When Ellen Johnson-Sirleaf was elected president of Liberia in the November of 2005, the international press hailed her election as a first. The BBC acclaimed her “Africa's first elected female head of state”.

Prof. Abdul Karim Bangura of the Center for Global Peace and School of International Service at the American University in Washington, DC begs to differ. In this two-part essay, Prof Bangura forcefully argues that contrary to what the Western media reports, African women have always played a central political role throughout history. He draws on the rich history of the role of women in the political history of his native Sierra Leone to make his case. 

For years, African women have been stereotyped as an oppressed and passive group whose lives have been dominated by men.  Western writers in particular have presented the African woman as someone held captive in the kitchen while her husband frolics personally and protects politically a system of polygamy that rationalizes female servitude. The relative scarcity of female actresses on the public political stage has often led outsiders to assert that the African woman has been little more than a personal and political cipher. This assumption has been reinforced by African historians and chroniclers who have traditionally downplayed the role of women in their writings (for example, Harvey Glickman 1992). And essayists, both male and female, have distorted the historical position of women in Africa as one means of attempting to improve their position today.

A survey of African history, however, indicates the important contributions that women have made to the political process.  From the very foundation of African civilization, women have been critical political forces. Prominent examples include Queen Amina of Zaria (1588-1589); Empress Candace of Ethiopia (332 BC); Queen Cleopatra VII of Kemet, Ancient Egypt the land of the Blacks (69-30 BC); Queen Dahia-Al Kahina of Kahina; Queen Hatshepsut of Kemet (1503-1482 BC); Queen Makeda of Sheba (960 BC); Queen Nandi of Zululand (1778-1826); Queen Nafertarii of Kemet (1292-1225 BC); Queen Nafertiti of Kemet; Mbuya Nehanda of Zimbabwe; Amazon Queen Nzingha of Matamba, West Africa (1582-1663); Nubian Queen Tiye of Kemet (1415-1340 BC); and Yaa Asantewa of the Ashanti Empire.

In the 20th Century, women played an important part in the various constitutional and revolutionary movements that swept across the African continent.  The relatively more contemporary examples include the women of Angola, Mozambique, Namibia, South Africa, and Zimbabwe.

During the Algerian war of independence, women were an important part of the resistance and played many roles ranging from hiding fugitives to throwing bombs.  The Algerian heroine, Jamilah Buhrayd, for example, rather than becoming a seamstress, became a revolutionary and was eventually imprisoned, tortured and shot by the French after her capture (Bill and Springborg 1990:115).

This revolutionary role of women in influencing African politics is only one of the many more direct and formal ways that they now exert power. As their legal rights expand and as they gain greater stature in the formal governmental arena, they are conspicuously acquiring political authority. Women’s movements can be found in every corner of the African continent, and women are slowly taking their places in government bureaucracies. In so doing, however, they have not relinquished their traditional influence in the informal sphere of power. Women continue to operate more effectively as part of the informal group or family.

In Tunisia, Wassila bin Amar, the wife of former President Bourguiba, was long engaged in national politics.  Her advice and opinions often shaped the course of events in that country. Jihan Sadat, the wife of the assassinated Egyptian President Anwar Sadat, was an important force in Egyptian society and politics. She had a significant power base in the presidency, the government more broadly, and within the wealthy bourgeoisie. It took President Husni Mubarak almost five years to dismantle Jihan’s power base (Bill and Springborg 1990:116). The dismantling of her power base forced Jihan to leave Egypt and join the faculty at The American University in Washington, DC.  In South Africa, Winie Mandela, ex-wife of the leader of the African National Congress and ex-president, Nelson Mandela, carried the torch of the Black resistance in South Africa during her husband’s 28-year political imprisonment.  She also suffered imprisonment, house arrests, and constant harassment by South African authorities.

In the rest of this article, I briefly examine the cases of Sierra Leonean women as chiefs and Mammy Queens, and present profiles of a sample of women who have played significant roles in shaping Sierra Leonean politics. In the end, a conclusion is drawn. 

Sierra Leonean Women Chiefs

Special attention should be accorded the prominent roles women play in the political life in Mende Country. Even before colonialism, women occupied the position of chief on exactly the same basis of power and authority as men. More contemporary examples include Madam Yewa of Blama chiefdom, Madam Matto, wife of the warrior chief Faba of Dodo, and her daughter, Madam Humonya, of Nongowa chiefdom, as well as Madam Yoko of Moyamba, who had significant careers as rulers. There are also many instances of women occupying relatively lesser positions in chiefdom matters, as members of the Tribal Authority; and they too take their places for political purposes on the same terms as men. The only restriction on a woman holding chiefly office follows logically from the laws of family inheritance. As chief she may have a consort, but she may not take a husband. The reason for this is to ensure that any children she bears will belong to and remain in her own descent group. Mende law recognizes female inheritance of family property in the absence of a suitable successor in the male line. This explains why certain chiefdoms have female chiefs (Little 1967:195).

A number of women appear in records of treaties prior to the declaration of the British Protectorate in Sierra Leone. These women include “Nyarroh, Queen of Barri Country,” as a signatory in Treaty No. 113 of 1890; “The Magao, Queen of Lubu (sic, should be Lugbu),” in a Treaty of 1869; “Regbafri, principal lady of Manho,” in Treaty No. 78 of 1872; “A Lady of Sherbro Island,” in Treaty No. 66 of 1861; and “Fony-Lady of Mano Bagru,” in Treaty No. 68 of 1861. These women would certainly have possessed considerable power and influence in their jurisdictions for their signatures to be sought to the treaties concerned. Also, a number of chiefdoms are traditionally cited as founded by women. A good example is the modern chiefdom of Maje (Little 1967:196-197).

With the coming of British colonial rule to Sierra Leone (which lasted from 1808 to 1961), a number of female paramount chiefs were either deposed or forced to resign between 1903 and 1919.  These include Madam Mabundu of Leppiama, Madam Nemahun of Togboma Malegohun, and Madam Humonya of Nongowa (Barrows 1967:99). The reinstitution of paramount chief elections in 1952 once again brought women candidates to the forefront. For example, in Gaura Chiefdom, there were nine candidates—seven males and two females.  Before the voting began, there was an initial process of alignment which narrowed the field to four candidates—three men and one woman. The votes received in the first ballot did not produce a candidate with the required 60 percent majority. With 31 percent of the total votes, Madam Tiange Gbatekaka had more votes than any other candidate. Realignments in the second ballot gave Madam Tiange Gbatekaka slightly more than 60 percent of the votes cast (Barrows 1976:154-155).

Sierra Leonean Mammy Queens

Due of the political organization and leadership skills of a number of prominent women, resident ministers of the Sierra Leone Peoples Party (SLPP) started the practice of crowning them with the party’s cap, calling them Mammy Queens. With the blessing of their Prime Minister, Sir Albert Margai, the practice was continued and its political value duly noted as other political parties emulated it. In late 1965, administrative officers searched for precedents for Mammy Queens in traditional society; most of them were able to find some serviceable forbearer of the species.  Armed with their findings, the officers asked the government to transform the unofficial usage of Mammy Queens into official practice (Barrows 1976:87).

In January of 1966, a directive was circulated authorizing the women in each section of all chiefdoms to gather and appoint their Mammy Queen. These would then elect a Head Mammy Queen. The ambiguous guidance plus the original partisan impulse of the idea led to its politicization. As a result of the new directive, former SLPP appointees lost their Mammy Queenhood, causing District party officials to complain to the administration.  By the time of the first military coup in March of 1967, it became quite evident that the narrow partisanship had enveloped the new position. The military government, under the banner of the National Reformation Council (NRC), scrapped the post of Mammy Queen entirely in its efforts to discredit the politics of ousted Prime Minister Albert Margai (Barrows 1976:87).

Nonetheless, the idea of Mammy Queenhood did not die with the NRC action. When the Council’s rule was ended and the winner of the 1962 general elections, Siaka Probyn Stevens, was sworn in for the second time as head of state in 1968, the post of Mammy Queen was revived. The post was accorded greater prominence by Stevens’ hand-picked successor, General Joseph Momoh, who relied extensively on the assistance of the Mammy Queens during his one-man presidential election campaign in 1985. To this day, the practice continues under the rule of Ahmed Tejan Kabbah.

Profiles of a Sample of Women Who Helped to Shape Sierra Leonean Politics 

Constance Agatha Cummings-John (1918-2000). The first woman mayor of the Freetown Municipality after independence, Constance Cummings-John, was born to a prominent community affairs and local business Krio family in Freetown, Sierra Leone, in 1918. Upon completion of her early childhood and secondary education in Freetown (Annie Walsh Memorial School, Methodist Girls’ High School, and Freetown Secondary School for Girls), she received teacher training education at Whiteland College in Putney, England. Her love for the political scene and strong commitment to the ideals of justice and fair-play were revealed in her early involvements and participation in various protest groups.  During her stay in England, she was an active member of the West African Students’ Union and the League of Coloured People, both pressure groups fighting for the African cause.

A six-month stay at Cornell University in the United States of America in 1936 was an eye opener for Cummings-John to the realities of racism. The racial insults heaped on her and the lack of understanding from African Americans profoundly affected her political consciousness. When she returned to Sierra Leone in 1937, she headed the American Methodist Episcopal Girls’ Vocational School. In 1938, together with the renowned activist I.T.A. Wallace-Johnson, she established a chapter of the West African Youth League and became a councilor of the Freetown Municipality in 1938. She was well-known for her concern for the improvement of city services, especially sanitation, library facilities, and conditions in the city markets; she established a network of leading market women and, in 1951, this group became the pioneers of the Sierra Leone Women's Movement.

Ella Koblo-Gulama (1921- ). Well-known for her charm and elegant traditional African attires, Madam Ella Koblo Gulama succeeded her father, Chief Julius Gulama, as Paramount Chief of Kayimba Chiefdom, Moyamba District, in 1953. She was educated at one of the most prominent schools for girls in the Protectorate, Harford School for Girls, Moyamba, and she later studied at the Women’s Teachers’ College, Wilberforce, Freetown. As an ardent politician, she was very instrumental in national politics, an activity which culminated in her appointment as the first female member of the Sierra Leone Parliament in 1957. In 1962, she became the first woman Cabinet Minister. Although Madam Ella ruled a predominantly Mende chiefdom, she married a powerful Temne Paramount Chief from the North of Sierra Leone, Bai Koblo Pathbana, in 1946.

Madam Humonya (ruled 1908-1918). When she succeeded her mother, Madam Matto, wife of the warrior chief Faba of Dodo, as Paramount Chief of the Nongowa Chiefdom in the Kenema District in 1908, Madam Humonya ruled for ten years and became known as a despotic and unscrupulous ruler.  Humonya enjoyed special support from the colonial administration, and she used this special support to misuse her position as leader and head of her people. It was also known that the colonial administration treated her more favorably than the other paramount chiefs. This situation created discontent from other rulers towards Madam Humonya. Her tyrannous rule was brought to an end after a series of complex investigations, started by one of the colonial District Commissioners in 1917.  Early enquiries and the reports sent to the government by the commissioner were stifled and, subsequently, overlooked because of Madam Humonya’s over-ambitious schemes and stronghold over the colonial government.  Humonya continued her reign of terror, oblivious to complaints and the discontent of the people that she ruled, other paramount chiefs, as well as people in her governing body.

Madam Humonya’s power was finally challenged at an election held in 1919 when she was overwhelmingly defeated.  Because of her “despotism and cruelty,” Humonya has gone down in history as the worst chief in chiefdom history.

Madam Yoko (circa 1849-August 1906). Sama, one of four children of Njiakundohun was given the Sande initiation name, Yoko, by which she became popularly known as Madam Yoko. Her first marriage to Gongioma ended in a divorce; while she was married to this warrior, Yoko became the first woman to be initiated into the all-male Poro society. History also recorded that she is the only woman to reign as suzerain to one of the precolonial states, the Kpaa-Mende, based on the most powerful male secret society, the Wonde. This state was founded by war and conquest in the 19th Century.

Madam Yoko’s second marriage was to Chief Gbenjei of Taiama.  Although she had no children, Yoko was the favorite head-wife of Chief Gbenjei who later died and was succeeded by his nephew, Gbanya Lango. Following customary tradition, Yoko became the wife of the new chief. She flourished in fame and popularity.  Her acquaintance with colonial officials did not go unnoticed or unrewarded, especially after chief Gbanya’s death in 1878.  In spite of the apparent decline of her popularity, after her husband’s death, Yoko’s cordial rapport with the colonial officials earned her a reputable position.  She was placed in charge of Senehun, capital of Kpaa-Mende, in 1882.  Working in close collaboration with the representatives of the British government, Yoko, as Queen of Senehun, represented Kpaa-Mende in administrative matters.

Madam Yoko’s rise to leadership, thus, deviated from traditional custom. She was, in effect, placed over the Kpaa-Mende region by the British. Also, she later became directly responsible for the uprising against the British that led to the “Hut Tax War” led by the famous Bai Bureh and other sub-chiefs. When the British declared their Protectorate in 1898, Madam Yoko commanded her people to pay the new tax levied by the colonial government; her sub-chiefs rebelled. After calming the disturbances, which resulted from her people’s resistance to the tax payments, Yoko received a Silver Medal Award from Queen Victoria for her loyalty.

Yoko lost her birthplace, Gbograma, to Chief Beimba I of Kakua Chiefdom in 1906 during a boundary dispute. She took this as the greatest disgrace she has ever suffered; and in August of 1906, it was alleged that Madam Yoko, a woman of culture and ambition, “Principal Lady of Senehun,” “Queen of Senehun,” committed suicide.

Adelaide Casley-Hayford (1868-1960). When Adelaide Casley-Hayford showed up, dressed in traditional African costume at a reception in honor of the Prince of Wales, she was expressing a philosophy in which she believed and for which she ardently advocated—to ensure that Sierra Leoneans preserve their national identity and cultural heritage.

Born Adelaide Smith on June 27, 1868 in Freetown, Sierra Leone, Adelaide Casley-Hayford spent most of her childhood and adolescent years in England, and later she studied music at the Stuggart Conservatory in Germany.  In England, Adelaide Casley-Hayford opened a boarding home for African bachelors.  On her return to Sierra Leone, she became a member, and later president, of the Ladies Division of the Freetown Branch of the Marcus Garvey Universal Negro Improvement Association (UNIA). In 1920, she traveled to the United States to study African American educational programs for industrial education and to raise funds for a proposed Girls' Vocational School.  The public lectures she gave during her stay in the United States were aimed at correcting the misguided American notions about Africa.

In October of 1923, the Girls’ Vocational School was opened in her parents’ family home at Gloucester Street in Freetown, Sierra Leone. The objective of the school, which reflected Adelaide’s philosophy, was “To awaken in pupils a love of country, pride of race, an enthusiasm for the black man’s capabilities and genuine admiration for Africa’s wonderful artwork.” The curriculum included the observance of Africa Day, held once every quarter. On that day, pupils dressed in traditional African attire and studied African folklore, songs, artwork, and played games and danced traditional dances. Unfortunately, the school closed down after Adelaide retired in 1940.

As a gifted public speaker and an ardent advocate, Mrs. Adelaide Casley-Hayford urged mothers to explain the significance of Congress Day (the day marking the founding of the National Congress of British West Africa) to their children; she pointed out the urgent need for a national university; she called for the teaching of major African languages; she emphasized the unique contribution of Africa’s arts and crafts to world culture. Because of her opposition to the injustices of the colonial system and her strong advocacy for cultural nationalism, Adelaide was not popular among the British authorities. In spite of this, however, the authorities respected her to the point of awarding her the King’s Silver Jubilee Medal in 1935 and the Member of the British Empire in 1950. She left her legacy of cultural awareness in her short stories and memoirs before her death in January of 1960.

Conclusion

Indeed, African women are not current enjoying legal equality with men and are suffering discrimination in many areas of existence. Any study of the formal scaffolding of the social and political systems clearly demonstrates their relatively limited authority. Such inequity, however, is not the same as lack of power. African women have never been powerless. Indeed, they have played a pervasive and persistent part in shaping political decisions and determining political events, especially before the arrival of colonialism in Africa. Only by analyzing politics at both the formal and informal levels do we begin to understand and appreciate the significance of women to the entire political process. 

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