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Topic 2: Independent Africa How was independence in Africa realised in the 1960s and 1970s. PART 1: Background and comparative case study of the Congo _______________________________________________ For t...

Topic 2: Independent Africa How was independence in Africa realised in the 1960s and 1970s. PART 1: Background and comparative case study of the Congo _______________________________________________ For the first half of the 20th century most of Africa was not free. It formed part of the empires of European colonial powers, but after WWII African nationalists fought for freedom from colonial rule. In 1957, Ghana was the first colony to gain independence. By the 1960s most of Africa was independent except for a few areas which remained colonies until the 1970s or 1980s (such as Mozambique, Angola, Zimbabwe and Namibia). People hoped that independence would mean a bright now future for the African states after decades of colonial rule. The leaders of the nationalist movements at the time of independence had great hopes for the new states. Free from foreign control the new governments, run by Africans themselves, would make decisions for the new nations. They had different ideas about forms of government, political ideologies and how the economies should be run. As a result, they tried different approaches to tackle the tasks of nation- building and economic development. Page 1 of 15 Background 1880s: ‘Scramble for Africa’ – rapid colonial partition of Africa 1884-’85: Berlin Conference – European powers agreed on imperial division of Africa Colonial partition of Africa, and fixing of new frontiers, occurred in arbitrary fashion that took little account of prevailing geographical distribution of African peoples.  Some homogeneous groups were disaggregated into smaller groups; groups with no common history, culture, language or history were lumped together; and other groups that had no prior existence as distinct groups were manufactured into new groups.  By the time the Scramble for Africa was over, about 10 000 African polities had been amalgamated into forty European colonies and protectorates.  By accentuating differences and obscuring similarities between groups, colonial states manipulated organisation of African societies; “divide and rule” strategy became foundation of colonial domination. Post-WWI: African nationalism led to decolonisation  1951 Libya (British, formerly Italian)  1956: Sudan (British)  1956: Tunisia (French)  1956: Morocco (French & Spanish)  1957: Gold Coast/Ghana (British) 1960s most African states became independent; these included:  30 June 1960: Belgian Congo  1961-1964: Tanzania Process of independence continued into 1970s and 1980s  1970s: Mozambique and Angola (Portuguese) Page 2 of 15   1980s: Zimbabwe and Namibia Post-colonial African states were characterised by wide range of political and economic systems. Cold War ideologies and competition for spheres of influence affected post-independence policies of African states. Different ideas about economic systems (NOT EXAMINABLE) African states were not wealthy at the time of independence. The colonial powers had done little to develop the economic self-sufficiency of their colonies. The colonial economies had been geared towards exporting unprocessed minerals and cash crops cheaply, and importing expensive manufactured goods. There were few secondary industries. One of the urgent tasks facing the new states was to promote economic development, particularly industrialisation. The two forms of economic system which they adopted to promote this were socialism and capitalism. 1. African Socialism Some African leaders claimed that the principles of socialism were not new to Africa because there were many aspects of socialism in traditional African societies. These included:  Communal land-ownership  Collective decision-making  Classless structure of some village communities These views were held by Leopold Senghor of Senegal and Julius Nyerere of Tanzania. Other leaders supported socialist policies because they thought centralised state control would be the best way to bring about economic and social transformation after years of colonial rule. The policies implemented under the label of ‘African socialism’ differed widely from country to country:  Tanzania: largely based on collectivisation of agriculture and promoted economic self- reliance.  Ghana: under Kwame Nkrumah, focused on massive government spending on vast and often unused public projects such as grain shortage facilities, dams and highways. As a result, the country built up huge debts to foreign lenders. The economy declined and Nkrumah was overthrown in a military coup in 1966, just nine years after coming to power as the hero of the African nationalist movement.  Mozambique: applied a form of socialism that was closer to Marxism. After centuries of Portuguese control the leaders thought that centralised government control of the economy Page 3 of 15  was the best way to solve the problems of poverty. E.g. nationalisation of industry, creation of collective farms, banning private businesses and a one-party government.  Zambia: announced that it was following a form of African socialism, linked to ‘Zambian humanism’, which its leader, Kenneth Kaunda, defined as a belief in the equal worth of all humanity. However, the system in Zambia was really a ‘relaxed economy’, using a combination of socialism and capitalism. 2. Capitalism Some African countries adopted a capitalist approach, which relied on foreign investment and stronger economic ties with Western countries.  Kenya: capitalist economic approach meant state involvement – but not state control of the economy.  Land which formerly belonged to white settlers was bought by the government and sold to individual African farmers.  The government established marketing boards to give credit and technical assistance to these farmers, and to help new manufacturing industries.  Foreign investment stimulated industrial development and for the first 10 years after independence, Kenya had good economic growth.  Critics, however, pointed out that the economic system had promoted the emergence of a wealthy elite, and that Kenya was still dependent on Western investment.  Cote d’Ivoire: applied capitalist policies and encouraged foreign investment in cocoa, coffee and timber industries.  It soon had one of the wealthiest economies in Africa.  However, most of the wealth went to the Towns and cities and not to the peasant farmers, who made up most of the population. Page 4 of 15 Different political ideologies about forms of government (NOT EXAMINABLE) At the time of independence, many former colonies set up multi-party democracies. However, many of them later became one-party states. 1. Democracy Before independence, there was a lack of democracy in the African colonies. In most colonies Africans had not say in how the colonies were governed. However, when the colonial powers handed over power, they expected their former colonies to run as multi-party democracies.  In most newly independent states, many parties participated in elections for the first new governments, and initially there was a commitment to maintaining democracy.  BUT in many states multi-party democratic systems were soon replaced by more authoritarian systems.  By late 1980s, only Botswana had maintained an unbroken record of democracy since independence.  From 1966 onwards, it held elections every five years and although the ruling Botswana Democratic Party wont most of the votes in the country as a whole, the opposition parties were allowed to operate freely and they won majorities in councils of some of the towns. 2. One-party states Many African states abandoned democratic forms of government after independence and became one-party states. Some historians believe that part of the explanation for this lies in the legacy of colonial rule. There was no tradition of democratic rule. The colonial authorities stayed in power by using force to silence any criticism or opposition.  Traditional African societies had been based on the authority of chiefs, who ruled by getting the agreement (or consensus) of other people. They did not have competitive elections and rivalry between different parties, as in Western forms of democracy.  A one-party system would be the most straightforward, cheap and efficient way to carry out the urgently needed economic and social development policies.  It would create unity which was important for nation-building and was a way of avoiding ethnic divisions. Page 5 of 15   Marxists believed that a small group was needed to lead the masses and make sure that the proper goals for economic and social development were put in place. One-party states often led to an abuse of power, with the ruling party giving itself the powers of a dictator to silence criticism.  Some relied of the army to stay in power, which often resulted in army leaders staging coups and establishing military dictatorships.  By the late 1980s, 31 countries had experienced successful military coups, and half the countries in Africa were under military rule.  Therefore, although there were many common factors which led to independence of Africa from colonialism, each African country experienced independence in its own particular way. Comparative case studies (1960 to 1980): the Congo and Tanzania political, economic, social and cultural successes and challenges in independent Africa Congo When the Congo became independent from Belgian rule in June 1960, a critical situation soon developed which brought the Cold War to Africa for the first time. The Congo became a tool of the Western powers during the Cold War. Background  1878: King Leopold II of Belgium appointed explorer Henry Morton Stanley to acquire territory for him along the Congo River  Stanley concluded treaties with about 400 African chiefs, persuading them to surrender sovereignty over their respective territories  Berlin Conference (1885): Leopold II obtained international approval for his own personal empire  Called “Congo Free State”, of which Leopold was “King-Sovereign”  Leopold’s aim was to amass large personal fortune for himself, based mainly on ivory and rubber  Elephants were hunted to near-extinction  Concession companies appointed Leopold used slave labour to strip equatorial forests of wild rubber (used to manufacture tyres) Page 6 of 15   Villagers who failed to fulfil quotas were flogged, jailed and mutilated, often having their hands, arms or ears cut off  Many Congolese were killed for resisting Leopold’s rubber regime; occasionally entire villages were massacred  Leopold became one of the wealthiest men in Europe  But Congo had been looted and had lost perhaps as many as 10m people – half its population  1908: public furore over barbarism of Leopold’s Congolese empire compelled him to surrender his private empire to the Belgian government 1. The legacy of Belgian rule Belgian rule in the Congo was very harsh. The people of the Congo were forced to pay high taxes and had to do forced labour. Belgian policy was based on ‘paternalism’ – a belief that African people should be treated a children and not allowed any responsibility or representation in government. There were a few secondary schools but no higher education for Africans, although there were a large number of primary schools.  Congolese could not own land  Opposition suppressed brutally After WWII, the Belgians were determined to keep the Congo under their control and they tried to stop the spread nationalist ideas from other African colonies.  Until the late 1950s they banned all political parties and independent African newspapers.  After violent protests in towns around the Congo in 1959, Belgium decided to grant independence within six months, they were hoping that if they moved quickly, they could keep control of the government behind the scenes because Congolese politicians were so inexperienced.  The people of the Congo were totally unprepared for this sudden change of policy and a large number (120) of political parties were quickly formed.Many of these were regionally- based parties which drew their support from a single ethnic group.  Proliferation of political parties reflected enormous demographic diversity of the Congo: 250 different ethnic groups and nearly 700 different languages.  As the people of the Congo prepared for the elections in May 1960, they had high hopes that independence would resolve the problems caused by years of poverty and oppression. Page 7 of 15   In the elections, 120 political parties participated and no single party won an outright majority of the seats in parliament.  The MNC (Mouvement National Congolais), under the leadership of Patrice Lumumba, won the most seats. It was the only party which had attempted to gain nation-wide rather than regionally-based support. It advocated nationalism.  Won 37 seats; main rival 13 seats  Main support from Stanleyville and little support from Katanga (richest province due to copper mines) Independence and Civil War When the Congo formally became independent in June 1960, Lumumba formed a coalition government. He became Prime Minister, and he appointed his main rival, Joseph Kasavubu (leader of the Abako), as president.  Lumumba wanted a strong unitary or centrally controlled government.  Kasavubu and other leaders favoured a loose federation, where each region would have some autonomy. A few days after independence, some units of the army (Force Publique) rebelled, largely because of objections to their Belgian commander (the army was still under control of Belgian officer corps).  FP commander, General Emile Janssens, told FP soldiers: “before independence and after independence” = nothing should change  5 July 1960: FP soldiers mutinied, demanding dismissal of Janssens and other Belgian officers  Lumumba dismissed officer corps; appointed Sergeant-Major Joseph-Desire Mobutu chief of staff  Violent broke out in many parts of the country, including on Belgian property and civilians  Belgian army seized control of Leopoldville airport; Lumumba suspected Belgium was attempting to reimpose colonial rule 11 July 1960: Supported by the Belgian government and business leaders, Moise Tshombe took advantage of the ensuing confusion, using it as an opportunity to proclaim that the mineral-rich province of Katanga was seceding from the Congo. Katanga was backed by Belgian mining interests. Page 8 of 15  Belgian troops expelled Congolese soldiers from Katanga  Belgians took effective control of Katanga, intending to safeguard Western business interests and to use it as a base from which to establish pro-Belgian government in Leopoldville  Secession of Katanga threatened to break Congo apart and undermine it economically: 50% of Congo’s revenue came from Katanga’s mineral wealth (copper mines).  Unity of the country was threatened by the breakaway of Katanga  When Belgium sent troops to the Congo, supposedly to protect Belgian property and the 100 000 Belgian nationals still in the Congo, Lumumba and others saw this as an attempt by Belgium to restore colonial control.  They were also suspicious of Belgian motives because of their control of the copper mines in Katanga.  Lumumba appealed to the United Nations (UN) for military assistance to restore order, to re-unite the country and to ensure the withdrawal of Belgian forces.  Multinational UN force was sent but struggled to achieve aims.  Under pressure from the USA, the UN force was unwilling to use force against Katanga.  8 August 1960: diamond-rich South Kasai unilaterally seceded from Congo.  15 August 1960: Lumumba accused the UN of representing Western interests, and appealed to the USSR for help.  As Soviet agents, technicians, and transport vehicles started to arrive, the USA and other Western nations became increasingly alarmed.  27 August 1960: Congolese Army, back by the USSR, invaded South Kasai and Katanga; significant bloodshed and refugee crisis ensued.  Angered by Lumumba’s appeal to the USSR, Kasavubu fired him as the prime minister on 5 September 1960.  This was immediately contested by Lumumba; as a result of the discord, there were two groups now claiming to be the legal central government.  Lumumba accused Kasavabu of treason  Lumumba remained barricaded in his official residence in Leopoldville Page 9 of 15   On September 14 power was seized by the Congolese army leader Colonel Joseph Mobutu (later president of Zaire as Mobutu Sese Seko), who later reached a working agreement with Kasavubu  In October the General Assembly of the United Nations recognized the credentials of Kasavubu’s government. The independent African states split sharply over the issue.  In November Lumumba sought to travel from Léopoldville, where the United Nations had provided him with protection, to Stanleyville, where his supporters had control.  Mobutu immediately expelled the Soviets from the Congo and ordered the arrest of Lumumba. The murder of Lumumba  14 July 1960: Belgian ambassador to NATO said “it would be better if Lumumba disappeared”  18 August 1960: President Eisenhower authorised CIA to “eliminate” Lumumba  14 September 1960: Mobutu ordered the arrest of Lumumba.  21 September 1960: CIA chief reiterated the need to “dispose of” Lumumba  1 December 1960: Lumumba arrested in Kasai while en route to Stanleyville  Denied protection by UN, Lumumba was severely beaten, flown back to Leopoldville  Lumumba was detained in army prison ad Thysville, south-west of Leopoldville  16 January 1961: Belgian government requested that Lumumba be transferred to Katanga  17 January 1961:  Lumumba flown from Thysville to Elisabethville; savagely beaten and totured; Tshombe participated in the acts  Tshombe and others decided that Lumumba should be executed  Lumumba taken by Katangese and Belgian policemen to clearing bush where his grave had already bee dug; he was shot by firing squad and was buried  CIA and MI6 were complicit in the murder of Lumumba  18 January 1961: corpse was dug up, body hacked into pieces by Belgian policemen and thrown into acid, skulls, bones and teeth ground up.  2001: Belgian government formally admitted its share of responsibility for the killing of Lumumba Page 10 of 15 Mobutu seizes power again  1963: Unforced Katanga (renamed Shaba Province) to reintegrate into Congo  1963 – 1964: Situation in Congo deteriorated; no effective government; general lawlessness  10 July 1964: Tshombe became prime minister of Congo in coalition government  Rebellion broke out in eastern Congo (Lumumba’s former stronghold); Congolese government lost control of half of the country; Lumumba’s supporters set up People’s Republic of Congo in Stanleyville.  USA and Belgium assembled mercenary army (including white South African and Rhodesian soldiers) to regain control.  April – November 1965: Che Guevara led a small Cuban guerrilla force on mission intended to install leftist provisional government in eastern parts of Congo; Guevara’s group linked up with rebels led by Laurent Kabila; mission ended in failure. Eventually, on 24 November 1965, Joseph Mobutu, with support from the USA, seized power in a military coup. He gained the support of the USA when he insisted that the Soviet and Czechoslovak embassies leave the country within 48 hours.  He had previously been recruited as a paid CIA agent  He was strongly anti-communist and so gain the support of the USA.  Mobutu also supported the idea of free enterprise and he encouraged foreign companies to involve themselves in the economic development of the country.  Regarded Mobutu as a useful ally against the USSR  Congo’s mineral wealth created economic opportunities for US business Initially, Mobutu’s economic policies were effective:  Inflation was halted, currency stabilised, output increased, government debts kept low  US and Western investors poured capital into development projects  Copper mining industry was successfully nationalised  Early 1970s; international copper price soared, providing government with huge revenues He established a one-party state and strong central government control. He changed the Congo’s name to Zaire as a dictator. Page 11 of 15   The USA provided financial and military aid, as well as regular briefings from the CIA.  Between 1965 and 1988, US aid to Zaire totalled $860 million.  On his frequent visits to Washington, Mobuto was promised support, welcomed as an ally and constantly flattered by a succession of US presidents. US interests in Zaire were partly motivated by its enormous mineral wealth in copper, cobalt, industrial diamonds and other minerals. At first, the economy soared as American and other Western investors pour capital into development projects and mining ventures.  By mid-1970s, however, the economy had started to collapse, partly because of the collapse in the world copper price.  Zaire experienced massive inflation, fuel shortages and huge debts  Loans taken out to repay state debts created more debt  There was also a move by Mobutu to nationalise privately owned businesses. Privately owned businesses were seized in 1971 and handed over to Mobutu’s friends and family.  Nepotism  Family and friends quickly became corrupt and stole companies’ assets.  1973: he seized 2 000 foreign-owned enterprises which became private property of his family  Mobutu attempted to try and save money by cutting down spending on education, health care and social welfare (quality of life decreases).  Also due to the IMF loaning money to Zaire and incurring their SAPs  By 1977 tried to woo foreign investment back into the country.  At the same time, Mobuto’s rule became more autocratic and corrupt.  He allowed not criticism and brutally suppressed all opposition.  Often changed ministers so that they would not challenge his rule.  Brutal when dealing with opposition to his rule.  Ruled by decree, controlling all appointments and allocation of state resources  Widespread corruption: Mobuto looted government funds, and is though to have sent billions of dollars out of the country into his personal investments in Europe.  Known for his opulent lifestyle.  Used central bank for his own personal purposes; between 1977 and 1981 he transferred $180m from central bank to personal account  Bought luxury estates in Europe  Lavish residences in Zaire, including a palace complex costing $100m Page 12 of 15   Embezzled as much as $15bn  His rule became known as one of kleptocracy. Zaire sank into socio-economic crisis:  Hospitals closed for lack of medicine and equipment  Disease and malnutrition were rife  Useable road network shrunk from 88 000 miles in 1960 to 12 000 miles in 1985, for which only 1 400 miles were tarred Yet, he continued to receive support, both military and financial (totalling $860m), from Western governments, even though they knew how corrupt and undemocratic he was. Mobutu exploited Cold War tensions to gain support from Western powers. Mobutu was the subject of one of the most pervasive personality cults of the 20th century. The evening news on television was preceded by an image of him descending through clouds like a god.  His portraits were hung in many public places, and government officials wore lapels bearing his portrait.  He held such titles as "Father of the Nation", "Messiah", "Guide of the Revolution", "Helmsman", "Founder", "Savior of the People", and "Supreme Combatant".  At one point, in early 1975, the media was forbidden from referring to anyone by name other than Mobutu; others were referred to only by the positions they held. Mobutu also stressed the need for authentication/Africanisation (African cultural awareness)/Mobutism  An increased awareness of indigenous African beliefs and practices rather than foreign ones.  Began a programme of “Zaireanation”, a series of steps to lessen European influence.  Changed his name from Joseph Desire Mobutu to Mobutu Sese Seko and insisted that everyone adopt an African name.  Western dress was abandoned in favour of African-style clothes.  1 June 1966: Leopoldville was renamed Kinshasa; Elisabethville renamed Lumbumbashi; Stanleyville renamed Kisangani  October 1971: Congo renamed Zaire  Priests faced five year imprisonment if caught baptising a Zariean child with a European name Page 13 of 15   Western suits and ties were banned  Nationalisation Congo/Zaire under Mobutu Type of He believed that by ending political competition he would bring peace to the Congo. Under Mobutu, Congo government became a dictatorship and Government everyone had to belong to the Movement Poplulaire de la Revolutions (MPR). Political instability was a major factor in the early years of independence. To stay in power Mobutu kept strict control over his government. When the Political west withdrew support in 1989, Mobutu’s government faced rebel attacks. Stability and His government was overtaken by a coup in 1997. Apart from internal Instability issues, outside interference added to instability in the Congo during the Cold War. Adopted capitalism. Mobutu sold off mineral wealth to encourage investment. He wanted the Congo to be industrialised. Hydro-electric power Economic was produced by building dams. successes and Later, Mobutu introduced nationalisation: he wanted greater economic control for Zaire. Foreign owned companies were seized after 1971 and challenges control of them handed to his friends and family. Within a short time, the economy collapsed. 1. After independence education was a priority. In 1958 there were only 30 000 students in secondary schools and less than 1 000 Education received higher education. 2. After 10 years of independence secondary school enrolment had risen to hundreds of thousands and several thousand were in higher education. 3. Quality declines as Mobutu cuts spending to education when he tries to save money after nepotism causes economy to decline. 1971 Mobutu launched a movement he called “Authenticity”. It aimed to give the Congo an African identity. The country was renamed Zaire. Africanisation Western dress was abandoned in favour of African-style clothes. They created a specifically Congolese identity. Mobutu also insisted that all citizens adopt purely African names. Page 14 of 15  Cult of In 1972, he tried unsuccessfully to declare himself president for life. By the late 1970s, a policy of Mobutoism was imposed as the official ideology. Personality This was defined as “the thought and vision of Mobuto Sese Seko”. The end of the Cold War in 1989 had a radical effect on the situation in Zaire. The US no longer needed Mobutu as an anti-Soviet partner, and so was not prepared to step in and support its former ally. From 1990, Mobutu was forced to allow more opposition political activity and civil war developed as a result. Without US support, Mobutu was overthrown in a civil war in 1997 by Laurent Kabila. He fled into exile (Morocco) where he died a few months later. Zaire then became known as the Democratic Republic of the Congo. Page 15 of 15