The problems of threats emerging in the modern world in recent years, threats of various kinds for individuals, society and the state became the topic of the 10th International Conference of African Studies, which was held on May 24-26, 2005 in Moscow.

The conference was attended by at least 270 scientists from academic institutions and higher education institutions, diplomats, deputies of the State Duma and senators of the Federation Council, representatives of foreign economic organizations, etc. They were researchers from academic organizations in Moscow and Leningrad, 17 universities in the country-Moscow, St. Petersburg, Yekaterinburg, Yaroslavl, Rostov, Krasnodar, as well as Africanists from Minsk and Kiev, European countries (Germany, Great Britain, France, Italy, Portugal, Ireland), Africa (South Africa, Nigeria, Kenya, Cameroon Ghana, Sierra Leone), the United States, Canada, India - 32 people, as well as employees of the embassies of African countries and the United Kingdom, who made greetings and presentations at the plenary and breakout sessions. There were 12 sections and six "round tables" covering various aspects of security: from international and economic issues to demographic and cultural issues both in the continental, country and local dimensions. Problems of past wars and conflicts were analyzed for lessons for contemporaries. Questions of African linguistics, the study of which helps to understand, for example, the mechanism of the emergence of ethnopolitical conflicts and the formation or destruction of cultural and civilizational identity, have not been forgotten. The book of abstracts prepared by the Africa Institute for the start of the forum has 246 authors - 44 more than in the abstracts for the previous conference, which was held three years ago.

The conference was opened by the Chairman of the Organizing committee, Director of the Institute of Africa of the Russian Academy of Sciences, Corresponding member. RAS A. M. Vasiliev. He summed up the results of the work of the Institute of Africa over the past three years, both in theoretical and scientific-practical terms. In general, the Institute, despite the unfavorable situation, confidently conducts research and even expands its scope, in particular, sends expeditions to the African continent. The director cited as an example-

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This includes an expedition to Tanzania organized by the Institute with the assistance of the Russian-Tanzanian Cultural Center in 2003, a second expedition conducted there in 2005, and plans for field research in Egypt and Angola.

A.D. Savateev, Scientific Secretary of the Scientific Council of the Russian Academy of Sciences on Economic, Socio-political and Cultural Development of Africa, Secretary of the Organizing Committee of the conference, described the directions of work and tasks facing the council. He highlighted the personnel problem, which is partly planned to be overcome by holding annual scientific conferences for young Africanists, and spoke about plans for activities in this direction.

I. V. Sledzevsky, Director of the Center for Civilizational and Regional Studies of the Russian Academy of Sciences, delivered the main scientific report "Civilizational risks of world disorder". He identified the main threats and dangers of the modern world as a product of the process of globalization, which destroys the entire system of the existing international order and the basic foundations of civilization.

Then sessions of sections and round tables began. In general, the content of the speeches allows us to distinguish two large parts:: 1) study of the dangers, risks, threats that are embodied in wars, clashes, deterioration of the human environment - natural and socio-cultural, falling living standards, etc.; 2) study of the concept of "security" and its components, conditions that allow for the stable functioning of political institutions and public relations, the reproduction of man as a biological and social being view type.

I. HAZARDS, THREATS, AND RISKS

The nature of threats to Africa has only partially changed, but new ones have been added to them and the old ones have significantly increased. The areas covered by such global phenomena as drought, desertification and famine have expanded. In today's conditions, African farmers and nomadic pastoralists have no choice but to continue using natural resources in the traditional format, which inevitably leads to the collapse of the ecological environment. AIDS is spreading catastrophically; at the turn of the century, there were approximately 100 million people on the continent. HIV-infected people (V. I. Gusarov, I. O. Abramova, oba-Institute of Africa, Ngueta Kabiri-Kenya).

The collapse of civilization as a result of globalization

The list of threats is not decreasing, but, on the contrary, is growing. According to I. V. Sledzevsky (Central Research Center of the Russian Academy of Sciences), civilizational disorder (and not the prospect of a clash of civilizations - according to S. Huntington's theoretical calculations) becomes a global danger. With the collapse of the Soviet Union, the world, instead of the expected transition to a stable state, is entering or has already entered the zone of global transformation risks that no forces, including a single superpower, can control. These risks and threats are related both to the already known dangers of transnational disorder (terrorism, crime, drug trafficking, illegal distribution of weapons), and to the poorly understood effects of globalization as a destabilization of social systems on a global scale: the degradation of the state as a result of corruption and privatization of its functions, the disintegration of traditional social attitudes and ties, the erosion of former values The current nature of the dangers of global disorder is rightly attributed to the fact that they go beyond the capabilities of the international regulatory system. However, I. V. points out. According to Sledzewski, they are the external expression of deeper, internal processes that generate even more comprehensive dangers: the degradation (to varying degrees) of modern societies (and not only in Africa); the collapse of the normative and value foundations that were previously inherent in world and local civilizations. The speaker sees the gradual transformation of the security of modern societies into an increasingly stable state of insecurity as an obvious manifestation of these threats. Tendencies of social disintegration are increasingly evident in egoism, individualization of social relations and, according to the speaker, in the revival of primary ties of kinship, family-clan and ethnic collectivism. Glorification of images of "tough guys" and mafia figures in modern mass culture

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"godfathers", shady businessmen, outright gangsters, corrupt politicians - not just a tribute to the times, but a direct challenge to the social chaos of the civilized order, which is based on the moral, religious and legal foundations of civilization. The modern social order, as noted by I. V. Sledzevsky, is increasingly losing its natural qualities, including in the sphere of international relations: mutual understanding and reciprocity, coherence of actions, continuity, justice, openness and security of relations. The erosion of civilizational foundations of societies is also spilling out into the sphere of international relations, destabilizing them so much that even the military means of maintaining world order are already beginning to give serious failures.

I. V. Sledzevsky noted the dual nature of globalization. On the one hand, thanks to it, international relations have acquired unprecedented complexity, mobility, and variability, which new actors have taken advantage of: transnational corporations, social movements and international criminal communities, extremist underground organizations, and fundamentalist religious movements. They operate in an ever-expanding field of freedom from norms, primarily moral ones, from age-old restrictions. The old regulators associated with the concepts of national states and territories are beginning to be replaced by non - legal principles-maximizing profits, achieving political and other goals in accordance with the selfish goals of narrow elite groups. On the other hand, thanks to the control of global financial flows by the countries of the "golden billion", there is a possibility of global dominance in the international arena for a group of states or one state, which makes it possible to reduce the rules of the game in the international security system to simplified actions. They give preference to military-military methods, and attempts by the world community to introduce their use in the legal framework are rejected by the only superpower. However, if attempts to establish global world control, noted I. V. Sledzevsky, are successful in something, it is in creating an obedient political elite in subordinate states, but not in establishing the internal life of these countries.

Answering the question about the possibility of maintaining a civilized world order in such conditions, the speaker qualified the resulting chaos as a cultural gap, denial of continuity with previous periods of history, dissociation from high values, the meaning of unity in social activities. In science, in this regard, the speaker clarified, it is customary to talk about the absence of civilizational foundations of the world order and it is impossible to construct them according to individual structural components.

Having outlined the modern scientific understanding of civilization in relation to the system of international relations, in which the dialogue of civilizations served as a network principle of cultural interchange and provided the basic rules of international community, the scientist concluded that global financial capitalism is incompatible with any moral legitimation of its activities, that in the era of globalization, traditional relations and ethics are rapidly being as a result, there is a massive disintegration of society, value voids appear in the emerging new civilization, and the former regulatory norms are discarded. Anti-civilization-this is how I. V. Sledzevsky defined the characterized phenomenon and listed the most important civilizational risks of the growing global disorder.

Thus, I. V. Sledzevsky, going beyond the borders of the African continent, raised the question of the emergence of modern threats and dangers in the global dimension and at the same time exposed their origins, which stem primarily from the destruction of the internal microcosm of man. He showed the logic of the interaction of such seemingly incongruous phenomena as globalization and the subtle mechanism of civilization; the result of this interaction, in his opinion, may be the emergence of a "new barbarism".

A. I. Neklessa (Institute of Africa), making a report "Global transformation of the world order and its probable alternatives", agreed with I. V. Sledzevsky that the threat to humanity is a sharp complication of the world order. Here, in particular, the old scientific linear logic of Modernity and related forms of intellectual reflection, categories, disciplines, and stereotypes no longer work. Here, the norms of social behavior that have developed within the framework of existing civilizations are no longer applicable. In the conditions of a possible universal crisis, the usual logic of actions, recognized codes of practice turn out to be non-functional, and the existing models of social reality are quite reasonable. -

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gut will be like, in the words of the speaker, a pile of details and maps. What is happening in the economy entails such social consequences that the scientist qualifies as " splitting the world, threatening a social Chernobyl." But in this scenario, the underprivileged part of humanity is not only capable, but has already proved its ability to play a role in passing away; the peoples and social groups that are thrown out of history dispose of their deaths in such a way that they carry away the well-off inhabitants of the golden billion corporation. In this case, the moment of truth for a person who has decided to die is determined by a certain inflexible inner core, which A. I. Neklessa defines as follows:"a subconsciously accepted and firmly assimilated scale of values, the basalt basis of his worldview."

A. B. Mezyaev (Kazan) confirmed the thesis about the world disorder on concrete examples of a legal nature. In his report "Africa as a testing ground for the 'new international law'", he drew attention to the consequences of decisions taken by recently established, often without legal grounds, international courts and tribunals. As a rule, they were established by Western States, ignoring the legal norms and procedures defined by the UN Charter and other international fundamental acts, guided by the belief that the worst criminals are in Africa, and relying on the experience of the Tribunals for the former Yugoslavia. The speaker said that the decision of the International Court of Justice in the case "Cameroon v. Nigeria"is particularly impressive. It was adopted on the basis of a colonial treaty between England and Germany that has nothing to do with international legal documents. As a result, thousands of Nigerian citizens suddenly found themselves on the territory of another State, i.e. came under the jurisdiction of Cameroon, with consequences probably even more severe than the fate of the Serbs in Kosovo, which was actually given to local Albanian leaders.

The" new law", which contrasts the idea of the universality of human rights with the old-fashioned concepts of" national sovereignty"," state prerogatives", and" non-interference in internal affairs", the scientist from Kazan noted with regret, is also being adopted by African states themselves. Thus, the Government of Sierra Leone has asked the UN to create a special "hybrid" court in which Sierra Leoneans are tried by the Swedes and the British. Contrary to the UN Charter, according to which International courts can only be established by a joint decision of the heads of State at the UN General Assembly, the International Criminal Tribunal for Rwanda has emerged, the creation of which was initiated by the Government of Rwanda. As a result, the decisions of this tribunal and the country did not get at all what they hoped for, and a potentially dangerous situation arose for reviewing the decisions of the tribunal and the legality of its establishment itself. What this means in the context of Rwanda, can tell its immediate history.

However, there is also a directly opposite assessment of the new international order, which was expressed by a professor from Sierra Leone, E. Conte, who works at one of the US universities. He stated that " the development of the international justice system ... when investigating serious crimes related to human rights violations, it has dealt a blow to old-fashioned ideas about national sovereignty and the absolute prerogatives of the State." The Rapporteur attempted to assess the effectiveness of the Special Court for Sierra Leone on the basis of several internationally recognized criteria and generally gave a positive assessment of its activities.

I. G. Bolshov (Institute of Africa) has a different opinion on the "new international order" in the economic field. He cited figures that show that the established system of relations with creditors is disastrous for Africa, using the example of Nigeria. Africa's debt totals $ 300 billion. US $ 34 billion of this amount. It is accounted for by Nigeria. But it has already paid out $ 42 billion. The amount of US $ 15 billion in external borrowings was repaid. Thus, $ 13.5 billion with interest has already turned into $ 76 billion. debts: already reimbursed ($42 billion) and payable ($34 billion). What kind of development can we talk about if in 2003 the amount of external debt of Nigeria exceeded 60% of its GDP?

Wars and conflicts: origins and character

Among the threats, wars and conflicts of varying intensity occupy one of the first places. As a rule, they are associated with the action of local African factors: interethnic relations, interethnic relations, etc.-

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political leaders ' rivalry in the struggle for power, the struggle for natural resources (D. O'Kane-Ireland, A. Vinci-Great Britain, K. Johnson-Uganda, Z. I. Tokareva, N. V. Vinogradova, E. G. Smirnov, I. P. Konovalov, Yu. N. Vinokurov, R.N. Ismagilova-In- tag). In most cases, according to the conference participants, the transition to military actions is generated by clashes on the basis of interethnic contradictions (D. O'Kane - on the example of the Ethiopian-Eritrean war, A. Odhiambo (Kenya) - on the Kenyan events of 1969-1992, E. E. Uwazi (USA) - on the example of the 1994 genocide in Rwanda, Z. I. Tokareva-on the example of the current armed conflict in Ivory Coast).

"Ethnic and religious conflicts and political stability of the state" was the title of the section devoted to discussing these issues. PhD student of RUDN University K. Johnson singled out ethno-political conflicts as the most complicated, protracted and difficult to resolve. In terms of their scale, duration, and intensity, they significantly exceed other socio-political conflicts. Referring to the example of the long-running crisis in the Great Lakes region, he defined a conflict of this kind in the African context as "a full-scale bloody war, sometimes waged to the complete destruction of one side by the other." Ademakinwa Adebisi, a lecturer at the University of Lagos, analyzed the activities of armed youth ethnic groups in Nigeria, which he sees as a serious threat to the unity of the country, since they all rely on violence. B. G. Petruk (Institute of Africa) reported on the revival of former and emergence of new ethnopolitical organizations in Nigeria. Their goals are very specific: the creation of their own states. According to the speaker, the activities of these organizations can lead to the collapse of the state and a bloody outcome.

A number of conference participants drew attention to the fact that interethnic conflicts often have economic causes. Thus, K. Johnson believes that the conflict in the Great Lakes region reflected both the contradictions between the great powers fighting for spheres of economic and political influence on the continent, and the inability of the world community to prevent conflict and put out the fire in the "hot spots". K. Sama Molem (Cameroon) noted that the reasons for the current wars are more economic than political. rather than ethnic ones, and that the greed of leaders of ethnopolitical and military groups is satisfied by selling natural resources, in particular diamonds, in exchange for weapons. He pointed out that in some countries the military community engaged in such informal business activities, such as in the Great Lakes region and in conflict-ridden States in West Africa.

A. S. Ivanova, a fifth-year student at Moscow State University, gave evidence that it was "shadow" diamonds that gave rise to conflicts in a number of states in this region in the 1990s. She also suggested that illegal diamonds go to the treasury of the Al-Qaeda terrorist organization. G. M. Sidorova, E. V. Morozenskaya (both Institute of Africa) and other speakers also cited diamonds as one of the reasons for the war in the DRC and its neighboring countries.

Ethnopolitical conflicts are usually accompanied by poverty, disease, and ignorance, said Ye.S. D. Fomin, a lecturer at the University of Yaounde (Cameroon). In his opinion, ethnic communities in the multinational states of Africa are prone to ethnic hatred and antagonism, which indicates the alleged biological nature of the genesis of ethnic prejudice. The speaker considered the renaissance of prejudice, suspicion, and hatred in ethnic relations as the antithesis of democracy.

The current practice of African states gives grounds to speak about such an aspect of ethnopolitical conflicts as ethnoregionalism. This phenomenon was analyzed by the British researchers L. Magloff and P. Woodward on the example of the Darfur crisis in Sudan. According to Magloff, it is based not so much on interethnic contradictions as on differences in approaches to relations between the region and the central government, which also hide serious economic interests of both sides. And this fact makes the Darfur crisis similar to the war between the "Arab North" and the "Christian South" of the same country.

Many speakers, mainly participants of the section "Public administration systems and socio-political conflicts in Africa (origins, trends, prospects for resolution)", considered the instability and crisis situation in African States as a result of poverty and misery, which are perceived as a blatant injustice. P. N. Ndue, a lecturer at the University of Yaoundé, focused on

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the fact that these phenomena are now becoming a threat to the political stability and unity of society, especially since they are accompanied by an increase in ethnic prejudice and hatred. N. G. Alabuzhina (Institute of Africa) also believes that civil conflicts are a direct consequence of poverty, and it is also the cause of economic and social disasters of the continent's peoples. The most discriminated and socially oppressed ethnic groups, forced to defend their rights, make demands on behalf of their ethnic group, which a priori gives the legitimate demands an ethnic character. When describing disadvantaged ethnic groups, for example in Burundi and Rwanda, the speaker introduces the concept of "ethnic class".

At the same time, some speakers argued that power struggles are "a combination of ethnic, religious, regional, and socio - economic factors." Thus, Z. I. Tokareva (Institute of Africa) attributes the origins of the military-political crisis in Ivory Coast to a certain liberalization, discontent of northerners, mainly Muslims, the long-standing practice of forming a ruling elite from southerners, mainly Christians, the economic inequality of the poor North and the rich South, and the decline in the standard of living of the majority of Ivorians due to the general deterioration of the economic situation in the country. In addition to the ethno-confessional factor, the military actions in this state also reflected the protest of numerous immigrants who profess Islam and are subjected to comprehensive discrimination both by the official authorities and ordinary citizens of Ivory Coast. Here, too, there is an internationalization of the conflict, the threat of splitting the country into a pro-Muslim, relatively poor North and a predominantly Christian, rich South, in addition inhabited by different ethnic groups. The military actions in Ivory Coast, concludes Z. I. Tokareva, destabilized the situation in the entire West African region and aggravated relations between the African States involved in this massacre.

The ethnic factor is a constant value among the causes that caused the unprecedented genocide in Rwanda in recent history, said E. E. Uvazi, a professor at the University of California. Between April and July 1994, 0.8 - 1.0 million people were killed in the country. Most of the victims were Tutsis, and the predominant Hutu ethnic group was identified by public opinion and journalists as the culprits of the tragedy.

The civil war in Somalia may not be so well known, but the duration, the inclusiveness of the fighting, and the intransigence of the opposing forces make us draw even more bleak conclusions. In this mono-ethnic country, the results of a study on which were presented by an employee of the Institute of Africa I. P. Konovalov, the war that broke out in the north of the country in 1988., goes mainly between clan and subclan associations. Of these, the Somali ethnic group consists. Contradictions between them, despite their linguistic and religious unity, also existed in the pre-colonial period: for pastures, water sources, and influence in a particular region. But they did not go beyond the contradictions inherent in any African society. With the removal of President Siad Bahre's regime, which had held back controversies, centrifugal tendencies prevailed and State institutions finally collapsed. During the years of the civil war, many warlords have emerged, relying on militant groups from their own subclan, who embody organized crime, which has become a principle of life throughout the country. The speaker made a pessimistic conclusion about ending this war, since the leaders of clan militant groups are not interested in a strong state (and only it can establish peace in Somalia). Fighting, attacks on rivals have become an integral way of life for militant groups, creating a problem, concluded I. P. Konovalov, which cannot yet be solved either by their own efforts or by international mediation.

The conference participants did not ignore such a threat to Africa as sectarian hostility. Only one report was devoted to this topic: Professor of the Osman dan Fodio University of Nigeria Mukhtar U. Bunza examined the problem of using religion by ethnic and political forces and turning it into a source of crises and conflicts on the example of Nigeria. The role of religion is extremely important, the speaker noted. It is due to the fact that almost all states and empires that emerged on the territory of pre-colonial Nigeria were based on one or another religious idea. It was used as a management tool, the speaker believes. At the same time, it also served as a powerful tool.-

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the spiritual and cultural foundation of the emerging civilization (Islam in the North, to a lesser extent - Christianity in the South of the country). The politicization of the religious factor led to a significant increase in conflicts in the 1980s and 2000 on this basis, turning Nigeria into a "large-scale arena of religious drama", the intensity of which pushed inter-ethnic contradictions into the background.

Terrorism in the twenty-first century

A specific threat is international terrorism, the question of the origin and tools of its impact on public consciousness was highlighted by a graduate student of the Institute of Africa V. A. Garev. This is one of the most acute global problems. Using violence as a means of influencing State institutions and the international community as a whole, terrorists seek to gain the widest coverage of their activities in the media. By covering terrorist attacks, the media, willingly or unwittingly, repeatedly increase the state of fear in society, creating an insurmountable problem.

Dauda Garuba (Nigeria) believes that terrorism has become the single most vivid indicator of the dangers of the so-called new world order. Terrorism has drawn the countries of the South, including Africa, into the confrontation with the United States and its allies, which at the same time has narrowed the possibilities for the progressive development of the continent's states. But the countries of the "golden billion", according to D. Garuba, received justification for their militaristic actions, hiding behind the idea of countering terror. The Nigerian academic pointed out the side effects of terrorism, which were expressed, in particular, in the fact that instead of a multipolar democratically governed world system based on the principle of social justice, Africa received expanding war zones, reducing socio-economic programs that it had hoped for after the end of the cold war. The speaker also highlighted the extent to which the West's anti-terrorist wars fall on the shoulders of African countries and how Africans themselves decide to participate in them.

Selare Mcgetlaneng (South Africa) and K. Lange (Germany) gave presentations on terrorism. The speaker from South Africa noted that the problem of terrorism in Africa, from the point of view of American leaders, should be solved primarily based on the strategic interests of the United States. K. Lange connected terrorism with a special, in his opinion, type of culture, which he attributed to the Islamic civilization: "Around economically prosperous centers (in Europe. - A. S. a special kind of culture is being formed, which is characterized by a system of values that rejects Western culture and militantly proclaims terrorism as a way to fight infidels." According to the speaker, the threat of terrorism is growing in the enclaves of the Muslim world, in particular among Kosovo and Macedonian Albanians. The German researcher believes that the main reason for the growing threat of terrorism is the expansion of its financing, and one that aims to " transform Muslim communities into an ideological stronghold of terrorists." However, the German researcher did not mention that Western Europe itself, namely the NATO countries, "fought" with Yugoslavia for the rights of that very ethnic minority (Albanians. - A. S. ), which now supplies top-ups for organized crime in Europe.

The economic aspect of wars and terrorism

The economic component of current threats to Africa was seriously analyzed, primarily in the framework of the section "Problems of economic security at the present stage" and the round table "Shadow Economy in transition Societies".

The first group of reports was devoted to the analysis of two interrelated issues: the disappointing results, the ability of the world community to regulate economic and social processes on the continent, and the actions of African countries to improve their positions in global commodity markets, mainly attempts by more than 40 WTO member States to at least partially change the terms of trade in their favor.

The second group consisted of reports on industry development issues. A big discussion was caused by the problems of technological, especially informational, breakthroughs in the sphere of production, education, changes in the entire way of life, as well as issues of planning, regulation, quality of labor resources and, accordingly, the development of social infrastructure.-

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as well as the priority development of industrial infrastructure, primarily transport.

In the third group of reports, the main focus was on monetary and financial issues, without which it is impossible to conduct a competent and effective economic policy.

The economic background of armed conflicts on the continent was studied by N. Mlambo (South Africa). Based on the work of Western economists and political scientists, documents of a number of international organizations, including the UN, he supported the assumption of a new type of conflict, called the "war for resources". It is the economic content, in his opinion, that underlies the recent conflicts involving the use of force in the "third world" countries, especially in Africa. At the same time, the speaker believes that there is a link between the economic and political causes of conflicts in Africa. Economic robbery is usually accompanied by the achievement of certain political goals. This statement is supported, in particular, by the war in the DRC, in which the robbery of States and territories of other peoples played a significant role and during which Uganda and Rwanda simultaneously settled scores with each other.

Economic threats to the continent's States and society stem primarily from the existence of illicit income - this is the general opinion of the participants of the round table "Shadow Economy in transition societies". Louis de Coker, Director of Special Programs at the University of Johannesburg (South Africa), and L. L. Fituni (Institute of African Studies) believe that money laundering is often aimed at financing international terrorism and criminal groups. For them, L. L. Fituni noted, the act of terrorism (crime) is a form of investment of capital in conditions of risk, a business enterprise.

However, in general, the relationship between the economic policy pursued and the threats that arise in this case is often not direct, but indirect. Nevertheless, it can be traced. Some speakers called the outflow of capital from the country the main negative factor (graduate students of the Institute of Africa I. V. Averkova, T. I. Fursova), which arises under the influence of the unfolding process of globalization and takes on a huge scale. T. I. Fursova notes that the outflow of capital in significant volumes can cause irreparable damage, which will negate many years of efforts to overcome problems and attempts to overcome backwardness, poverty, mass poverty, will exacerbate the debt problem. S. A. Bessonov (Higher School of Economics) identified economic independence with political independence. Meanwhile, Africa at the beginning of the twenty-first century. It remained a marginal and discriminated part of the world economy, argued L. P. Kalinina (Institute of Africa). As a result of the decline in its competitiveness, she noted, over the past 20 years, the share of African GDP in the global gross product has decreased from 2.3% to 1.8%. Africa is being pushed out of the world market, and this is due not only to the change in the structure of international trade exchange in favor of high-tech goods, but also to the continuing unequal structure in foreign trade. The accession of 41 African countries to the World Trade Organization, concluded L. P. Kalinina, did not improve the terms of trade, on the contrary: some discriminatory measures were replaced by other, more sophisticated ones.

Finally, the challenges of the modern period include the activities of TNCs, the results of which were considered by Aginam Obijofor, a Nigerian researcher working at Carleton University (Canada), using the example of the economic crisis in the Niger Delta. In his opinion, this crisis is an illustration of how, with the help of international law, Africa has been pushed to the sidelines of development.

Gender issues

The above complex of risks, problems and threats is manifested in the sphere of tender relations in the company. They were examined by participants of the section "Tender approach to national and global security issues". They have shown that women and the family institution are particularly affected by socio-political disorders, wars and economic troubles (I. G. Bolshov, N. A. Ksenofontova, N. G. Romanova, I. G. Rybalkina, N. Z. Fakhrutdinova, N. V. Grishina, N. Yu. Ilina, N. B. Kochakova - all-Institute of Africa; M. Grassi - Portugal; S. E. Rubailo-Kudolo-Togo; K. F. Lema - Great Britain; J. Nel - South Africa, S. V. Prozhogina -

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IV RAS; S. N. Turk-Kuban State University; Ch. Ch. Fonchingon-Cameroon). Women are the first victims and at double risk of civil wars in modern Africa, according to C. C. Fonchinghon. Gender inequality remains a part of the life of African society (D. M. Bondarenko, D. A. Khalturina, OBA-Institute of Africa). Even in one of the most democratic countries, Tunisia, N. G. Romanova stated, despite the legislative consolidation of women's rights, elements of inequality remain. And if we talk about Morocco, which was compared by the rapporteur, the situation there is even more unfavorable for women. The marginalization of women who are denied access to decision-making, such as in Cameroon, where they make up 75% of the labor force in agriculture, 80% in services and other areas of the economy, is, according to K. F. Lema, "a serious danger for such countries". O. B. Gromova (Institute of Africa) drew attention to the tragedy of women's refugee status. Refugee status undermines the quality of human material, both biologically and socially, as well as the loss of childbearing potential and moderating feminine principles as important prerequisites for the socio-economic transformation of the entire African society. Degradation of society, the inability to modernize the economy and the maintenance of socio-cultural and political relations in a short time - this is the price paid for the unbearable burden of refugee status imposed on women, the speaker concluded. I. G. Bolshov concluded that the socio-political upheavals experienced by Nigeria in the last hundred years have worsened the situation of women. And another problem is the outflow of women, which was touched upon, however, by the Vietnamese material of N. L. Krylova (Institute of Africa). Forced by wars and conflicts to leave their native places and seek their fate in other countries, they sometimes create such a large-scale outflow that it becomes a serious deterrent to the country's socio-economic development.

Reflecting the dangers of globalization in the literature

Acute socio-political problems and cultural issues in Africa were also discussed at the section " Writers and publicists of African countries on the problem of African security: independent evidence from the end of the XX - beginning of the XXI century." Its head, I. D. Nikiforova (IMLI RAS), gave a generalized and unflattering assessment of the globalization process: "This is a completely free private initiative of the post-industrial society, which operates in countries that are at a much lower level of development ... and not able to defend themselves on their own, while in the West predation of "filibusters of globalization", armed with all technical means... it is constrained by the laws and power resources of the leading states of the modern world." Referring to the testimonies of a number of writers and publicists, she concluded that the continent is dominated by international organized crime, which sells everything from drugs and weapons to people. The speaker drew attention to the fact that many Western scientists and publicists with rare unanimity condemn Africa as "incompetent", which could not benefit from its ties with highly developed countries. I. D. Nikiforova considers the image of "stupid", "lazy", incapable of long-term labor efforts and labor discipline of Africa, planted in the public consciousness of European and American citizens, to be the most serious and real danger for the current and future African society and states. Such an image can later become a justification for any actions against the continent. The speaker also noted the concerns that African writers and publicists have about the process of denationalization of the continent's peoples.

According to T. V. Samosyuk, a graduate student of Minsk State University, the Eurocentric approach to Africa is still preserved in the European educational literature, in particular in French history textbooks, the analysis of which was the subject of her report. The prevailing image of Africa, which is formed in the student, is inextricably linked with problems: ethnic conflicts, wars, low level of culture. Although the history and culture of the peoples of the continent are now covered much more fully, nevertheless, the speaker stated, even the indisputably democratic pedagogical thought of France could not get rid of arrogance, and often disregard for the history and culture of the peoples of the continent, which allegedly cannot do without the guiding role of the white man.

Tragedies of war, bureaucratization and corruption of the state apparatus of the postcolonial period, the penetration of the West into Africa, the globalization process and the resulting conflicts in the post-colonial period.

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threats to African society, the choice between secular and religious-oriented ways of developing literature - this is the content of speeches by E. A. Ryauzova, N. D. Lyakhovskaya, N. S. Frolova, O. A. Vlasova (all IMLI RAS), I. V. Vikhrieva, K. S. Robbe (both St. Petersburg State University). They examined the socio-cultural content of contemporary poets and prose writers from Angola and Mozambique, Swahili and English writers from East Africa, individual French-speaking authors from Tropical Africa and Algeria, and artists from South Africa and Zimbabwe. Their analysis of the content of literary texts sometimes allows us to understand much more deeply the essence and direction of the evolution of society, to delve into the system of values of Africans and to understand the depth of contradictions in African countries.

The reflection of tragic events in the consciousness of an African artist was analyzed by K. S. Sovetova, a student of Yaroslavl State University, using the example of the work and life of Nigerian painter Uzo Egonu.

Another block of literary studies is presented by St. Petersburg participants of the conference. They mainly focused on folklore literature: A. Y. Siim (Museum of Anthropology and Ethnography of the Russian Academy of Sciences), and a graduate of St. Petersburg.GU A.V. Lyakhovin investigated the impact of Islamic civilization on Hausa fairy tales, folk and author's literature of South Africa; Associate Professor of the Department of African Studies of St. Petersburg.GU O. Y. Zavyalova introduced the audience to the results of her study of fairy tales of African peoples in order to identify the positive and negative behavior of the actors in them. Head of the Department of African Studies in St. Petersburg.A. A. Zhukov recalled the activities of the German missionary I. L. Krapf, a researcher of the Ethiopian and Bantu languages of East Africa.

Thus, relying on independent testimonies of African artists and publicists, the conference participants were able to highlight almost all the dangers that openly or covertly threaten Africa - from the environmental and destruction of the civilizational foundations of society and the state to the economic and cultural ones. There is a picture of the complex nature of hazards, which most often appear in aggregate and almost never separately.

II. SEARCH FOR A SAFE WORLD ORDER

The second part of the content of the Conference of Africanists can be conditionally defined as the possibility of using the concept of "security" in relation to Africa, attempts to characterize the factors and conditions for its provision. The concept of "security" should include a set of factors that guarantee, said I. L. Lileev (Moscow City Hall), the sustainable existence of a social group or political entity not only at the moment, but also in the future. Such stability in the historical perspective is determined both by the features of the evolution and traditions of a particular people or social group, and by the influence of factors and mechanisms of the broader environment in which the social object under study is immersed - civilizational, natural and climatic. Expressing his understanding of security, the speaker rightly noted that in the context of Africa over the past thirty years, it is impossible to reduce security only to military and political factors. It should be interpreted as a combination of military, socio-political, civilizational, and humanitarian factors. The speaker connected the solution of the security problem with the ability of African States to effectively solve vital tasks for the survival and reproduction of their own populations. At the same time, in the future, according to I. L. Lileyev, Africa will remain the most conflict-prone continent, and it will suffer especially strongly due to conflicts over the possession of minerals. And it is impossible to strengthen the security of African states without the assistance of international organizations, without the participation of inter-African associations and regional organizations. This activity should be accompanied by the implementation of socio-economic, political and cultural development plans.

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Civilizational foundations of security

A. D. Savateev tried to reveal the problem of security in the light of a civilizational approach using the example of the situation in Tanzania. Noting the peaceful nature of inter-confessional and inter-ethnic relations in this country, which is particularly contrasting against the background of bloody ethno-confessional conflicts and interstate wars in neighboring states, he drew attention to the fact that Tanzania is in a very similar socio-economic and ethno-cultural situation with its neighbors. The speaker explained the almost opposite results in the field of habitat creation in Tanzania and neighboring countries mainly by two factors. First, this country is dominated by traditional attitudes based on the values of Islam, Christianity, and African traditional beliefs: honesty, friendliness, mutual understanding, a penchant for collective forms of life, delicacy, restraint, gentleness, and at the same time hidden dignity, lack of envy. And only then follow the installation to achieve material success, self-interest, pragmatism, efficiency, enterprise. One of the dominant socio - cultural characteristics of society is solidarity and orientation towards meaningful goals. Secondly, the speaker continued, peace in the country has been the goal and content of the domestic and foreign policy of the Tanzanian leadership for the past three decades. All the presidents effectively implemented the internal policy, which was designed to prevent socio-economic and ethno-cultural division in society.

Within the framework of this development paradigm, a policy is being implemented to consolidate society, all confessional and ethnic groups on the basis of a single language and culture of Swahili, which contains a code of priority for life-affirming principles. At the same time, the government is trying to contain the penetration of Western culture and institutions, cautiously admitting them into the internal life of the country, so that they are adapted to the system of socio-cultural values of the peoples of Tanzania. This activity has produced real results, which are reflected in the creation of a society where clearly expressed deep life orientations, normative attitudes are supported by the power of public opinion and the authority of the state.

A. V. Nikiforov (Institute of Africa) also focused on the sustainability of traditional structures as the basis for social stability of the agricultural sector.

I. T. Katagoshchina (Institute of African Studies) assesses the incentives coming from the West as an impetus for development and modernization. Africa in these circumstances, if it wants to preserve its lifestyle, spirituality, type of person, collectivism, must show the ability to synthesize, which, according to the speaker, is an absolute prerequisite, an integral part of the development of society throughout human history. The speaker believes that there is no alternative to cultural synthesis, which can be carried out in different forms and with different degrees of intensity and depth of interpenetration. However, I. T. Katagoshchina seems to have included in the concept of synthesis any positive interactions, including symbiosis, adaptation, assimilation, integration. In any case, the West, in its understanding of cultural interaction with Africa, acts as a leading party, Africa as a slave.

Whether this contributes to the establishment of safe living conditions on the continent is a big question addressed by A. N. Moseyko (Institute of Africa). In her opinion, African intellectuals who have freed themselves from Western cultural and political approaches have been enlightened by seeing firsthand the results of modernization according to Western schemes and realizing that Western images and norms of life carry the danger of losing African and national identity, the threat of turning their countries into a degraded copy of the Western world and, ultimately, a challenge to national security. She attributed the current burst of creative energy of philosophers, writers, and cinematographers to the creation of their own theoretical constructions, to reaching the level of understanding the historical process in Africa and the destinies of their peoples. Thus, we can say that the intellectual climate that has begun to take shape is one of the keys to the security of society in the future.

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Stability of political institutions: Western or national development path?

One of the main levers for creating a comprehensive security system is the reliability of political institutions, primarily the state apparatus. The section "Public administration systems and socio-political conflicts in Africa"was devoted to this issue. Participants in the first sub-section "Political structures of African States" focused on stability as the main component of the concept of "security", and sometimes associated both concepts.

According to the participants of the discussion, stability and security are determined by various factors. N. D. Kosukhin (Institute of African Studies) drew attention to the legitimacy of the governance system, which he defined as the main quality of the state's political system, which is able to support the population's belief that existing political institutions most fully correspond to this society. & In his speech, M. Ntangsi (Cameroon) emphasized that African leaders have chosen a balanced socio-economic and political course: by seeking more foreign aid, investment, and debt relief, Governments should at the same time contribute to the democratization of society, transparency of measures taken, and protection of human rights and freedoms.

The participants of the discussion disagreed on the strategy of creating a stable, highly developed society and politically responsible government institutions.

L. M. Sadovskaya (Institute of African Studies) and A. S. Madatov (RUDN University) are convinced of the effectiveness of modern, i.e. Western-type, forms of political organization of society, so the introduction of democratic institutions, improvement of parliamentarism, and globalization processes, in their opinion, contribute to the establishment of civil peace and hinder the development of authoritarianism. The same point of view is shared by A. P. Pozdnyakova, B. V. Malakhov (both from the Institute of Africa), and Yu. V. Irkhin (Russian Academy of Public Administration), who analyzed the results of the World Congress of Political Scientists in South Africa in 2003. N. D. Kosukhin, Z. N. Sokova (Tyumen State University), P. N. Ndue (Cameroon), and D. I. Nwaka (Nigeria) presented the opposite position, according to which democratization and the Western version of reconstruction rather aggravate the processes of disintegration in African society and contribute to the growth of threats rather than their neutralization. The third group of participants of the political science section, recognizing the objectively existing combination of Western socio-political models and local management traditions in the life of Africa, tended to the need for their symbiosis (B. Baker - Great Britain, Yu. N. Vinokurov, N. M. Rukina, O. B. Gromova, S. M. Shlenskaya, N. N. Rodionova).

Particularly noteworthy is the position of L. V. Geveling (ISAA at Moscow State University). He proposed a model of the political organization of society under the provisional name "new anarchy", which characterizes the peculiar way of organizing (and/or disorganizing) power, which developed as a result of the crisis evolution of Tropical African societies and at the same time became the result of the interaction of various forms of political leadership. The speaker stressed that the concept put forward by him has nothing in common with the theories of the past and with the constructions of modern authors, including ideologists of anarchism. In times of systemic crisis and change, the "new anarchy" is designed to remove deep contradictions of the essential order, compensate for the inability of the ruling circles to direct and control the development of the political system, prepare the ground for increasing the competitiveness and modernization of the most viable power systems, and finally ensure the survival of the political society itself. Noting the wide spread of this kind of "anarchy" in Africa, Lev Geweling predicted its future as one of the most popular forms of organizing transitional power.

International security aspects

The current conference focused on the integration of African States, which was the focus of the "African Integration" section. It aroused particular interest among the ambassadors of African States. The creation of the African Union (which succeeded the Organization of African Unity), the Pan-African Parliament, the New Partnership for Africa's Development, the Continental Court of Justice, the central bank, and the formation of-

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With the participation of joint military units, the Africans expressed their intentions and abilities to solve the problems of the continent by their own, united efforts. Gottschalk - South Africa). This is a response to the main challenges of the time, in particular to the problem of the continent's marginalization in the process of globalization (I. B. Matsenko-Institute of Africa). Some of the speakers at the section urged not to fall into euphoria about the creation of pan-African bodies (Yu. V. Korablev, V. A. Usov-both Institutes of Africa). Yu. V. Potemkin noted that even the optimal results of NEPAD activities will not change the geo-economic position of Africa as the most backward part of the global socio-economic space. It is too early to talk about stability without the inclusion of the African continent in the system of world relations, although on different, updated principles of interaction.

The participants of the section "African States in the context of global and regional international security" continued to discuss international issues.

The main topic of the section is Africa as a field of application of the forces of large states, as an object of international policy, the purpose of which is to prevent the continent from turning into a territory of international terrorism. This was stated by the head of the Department of St. Petersburg State University.GU V. S. Yagya, Head of the Department The Center of the Institute of Africa of South Africa S. Mcgettlaneng, including methods of humanitarian interventions (L. Magloff, P. Woodward-both from the UK). In this area, there are wide opportunities for cooperation between the major powers, he noted. Vishnevsky, D. Hickey (USA), T. L. Deutsch (Institute of Africa), D. V. Polikanov, V. A. Usov, and N. V. Ushakova (All - Institute of Africa) devoted their reports to a critical analysis of political and economic activity in sub-Saharan Africa, respectively, in the United States, China, Great Britain, and India, Italy. Another group (Nigerians V. O. Alli, O. Oche, and South African representative D. Arnolds) focused on the results of international cooperation for African states themselves, which are far from unambiguous, especially when it comes to ethnic conflicts. N. V. Kosheleva (Belarusian State University) un-t) touched upon the" external " aspect of the conference's problems - the African-American version of Islam, focusing on the prevailing idea of creating a "Muslim nation"in the United States.

Another aspect of international activity was discussed at the round table "The role of the UN in maintaining stability in Africa". Speakers focused on the UN's fight against terrorism on a continent-wide scale (Adewale Banjo, Nigeria), and the results of the UN Special Court for Sierra Leone (E. Conte). V. I. Kovalev, PhD student at the Institute of Africa (Ukraine), analyzed the experience of the UN and other international non-governmental organizations in resolving the long-term armed conflict in Mozambique.

Another round table that also discussed international aspects of security in Africa, "Russian-African cooperation in the context of security on the continent," was fruitful. Scientists, former ambassadors of the Soviet Union and Russia to Africa, and representatives of other practical organizations of our country took part in its work. They came to the conclusion that the former Soviet-African cooperation just helped to minimize conflict situations. RAN TUE. Solodovnikov, Deputy Chairman of the Board of Directors. Director of the Institute of Africa V. G. Shubin), that the current situation in the countries of the continent once again confirms the correctness of this idea. The new Russia continues to have a wide range of capabilities, including military and political ones, which can and do have a positive impact on strengthening independence, sovereignty, economic independence, strengthening defense capabilities, and preventing socio-political conflicts. E. N. Korendyasov, T. L. Deich and V. V. Lopatov (All Institute of Africa) have described the current content and directions of cooperation between Russia and African states for the purposes of international and intra - African security.

Islam: Imaginary and real threats

Islam and Islamic fundamentalism, which were also evaluated very differently, especially in the light of security concerns, should be mentioned among the issues discussed. One point of view - quite common in Europe and North America at the everyday and even scientific level - practically does not distinguish between terrorism and Islam, a Muslim society. It was expressed by K. Lange (Germany). However, a closer acquaintance with this world religion and its ethno-confessional features in various regions of the world forces an unbiased observer to change this point of view. This is your opinion.-

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V. S. Koshelev (Belarusian State University), L. R. Syukiyainen (Institute of State and Law), O. V. Karpacheva and M. V. Shkurko, a post-graduate student (both from the Institute of Africa) participated in their presentations. It allows us to judge Islam and its individual aspects as necessary, basic elements of Muslim society, which largely determine balanced social relations, moral, political, legal and everyday aspects of social life.

Can the national experience be implemented and bring positive results within the framework of the problems identified by the conference? Unfortunately, very few participants thought about this extremely important issue. Only the African-American E. E. Uwazi and the Nigerian J. I. Nwaka came to the conclusion that traditional experience should be used and that its application will create a favorable environment for the future of the state and nation: E. E. Uwazi - on the example of the inclusion of traditional Rwandan justice gakaka in the process of national reconciliation in Rwanda after the genocide, J. Nwaka - based on the use of local socio-cultural procedures in the practice of municipal administration and organization of urban life in Nigeria.

History lessons and forecasts

Finally, the conference had two regional sections: "North Africa and the Middle East: the Democratic Process, Authoritarianism and Security challenges" and "Southern African Countries in Regional and National security" and a round table "Nigeria in Search of a New federal Structure". Almost all areas of public life were discussed: from energy and socio-political conflicts to the formation of schools of painting and national identity (A. A. Tkachenko, L. N. Rytov, Oba-Institute of Africa).

History lessons as an experience for solving modern security problems in Africa-this is how you can define the overall results of the section "Problems of African security in historical retrospect". Special attention was paid to the experience of resisting external aggression accumulated by the peoples of the continent during the Second World War, and several reports were made on the topic "Historical ties between Russia and Africa" (A. B. Letnev, M. Yu.Frenkel, oba - Institute of Africa).

Finally, as always, the section "Current state and current problems of African Linguistics" looked solid. Represented by a significant number of doctors of sciences, who were confidently supplemented by postgraduates and young candidates, this section heard more than 20 reports and scientific presentations.

The futurological part of the conference was presented by A. I. Neklessa's report "Global transformation of the world order and its probable alternatives". The speaker predicted an increase and change in the nature of global dangers, in particular, the possible formation of stable foci of a crisis situation on the planet, and in the socio-cultural sense , the emergence of the so-called culture of death. The combination of this type of culture with a symbiosis of terrorism and wars in the future may give rise to a phenomenon that the speaker proposed to call the "civilization of death".

So, the current state of African studies can be described as quite satisfactory: problem-based and regional studies are widely represented, tender studies are rapidly developing, and interest in socio-political issues, where theoretical breakthroughs have been outlined, does not weaken.

As for the methodological area, there are serious discrepancies between the adherents of the linear development of the historical process, the ultimate goal of which, in their opinion, is to create Western (American) analogues of the economic, political and cultural structure in Africa, and the few supporters of the civilizational approach, for whom the African and his culture, the principles of being are of interest in themselves not as an annoying appendix to the "global process of globalization".

The conference once again highlighted the weak points, or even "lacunae" of Russian science about Africa: such areas as military-political research, strategic research, i.e. the place and role of Africa in the modern world are completely absent (the study of international relations in its current form is not equivalent to strategic ones); legal studies are extremely limited. Therefore, it is necessary to strengthen the study of international relations of African countries already in the context of the contradictory overlap of the globalization process with national, state, and cultural aspirations.

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