Question

The Green Belt Movement has planted 30 million trees across Kenya. Its leader Wangari Maathai is very disappointed with the response of government officials and politicians :
" In the 1970s and 1980s, as I was encouraging farmers to plant trees on their land, I also discovered that corrupt government agents were responsible for much of the deforestation by illegally selling off land and trees to well - connected developers. In the early 1990's, the livelihoods, the rights and even the lives of many Kenyans in the Rift Valley were lost when elements of President Daniel Arap Moi's government encouraged ethnic communities to attack one another over land. Supporters of the ruling party got the land, while those in the pro - democracy movement were displaced. This was one of the government's ways of retaining power; if communities were kept busy fighting over land, they would have less opportunity to demand democracy. "
In the above passage what relationship do you see between democracy and social movements? How should this movement respond to the government? Explain it in detail.

Answer 1

In the above mentioned case, the government was able to crush the demands for democracy by pitting one group against the other.

The movement can respond to the government in the following ways:

• Trying to gain public support and sympathy for their goals and their activities by carrying out information campaigns, organizing meetings and filing petition
• Influencing the media into giving more attention to these issues
• Organising protest activity like strikes or disrupting government programmes
• Some persons from pressure groups or movement groups may participate in official bodies and committees that offer advice to the government.