The Good Ol’ Days During the Colonization of Africa
As we look back to see how we got here, it becomes obvious that a few Africans were not taught what the colonization of Africa was like and why almost all African territories were handed back self-rule. To solve problems like poverty, misrule, dictatorships, corruption and slow development, some (I will assume ill-informed) Africans have suggested a return to colonization would be a sensible idea, or attributed to racist stereotypes the cause of the below-expectations progress of some African countries. This is worrying!
Clearly, we need to remind some of us what happened during the colonization of Africa and why it needed to end. We will start with more recent history before going back to the Scramble for Africa, which refers to the period of Colonization of Africa.
The Design of the Post-World War 2 World
When Britain requested that the United States join the second World War during the 20th century, Franklin D Roosevelt gave careful thought to how to prevent another World War and how the USA could gain a global advantage from entering the war. At the time Britain was running out of money and needed to also buy supplies from the USA. Britain still owed the USA money it had borrowed to fight the First World War.
Crucially, as concerns Africa, we need to remember that when violent conflicts erupted between Great Britain, France, Germany and their allies on both sides, all their colonies became theatres of war. Africa became engulfed in wars it did not initiate and which it would not benefit from.
On the ground, African combatants and porters were conscripted into the war. Some were volunteers. The general terms of service meant they were under-paid, under-fed, under-clothed and travelled obscene long distances either wearing cheap footwear or without shoes. Those who returned from the war uninjured faced the risk of not receiving their military pension entitlements in full or in part. Those who returned injured had to face loss of income, mobility issues and almost no mental care support from the governments of the colonial masters.
During World War 1 and World War 2, civilians faced increased hunger and diseases in civilian areas turned into war zones. After the war, civilians faced the loss of bread winners and the loss of loved ones in respect of casualties. There were food and goods price inflation due to products ring-fenced for the war effort, creating artificial market shortages. Some Africans were asked to also voluntarily contribute their savings towards the war effort.
The terms drafted between the USA and Britain are captured in the United Nations Atlantic charter, which started as a non-binding policy statement issued in August 14, 1941. What were the terms?
- No territorial gains were to be sought by the United States or the United Kingdom;
- Territorial adjustments must be in accord with the wishes of the peoples concerned;
- All people had a right to self-determination;
- Trade barriers were to be lowered;
- There was to be global economic cooperation and advancement of social welfare;
- The participants would work for a world free of want and fear;
- The participants would work for freedom of the seas;
- There was to be disarmament of aggressor nations, and a post-war common disarmament.
Point 3 meant that all colonial masters had to set a timetable to return self-determination to the colonies and prepare Africa, Asia and the parts of Americas for self-rule.
An additional requirement not captured in the Atlantic charter is that Britain had to give up its ports around the globe to the USA in exchange for armaments, money, ships and other supplies. This simultaneously weakened Britain and France post World War, and set the stage for the USA to emerge as the leading world superpower, only temporarily rivalled by the Soviet Union, post WW2.
Result #1: Direct colonization ended to prevent future world wars. That’s the first reason it is stupid to say some African countries should have remained under colonial rule. Consider the question, how many Africans and Asians would like to fight more world wars? Effectively, out of self-interest, the USA was signalling to Europe, “You don’t know what you are doing. Stop leading other nations astray into destruction and frequent large-scale wars. We won’t give black people equality in 1940s United States but we trust black people in Africa and Asia to govern themselves better than we trust Europe to rule the colonised territories of Africa or Asia.”
We know it was self-interest because the USA had Jim Crow at home in the 1940s, and fought the world worst tyranny at the time, an existential threat, with a segregated army.
