GES 210 Debate Topics

Week 3

Topic One

“More of an invented reality than an organic historical entity”.

The affirmative group/movers will argue along this statement, while the opposing group/the
respondents will argue against the statement or modify it.

Topic Two

Accounting for Ethiopian exceptionalism in the history of colonization is an issue that has
divided opinion.

The affirmative group will argue that Ethiopia survived colonization because of the internal
strengths of its society, while the opposing group will counter by arguing that this was a
result of the weakness of Italy as an imperial power and the disinterest of the British in
being an imperial power in Ethiopia.

Topic Three

African responses to the imposition of colonial rule varied from armed resistance to
negotiation and accommodation (sometimes known as collaboration).

The affirmative group will argue that it was better to resist imperial colonization through
armed war, while the opposing group will argue that it was strategic to negotiate and
accommodate the colonizers.

Week 4

Topic Four

“The use of the Holocaust paradigm (or to classify as genocide) in reference to King
Leopold’s colonial atrocities in the Congo, has been subject to ambiguity.

The affirmative group will argue that the Congo colonial atrocities were in fact genocide,
while the opposing group will counter by arguing that these atrocities do not meet the
minimum criteria for genocide.”
Topic Five

“The Namibian colonial conflict of the early 20th century was more of early colonial racial
conflict that got out of hand, than genocide perse”

The affirmative group/the movers will argue along this statement, while the opposing

group/the respondents will argue against the statement.

Week 5

Topic Six

To what extent did colonialism transform African societies and cultures?

The affirmative group will argue that African societies were substantially transformed by
colonial rule and modernity, while the opposing group will counter by arguing that Africans
exercised their agency to retain aspects of their autonomy and limit the transformative
impact of colonial rule and modernity”

Topic Seven

The impact of colonialism on Africa has divided scholarly and public opinion for a long time,
often with some emotional argumentation.

The affirmative group will argue that colonialism was solely negative and it resulted in
African underdevelopment, while the opposing group will counter by arguing that
colonialism was more developmental than exploitative.

Week 6

Topic Eight

"The causal link between WWI and early African nationalism is more contextual than direct".

The movers/affirmative group will argue in support of this statement while the
opposers/respondents, will argue against it.

Week 7

Topic Nine
The balance of scales between the influential roles played by internal vs external forces in
the decolonization process has always required walking a tightrope.

The affirmative group will argue that the internal forces were decisive in triggering and
sustaining decolonization, while the opposing group will counter that external forces were
the most influential.

Week 8

Topic Ten

“Kenya succeeded in her goal of indigenous capitalist development through her

Africanisation programme”.

The affirmative group will argue for the statement validating it as true while the opposing
group will argue against the statement proving it as false.

Topic Eleven

The capitalist development strategy adopted by postcolonial Kenya in the 1960s was far
much better than the socialist path chosen by Julius Nyerere’s Tanzania in the late 1960s”.

The affirmative group will argue yes while the opposing group will counter by arguing no.

Week 10

Topic Twelve

“African postcolonial integration initiatives have failed spectacularly to advance the

continent’s developmental goals”.

The affirmative group will argue for the statement validating it as true while the opposing
group will argue against the statement proving it as false

Topic Thirteen

Writing in the midst of concerns about the low commitment to the proposed “United States
of Africa project”, Julius Nyerere once argued that “African unity is at present merely an
emotion born of a history of colonialism and oppression” (Nyerere, “A United States of
Africa”, 1963, p. 1).
The affirmative group will agree with Nyerere’s assessment and go on to argue that this
nearly six decades observation is still apt even now; while the opposing group will counter
by arguing that while their intentions were noble, it was naïve for the early African
statesmen to believe that there could be any deeper integration and unity for such a diverse
continent, in a short space of time.

Topic Fourteen

The changing continental developmental blueprints from the Lagos Plan of Action to NEPAD
did little to enhance Africa’s ability to tackle developmental challenges”. The affirmative
group will agree with the statement, while the opposing group will oppose it.

Week 11

Topic Fifteen

According to Branwen G. Jones: the discourse of failed states is “a contemporary successor

to a much longer genealogy of imperial discourse about Africa and other non-European
societies” – a “modern form of racialized international thought” (p. 49).

The affirmative group will agree with this verdict, while the opposing group will oppose the
statement and prove that failed states actually do exist in Africa

Topic Sixteen

"The Rwandan genocide of 1994 was caused by the failure of the post-colonial state to deal
with the legacies of colonialism and emerging challenges".

The movers will agree, while the respondents will oppose.

Week 12

Topic Seventeen

"Colonialism is entirely to blame for Africa's contemporary border/territorial disputes".

The movers will agree with the statement, and the respondents will oppose it.