Accounting for the effects of neoliberalism on race relations in postcolonial
societies requires analysis of processes of group formation and
the meaning of neoliberal policies in relation to political contention about
racial inequalities. To this end, we compare the politics of neoliberalism
and racial redress in Tanzania and Fiji, examining political contention
and the contextual effects of colonial legacies, post-colonial development
strategies, and the timing of reform. In Tanzania, opposition politicians
advanced indigenization policies as a defensive reaction against the
redistributive consequences of neoliberal policies, whereas in Fiji proponents
of indigenization used neoliberal economic policies as a means to
advance their goals for racial redistribution. Consequently, indigenization
policies and alternatives in Tanzania were framed as issues of race and
citizenship, while in Fiji debate about these policies centered on the
difference between race- and class-based preferences. Our findings
highlight the role of political parties as an institutional terrain of
identity-group formation and the importance of considering how
implementation of neoliberal policies distributes costs and benefits in a
manner that can remake political alliances