Building freedom? Securing constitutionalism and civil liberties in Africa: an analysis of evidence from the APRM

Africa’s turn to electoral democracy over the past three decades has rightly been hailed as a significant achievement, but it has not rid the continent of restrictive and authoritarian governance impulses. This report attempts to interrogate the concept of ‘freedom’ and how it is faring in Africa. To do so, it conceptualises freedom in terms of ‘constitutional liberalism’, and discusses this conceptualisation in relation to two broad themes: constitutionalism and civil liberties.

Africa’s ‘free’ countries – represented in this study by Benin, Ghana, Mauritius and South Africa – tend to have constitutions whose guarantees are respected in fact. Citizens’ liberties are generally extensive and protected, and characterised by an independent media and vibrant civil society.

The ‘partly free’ countries – represented here by Mozambique, Nigeria, Tanzania and Zambia – generally have the legal and constitutional infrastructure of freedom in place, but show significant deficiencies in implementation or in the political culture. Court orders may not be observed, or party–state conflation may undermine formal guarantees.

The ‘not free’ countries – represented here by Algeria, Ethiopia, Rwanda and Uganda – have circumscribed constitutional and legal environments. Constitutionalism is underdeveloped and the ability to exercise freedoms is typically restricted. The media and civil society are controlled, particularly when it comes to engaging in political matters. In this respect, laws proscribing or restricting associations have proven a major hindrance to the growth of civic activism – this being perhaps best illustrated by the Ethiopian Charities and Societies Proclamation of 2009.

The report concludes by suggesting that the African Peer Review Mechanism (APRM) can make a significant contribution to the future of freedom on the continent. Its services as a diagnostic instrument are exceptional, although certain improvements could be made. For example, it could link with the African Commission on Human and Peoples’ Rights or the various UN rapporteurs. Most importantly, the expansion of freedom in Africa will hinge largely on the political will of its advocates: the difficult conditions that exist in some parts of the continent make their activism a challenging task, but a critical one for its future.