It’s now official, a month and a half after the actual elections: Donald J. Trump, even as he forms his administration, was officially voted in Monday via the US Electoral College. As the self-described greatest democracy, it is a bit confusing for much of the world to comprehend exactly what is going on in the United States; after all, Hillary Clinton received over 2.5 million more popular votes than Trump. The simple answer is an antiquated electoral system that has resisted change due to a large number of ruling elites who wish to keep the status quo. The American winner-takes-all Electoral College system was designed in the late 18th century via candlelight using feathers dipped in ink. It should be remembered that this was first instituted in 1787, and while it has gone through a few revisions the basic framework remains intact (people not voting directly for the president, but a representative who must vote with the entire state: leaving room for the candidate with the majority of voters losing). This system was set up at a time when the population of the US was about 1% of what it is today according to the (flawed) census.The American worldview is evident in how the census counted residents: it did not include Indians as they were not citizens and could legally be killed in much of the territories, nor did it include the former citizens of Africa (who were captured, transplanted and bought and sold as chattel) as whole people, but rather as ‘three-fifths of a person’. Thus the president was not officially voted in until December 19th, leaving time for contention and discussion. In the United States during the past few weeks since the election have seen a lot of finger pointing and of blaming regarding the loss of the election, thus showing cracks in the American two-party system. Since the election, on the losing side, there have been large movements that have set about trying to undermine the entire process through a variety of means, including attempts at hijacking the Electoral College votes. Along with that there is the blaming of a variety of different antagonists, most notably Russian President Putin by the outgoing Obama administration. As the world continues to speed up in every facet, change and adaptations of governmental elections will become more and more necessary. There has been discussion of the ‘new order of the world’ (or, any other name that might be given it), and this is a natural evolving state of international affairs. There will be new hierarchies as things change, and when viewed through the lens of factors commonly referred to as “PEST”: Political, Economic, Social and Technological, everything is changing very rapidly: particularly in East Africa (though hardly confined to this region). What this means is that there are not only challenges, but opportunities for truly independent countries such as Rwanda to successfully utilize these challenges for their own security and success through recognizing the need for strength, and resisting the whims of former colonial (and would-be neo-colonial) masters. In spite of its archaic, entrenched system that is so resistant to change, the American administration protested the decision of the Rwandan people to have their democratically elected president run for another term. After all, blindly remaining with the status quo is something that the rest of the world needs to be leery of: as there is much talk of the US as a ‘declining power’.It is true that US relative strength will be diminished, as expected, due to the changes in the world’s various metrics (as listed above). And, those advocating for the status quo must be viewed with suspicion by high growth areas such as Rwanda: because such a status quo would mean economic growth rates of around 2 per cent, something that would be of no interest here. The philosophy of International Relations has developed several schools of thought with respect to the development of the international order, and the ‘Realist’ view is coming back in vogue. Mao Tse Tung stated that ‘Political power grows out of the barrel of a gun”, in other words ‘might is right’. Indeed, that is how many would describe the United States when they dictate to other countries of the world how their internal policies should be run, even when the suggestions are often at odds to the reality of the situation. Smaller and weaker countries who are not compliant with US policy, are sometimes pushed to acquiesce: even the traditional bastion of independence and democracy, Switzerland faced several crises as external powers exerted influence on the Swiss political system (most notably the US-imposed changes in bank secrecy). This is in the case of a country famous for stability in a world of extreme instability, (think during the time of World War II) and commonly referred to as ‘the greatest democracy’. Despite external pressures, for the most part they have been able to independently decide their own course of action, though not without strong leadership.This was something required a year-and-a-half ago as the United States decided to wade into the domestic affairs of Rwanda, opposing changes to the constitution allowing for a third term. Winston Churchill once stated that “Democracy is the worst form of government, except for all the others.” Most will agree that Churchill was referring to ‘liberal democracy’, and the gnarly problem for those in favor democracy is which form of liberal democracy and who decides which form to take Self-determination the starkly human trait, (completely destroyed for most during the colonial era’s within the African continent) has the usual raison d’etre that liberal democracy strives. And, as Rwandans head to the polls next year, if there is outside criticism, it is important to remember what the source is, and what agendas are at work.Independent countries need to strengthen and experiment with what works best for their own self-determination. The writer is a Canadian scholar currently working as an associate professor at a university in Japan. He has conducted regular visits to Rwanda and has delivered public lectures at Rwanda universities.
