Heart of Darkness

BOTH,those who view Africa from the outside and those who live in it, assume it as a whole. Africa is bonded together as a geography of the countries commonly held by a mass of massive land and a few island nations. The continent's commonality is held by the forces of historical colonisation and the market of ideas empirically voyaging throughout the world.
Africa is a continent largely populated by darker-skinned people identified as Black, Africans, or related neologisms. Probably, the most influential picturisation of Africa is informed by David Attenborough's soothing commandments of flora and fauna, recorded mostly in Sub-Saharan Africa. The wildlife chases, panopticon shots of the animal kingdom, and vast, ever-expanding topography of the savannah—all have informed the younger generation about Africa. The 1990s saw impending conflict in the Horn of Africa, the central African region, southern Africa and western Africa. These conflicts were the result of decades-long insurgencies led by the rebels. I often wondered what caused this. Would a simple explanation about corrupt political class, gerontology and ethnic conflicts give us the answers? Something intrinsic to the region existed, and we ought to explain that deliberately.
The Outsider African
The dominant view of Africa is invariably mediated by the outsider. Who is the outsider? It depends on how you read history. Is the white settler population an outsider? Are Indians who have lived there for generations outsiders? Are the neighbouring country citizens outsiders? Are different tribal and ethnic groups bonded together into nation-states outsiders? This proposition is now debated by a generation of youth who have not experienced colonial aggression.
Esta historia es de la edición January 11, 2025 de Outlook.
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Esta historia es de la edición January 11, 2025 de Outlook.
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The Art of Leaving
Saying goodbye to the public arena is no easy call to make

Mortar Memory
Along the quiet stretches near the border and the Line of Control in Jammu, a fragile calm once held sway, until the sudden thunder of heavy mortar shells since May 7 shattered it

Borders on the Boil
Whether it is Pakistan, China, Bangladesh or Myanmar, the unfinished business of history haunts the region every day

Neighbourhood 'Frisk' Policy
India needs to relook at Bangladesh as it partners with China to rebuild World War II air bases

Fields of Nowhere
MYAJLAR is one of the last towns on the Jaisalmer border, which, at 464 km, is one of the longest that India shares with Pakistan.

Brittle, Bitter Borders
In the marshlands of the Rann of Kutch, where the border is invisible yet hotly contested, belongingness becomes tentative

Red Fade
Since the regime change, something has been changing in Chhattisgarh. With top Maoist leaders killed, the remaining are insisting on a ceasefire or peace talks. The state must make the most of the situation

Sir Creek and Adam's Bridge
With the recent military standoff between India and Pakistan following the Pahalgam terror attack on April 22 that claimed the lives of 26 people, the Indo-Pak border region with its long history of tensions is once again in the limelight.

Lines Drawn in Blood
In villages caught between two nations, memory and fear shape everyday life. The land is under floodlights, children are sent away in silence, and home is a place one must keep returning to

Maps and Minds
Maps have divided transnational ethnic groups Nagas, Zos, Bhutias, Bengalis and Nepalis, among others, but the Naga or the Zo mind does not accept the boundaries on government maps