ROYAL WRIT AND BRITISH RESIDENCY IN THE SULTANATE OF BRUNEI: A FLUID PARTNERSHIP

The aim of the article is to explore and illustrate some “dynamics of transition” across some six decades of British protection of the Brunei Sultanate, 1906-1967, with particular reference to the interaction of traditional administration and the new system of governance of a Residency, especially in the part of Tutong district that was home to the Dusun/Bisaya ethnic minority.     

COMMISSION OF RESEARCH: AFRICA: COMMISSION SET UP TO STUDY DEFORESTATION AND EROSION UNDER THE AUSPICES OF THE ROYAL AFRICAN SOCIETY

A Note on the psychological aspect of the Desiccation problemcontributed as a Commentary on the proceedings of the Commissionas Summarised in this Journal from October, 1942, to April,1943, by Mr.C.Gillman, C. B. E., former Chief Engineer of theTanganyika Railways and Water Consultant to the Tanganyika Government.     

DROUGHT: THE ACHILLES HEEL OF THE ISLAMIC REPUBLIC OF IRAN

Approximately 97% of the country is experiencing drought conditions. Due to gross water mismanagement and its damaging impact on the country, Iran faces the worst situation in water resources of any industrialized nation. Tens of thousands of villages have been deserted and most of the major urban centers have passed their limits to absorb new rural migrants. Some officials predict that in less than 25 years, 50 million Iranians would be displaced from their current homes because of the pressing ecological conditions. This is happening at the time that the gap between the grassroots and the state has widened and there is increasing dissatisfaction with governance plagued by corruption, nepotism, economic mismanagement, unaccountability and a foreign policy which has produced various regional and trans-regional adversaries. This paper evaluates the pressing ecological challenges in Iran and by conceptualizing political resilience it critically evaluates whether the Islamic Republic is prepared to face the devastating ecological crisis and its socio-economic consequences.     

AFRICAN ARCHAEOLOGY: THE CALL OF THE FUTURE

African archaeology, both in theory and practice, suffers froma burdensome colonial experience. By gaining independence, thetemptation to fashion the past in terms of models of Europeannationalism must be countermanded by a serious considerationof the role and character of nation states in an open globalsociety. The emergence of divisive sectarian, ethnic or linguisticfactions requires new models of nation-building that can facilitatethe integration of diverse groups without the authoritarianhegemony of any ruling party. African archaeology should aimto provide examples of such forms of government in pre-Europeancontexts. Africa's archaeological and cultural heritage in the light ofthe current global economic disparities should not only contributeto a sense of pride and achievement, but must also become ameans to economic development and trans-cultural education.Archaeologists can provide policy-makers with models of alternativetourism, and may contribute to the revival of traditional crafts,as well as the use of archaeological know-how in locating waterresources, discovering sustainable modes of subsistence, andworkable models of social organization. None of these contributions,however, can be achieved at the current pitiful level of financialsupport. Local governments and international organizations areasked to contribute effectively to the capacity building ofAfrican archaeological institutions. The road to a better futurelies in reshaping our notions of our common past and our sharedhuman bonds. Africa is no longer the dark continent it was oncebelieved to be, but, by contrast, the continent where humanitysaw the dawn of its day. Africa has been and remains an integralelement in the fabric of humanity. The veil of its recent colonialexperience should be lifted to reveal the shining face of itsachievements in the art of living.     

THE GHANAIAN ELECTIONS OF 1996: TOWARDS THE CONSOLIDATION OF DEMOCRACY?

Foreign donors expended over $23 million on micro-managing theDecember 1996 Ghanaian elections in an attempt to ensure thatthe process was technically ‘free and fair’. Owingpartly to this expenditure and partly to the efficiency andimpartiality of the Electoral Commission, the conduct of theelections was in fact remarkably technically correct. The losingopposition parties still complained, however, that PresidentRawlings and his party, the National Democratic Congress (NDC),exploited the advantages of incumbency to a degree that renderedthe result ‘free but not really fair’. The articleargues that such very limited acceptance of election results,however justified or unjustified, is almost bound to obtainin economically underdeveloped African societies where, partlyfor structural and partly for cultural reason, politics continuesto be very much a zero-sum game characterized by high levelsof distrust. This in turn suggests limits to the likely consolidationof multi-party democracy. The article also analyses the reasonsfor the electoral victory of Rawlings and the NDC, arguing thatit hinged on the rural population's trust in Rawlings' abilityto provide rural development and political stability.     

IRAN OBSERVED: THE RISE OF THE IRANIAN NEO-CONSERVATIVES

McDowall relates how in 2005, contrary to the predictions of many western observers, Ahmadinejad was elected as President of Iran, reflecting popular disillusion with the reformist president, Khatami, and the rise of a new generation of politicians, whose relationships had been forged during the war with Iraq. Ahmadinejad came to power at an opportune moment: he could profile himself as an opponent of America and Israel. Wholesale changes in personnel formed the other mark of his revolution. Four years on, his populist economic policies have not proved effective, which could be significant in terms of the 2009 presidential elections. The crucial question is whether there is a suitable opposition candidate who might run against him. This is the edited text of the lecture which he gave to the Society on Wednesday 7 May 2008.     

THE SINS OF THE GREAT-GRANDFATHER: THE ROWLATT ACT AND THE AMRITSAR MASSACRE

Justin Rowlatt, the BBC's South Asia Correspondent, writes a reflection on the 1919 Amritsar Massacre and the 1919 Rowlatt Act, which was a precursor to the Massacre. The author is the great-grandson of Sir Sidney Rowlatt, who was responsible for the 1919 legislation.     

THE PUNDITS: SURVEYING THE FRONTIERS OF INDIA IN THE GREAT GAME

This article provides an overview of the development of the exploration, mapping and surveying of the frontier territories of India in the 19^th century and the context of the Great Game with Russia. It pays particular attention to the Pundits, the native surveyors trained by British officers who made long surveying journeys into the borderlands of the Himalayas and Tibet. It gives an account of the explorations of pundits including Nain Singh, Kishen Singh, Sarat Chandra Das, Kintup, and Ugyen Gatso.     

THE PRODUCTION OF HISTORY IN MALAWI IN THE 1960s: THE LEGACY OF SIR HARRY JOHNSTON, THE INFLUENCE OF THE SOCIETY OF MALAWI AND THE ROLE OF DR KAMUZU BANDA AND HIS MALAWI CONGRESS PARTY

This article joins the debate on culture, history and politicsin postcolonial Malawi. Concentrating on the production of historyin the 1960s, the paper shows how the decade marked the beginningsof serious research, teaching and public discourse of Malawi'shistory. It proceeds to examine factors, such as the existingliterature, which helped to fashion the direction which theplayers, mainly teachers and researchers, took in accomplishingtheir tasks. In this connection the paper considers the mannerin which Harry Johnston, the first person to write widely onthe peoples of the Lake Malawi region, influenced the historiographyof the country. It also evaluates the role of the Society ofMalawi and its publication, the Society of Malawi Journal, inthe production of history. Finally, the article pays attentionto the ways in which the work of historians was affected byPresident Kamuzu Banda and the policies and actions of his rulingMalawi Congress Party.     

THE GRAND MAGAL IN TOUBA: A RELIGIOUS FESTIVAL OF THE MOURIDE BROTHERHOOD OF SENEGAL

The grand magal is the annual festival of an indigenous SenegaleseMuslim brotherhood, the Mourides. It takes place in Touba, theholy city of this religious order. The paper examines the grandmagal as an expression of the Mourides' popular culture andpiety. It emphasizes the different rituals which shape thisannual celebration and analyzes the meaning of the festivalboth within broader Senegalese society and in respect to thestate. It demonstrates that the pilgrimage should be situatedin the political sphere if it is to be understood fully.     

EXORCISING WITCHCRAFT: THE RETURN OF THE GODS IN NEW RELIGIOUS MOVEMENTS ON THE JOS PLATEAU AND THE BENUE REGIONS OF NIGERIA

This articles looks at anti-witchcraft cults and the spiritworlds among the Eggon of the Jos Plateau and the Tiv of theBenue valley of central Nigeria. These cults, which were oftenanti-colonial in origin, were suppressed by the colonial authoritiesand strongly discouraged by Christian missionary activity. Morerecently they have demonstrated a dynamic resurgence, not onlyin Nigeria but elsewhere in Africa. The history of various Eggonand Tiv exorcist movements are examined in the context of NewReligious Movements in formation. However, the conclusion isthat the cults are not so much a revival of indigenous religiousbeliefs but that the old gods never went away.