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Journals / İmgelem / 2025 / Sayı: 17

Trans-Border Ethnic Groups and Conflict Dynamics in Africa: An Evaluation of Bakongo in DRC and Angola

Afrika'da Sınıraşan Etnik Gruplar ve Çatışma Dinamikleri: Kongo Demokratik Cumhuriyeti ve Angola'daki Bakongoların Değerlendirilmesi

Hande Sapmaz(MARDİN ARTUKLU ÜNİVERSİTESİ)0000-0002-2638-6277
Journal
İmgelem
Pages
189–208
Publication Date
2025-12-28
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AI Summary & Key Takeaways

AI Insight
⚡ TL;DR(Too Long; Didn't Read)

This contrast highlights how state context mediates the impact of colonial border legacies on ethnic conflict dynamics, contributing insights to debates on postcolonial boundaries and conflict formation in Africa.

📌 3 Key Takeaways

🎯
Objective & Hypothesis:This study examines how artificial borders drawn during the colonial period in Africa transformed the spatial distribution of ethnic groups and laid the groundwork for political conflicts involving transboundary ethnic groups.
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Key Findings & Data:The borders drawn at the 1884-1885 Berlin Conference disregarded ethnic, linguistic, and cultural integrity, resulting in the division of many African ethnic groups among multiple states.
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Conclusion & Impact:This contrast highlights how state context mediates the impact of colonial border legacies on ethnic conflict dynamics, contributing insights to debates on postcolonial boundaries and conflict formation in Africa.
🔬Design:Derleme
📍Scope:Comprehensive Sample
⚙️Variables:Sınıraşan etnik gruplar · Bakongo · Angola

Abstract

This study examines how artificial borders drawn during the colonial period in Africa transformed the spatial distribution of ethnic groups and laid the groundwork for political conflicts involving transboundary ethnic groups. The borders drawn at the 1884-1885 Berlin Conference disregarded ethnic, linguistic, and cultural integrity, resulting in the division of many African ethnic groups among multiple states. The uti possidetis juris principle, adopted by the Organization of African Unity in 1964, preserved these borders, and fragmented ethnic communities have continued to exist today. This study analyzes the Bakongo's experiences with political exclusion, perceptions of inequality in access to resources, and practices of ethnic mobilization to understand how they position themselves in conflicts and what strategies they adopt. Relying on a comparative case study design, the research employs qualitative data and secondary sources to analyze the Bakongo community, which spans Angola and the Democratic Republic of the Congo. Ultimately, the Bakongo in Angola demonstrate strong mobilization based on their experiences of political exclusion and perceptions of unequal access to resources. In contrast, the Bakongo in the DRC exhibit more limited political mobilization, revealing that the participation of the same ethnic community in conflicts varies depending on the state context. This contrast highlights how state context mediates the impact of colonial border legacies on ethnic conflict dynamics, contributing insights to debates on postcolonial boundaries and conflict formation in Africa.

Özet

Bu çalışma, Afrika’da kolonyal dönemde çizilen yapay sınırların, etnik grupların mekânsal dağılımı üzerindeki dönüştürücü etkisini ve bu sınırların sınıraşan etnik gruplar bağlamında siyasal çatışmalara nasıl zemin hazırladığını incelemektedir. 1884-1885 Berlin Konferansı’nda etnik, dilsel ve kültürel bütünlükler gözetilmeden çizilen sınırlar sonucunda Afrika’da birçok etnik grup birden fazla devlet arasında bölünmüştür. 1964’te Afrika Birliği Örgütü’nün benimsediği uti possidetis juris ilkesiyle yapay sınırlar korunmuş ve parçalanmış etnik topluluklar günümüze kadar varlığını sürdürmüştür. Vaka analizi olarak seçilen Bakongolar Angola ve Demokratik Kongo Cumhuriyeti’nde yaşayan sınıraşan etnik topluluktur. Bu bağlamda Bakongoların siyasal dışlanma deneyimleri, kaynaklara erişimdeki eşitsizlik algıları ve etnik mobilizasyon pratikleri üzerinden, çatışmalarda nasıl konumlandıkları ve hangi stratejileri benimsedikleri analiz edilmektedir. Sonuçta, Angola’daki Bakongolar siyasal dışlanma deneyimleri ve kaynaklara erişimdeki eşitsizlik algısıyla güçlü bir mobilizasyon geliştirirken, DRC’deki Bakongoların daha sınırlı bir siyasal hareketlilik göstermesi, aynı etnik topluluğun farklı devlet bağlamlarında çatışmalara katılımının farklı şekillerde biçimlendiğini ortaya koymaktadır.

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Cite This Article

Sapmaz, H. (2025). Trans-Border Ethnic Groups and Conflict Dynamics in Africa: An Evaluation of Bakongo in DRC and Angola. İmgelem, Sayı: 17, 189–208. https://doi.org/10.53791/imgelem.1778620

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