Democratic transition and democratic survival in Benin

Democratization

Volumn 15, Issue 4, 2008, Pages 789-814

  Gisselquist, Rachel M ^a  

^a NONE

Author keywords

Benin; Democratic transition; Democratization; National conference; West Africa

Indexed keywords

EID: 48349122575     PISSN: 13510347     EISSN: 1743890X     Source Type: Journal    
DOI: 10.1080/13510340802191078     Document Type: Article

References (123)

1. Samuel Decalo, Coups and Army Rule in Africa: Motivations and Constraints (New Haven, CT: Yale University Press, 1990), p. 89.
2. Institute for Empirical Research in Political Economy (IREEP), 'Summary of Results: Round 3 Afrobarometer Survey in Benin, 2005', Afrobarometer Report, n.d., available at http://www.afrobarometer.org/benin.htm (last accessed 8 February 2008 p. 19. Question 38.
3. Renske Doorenspleet and Petr Kopecký, 'Against the Odds: Deviant Cases of Democratization', Democratization, Vol. 15, No. 4 (2008), pp. 697-713.
4. See Renske Doorenspleet, 'Reassessing the Three Waves of Democratization', World Politics, Vol. 52, No. 3 (2000), pp. 384-406.
5. My fieldwork was conducted for a project on Beninese political parties and elections, supported by the National Science Foundation (Dissertation Improvement Grant, SES-0419737), a fellowship from the National Security Education Program, and a grant from the MIT Center for International Studies. Research included interviews with national politicians and party leaders from all major parties (conducted in Cotonou, Porto Novo, and Parakou); informal discussions and observation at several party offices and rallies during the March 2006 presidential elections and prior research trips in 2003-2005
6. and review and compilation of news articles from the La Nation archives of every presidential and legislative election from 1991 to 2005.
7. All macroeconomic data are from the World Bank's World Development Indicators (last accessed 20 October 2007) unless stated otherwise.
8. Adam Przeworski, Michael E. Alvarez, José Antonio Cheibub, and Fernando Limongi, 'What Makes Democracies Endure?', in Larry Diamond, Marc F. Plattner, Yun-han Chu, and Hung-mao Tien (eds), Consolidating the Third Wave Democracies (Baltimore, MD: The Johns Hopkins University Press, 1997), pp. 295-311
9. Adam Przeworksi, Michael E. Alvarez, José Antonio Cheibub, and Fernando Limongi, Democracy and Development: Political Institutions and Well-Being in the World, 1950-1990 (Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 2000).
10. See also Bruce Magnusson and John F. Clark, 'Understanding Democratic Survival and Democratic Failure in Africa: Insights from Divergent Democratic Experiments in Benin and Congo (Brazzaville)', Comparative Studies in History and Society, Vol. 47, No. 3 (2005), p. 576.
11. Doorenspleet and Kopecký (note 3); Daniel Brinks and Michael Coppedge, 'Diffusion is No Illusion: Neighbour Emulation in the Third Wave of Democracy', Comparative Political Studies, Vol. 39, No. 4 (2006), pp. 463-89
12. Renske Doorenspleet, 'The Structural Context of Recent Transitions to Democracy', European Journal of Political Research, Vol. 43, No. 3 (2004), pp. 309-55
13. Samuel P. Huntington, The Third Wave: Democratization in the Late Twentieth Century (Norman, OK: University of Oklahoma Press, 1991).
14. Michael Bratton and Nicolas Van de Walle, Democratic Experiments in Africa: Regime Transitions in Comparative Perspective (Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 1997). 11. Ibid., pp. 197-8.
15. André Salifou in 'Le Président du Preśidium, le Professeur André Salifou', Sahel Dimanche (Niamey), 9 August 1991, p. 7, as cited in Pearl Robinson, 'The National Conference Phenomenon in Francophone Africa', Comparative Studies in Society and History, Vol. 36, No. 3 (1994), p. 596.
16. Robinson (note 12), pp. 580-1.
17. Gabon's national conference also preceded the La Baule declaration.
18. Bratton and Van de Walle (note 10), pp. 197-8.
19. For further discussion, see, for instance, Clement Nwankwo, 'Monitoring Nigeria's Elections', Journal of Democracy, Vol. 10, No. 4 (1999), pp. 156-65
20. Peter M. Lewis, 'Endgame in Nigeria? The Politics of a Failed Democratic Transition', African Affairs, Vol. 93 (1994), pp. 323-40
21. Peter M. Lewis, 'Nigeria: An End to the Permanent Transition?, Journal of Democracy, Vol. 10, No. 1 (1999), pp. 141-56
22. Abubakar Momoh and Paul-Sewa Thovoethin, 'An Overview of the 1998-1999 Democratization Process in Nigeria', Republic of Nigeria, 2001, available at http://unpan1.un.org/intradoc/groups/public/documents/ CAFRAD/UNPAN009286.pdf.
23. 'Faure's French Friends: West African Presidents and the Elyseé Palace Endorse Gnassignbe'́s Election', Africa Confidential, Vol. 46, No. 10 (13 May 2005), p. 6
24. Paul Simon Handy, 'The Dynastic Succession in Togo: Continental and Regional Implications', African Security Review, Vol. 14, No. 5 (2005), pp. 47-51
25. Jennifer C. Seely, 'The Unexpected Presidential Election in Togo, 2005', Electoral Studies, Vol. 25, No. 3 (2006), pp. 611-16
26. West African Civil Society Forum (WASCOF), 'Togo Presidential Elections: WASCOF Election Observation Report', n.d., available at http://www.cdd.org.uk/pdf/wacsof_to_go.pdf. See also election results in African Elections Database, available at http://africanelections.tripod.com/bf.html.
27. For further discussion, see John Uniack Davis and Aboubacar B. Kossomi, 'Niger Gets Back on Track', Journal of Democracy, Vol. 12, No. 3 (2001), pp. 80-7
28. Amanda Di Lorenzo and Enrico Sporgi, 'The 1999 Presidential and Legislative Elections in Niger', Electoral Studies, Vol. 20, No. 3 (2001), pp. 470-6
29. Virginie Baudais and Enrico Sporgi, 'The General Elections in Niger, November 2004', Electoral Studies, Vol. 25, No. 1 (2006), pp. 161-8.
30. It is commonly believed that Compaore ́ordered the assassination, but the circumstances remain unclear. There have been recent calls for further official investigation, including by the UN Human Rights Committee (see United Nations, International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights, 'Communication No. 1159/2003: Burkina Faso. 11/04/ 2006. CCPR/C/86/D/1159/2003. (Jurisprudence)', Human Rights Committee, Eighty-sixth Session, 13-31 March 2006, available at http://www.ohchr.org.
31. UN Integrated Regional Information Networks (IRIN), 'Burkina Faso: Compaore Wins New Mandate in Country's First Multiparty Race', 18 November 2005
32. IRIN, 'Burkina Faso: Blaise Compaore, a President On a Quest for Legitimacy', 14 November 2005
33. 'Five Years: The Election Was Not Democratic But the President's Allies Go on Backing Him', Africa Confidential, Vol. 46, No. 24 (2 December 2005), pp. 5-6. For election results, see African Elections Database (note 17)
34. IFES Election Guide (http://www.electionguide.org); Commission Electorale Nationale Indeṕendante, Burkina Faso (http://www.ceni.bf/). See also Carlos Santiso and Augustin Loada, 'Explaining the Unexpected: Electoral Reform and Democratic Governance in Burkina Faso', The Journal of Modern African Studies, Vol. 41, No. 3 (2003), pp. 395-419.
35. Martin Staniland, 'The Three-Party System in Dahomey: I, 1946-56', The Journal of African History, Vol. 14, No. 2 (1973), pp. 291-312
36. Martin Staniland, 'The Three-Party System in Dahomey: II, 1956-57', The Journal of African History, Vol. 14, No. 2 (1973), pp. 491-504.
37. For a more detailed discussion, see Chris Allen, 'Benin', in Chris Allen, Joan Baxter, Michael C. Radu, and Keith Somerville, Benin, The Congo, Burkina Faso (New York: Pinter, 1989), pp. 1-144.
38. See also Decalo (note 1).
39. Allen (note 22), p. 63.
40. See Allen (note 22); Samuel Decalo, 'Ideological Rhetoric and Scientific Socialism in Benin and Congo/Brazzaville', in Carl G. Rosberg and Thomas M. Callaghy (eds), Socialism in Sub-Saharan Africa: A New Assessment (Berkeley, CA: Institute of International Studies, University of California, 1979), pp. 231-64
41. Crawford Young, Ideology and Development in Africa (New Haven, CT: Yale University Press, 1982).
42. Samuel Decalo, 'Benin: First of the New Democracies', in John F. Clark and David E. Gardinier (eds), Political Reform in Francophone Africa (Boulder, CO: Westview, 1997), p. 48.
43. Walter S. Clarke, 'The National Conference Phenomenon and the Management of Political Conflict in Sub-Saharan Africa', in Harvey Glickman (ed.), Ethnic Conflict and Democratization in Africa (Atlanta, GA: African Studies Association Press, 1995), p. 232.
44. See Richard Banæcgas, La dm̧ocratie à pas de caméléon: Transition et imaginaries politiques au Bénin (Paris: Karthala, 2003)
45. Decalo (note 26).
46. See Mamoudou Gazibo, 'Foreign Aid and Democratization: Benin and Niger Compared', African Studies Review, Vol. 48, No. 3 (2005), pp. 67-87
47. Richard Westebbe, 'Structural Adjustment, Rent Seeking, and Liberalization in Benin', in Jennifer A. Widner (ed.), Economic Change and Political Liberalization in Sub-Saharan Africa (Baltimore, MD: The Johns Hopkins University Press, 1994), pp. 80-100.
48. For further discussion, see Westebbe (note 29); Banégas (note 28), pp. 77-91
49. Decalo (note 26)
50. John R. Heilbrunn, 'Authority, Property, and Politics in Benin and Togo', PhD dissertation, University of California, Los Angeles, 1995.
51. See Philippe Noudjenoume, La démocratie au Bénin: Bilan et perspectives (Paris: L'Harmattan, 1999).
52. John R. Heilbrunn, 'Social Origins of National Conferences in Benin and Togo', The Journal of Modern African Studies, Vol. 31, No. 2 (1993), p. 285 Banégas (note 28), p. 108.
53. See Francis Laloupo, 'La Conférence nationale du Bénin: Un concept nouveau de changement de régime politique', Anneé africaine, 1992-1993 (1993), pp. 89-114.
54. 'Détermination et répartition des quotas de participation à la Conférence Nationale', reprinted in Afise Adamon, Le Renouveau démocratique au Bénin: La Conférence Nationale des Forces Vives et la période de transition (Paris: L'Harmattan, 1995), pp. 194-9
55. Jennifer C. Seely, 'Transitions to Democracy in Comparative Perspective: The National Conferences in Benin and Togo', PhD dissertation, Washington University, 2001, p. 54.
56. See Adamon (note 34); Office National d'Edition, de Presse, de Publicité et d'Imprimerie (ONEPI), République du Bénin, Conférence Nationale des Forces Vives de la Nation du 19 au 28 f́evrier 1990: Documents Fondamentaux (Cotonou: ONEPI, n.d.).
57. Vote tallies are from Seely (note 34), p. 223.
58. Adamon (note 34); Banégas (note 28); Heilbrunn (note 32), pp. 294-5
59. Seely (note 34).
60. See Lucy Creevey, Paul Ngomo, and Richard Vengroff, 'Politics and Different Paths to Democratic Transitions: A Comparison of Benin and Senegal', Party Politics, Vol. 11, No.4 (2005), pp. 473-93.
61. BruceMagnusson, 'TestingDemocracy inBenin: Experiments in InstitutionalReform', in Richard Joseph (ed.), State, Conflict, and Democracy in Africa (Boulder, CO): Lynne Rienner, 1999), pp. 217-38.
62. Election results for Benin are drawn from data collected from Benin's National Autonomous Electoral Commission (CENA); results compiled by the Institute for Empirical Research in Political Economy (IREEP), under the direction of Leonard Wantchekon; African Elections Database; and IFES Election Guide. See also Machioudi Dissou, Le Bénin et l'épreuve démocratique: Leçons des eléctions de 1991 à 2001 (Paris: L'Harmattan, 2002).
63. See Creevey et al. (note 38)
64. Kouassi Degboe, Elections et realités sociologiques au Bénin (Cotonou: Editions Intermonde, 1995); Nassirou Bako-Arifari, 'Democratie et logiques du terroir au Bénin', Politique Africaine Vol. 59 (1995), pp. 7-24.
65. See BBC Summary of World Broadcasts, 'Benin Curfew Extended in Parakou Following Violence During Elections', 27 March 1991, and 'Benin: Kérékou Responds to "Generalised Panic" Following Events in Parakou', 27 March 1991.
66. See Banégas (note 28), pp. 191-6.
67. Seely (note 34), p. 262; BBC Summary of World Broadcasts, 'Benin President Kérékou Accepts Verdict of the Electorate; Appeals for Unity', 2 April 1991 (Radio Cotonou in French, text, as broadcast, of address to the nation by President Mathieu Kerekou in Cotonou on 31st March 1991).
68. See Banégas (note 28), p. 45
69. Christian Agoussou, 'Carte de localization au Bénin des partis politiques dominants à forte base ethnique', Ethno-Net Africa, 2002, www.ethnonet-africa.org/pubs/ictagoss. htm (accessed 4 February 2004). There is some debate over Kérékou's ethnicity. For instance, see A. Félix Iroko, Le President Mathieu Kérékou: Un homme hors du commun (Cotonou: Les Nouvelles Editions du Benin, 2001), pp. 19-32.
70. Although statistics differ depending on the source and method of classification, Benin's ethnic divisions are often described as follows: Fon (40 per cent), Yoruba (12 per cent), Adjara (11 per cent), Bariba (8.6 per cent), Aizo (8.6 per cent), Somba (6.6 per cent), Fulani (5.6 per cent), other groups (7.7 per cent). 1992 figures from Alberto Alesina, Arnaud Devleeschauwer, William Easterly, Sergio Kurlat, and Romain Wacziarg, 'Fractionalization', Journal of Economic Growth, Vol. 8, No. 2 (2003), pp. 155-94.
71. Banégas (note 28)
72. Cédric Mayrargue, 'Le caméléon est remonté en haut de l'arbre: Le retour au pouvoir de Mathieu Kérékou au Bénin', Politique Africaine, Vol. 62 (1996), pp. 124-31
73. Emmanuel V. Adjovi, Une élection libre en Afrique: La présidentielle du Bénin (1996) (Paris: Karthala, 1998).
74. Roger Gbebnonvi, 'Les législatives de mars 1995', Politique Africaine, Vol. 59 (1995), pp. 59-69.
75. Economist Intelligence Unit, Country Report: Benin, Togo (London: EIU, April 2001), pp. 23-6
76. 'Benin: Kérékou Vs. Kéŕekou', Africa News, 2 April 2001.
77. Heilbrunn, 'Social Origins of National Conferences in Benin and Togo' (note 32)
78. Heilbrunn, 'Authority, Property, and Politics in Benin and Togo' (note 30)
79. Kathryn Nwajiaku, 'The National Conferences in Benin and Togo Revisited', The Journal of Modern African Studies, Vol. 32, No. 3 (1994), pp. 429-47
80. Seely 'Transitions to Democracy' (note 34). See also Seely, 'The Legacies of Transition Governments: Post-transition Dynamics in Benin and Togo', Democratization, Vol. 12, No. 3 (2005), pp. 357-77.
81. Gazibo (note 29)
82. Robinson (note 12).
83. Decalo, 'Ideological Rhetoric and Scientific Socialism' (note 25) Decalo, 'Benin: First of the New Democracies' (note 26)
84. Young (note 25)
85. Allen (note 22).
86. On the comparative method, see Arend Lijphart, 'Comparative Politics and the Comparative Method', American Political Science Review, Vol. 65, No. 3 (1971), pp. 682-93
87. Lijphart, 'The Comparable - Cases Strategy in Comparative Research', Comparative Political Studies, Vol. 8,No. 2 (1979), pp. 158-77.
88. For instance, Adamon (note 34)
89. Banégas (note 28)
90. Decalo (note 26)
91. Mayrargue (note 47)
92. Noudjenoume (note 31)
93. Westebbe (note 29).
94. Robinson (note 12), p. 607.
95. Ibid.
96. Gazibo (note 29), p. 76.
97. Ibid., pp. 80, 73. For similar arguments, see Banégas (note 28); Mayrargue (note 47).
98. Heilbrunn (note 32), p. 298.
99. Seely (note 34), p. 4.
100. In particular, see Seely, 'Transitions to Democracy' (note 34), pp. 341, 347. See also Seely, 'The Legacies of Transition Governments' (note 50)
101. Decalo (note 26)
102. Mathurin C. Houngnikpo, 'The Military and Democratization in Africa: A Comparative Study of Benin and Togo', Journal of Political & Military Sociology, Vol. 28, No. 2 (2000), pp. 210-29.
103. Gazibo's study implies that Beninese unions were also weaker than those in Niger, suggesting an ideal, balanced middle range. See Gazibo (note 29).
104. Magnusson and Clark (note 8), p. 558.
105. Ibid., pp. 556-8.
106. Jeffrey Herbst, States and Power in Africa: Comparative Lessons in Authority and Control (Princeton, NJ: Princeton University Press, 2000).
107. Magnusson and Clark (note 8), p. 566.
108. Ibid., pp. 567-8.
109. Nwajiaku (note 50), p. 431.
110. On Congo, see Magnusson and Clark (note 8), pp. 570-2.
111. The author is grateful to Mathias Hounkpe and Leonard Wantchekon in particular for their insights on institutional design.
112. Magnusson and Clark (note 8), p. 573.
113. See also Westebbe (note 29).
114. Seely (note 34), p. 109.
115. See Decalo, Coups and Army Rule in Africa (note 1)
116. Decalo 'Ideological Rhetoric and Scientific Socialism in Benin' (note 25)
117. Decalo, 'Benin: First of the New Democracies' (note 26).
118. Dankwart Rustow, 'Transitions to Democracy: Toward a Dynamic Model', Comparative Politics, Vol. 2, No. 2 (1970), p. 355. See also Michael Burton, Richard Gunther, and John Higley, 'Introduction: Elite Transformations and Democratic Regimes', in John Higley and Richard Gunter (eds), Elites and Democratic Consolidation in Latin America and Southern Europe (Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 1992), pp. 1-37.
119. See note 5.
120. Bratton and Van de Walle (note 10), p. 235.
121. The largest group (35 per cent) identified it with 'civil and personal liberties', which was followed by 13 per cent who defined it as 'national independence/self-determination of a people'. Other common views of democracy, such as 'government by, for, and of the people/the people govern'' and 'vote/elections/multiparty competition' were also represented with four and three per cent respectively. IREEP, p. 16-17 (Question 35a).
122. IREEP, p. 18 (Question 36b).
123. IREEP, p. 21-2 (Question 48).