Post-colonialism: Asia & Africa

Indian Independence - 1947• The partition set off mass migrations of Muslims

fleeing India and Hindus fleeing Pakistan – millions were killed crossing the borders (even Gandhi was assassinated by an extremist)

• Jawaharlal Nehru became 1st P.M. of world’s largest democracy in 1947 Indira Gandhi, Nehru’s daughter, P.M. (1966 - assassinated) Rajiv Gandhi P.M. (1984 - assassinated in 1991)

• Followed policy of nonalignment during the Cold War• Bangladesh split from W. Pakistan in 1971 due to

economic & cultural differences

Obstacles to Progress in India

Industrial Growth

Social Equality

Produce enough food

GOALS OBSTACLES•Lack of oil & natural gas•Attempt to follow socialist model

•Hindu caste system•Less education for women & poor•Ethnic & religious prejudices

•High cost of farm equipment•Rapid population growth•Floods & drought

The Gold Coast Ghana - 1957• British colony• Kwame Nkrumah, American-

educated independence leader, used strikes & boycotts

• Nkrumah became P.M. in 1957

• 1963, Nkrumah created OAU, Organization of African Unity to promote Pan-Africanism

• 1966 – military coup (argued that Nkrumah wasn’t focused on Ghana)

Kenya - 1963• British colony• Jomo Kenyatta, British

educated independence leader, spoke for Kikuyu people (farmers)

• Secret society, Mau Mau, used violence to frighten white farmers Kenyatta imprisoned

• 1963 Kenyatta 1st President economy was strong until 1978 when he died & weak leadership followed

Algeria - 1962• French colony• 1954 - Algerian National Liberation

Front, FLN, started to fight for independence thousands dead

• De Gaulle back in power in France in 1958 & decided Algeria couldn’t be held

• 1962, Ahmed Ben Bella named 1st P.M.

• 1965 struggles for democracy between military coups & Islamic Salvation Front (FIS) in a civil war

Nigeria• 1963 - Ibo in Yoruba section

tried to form their own state, but Hausa-Fulani violently stopped the movement

• 1967 – Eastern region (Ibo) seceded from Nigeria & made Biafra

• Civil War for 3 years → Biafra surrenders & Nigeria reunited

• 1970s & 80s mostly milt. rule• 1999 – elected 1st civilian gov’t

South Africa• 1910 received independence

from Britain– White minority held power

• 1948 apartheid is made legal– Segregated housing, trains,

schools, etc.– Interracial marriages banned

South AfricaProtest

• African National Congress (formed in 1912) organized strikes & boycotts– 1960 protest in Sharpeville• 69 killed & 180 wounded• ANC outlawed

– 1964 Nelson Mandela jailed– 1976 Soweto protest left 600 students dead

South AfricaProtest (cont.)

• In 1972 Steven Biko was one of the founders of the Black Peoples Convention (BPC) (played a major role in Soweto uprisings)– 1977 Biko was detained & died in jail

• Bishop Desmond Tutu worked w/ foreign nations to use economic sanctions on S. Africa

South Africa Change

• 1989 F.W. de Klerk became Pres. Of S. Africa– Legalized ANC– Repealed segregation laws

• 1990 Nelson Mandela is released

• 1994 S. Africa held open elections → Mandela elected President (he was succeeded by Thabo Mbeki in 1999)

The Philippines – July 4, 1946

• US gave $600 million in war damages, but demanded lease of military bases (gave up in 1991) & free trade for 8 years (Bell Act)

• 1966-1986 Ferdinand Marcos was President – imposed martial law from 1972-1981 to stay in power

• 1986 lost election (begrudgingly) to Corazon Aquino

• 1995 - $475 million stolen by Marcos was recovered from Swiss banks

China Follows Its Own Path

MAO’S

REFORM

1st Five Year Plan1953-1957

• Industry grew 15% per year•Agricultural output grew slowly

Great Leap Forward1958-1962

•China suffered economic disaster (industrial declines & food shortages)•Mao lost influence

Cultural Revolution1966-1976

•Mao regained influence by backing radicals•Purges & conflicts among leaders created economic, social & political chaos•Moderates increasingly opposed radicals in Communist Party

Change for China

• After the failure of the Cultural Revolution, China entered a moderate period under Zhou Enlai in the early 1970s

• 1971 - Zhou invited an American table tennis team to China (1st visit to Communist China)

• US endorses mainland China’s entry to the UN• 1972 – Nixon goes to China → limited trade• 1979 – US & China have formal diplomatic relations

China Under Deng

• Mao & Zhou died in 1976• By 1980, Deng Xiaoping emerges

as leader• Four Modernizations – called for

progress in agriculture, industry, defense & science/technology– Eliminated communes & leased

land to peasants (food production 50%)

– Introduced limited capitalism to industry

– & promoted foreign trade

Effects of Economic Progress• As living standards improved, gap between the rich

and the poor widened• Students (educated in the West through exchange

programs) occupy Tiananmen Square (near the Imperial Palace in Beijing) for a protest regarding China’s lack of political freedom

• April 1989 – 100,000 students occupy the square• Over time,1 million people joined the protest• Deng declared martial law & had 250k soldiers

surround Beijing

Tiananmen Square• Many students leave the square, but about 3,000

stay• The students set up a statue that resembled the

Statue of Liberty called the “Goddess of Democracy”

• June 4, 1989 – thousands of soldiers attacked the student demonstrators in the square & around Beijing → thousands of casualties

• The Chinese gov’t used the media to deny the attack, but the media had already broadcast the truth

China Today

• Deng died in 1997 after a long illness → Jiang Zemin became leader

• China continued to repress the pro-democracy movement

• Population growth → strained economy

• Human rights concerns continue

Hong Kong

• The Chinese adamant that Tibet, Xinjiang (once known in the West as Chinese Turkestan), and the Northeast (once known as Manchuria; for 15 years, it was converted by the Japanese into a separate kingdom) are part of China

• Hong Kong -- for 155 years a British colony – was returned to China on July 1, 1997 after China promised respect Hong Kong’s economic system and political liberties for 50 years (so is Macao)