Liberia's unique features should make it one of the most attractive countries for the examination of ethnicity. And yet, ethnicity in Liberia is heavily under-studied. Filling this gap, the author's comprehensive study, re-examines conventional wisdom about Liberian politics. Through analysing Liberia's historical background, its ethnic groups, the 1980 coup, and the 1989 Civil War, the author explains not only the Liberian predicament, but wider issues such as the age of a country and the capacity to manage ethnic conflicts; the implication for ethnicity of foreign control of the economy;...

The balance of power between an individual and the state they live in is the key to any country's political process. Concepts of citizenship, reciprocity of rights and citizen's duties intertwine in the struggle for assertion. With its largely collective citizenship, the civil society in Africa is alive and vibrant. But in the face of continuing global recession, the present phase of the African crisis is expected to sharpen contradictions within the continent's states. New paradigms have to be sought to explain the formations and realities. The ten chapters in this book, all written by...