemingly a mutual agreement, the conditionality and terms of the agreement are established by the lender.