Al Jazeera (2011) - Africa: States of Independence - The Scramble For Africa Flashcards
Colonialism in Africa - an overview
1) 1880s to around 1950s - Europeans came to extract African resources.
2) In just 20 years did Europeans control 90% of the continent
3) The incentive was the industrial revolution - needed raw materials, like rubber, cobalt, gold, diamonds, etc to continue industrialising
4) Due to merchant/trading over several centuries, the Europeans had mapped out what resources were where + Britain and France already controlled multiple ports
Political supremacy in Europe
- Economic incentives was not the only encouragement of colonialism
- Colonialism became a fast-track to political supremacy for state who were weaker after wars or in general
Moral justifications of colonialism
1)Bringing civilisation and Christianity
2) …also called White Man’s Burden - need to “bring” light and help them in need of enlightenment
3) Framed as a humanitarian project
“You cannot dominate someone without assigning them a sense of inferiority”
Berin conference in 1885 - main features
A group of European leaders agreed to
1) Abolish slavery
2) Introduce free global trade
3) Draw borders of Africa, subjugating “trading partners” into subjects of empire
4) Africans were not at all aware of what these Europeans were doing on conferences or even having them
effectively LEGALIZED the scramble for Africa
King Leopold 2 of Belgium
One of the most vile men in history.
- Controlled a private colony of Congo and was responsible for the insane exploitation of people for rubber extraction
- Led to massive wealth for the King
- Torture, including chopping of hands, and death, rape, lots of horrendous things if the enslaved Congolese people refused to work.
French (cultural) colonization
- Not only ruling an area, but assimilating a population
- Remodelled towns to resemble France
- The more French you became, the more opportunities you get
- Forced French education, illegalised the native languages
- Made to believe that they were uncivilised and need to become “French” to reach civilisation (example of modernity project!)
British colonisation
Taking “indirect” control by appointing local leaders to manage their colonial mission (chiefs)
Colonialism as a “bittersweet” encounter
Rapid development at the expense of personal freedoms designed to help the European project as much (or more) as to help African societies
For instance: All infrastructure (railways, roads, schools) were designed to such the most resources and wealth out of the continent. In contrast with India, where towns were linked internally through infrastructure.
World War 1 and 2
WW1: Called on Africans to fight for their “mother country” - led to 165000 + deaths
WW2:Needed their colonies consisting of half a million men
Plunder of human resources caught up with the plunder of earth
Not only here - also used in Vietnam wars and against liberation wars in Tunisia and Algerie)
Post WW2
1) Reforms in colonial system - Britain and France started talking of inclusions of Africans in assemblies and of citizenships
2) WW2 destroyed the “Invincibility” image of Europeans, which incited a rise of nationalism
3) UN was created in the spirit of “Never Again” - including a charter insisting on self-sovereignty
4) Cost of running colonial systems were high and many European countries were going through economic crisis as a result of post ww1 and 2.
African liberations
- Started in the 1950s - Elite of Africans stood firm seeing WW2 - proof that Europeans are not invincible
- Civil Rights movement inUSand Anti-Apartheid in SA
- 1957 - Ghana first country to be independent. Prime Minister Kuma saw the United States and American Dream and wanted to adopt this for African states.
- Many countries were freed without blodshed as Europeans did not want more wars.
- Independence was NOT a result of Europeans realizing that they had done something wrong - it was the Africans who realized this
The cold war’
-Coincided (sadly) with the independence movements
- Some African nationalists were friendly with communist Soviet
- Lubamba i Congo was one of these - was overthrown by rebels backed by Belgium and US for having Russian sympathy
Political vacuum in new independent African states
1) No introduction of democracy in African countries led to power vacuum
2) Military began to seize power, but were not political figures and became leadership no one voted for. Specialised in using weapons and that only - violence.
3) Ethnic conflicts stirred as colonial powers had not ruled Nigerians as “Nigerians” but as different tribes. When they left the country as an independent state, the tribes became highly ethnicised.
French Underground Colonization
- Post-independence the French still had an unseen hand in foregin affairs of their ex-colonies
- Frenchmen always had the last word and their presence and influence is still there today
From Youtube documentary
French created “cooperative agreements” with ex-colonies that ensured that in exchange for aid they would 1) access resources, 2) remain military presence and 3) remain french-linked monetary currency, affecting their ability to export or locally produce/buy goods. in addition, most money from aids go straight into pockets of leader, hence underdevelopment (or - over-exploitation - Michael Parenti) remains.
Europe in Africa today
- There is a complicity between the rulers of African states and Western companies
- Continuation of outside investment in extraction of minerals, oil, etc
- Aid is highly controversial and oftentimes exploitative in itself. For every dollar sent, 10 dollars are lost as illegal capital heading out to for instance tax havens, not at all helping the well-being of many citizens
China’s interests in Africa
- Controversial in many ways, as China has now as well taken an open interest in Africas resources
- At the same time, this demand has pushed global prices due to competition and their presence has been more collaborative than Europeans colonialism and neocolonialism (as far as history has judged so far and if that history is correct.)
Success stories!
- Botswana has economically developed independently by nationalising diamond reserves and Senegal has built a strong democracy.
- Africa has a promising amount of natural and intellectual resources
- Fifty years could be an estimated time for more independence and tremendous improvement of standard of living
But first: The responsibility of African leadership is utterly necessary.
