TEDWomen 2018
Farida Nabourema: Is your country at risk of becoming a dictatorship? Here's how to know
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Farida Nabourema has dedicated her life to fighting the military regime in Togo, Africa's oldest autocracy. She's learned two truths along the way: no country is destined to be oppressed -- and no country is immune to dictatorship. But how can you tell if you're at risk before it happens? In a stirring talk, Nabourema shares the four key signs of a dictatorship, along with the secret to defiance for those living within an oppressive system.
Farida Nabourema - Activist, writer
Farida Nabourema is a key voice in Togo’s pro-democracy movement. Full bio
Farida Nabourema is a key voice in Togo’s pro-democracy movement. Full bio
Double-click the English transcript below to play the video.
00:13
A few weeks ago,
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somebody tweeted during the midterm
elections in the United States
elections in the United States
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that Election Day
should be made a holiday.
should be made a holiday.
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And I retweeted, saying,
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"Well, you're welcome to come
to my country and vote.
to my country and vote.
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You'll get the whole week off
to allow the military to count it."
to allow the military to count it."
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I come from Togo, by the way.
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It is a beautiful country
located in West Africa.
located in West Africa.
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There are some cool,
interesting facts about my country.
interesting facts about my country.
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Togo has been ruled
by the same family for 51 years,
by the same family for 51 years,
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making us the oldest autocracy in Africa.
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That's a record.
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We have a second-coolest record:
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we have been ranked three times
as the unhappiest country on earth.
as the unhappiest country on earth.
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You are all invited.
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(Laughter)
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So just to let you know,
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it's not very cool
to live under an autocracy.
to live under an autocracy.
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01:01
But the interesting thing is that I have
met, throughout the course of my activism,
met, throughout the course of my activism,
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so many people from different countries,
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and when I tell them about Togo,
their reaction is always,
their reaction is always,
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"How can you guys allow the same people
to terrorize you for 51 years?
to terrorize you for 51 years?
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You know, like, you Togolese,
you must be very patient."
you must be very patient."
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That's their diplomatic way
of saying "stupid."
of saying "stupid."
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(Laughter)
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01:21
And when you live in a free country,
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there's this tendency of assuming
that those who are oppressed
that those who are oppressed
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tolerate their oppression
or are comfortable with it,
or are comfortable with it,
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and democracy is projected
as a progressive form of governance
as a progressive form of governance
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in such a way that those people
who don't live under democratic countries
who don't live under democratic countries
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are seen as people who are not
intellectually or maybe morally
intellectually or maybe morally
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as advanced as others.
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But it's not the case.
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The reason why people have that perception
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has to do with the way stories
are covered about dictatorships.
are covered about dictatorships.
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In the course of my activism,
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I have had to interview
with so many news outlets out there,
with so many news outlets out there,
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and usually it would always start with,
"What got you started?
"What got you started?
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02:02
What inspired you?"
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And I reply, "I wasn't inspired.
I was triggered."
I was triggered."
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02:08
And it goes on.
"Well, what triggered you?"
"Well, what triggered you?"
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02:11
And I go on about how my father
was arrested when I was 13, and tortured,
was arrested when I was 13, and tortured,
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all the history ... I don't want
to get into details now,
to get into details now,
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because you'll start sleeping.
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But the thing is, at the end of the day,
what interests them the most is:
what interests them the most is:
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How was he tortured?
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For how many days? How many people died?
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They are interested
in the abuse, in the killing,
in the abuse, in the killing,
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because they believe that
will gain attention and sympathy.
will gain attention and sympathy.
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But in reality, it serves
the purpose of the dictator.
the purpose of the dictator.
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It helps them advertise their cruelty.
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02:43
In 2011, I cofounded a movement
I call "Faure Must Go,"
I call "Faure Must Go,"
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because Faure is
the first name of our president.
the first name of our president.
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Togo is a French-speaking
country, by the way,
country, by the way,
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but I chose English because
I had my issues with France as well.
I had my issues with France as well.
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But then --
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(Laughter)
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But then, when I started Faure Must Go,
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I made a video, and I came on camera,
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and I said, "Well, Faure Gnassingbé,
I give you 60 days to resign as president,
I give you 60 days to resign as president,
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because if you don't,
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we the youth in Togo will organize
and we will bring you down,
and we will bring you down,
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because you have killed
over 500 of our countrymen
over 500 of our countrymen
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to seize power when your father died.
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We have not chosen you.
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You are an imposter,
and we will remove you."
and we will remove you."
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But I was the only known face
of the movement.
of the movement.
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Why? Because I was the only stupid one.
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(Laughter)
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And the backlashes followed.
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My family started receiving threats.
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My siblings called me one morning.
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They said, "You know what?
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When they come here to kill you,
we don't want to die with you,
we don't want to die with you,
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so move out."
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So yes, I moved out.
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And I'm so angry at them,
so I haven't talked to them in five years.
so I haven't talked to them in five years.
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Anyway, moving forward ...
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For the past nine years,
I have been working with countries
I have been working with countries
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to raise awareness of Togo,
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to help the people of Togo
overcome their fear
overcome their fear
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so they, too, can come and say
they want change.
they want change.
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I have received a lot of persecution
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that I cannot disclose,
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a lot of threats, a lot of abuse,
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psychologically.
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04:13
But I don't like talking about them,
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because I know that my job
as an activist is to mobilize,
as an activist is to mobilize,
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is to organize,
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is to help every single Togolese citizen
understand that, as citizens,
understand that, as citizens,
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we hold the power,
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we are the boss and we decide.
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And the punishment that the dictators
are using to intimidate them
are using to intimidate them
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must not prevent us
from getting what we want.
from getting what we want.
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That is why I said it is very important
to cover the stories of activists
to cover the stories of activists
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in the way that it helps mobilize people,
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not in the way that it helps
deter their action
deter their action
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and force even more their subjugation
to the oppressive system.
to the oppressive system.
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During these years
that I've been an activist,
that I've been an activist,
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there are days that I felt like quitting
because I couldn't take it.
because I couldn't take it.
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05:00
Well then, what kept me going?
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The one thing that kept me going:
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I remember the story of my grandfather,
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and how he used to walk
465 miles from his village to the city,
465 miles from his village to the city,
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just to protest for independence.
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05:13
Then I remember
the sacrifice of my father,
the sacrifice of my father,
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who was tortured so many times
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for daring to protest against the regime.
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Back in the '70s,
they would write pamphlets
they would write pamphlets
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to raise awareness on the dictatorship,
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and because they couldn't
afford to make copies,
afford to make copies,
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they would reproduce
the same pamphlet 500 times each
the same pamphlet 500 times each
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and distribute them.
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It got to a point where the military
knew their handwriting,
knew their handwriting,
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so as soon as they stumbled upon one,
they'd go and get them.
they'd go and get them.
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But I look at that and I'm like,
you know, today you have a blog.
you know, today you have a blog.
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I don't have to copy
the same thing 500 times.
the same thing 500 times.
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I blog and thousands of people read it.
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By the way, in Togo, they like
calling me the WhatsApp girl,
calling me the WhatsApp girl,
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because I am always on WhatsApp
attacking the government.
attacking the government.
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(Laughter)
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So it's much easier.
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When I'm angry at the government,
I just make an angry note,
I just make an angry note,
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and I send it out
and thousands of people share it.
and thousands of people share it.
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I'm rarely this composed.
I'm always angry, by the way.
I'm always angry, by the way.
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(Laughter)
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(Applause)
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So I was talking about the necessity
to showcase our stories,
to showcase our stories,
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because when I think about
the sacrifices that were made for us,
the sacrifices that were made for us,
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it helped me keep going.
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One of the very first actions
of our Faure Must Go movement
of our Faure Must Go movement
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was to come up with a petition,
asking citizens to sign
asking citizens to sign
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so that we can demand new elections,
as the constitution allows.
as the constitution allows.
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People were scared to put their names
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because, they said,
they don't want to get in trouble.
they don't want to get in trouble.
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Even in the diaspora, people were scared.
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They were like, "We have family at home."
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But there was this woman
who was in her 60s.
who was in her 60s.
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When she heard about it,
she took the petition,
she took the petition,
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and she went home,
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and by herself she collected
over 1,000 [signatures].
over 1,000 [signatures].
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That inspired me so much, and I was like,
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if a 60-year-old that has
nothing more to gain in this regime
nothing more to gain in this regime
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can do this for us, the young ones,
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then why should I quit?
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It is the stories of resistance,
the stories of defiance,
the stories of defiance,
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the stories of resilience,
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that inspire people to get involved,
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not the stories of abuse
and killings and hurt,
and killings and hurt,
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because as humans, it's only natural
for us to be scared.
for us to be scared.
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I would like to share with you
a few characteristics of dictatorships
a few characteristics of dictatorships
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so that you can assess your own country
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and see if you are also
at risk of joining us.
at risk of joining us.
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(Laughter and cheers)
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(Applause)
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Number one thing to look at:
concentration of power.
concentration of power.
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Is the power in your country concentrated
in the hands of a few, an elite?
in the hands of a few, an elite?
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It can be a political elite,
ideological elite.
ideological elite.
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And you have a strongman,
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because we always have one guy
who is presented as the messiah
who is presented as the messiah
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who will save us from the world.
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The second point is propaganda.
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Dictators feed on propaganda.
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They like giving the impression
that they are the saviors,
that they are the saviors,
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and without them,
the country will fall apart.
the country will fall apart.
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And they are always fighting
some foreign forces, you know?
some foreign forces, you know?
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The Christians, the Jewish, the Muslims,
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the voodoo priests are coming for you.
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The Communists, when they get here,
we'll all be broke.
we'll all be broke.
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These kinds of things.
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And our president, in particular,
he fights pirates.
he fights pirates.
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(Laughter)
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I am very serious.
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Last year, he bought a boat that's
13 million dollars to fight pirates,
13 million dollars to fight pirates,
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and 60 percent of our people are starving.
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So they are always protecting us
from some foreign forces.
from some foreign forces.
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And this leads to point three:
militarization.
militarization.
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Dictators survive by instigating fear,
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and they use the military
to suppress dissident voices,
to suppress dissident voices,
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even though they try
to give the impression
to give the impression
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that the military
is to protect the nation.
is to protect the nation.
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And they suppress institutions
and destroy them
and destroy them
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so that they don't have to be
held accountable.
held accountable.
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So do you have a heavily
militarized country?
militarized country?
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And this leads to point four,
what I call human cruelty.
what I call human cruelty.
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You know when we talk about animals,
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we say animal cruelty
when animals are abused,
when animals are abused,
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because there's no charter
acknowledged by the UN
acknowledged by the UN
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saying animal rights charter.
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Point one: all animals are created equal.
So you don't have that.
So you don't have that.
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So whenever animals are abused,
we say animal cruelty.
we say animal cruelty.
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But when it comes to humans,
we say human rights abuses,
we say human rights abuses,
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because we assume
that all humans have rights.
that all humans have rights.
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But some of us are actually still fighting
for our right to have rights.
for our right to have rights.
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So in that condition, I don't talk about
human rights abuse or violation.
human rights abuse or violation.
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When you live in a country
and you have an issue with the president
and you have an issue with the president
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and the worst thing that can happen
is he bans you from the presidency,
is he bans you from the presidency,
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you are lucky.
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When you come to my country
and have an issue with the president,
and have an issue with the president,
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you just run, disappear;
you vanish from the universe,
you vanish from the universe,
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because they can still find you in Turkey.
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So people like myself,
we don't get to live in Togo anymore.
we don't get to live in Togo anymore.
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And people like myself,
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we don't get to live in the same place
for more than a month,
for more than a month,
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because we don't want to be traced.
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The way they abuse people,
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the type of cruelty that happens
in all impunity under dictatorships
in all impunity under dictatorships
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are beyond human imagination.
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The stories of some
of the activists that were killed,
of the activists that were killed,
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their bodies dumped in the sea,
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that were tortured
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to the point where they lost
their hearing or their sight --
their hearing or their sight --
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those stories still haunt me.
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And sometimes, as an activist,
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I am less concerned about dying
than how it will happen.
than how it will happen.
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Sometimes I just sit down
and I imagine all scenarios.
and I imagine all scenarios.
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What are they going to do?
Are they going to cut my ears first?
Are they going to cut my ears first?
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Or are they going to cut my tongue
because I'm always insulting them?
because I'm always insulting them?
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It sounds cruel, but it is the reality.
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We live in a very cruel world.
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Dictators are cruel monsters,
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and I am not saying it to be nice.
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So yes, that is the final characteristic.
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The list goes on,
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but that's the final thing that I want
to share about autocracies,
to share about autocracies,
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so that you look at your country
and see if there are risks there.
and see if there are risks there.
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It is important that you acknowledge
the gains of freedom that you have today,
the gains of freedom that you have today,
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because some people had
to give their lives for you to have it.
to give their lives for you to have it.
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So don't take this for granted.
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But then at the same time,
you also need to know
you also need to know
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that no country is actually
destined to be oppressed,
destined to be oppressed,
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while at the same time,
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no country or no people are immune
to oppression and dictatorship.
to oppression and dictatorship.
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Thank you.
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(Applause)
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ABOUT THE SPEAKER
Farida Nabourema - Activist, writerFarida Nabourema is a key voice in Togo’s pro-democracy movement.
Why you should listen
A political activist and writer, Farida Nabourema has been a fearless advocate for democracy and human rights in Togo since she was a teenager. Through more than 400 articles on her blog and other sites, she denounces corruption and dictatorship and promotes a form of progressive pan-Africanism. In 2014, she published La Pression de l'Oppression (The Pressure of Oppression), in which she discussed the different forms of oppression that people face throughout Africa and highlighted the need for oppressed people to fight back.
Nabourema is also the engagement and collaboration coordinator of Africans Rising, a pan-African movement that fights for justice, peace and dignity through grassroots organizing, civic education and advocacy. She cofounded and is the executive director of the Togolese Civil League, an NGO that promotes democracy through civil resistance. In 2001, at age 20, Nabourema founded the "Faure Must Go" movement, where she supported and organized with Togolese youths to stand against the dictatorial regime of Faure Gnassingbé. "Faure Must Go" has become the slogan for the civil resistance movement in Togo, of which Nabourema is one of the most well-known leaders.
Nabourema was awarded the "Young Advocate of the Year" and the "Female African Youth of the Year" in 2018 by Africa Youth Award for her contribution to raising awareness on the oldest military regime in Africa.
Farida Nabourema | Speaker | TED.com