Colonialism Flashcards
Introduction
Colonialism is defined as control by one power over a dependent area or people. It often entails a population being conquered by an outside power and exploited, while forcing their own power and cultural values upon them.
Africa suffered long term effects such as the loss of important natural resources such as gold and rubber, economic devastation and geopolitical divisions. Colonial powers would justify their rule in Africa as they had a legal and religious obligation to develop the land of the Indigenous people and would argue they were working in their best interests and maximising the output of the land.
During the Berlin conference 1984, there was a differential interpretation of the treaty between Western and African powers. For instance, the Europeans believed African’s had signed their sovereignty away while Africans believed they were merely diplomatic and commercial friendship agreements. After realising this and the pressures of the imperial rule started to provoke military resistance by Africans.
What colonial states had to contend with
Completing military conquests
Agreeing on boundaries – a boundary commission set up between 2 or more states after having a period of 20 years with no proper boarders.
Finding reliable revenue streams – developing a taxation system as Britain and France would not want to finance themselves.
Establishing economic foundations – mining, agriculture
French Relationship
it was important to have a closer economic relationship. To achieve their “civilising mission” the French used assimilation whereby with some reforms and education, they would become civilised French Africans.
However, there were strict conditions to be met in order to achieve this status, such as speaking French fluently and the educational system would not be sufficient to achieve this. Therefore, assimilation was more of an imperialist political and ideological posture rather than a serious political objective.
What led to decolonisation?
1- new leaders emerged and unions
2 - decisions taken: democracy?
After World War 2, there was a shift in the economic environment of the colonial powers where many believed the colonies had less importance. By the 1960s many African countries had gained their independence and a new leadership of African nationalists emerged who demanded freedoms and changes. African countries were also reaching out to each other for example in 1959 Senegal tried to develop a political union with Mali.
After gaining independence there are crucial decisions taken by the new leaders and in many instances their choices would not be in the best interest for the country for example Jomo Kenyata of Kenya’s decision to form a one-party state and exclude other ethnic groups from senior governmental roles. But in contrast other decisions taken would enable a stable democracy such as Seretse Khama of Botswana.
Aftermath of colonisation: Political and ethnic tension
1 - nation-building and education
2 - boundary lines during colonial rule and unite
3 - ethnic tension
The term nation-building dominated post-colonialist countries as it was understood that imperial rule had done little to nurture a viable nation. Nation building took the form of making national symbols such as flag and anthems and creating the feeling of inclusiveness. Education was unevenly distributed and would mean that certain areas would be more prosperous than others. For example, in Ghana there were disparities in wealth as people were more educated in the south.
Western Africa faced serious challenges in trying to unite their population. The rulers inherited land in which the colonial powers had changed the boundary lines and consisted of a number of different ethnic groups, religions and interests. It had brought together people who would otherwise be separate. For example, some of the Ewe live in Ghana, Togo and Benin.
Many rulers have failed to unite these communities and often a leader will identify with one group and not the other thus creating loyalties to certain ethnicities. This led to serious political problems such as a party will tend to allocate resources to their stronghold and appoint people from their regions to strategic positions often leading to conflicts.
Aftermath of colonisation: Economic problems
1- West African economies were structured so that they’d permanently depend on western nations
2- WTO restrictions and prices of imports and exports
3- Huge debts
Economic problems
Despite the abundant natural resources which many Western African counties possess they are still economically poor and underdeveloped. Many of these inequalities can be traced back to the colonial period. West African economies were structured so that they’d permanently depend on western nations, as they primarily produced on the demand from the west.
The WTO has rules which favours developed economies and therefore, obtaining better terms for West African countries has been difficult. Since the 1970s the prices of agricultural goods have been failing such as the prices of cocoa which almost ruined Ghana’s economy. At the same time the cost of imported goods is rising and the mining sector is dominated by foreign companies which monopolise the African region and avoid taxes.
Many west African countries also face massive debts where many leaders resorted to borrowing with high interests’ rates from abroad. For example, Nkrumah of Ghana borrowed large sums to finance the hydro-electric project and crippled the economy with debt estimated at $30 billion.
Regimes: Multi-Party system
1- Definition
2- Examples + how it was stable
3- pros and cons
A multi-party system allows various political parties to have the capacity to gain control of governmental office separately or via coalitions.
After independence in 1966, Botswana was one of the poorest countries in Africa but by the 80s it had a stable economy. A number of factors however, gave him a particular advantage for the development of the economy. For example, Khama was an educated lawyer in Britain who had the opportunity to experience forms of democratic rule. Khama in cooperated traditional African structures into politics which allows the population to realise their legitimacy and thus enabled political stability.
Another feature is that the government collaborated between the public and private sphere and stimulated private investments. The discovery of diamonds was also paramount to their success.
Botswana Democratic party tended to be the dominant party due to a lack of opponents who were weak.
- High degree of wealth inequality – lack of distribution
- No improvement in their ow human development
index
Regimes: One-Party
1- Definition
2- Specific to Africa
3- Example - pros and cons
Only when one party is permitted to be in government and oppositional parties are excluded.
The one-party system became the most common political system in post-colonial Africa and was a strategy to maintain political self-preservation.
There are arguments that’s the one-party state provided a vehicle for an African-style deliberative democracy, but this often results in long-standing dictatorships.
In Tanzania the state and the party are intertwined and there is no room for opposition. Although now a country with a multi-party system, Tanzania has had a one-party state since 1962 when Julius Nyerere gained power.
In 1977 the ASP of Zanzibar and the TANU joined to form the Party of the Revolution and became the only legal party in Tanzania.
- Elections were held where individuals from the same party competed against each other.
- Ensured accountability and the entry for new leaders with fresh ideas.
- Country could not be riven by destructive ethnic politics.
- BUT he used coercion to implement his socialist programme (Ujamaa)
- By 1986 Nyerere stepped down and persuaded his party to pave the way for multi-party politics.
Regimes: Military regimes
1 - Definition
2- Examples and cons
The failure of multi-party politics generated a vacuum that facilitated the entrance of the military onto the political stage. The Military exerts complete or substantial control over political authority.
1960s was the decade of the coup syndrome which began in Togo and the Army killed President Sylvanus Olympio in order to prevent a civil war. The military has often stepped in due to the failure of civilian governments to properly manage the state often resulting in political repression and ethnic conflicts.
Joseph Kony - Uganda, known for turning country into a theocracy where 2million were displaced and 660,000 children forced to be child soldiers.
The military often have little regard for the national constitution and has tendency towards undemocratic behaviour often resulting in human rights abuses.
Rise of new ideologies: African Socialism
Ujamaa had two elements – nationalisation and villagization
- Used military style operations to force people to move to collective villages but had disastrous consequences. Aimed at building self-reliance, communal labour, and communal ownership of land and contributed to shaping a distinctive form of African socialism.
- In Tanzania there was restraint over salaries and less than 50% of productivity was achieve than anticipated.
Ultimately failed as the poorest lacked the skills to fully participate in communal society. The great food shortage 1973-1975
Rise of new ideologies: African Nationalism
1- Nationalism as a form of ideology is often used to unite a certain population and in this case was used to unite the black population together in Africa.
2- basis of African identity which promoted the cause of independence.
3 - Kwame Nkrumah lead Ghana’s liberation campaign from Britain in 1957 and seek to end colonial rule in the whole continent as well as promoting African values.
4 - However, now it has shifted for a quest for good governance and democracy. Inspiration to develop the AU and the African Court on Human and Peoples rights, and African Court of Justice. Currently, this ideology hooks the younger population as they become increasingly aware of their own political and economic environment.
Conclusion
Post-colonial states have made considerable progress since independence with improved social services and expansion of infrastructure. However, the level of progress was not as was expected at independence.
