Monthly Archives: October 2014

Background:

Born in the homeland of Malawi near Kasungu, Hastings Banda with no official record of his birth. He was born in a tribal village where no one kept any records for people’s birth dates.

Around 1915, Hastings left his home on foot with his uncle, teacher, to Johannesburg, South Africa to further his studies.

He further went to Indiana University for his premedical studies.

Main Events:

After his round of studies he soon came back Nyasaland (now Malawi).

He soon began touring the country, speaking against the Central African Federation and urged its citizens to become members of the party. He was supported enthusiastically wherever he spoke, and resistance to imperialism among the Malawians became increasingly common. By February 1959, the situation had become serious enough that Rhodesian troops were flown in to help keep order, and a state of emergency was declared. On 3 March, Banda, along with hundreds of other Africans, was arrested in the course of “Operation Sunrise”. He was imprisoned in Gwelo in Southern Rhodesia, and Orton Chrirwa, who was released from prison in August 1959, temporarily assumed leadership of the Malawi Congress Party.

Hastings used his political influence over the years to shape and maintains Malawi’s heritage.

The mood in Britain, meanwhile, had long been moving toward decolonization due to pressure from its colonies. Banda was released from prison in April 1960 and was almost immediately invited to London for talks aimed at bringing about independence. Elections were held in August 1961. While Banda was technically nominated as Minister of Land, Natural Resources and Local Government, he became de facto Prime Minister of Nyasaland—a title granted to him formally on 1 February 1963. He and his fellow MCP ministers quickly expanded secondary education, reformed the so-called Native Courts, ended certain colonial agricultural tariffs and made other reforms. In December 1962, RA Butler, British Secretary of State for African Affairs, essentially agreed to end the Federation.

It was Banda himself who chose the name “Malawi” for the former Nyasaland; he had seen it on an old French map as the name of a “Lake Maravi” in the land of the Bororos, and liked the sound and appearance of the word as “Malawi”. On 6 July 1964, exactly six years after Banda’s return to the country, Nyasaland became the independent Commonwealth of Malawi.

Banda’s involvement in Mozambique dates back to Portuguese colonial days in Mozambique when Banda supported the Portuguese colonial government and guerrilla forces that worked for it. Following independence in Malawi, Banda strengthened his relationship with the Portuguese colonial government by appointing Jorge Jardin as Malawi’s Honorary Consul in Mozambique in September 1964. He also worked against Liberation Front of Mozambique forces in Malawi in continued support of the Portuguese colonial forces.

By the 1980s, Banda supported both the government and the guerrilla movement during the Mozambique Civil War. He successfully gave the Malawi Army and Malawi Young Pioneers opposing missions in Mozambique from 1987 to 1992. He had the Malawi Army support the Mozambican government, controlled by FRELIMO after the country’s independence in 1975, to defend Malawi’s interests in Mozambique. This was done formally through an agreement in 1984 with Samora Machel. Simultaneously, Banda used the MYP as couriers and active supporters of Mozambican National Resistance, which had been fighting against Machel’s government since the late 1970s. Malawi was used to channel foreign aid from South Africa’s apartheid government. By September 1986, Machel, Robert Mugabe, and Kenneth Kuanda visited Banda to persuade him to stop supporting RENAMO. Machel’s successor, Joachim Jissano, continued to complain of Malawi’s lack of willingness to stop supporting Renamo. Banda however was trying to keep Malawian interests in the Port of Nacalain Mozambique and did not want to rely on Tanzania and South Africa ports for its imports and exports due to the expense. Mozambique and Malawi came to an agreement to place troops from both countries in Nayuchi near the port. Incidents of Malawi Army members being killed over the course of four years angered the Army because MYP members were involved with the insurgents, essentially pitting the two against each other.

Source:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hastings_Banda

http://www.sahistory.org.za/dated-event/hastings-banda-former-president-malawi-born

Sierra Leone has had a very important role throughout the history of African development.  Because Sierra Leone is situated on the western coast of Africa, it was a hub for the transport of slaves from Africa to the Americas and also for the import of goods from Europe into Africa.  This involvement lead to a great deal of European influence, on the small country.  Like most of the other African countries, Sierra Leone opposed the colonization by the Europeans and this lead to high tensions between the native Africans, specifically the Temne people, and the British voyagers.  One notable flare up of these tensions was the Hut Tax War of 1898.

The Hut Tax War of 1898 was a resistance in Sierra Leone to a new, severe tax imposed by the colonial military governor. The military governor, Colonel Frederic Cardew, decreed that, to pay for British administration, the Protectorate residents had to pay a tax based on the size of their huts. The proposal revealed the ignorance of the administration about the lives of most residents, as it was unduly severe  The imposed tax constituted a major burden on residents of the Protectorate; 24 indigenous chiefs had signed a petition against it, explaining its adverse effects on their societies, to no avail.  The immediate catalyst for hostilities was the use of force by British officials to arrest the Temne chief Bai Bureh, a general and war strategist, because of ill-founded rumors that said he led an armed resistance against the British troops, when in reality his force was attacked by the troops.  Bai Bureh’s name is intertwined with the Hut Tax War of 1898 for this reason.

As a ruler, Bureh never wanted to cooperate with the British who were living in the capital city of Freetown. Bai Bureh refused to recognize a peace treaty the British had negotiated with the Limba people without his participation; and on one occasion, his warrior fighters raided the British troops across the border into French Guinea. On January 1, 1893, the British colonials instituted a hut tax in Sierra Leone and throughout British-controlled Africa. The tax could be paid in either money, grain, stock or labor. Many Africans had to work as laborers to pay the tax. The Hut Tax enabled the British to build roads, towns, railways and other infrastructure amenities in British-controlled Sierra Leone. Bai Bureh refused to recognize the hut tax that the British had imposed. He did not believe the Sierra Leonean people had a duty to pay taxes to foreigners and he wanted all British to return to Britain and let the Sierra Leoneans solve their own problems. After refusing to pay his taxes on several occasions, the British issued a warrant to arrest Bureh. When the British Governor to Sierra Leone, Frederic Cardew, offered the princely sum of one hundred pounds as a reward for his capture, Bai Bureh reciprocated by offering the even more staggering sum of five hundred pounds for the capture of the governor. In 1898, Bureh declared war on British in Sierra Leone. The war later became known as the Hut Tax War of 1898. Most of Bureh’s fighters came from several Temne and Loko villages under his command, but other fighters came from Limba, Kissi and Kuranko villages, sent to his aid. Bai Bureh’s men not only killed the British soldiers but also killed dozens of Creoles who were living in Northern Sierra Leone because it was thought by the indigenous people of Sierra Leone that they supported the British.Bai Bureh had the advantage over the vastly more powerful British for several months of the war. By 19 February 1898, Bai Bureh’s forces had completely severed the British line of communication between Freetown and Port Loko. They blocked the road and the river from Freetown. Despite their arrest warrant, the British forces failed to defeat Bureh and his supporters. Hundreds of British troops were killed, and hundreds of Bureh’s fighters also died during the war.

Eventually Bureh was captured by a small British patrol and was exiled.  This put an end to the war between the two sides as it left the Temne warriors without their powerful leader.  The significance of Bai Bureh’s war against the British is not a matter of whether he won or lost the war but that a man who had none of what could be called formal military training was able to show that for a significant number of months he was able to take on the British who were very proud of their great military successes across the globe.

“Someone who talked less and acted more.” is Ory Okolloh’s legacy. Okolloh is a Kenyan activist, blogger, and Harvard-lawyer. Okolloh inspires and uses technology to try to create a better life for Africans. She is considered to be one of the most influential by the TIME and one of Africa’s most successful women by the Forbes.

Born in a poor family, she knows and understands the hardships of being poor. According to her ted talk, her family couldn’t afford her education and she was kicked out from her elementary school from time to time until her tuition bills were paid. She missed the cutoff by only one point in her dream high school entrance exam and after a talk with the head, she still couldn’t get in because she doesn’t have the ‘right last name’. From that moment, she swore to herself that she would never beg anyone for anything.

That didn’t stop her from being a Harvard graduate student. Proceeding her education, Okolloh did not abandoned Africa and went back to create Ushahidi, an online service for crowd mapping data, where violent eyewitness reports were documented. She also had her personal blog, Kenyan Pundit, and is active in making the world better. Another of her projects is the Mzalendo, which is a website that keep track of the activities in the parliament such as analyzing speeches and bills. These websites help the people to understand, know what the government is doing, and able to decide whether it is accountable.

This caught Google’s interest, where she is currently working as a World Economic Forum Young Global Leader. She gives engaging speeches across Africa about her legacy, digital activism, and Africa’s tech ecosystem.

Okolloh says technology and social media cannot solely change anything, it is the people walking on the streets that can make actual change. Even the encouragements and hashtags can make a huge impact in the online world; it is no use if people are still inside playing with their computers all day. Technology acts as a facilitator and motivator, which is why she calls it “Digital Activism”

Okolloh has 3 goals to improve Africa’s society. First she wants to make sure that more Africans are getting online access to get people more connected. Second, she wants to ensure that the content Africans see on the Internet in reliable, meaningful, and relevant to them. She also encourages the government to put more content online and create more opportunities for technology developers. Lastly, she wants to focus on the role of technology and how it is connected to the ecosystem. She wants to work with the government and industries to make a broader and more affordable access to technology.

Okolloh sees so much potential within Africa and wishes to see people tell their own story to the world.

For me, Ory Okolloh’s tool for advocacy is quite unique from other people. She utilizes technology to its potential to benefit people, which is a very modern way. I had a lot of fun researching about her and I Hope that she will be able to achieve her goals someday.

Anti-Colonial Cameroon

Across Africa, movements for independence attacked the European powers, and Cameroon was no exception. Cameroon grew tired of being divided and wanted their independence. French Cameroon was enraged by the taxes and forced labor systems imposed by the Europeans. The anger from the taxes and forced labored merged to form the anti-colonialist political parties that advocated for independence and reunification. The most recognized of these political parties is the Union of Cameroonian Peoples (UPC). The UPC included members from the various ethnic groups, and the Bloc Democratique Camerounais, which was led by Ahmadou Ahidjo. Ahidjo was one of the mos influential people while Cameroon was fighting. Ahidjo was an active member of the UPC. The UPC thought that reuniting French and British Cameroon was going to be a major factor in gaining independence from the Europeans. When the demands of the UPC were not granted, the UPC resorted to armed conflict. In May 1955, the UPC ignited a movement of violence, terror, and sabotage which sporadically continued until 1971. The estimated deaths from this struggle is somewhere between 10,000 and 80,000 people. At the same time, Ahidjo created a more conservative political part, I’Union Camerounaise. l’Union Camerounaise was successful in eliciting self-governance from France in 1958. For his valiant efforts in reuniting Cameroon, Ahidjo was appointed Prime Minister. He remained in this position until after independence. On January 1, 1960, Cameroon became an independent republic. In 1960 he was elected as President and continued to reunite different parts of the country. His persuasion and drive to unite made people follow him. He was reelected in 1965, 1970, 1975, and 1980. He gradually gained the complete dominance of his own party and outlawed all others in 1976. Ahidjo had a huge impact on the country and its people. Although many of his actions showed dictatorship, he was able to make Cameroon one of the most stable countries in Africa. He was more conservative and not as charismatic as most other post-colonial leaders. But his policies and actions allowed Cameroon to gain comparable prosperity. He ruled the country for a long period of time, but the country was not ready for his leadership to end. In November 4^th 1982, he resigned from the presidency due to health complications. Nobody was clear whether he would return to the presidency, but many hoped he would. He was urged by the Cameroon National Union to remain president but he declined. Ahidjo even supported Paul Biya, his successor and current president of Cameroon, throughout his campaign. The successful emancipation of any country is a difficult journey, and no one person can do it alone. However, when activists come together, a great change can be made. There will always be rebellion, naysayers, and conflict when attempting to bring about a change, but when you consistently work toward your goal, it will be met. A broken nation who suffered from post-colonial underemployment, weak economy decency, and political transition; was transformed into a stable country. Ahmadou Ahidhjo used politics to bring together, mold, and grown a nation who was divided under European colonization.

We’ll see we know Ghana was the first country to gain independence from the United Kingdom in 1957. But do we know the person behind this great mark in Ghana’s nation history? A man by Kwame, Nkrumah, was a revolutionary figure that helped lead Ghana throughout the whole process of gaining its own independence. But before I get to the how’s and what he had done, let’s get to know who he was and where he came from.

Kwame Nkrumah was born 1909 in Nkroful, Gold Coast. From 1925-1935, he studied to be a teacher at the school of Achimota located in Accra. Afterwards, he served as teacher in multiple schools within the Gold Coast. While working, Kwame saved his money in order to further his education in the United States of America. In 1935 he made his way to London, where he then received his student visa from the “American Embassy”. For those who may not know, a citizen of foreign country must obtain a visa in order to enter the United States. Since Kwame wanted to study in the U.S this was needed upon his entrance

In late 1935, Kwame was touched by the news he heard of the “Invasion of Abyssinia by fascist Italy”. This motivated him to seeking a political career. In October 1935, Kwame finally reached the United States, where he then attended Lincoln University, later receiving his Bachelor’s of Arts degree in 1939. But wait, Kwame was not done with his education, and wanted to pursue more. In 1942, he earned his Bachelor of Scared Theology, then his Master of Science degree at the University of Pennsylvania, in 1942, lastly his Masters of Arts degree in Philosophy.Very educated right? Not to mention over the course of his studies, he was very involved with the school, and was elected president of the “African Students Organization”. Kwame even preached at churches, read books about politics, and tutored students in philosophy.

Now that we know a little about his early life, lets see how his astonishing education led him to being looked upon as Ghana’s revolutionary figure!

In 1947, Kwame was invited to serve as the General Secretary of the United Gold Coast Convention. This political convention explored new ways to independence.   Kwame took upon the offer, becoming the Secretary. During the time of his title, he was arrested because of the government suspected him and his fellow organization members to be victims of protests on March 12, 1948. Upon his release, Kwame figured the Gold Coast needed their own “self governance”. After just taking matters into his own hands, Kwame built a larger power base. However, he did not stop there and kept making changes.

The Gold Coast was the wealthiest and most socially advanced area of Africa. Rather than allowing British colonies to take over what wasn’t theirs, Kwame stood up for his and his countries own. His promotion of Pan Africanism was strong as well. On July 10 1953, Kwama proposal “Motion of Destiny” to the assembly, requesting independence from the British Commonwealth was approved. Later in 1957, on March 3^rd, Ghana independence was declared.

 Kwame fight for Ghana’s independence was not that easy. He had to learn to do many things such as governing, uniting, and standing up for what he believed. But because he was highly educated and an opportunist, it allowed him to prosper not only his personal goals, but also the rights of Ghana. His tools of teachings, writings, knowledge on politics and philosophy, allowed his advocacy as well too. No to mention that he was also inspired by the writings of well-known black political leaders such as W.E.B Du Bois, Marcus Garvey, and George Padmore as well as the relationships he shared with them. Under Kwame leadership, Ghana adopted socialist policies and practices, a welfare system was created, new schools were built within the communities, and lastly a host of community programs were created.

But I’m going to just end it with this. Philosophy is being able to see the world with new eyes. Let’s just say Kwame was a clear example. Kwame had that power to open Ghana citizen’s eyes to real world, and the existence of their own country. Without him do you think Ghana’s nation would have been first gain their independence? That’s something we cannot answer. But what we could say is that Kwame was the first president of Ghana’s country, who contributed towards their independence, symbolizing him as a revolutionary figure!

Madagascar, a thriving land with rich history and many breathtaking features. A history though that contains a period of slavery and rebellion. Ever since the slave trade took over the West African cost it spread quickly. Madagascar was not fortunate enough to avoid the dreaded institution and was affected. An estimated 500,000 slaves were on the island of Madagascar and many of them performed hard and tenuous labor for their masters and owners. The slaves were finally freed in 1896 and ultimately moved on. Throughout the time of French colonization, improvements were made in country, but eventually tensions rose. During the Second World War, French control of Madagascar diminished, and eventually an uprising occurred.

Pro independent figures began to rise in the 1940’s, and they supported an independent Madagascar and a new republic government. Many figures rose to support the new movement, some of these figures include Jacques Rabemananjara and Monja Jaona. Both of these people had a distinctive impact on the movement towards independence and had a wealthy life afterwards as well.

Monja Jaona was a leader of the Mouvement democratique de la renovation malgache in 1946. The party, know as the MDRM, was also lead by Joseph Ravoahangy and Joseph Raseta, as well as Jacques Rabemananajara. These men influence many people to believe in independence from France. The party’s goal was built on political legitimacy to be the basis to liberate Madagascar, but ultimately was brought to violence. Due to Madagascar’s want for independence, French authority felt it was taking a blow in the international politics. The prestige of the country felt violated and more aggressive actions to take down the party were enacted. French authorities took action against the Malagasy movement, and radical movements were taken by the MDRM. During early 1947 to late 1948, the MDRM leaders tried to calm supporters but their efforts were in vain. French plantations and military bases were assaulted and nationalist fighters emerged in the area. The French military responded quickly and executed brutal tactics to fight back. Monja Jaona was not killed, but major leaders of the party were tried and slain for their roles. Jaona survived imprisonment and lead radical new people from the south in 1958 to the MONIMA party, which had a significant impact on policies once Madagascar gained freedom in 1960

Jacques Rabemananjara was one of the most influential writers in the history of Madagascar and Africa as a whole. His writings of negritude are considered one of the best in history. Negritude was a writing that encouraged a black identity and rejected French colonial racism. Jacques was the first negritude poet to have his work published. Jacques was very involved with writings for political freedom of Madagascar, though the MDRM party, and wrote many of bills that were submitted to French rulers. Though he was jailed for his leadership role in this, Jacques continued to write poetry and influence members of the community. After the second military revolution in Madagascar in 1972, Jacques exiled himself from the country for 20 years. His poems are still felt and read today in schools across the country.

Background