Women, and militancy in Africa

WOMEN HAVE OFTEN been thought of as the weaker sex. Indeed, the deliberate and systematic subjugation of women throughout history has been one of the most blatant manifestations of patriarchal power relations especially in Africa and Asia. Further, most men's conception of power has been embodied to a great extent in their ability to instigate violence, and to wage and fight war. Further, especially in ancient times, participation in war was seen to some degree as a chance for men to reaffirm or reinforce the traditional sense of manhood through courage and physical prowess in the face of danger.

In such a scenario, it would seem that the place of women has always been as victims of war, part of the collateral damage, and neither worthy of the heroism nor the often-glorified death on the battlefield as portrayed in the Iliad. However, no sooner is this gender-specificity of war subjected to critical historical review than the reality of historical facts begins to surface.

In this article, I will take a cursory look at the issue of African women and war. In an earlier article I discussed the warrior tradition in Africa and it is my wish to trace this tradition from earlier to more recent times vis-à-vis African women. For those that may not have read my article on the warrior tradition, let me sum up its thesis in a single statement;

War in pre-colonial African was the concern of everyone including women, children and slaves.

You may have seen the movie 'Black Panther' directed by Ryan Coogler and were intrigued by the female fighting force (the Dora Milaje) that guards the royal family.

Well, you would be further intrigued to know that such a depiction is not too far from reality in terms of woman and militancy in some parts of ancient Africa.

For example, the popular Dohoney Amazons or Mino, which meant 'our mothers', were a Fon all-female military regiment of the Kingdom of Dahomey in the present-day Republic of Benin which lasted until the end of the 19th century. The Mino underwent intense physical training designed to hone aggressive character traits for the purpose of fighting war. These female warriors were neither allowed to marry nor to have children though technically they were all legally married to the king. Their training included hand-to-hand combat, survival skills and indifference to pain and death.

It is said the Mino were so militant that they could storm acacia-thorn defenses in military exercises and execute prisoners without hesitation. In addition, military life offered these women the opportunity to rise to positions of command and influence and attain wealth and status.

Other notable individual female warriors in ancient Africa include: Amanirenas, queen of the Kingdom of Kush, now Sudan, famous for leading the Kushite army against the Romans in a five-year war from 27 B.C. to 22 B.C; Queen Amina, who ruled the Zazzau Kingdom in present-day Nigeria, at the end of the sixteenth century and is remembered for introducing metal battle armour; and of course queen Yaa Asantewaa of Ejisu in the Ashanti Empire, now part of modern-day Ghana, who led Asante troops into British strongholds during the War of the Golden Stool.

During the period of the First and Second World War, many African women unlike many of their counterparts in Europe did not have the luxury of staying back home or working in war industries. Like nothing ever seen before, the enormous demand for troops and carriers (tenga tengas) by all armies resulted in an unprecedented number of ordinary people including women and children being persuaded or forced into porter services. These tenga tenga performed several functions including carrying stores, preparing camping sites, cooking and washing clothes for soldiers.

For one soldier to survive during WW I for example, there were at least six tenga tengas tending to him. Moreover, the War's predominate strategy of 'Scorched earth', that is, total destruction, meant most women had no homes to stay back in. Furthermore, what is rarely mentioned is that these tenga tengas, who included women, were more often than not fitted with military fatigue and many were trained in handling infantry weapons despite being designated, 'unarmed soldiers'.

Much has changed since ancient times and the end of the Great Wars. However, the warrior spirit in African women has lived on. In Zambia for example, from the time the first women were recruited in the Army in September 1974, the exceptional performance of female troops on both local and international operations and more recently in Female Engagement Teams (FETs) is reminiscent of the Dohoney Amazons days and testament to the popular adage, 'if you want something said, ask a man; but if you want something done, ask a woman'. The same may be true of war