Culture, History, and Grass‐Roots Politics in a Northern Cameroons Kingdom
PREDICTIONS of the results of two plebiscites which took place in Northern Cameroons in 1959 and 1961 were almost wholly wrong, and postballoting analyses proved equally erroneous. They failed because relevant cultural data were not considered. Political events take place in a cultural and historical matrix, and if this fact is ignored, prediction or even general understanding of political developments is impossible. This paper attempts to relate such political episodes to their matrix in an important kingdom of the area. Though many of the details of analysis are peculiar to this particular kingdom, the dominant currents of history and culture in much of Northern Cameroons are similar enough that this example possibly affords broader understanding of contemporary political development in that area.
African Political Systems
The Zulu of South Africa, Max Gluckman the political organization of the Ngwato of Bechuanaland protectorate, I. Schapera the political system of the Bemba tribe - north eastern Rhodesia, Audrey I. Richards the kingdom of the Ankole in Uganda, K. Oberg the Kede - a riverain state in northern Nigeria, S.F. Nadel the political organization of the Bantu of Kavirondo, Gunther Wagner the political system of the Tallensi of the northern territories of the Gold Coast, M. Fortes the Nuer of the southern Sudan, E.E. Evans-Prichard.
Thailand's Muslim Minorities: Assimilation, Secession, or Coexistence?
THAILAND is a predominantly Buddhist country. For most people its very name conjures up images of saffron-robed monks, temple bells, and statues of the Buddha-images that travel brochures or impressions gained during a fleeting visit do little to dispel. Yet a more careful scrutiny of the Thai scene reveals signs of a very different religious tradition existing side-by-side with the Theravada Buddhist establishment. For Thai Islam, its presence indicated equally by the halal foodstall in a crowded Bangkok market or by the silhouette of a minaret against a rural skyline, continues to flourish throughout much of the country. Today an estimated 1,750,000 people, about 4% of the total population, are Muslims, making Islam the second religion of Thailand.' This article briefly outlines the historical background and geographical distribution of Islam in Thailand, drawing particular attention to the ethnic diversity of the various Thai Muslim peoples, before analyzing the nature of contemporary political relationships between the Thai Buddhist establishment and Thailand's Muslim minority. Even though there can be no precise date for the introduction of Islam to Thailand, it is evident that Arab and Persian Muslims en route to