Title: The Challenge of Democracy in Africa

Warm-Up:

Name two famous South Africans in American Entertainment.

NIGERIA

•Former British Colony

•3 major ethnic groups: Hausa-Fulani (mostly Muslims), Yoruba and Igbo (or Ibo) (both mostly Christians, Muslims or animists

•Government following independence: federal system with 3 states- one for each ethnic group

•Smaller ethnic groups within the states resent the groups in power

•1967- war results in the Eastern region of Nigeria seceding and calling itself Biafra- Nigeria then tries to reunite country and in 1970 Biafra surrenders.

1970s- Nigeria is governed by the military and tries to create a more stable federal system, a modern economy, use oil as an income

1979- military hands power back to civilian rulers and takes a step toward democracy

1983- military overthrows civilian government- step away from democracy- a Hausa-Fulani military regime takes charge

1993- elections are held and Moshood Abiola wins, but a dictator General Sani Abacha takes control instead- step back!

Gneral Abacha bans political activity, jails opponents

1999 – First civilian elected president- Olusegun Obasanjo is elected- step towards democracy!

APARTHEID:

•Complete separation of races- bans contact between whites and blacks, segregated schools, hospitals, neighborhoods, etc.

•Black South Africans are forced to live on “homelands”- meant that 75% of the population lived on 13% of the land- land was largely unusable/lacked resources.

•Black South Africans had to carry a passbook showing where they lived, worked, etc.- could not be in certain places.

Beginning in the 1950s, the government of South Africa divided the black population into ethnic groups and assigned each group to a separate territory, or bantustan. A total of ten bantustans, called homelands by the government, were created as part of the system of apartheid, or separation of the races. The bantustans consisted of many fragments of land and could not support the populations assigned to them. They were reintegrated into the rest of South Africa in 1994.

A segregated beach in South Africa, 1982.

A Black South African shows his passbook issued by the Government. Blacks were required to carry passes that determined where they could live and work.

Houses in Soweto, a black township.

Newspaper headline on a Johannesburg street refers to a government plan in 1982 to cede territory and people to Swaziland. The people in question were not consulted in the matter.

Mandela and the End of Apartheid

•1912- African National Congress was formed to fight for black rights- it was banned by the government- Nelson Mandela was leader of the ANC

•1976- riots in Soweto leave 600 students dead

•1976- police beat Stephen Biko (popular black leader) to death

•Late 1980’s- Bishop Desmond Tutu helps get foreign governments to impose trade restrictions on South Africa due to heir apartheid policy

•1989- F.W. de Klerk is elected president- legalized the ANC in 1990 and frees Mandela from prison where he had been for 27 years

•1994- first universal (blacks and white vote) in South Africa- and Mandela is elected president- he steps down in 1999

•1999- Thadbo Mbeki is elected- faces economic issues, problems with high rates of rape and murder and the HIV/AIDS epidemic

•Mbeki has argued that AIDS is not caused by HIV and has hurt the fight against the illness.