US Department of State Dispatch,
Vol 2, No 52, December 30, 1991
Title: US Welcomes New Commonwealth Of Independent States
Bush
Source: President Bush
Description: Address to the nation, Washington, DC
Date: Dec 25, 199112/25/91
Category: Speeches, Testimony, Statements
Region: Eurasia
Country: USSR (former), Armenia, Azerbaijan, Belarus,
Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Moldova, Russia,
Tajikistan, Turkmenistan, Ukraine, Uzbekistan
Subject: Democratization
[TEXT]
Good evening, and Merry Christmas to all Americans across our
great country. During these last few months, you and I have
witnessed one of the greatest dramas of the 20th century--the
historic and revolutionary transformation of a totalitarian
dictatorship, the Soviet Union, and the liberation of its peoples. As
we celebrate Christmas--this day of peace and hope--I thought we
should take a few minutes to reflect on what these events mean for
us as Americans.
..........For over 40 years, the United States led the West in the
struggle against communism and the threat it posed to our most
precious values. This struggle shaped the lives of all Americans. It
forced all nations to live under the specter of nuclear destruction.
..........That confrontation is now over. The nuclear threat--while far
from gone--is receding. Eastern Europe is free. The Soviet Union
itself is no more. This is a victory for democracy and freedom. It's
a victory for the moral force of our values. Every American can
take pride in this victory, from the millions of men and women who
have served our country in uniform to millions of Americans who
supported their country and a strong defense under nine presidents.
..........New, independent nations have emerged out of the wreckage of
the Soviet empire. Last weekend, these former republics formed a
Commonwealth of Independent States. This act marks the end of the
old Soviet Union, signified today by Mikhail Gorbachev's decision to
resign as president.
..........I'd like to express, on behalf of the American people, my
gratitude to Mikhail Gorbachev for years of sustained commitment
to world peace, and for his intellect, vision, and courage. I spoke
with Mikhail Gorbachev this morning. We reviewed the many
accomplishments of the past few years and spoke of hope for the
future.
..........Mikhail Gorbachev's revolutionary policies transformed the
Soviet Union. His policies permitted the peoples of Russia and the
other republics to cast aside decades of oppression and establish
the foundations of freedom. His legacy guarantees him an honored
place in history and provides a solid basis for the United States to
work in equally constructive ways with his successors.
..........The United States applauds and supports the historic choice
for freedom by the new states of the Commonwealth. We
congratulate them on the peaceful and democratic path they have
chosen and for their careful attention to nuclear control and safety
during this transition. Despite a potential for instability and chaos,
these events clearly serve our national interest.
..........We stand tonight before a new world of hope and possibilities
for our children, a world we could not have contemplated a few
years ago. The challenge for us now is to engage these new states
in sustaining the peace and building a more prosperous future.
..........And so today, based on commitments and assurances given to
us by some of these states, concerning nuclear safety, democracy,
and free markets, I am announcing some important steps designed to
begin this process.
..........First, the United States recognizes and welcomes the
emergence of a free, independent, and democratic Russia, led by its
courageous President, Boris Yeltsin. Our Embassy in Moscow will
remain there as our Embassy to Russia. We will support Russia's
assumption of the USSR's seat as a Permanent Member of the UN
Security Council. I look forward to working closely with President
Yeltsin in support of his efforts to being democratic and market
reform to Russia.
..........Second, the United States also recognizes the independence of
Ukraine, Armenia, Kasakhstan, Belarus, and Kyrgyzstan--all states
that have made specific commitments to us. We will move quickly
to establish diplomatic relations with these states and build new
ties to them. We will sponsor membership in the United Nations for
those not already members.
..........Third, the United States also recognizes today as independent
states the remaining six former Soviet republics--Moldova,
Turkmenistan, Azerbaijan, Tadjikistan, Georgia, and Uzbekistan. We
will establish diplomatic relations with them when we are
satisfied that they have made commitments to responsible security
policies and democratic principles, as have the other states we
recognize today.
..........These dramatic events come at a time when Americans are
also facing challenges here at home. I know that for many of you,
these are difficult times. And I want all Americans to know that I
am committed to attacking our economic problems at home with the
same determination we brought to winning the Cold War.
..........I am confident we will meet this challenge as we have so
many times before. But we cannot if we retreat into isolationism.
We will only succeed in this interconnected world by continuing to
lead the fight for free people and free and fair trade. A free and
prosperous global economy is essential for America's prosperity;
that means jobs and economic growth right here at home.
..........This is a day of great hope for all Americans. Our enemies
have become our partners, committed to building democratic and
civil societies. They ask for our support, and we will give it to
them. We will do it because as Americans we can do no less.
..........For our children, we must offer them the guarantee of a
peaceful and prosperous future--a future grounded in a world built
on strong democratic principles, free from the specter of global
conflict.
..........May God bless the people of the new nations in the
Commonwealth of Independent States. And on this special day of
peace on earth, good will toward men, may God continue to bless the
United States of America. (###)
US Department of State Dispatch,
Vol 2, No 52, December 30, 1991
Title: Gorbachev's Contributions Remembered
Bush
Source: President Bush
Description: Washington, DC
Date: Dec 25, 199112/25/91
Category: Speeches, Testimony, Statements
Region: Eurasia
Country: USSR (former)
Subject: Democratization
[TEXT]
Mikhail Gorbachev's resignation as President of the Soviet Union
culminates a remarkable era in the history of his country and in its
long and often difficult relationship with the United States. As he
leaves office, I would like to express publicly, and on behalf of the
American people, my gratitude to him for years of sustained
commitment to world peace and my personal respect for his
intellect, vision, and courage.
..........President Gorbachev is responsible for one of the most
important developments of this century--the revolutionary
transformation of a totalitarian dictatorship and the liberation of
his people from its smothering embrace. His personal commitment
to democratic and economic reform through perestroika and
glasnost--a commitment which demanded the highest degree of
political and personal ingenuity and courage--permitted the peoples
of Russia and other republics to cast aside decades of dark
oppression and put in place the foundations of freedom.
..........Working with President Reagan, myself, and other allied
leaders, President Gorbachev acted boldly and decisively to end the
bitter divisions of the Cold War and contributed to the remaking of
a Europe whole and free. His and Foreign Minister Eduard
Shevardnadze's "new thinking" in foreign affairs permitted the
United States and the Soviet Union to move from confrontation to
partnership in the search for peace across the globe. Together we
negotiated historic reductions in chemical, nuclear, and
conventional forces and reduced the risk of a nuclear conflict.
..........Working together, we helped the people of Eastern Europe win
their liberty and the German people their goal of unity in peace and
freedom. Our partnership led to unprecedented cooperation in
repelling Iraqi aggression in Kuwait, in bringing peace to Nicaragua
and Cambodia, and independence to Namibia. Our work continues as
we seek a lasting and just peace between Israelis and Arabs in the
Middle East and an end to the conflict in Afghanistan.
..........President Gorbachev's participation in these historic events is
his legacy to his country and to the world. This record assures him
an honored place in history and, most importantly for the future,
establishes a solid basis from which the United States and the West
can work in equally constructive ways with his successors. (###)
Department of State Dispatch,
Vol 2, No 52, December 30, 1991
Title: Feature: Sub-Saharan Africa and the United States
Date: Dec 30, 199112/30/91
Category: Features
Region: Subsaharan Africa
Subject: Cultural Exchange, History,
Regional/Civil Unrest, Democratization, Trade/Economics,
Development/Relief Aid
[TEXT]
The following feature is the first of two parts that are based on
the publication "Sub-Saharan Africa and the United States." This
part presents an overview of the history and the current situation
in Sub-Saharan Africa. The second part will deal with the US role
in the region and challenges for future cooperation. The complete
publication was released by the Office of Public Communication,
Bureau of Public Affairs, in October 1991 and is sold by the
Superintendent of Documents, US Government Printing Office.
Sub-Saharan Africa--the ancestral home of some 25 million
Americans--comprises the bulk of the African land mass and most
of the countries of this huge continent. It is common to treat this
part of Africa as Africa proper; also in this publication, the general
terms "Africa" and "African" are frequently used in reference to the
Sub-Saharan part.
..........The countries north of the Sahara, with their centers on the
Mediterranean, are entirely Islamic and, linguistically, Arabic and
are tied closely to the countries of western Asia. Nevertheless,
North Africa and Sub-Saharan Africa have shared the common
experience of European colonialism, and the countries of both parts
of the continent are members of the Organization of African Unity
(OAU), the chief instrument of inter-continental cooperation.
..........Sub-Saharan Africa, with the exception of the Republic of
South Africa, falls within the category of developing countries. In
the 19th century, most of the continent came under the control of
European powers, which created colonial administrations that did
not follow linguistic or tribal divisions.
..........Most of these countries achieved their independence around
1960. All faced formidable problems, as they had to develop
feelings of nationality above traditional tribal loyalties and build
economies capable of sustaining growing populations and
competition in the international market.
..........The US stake in Africa increased with the collapse of
European rule. Its commitment to global economic development as a
basis for world peace required attention to the economic problems
of the newly independent states.
..........The continent also became a focus of East-West conflict when
some countries came under the rule of Marxist-Leninist and pro-
Soviet regimes. The Soviet Union and its allies began to supply
military support, including fighting units, as well as development
assistance.
..........Later changes in the Soviet Union and Eastern Europe, as well
as growing US-Soviet cooperation on international issues, helped
lessen tensions in Africa. Events that led to the independence of
Namibia in March 1990, after decades of South African rule, are an
example of successful US-Soviet cooperation in matters of regional
diplomacy.
..........But while the new international system that is taking shape
offers Africa the opportunity of relations unencumbered by Cold
War concerns, a number of obstacles to cooperation and peaceful
exchange remain. For example, there is concern that the need to
assist Central and Eastern Europe will overshadow the need to
promote economic progress in Africa or obscure the opportunities
for economic exchange.
..........These are some of the problems and prospects Africa has
faced along its path toward independent political and economic
development.
Regional Profile
Africa is geographically isolated, divided from the other continents
by large bodies of water and joined to Asia only at the Isthmus of
Suez. It is the second largest continent (next to Asia). With an area
of almost 12 million square miles, it covers one-fifth of the
world's land surface and is as large as the United States, Europe,
India, China, Argentina, and New Zealand combined. Africa
stretches 5,000 miles from north to south and 4,600 miles from
east to west at its widest point (by comparison, the distance from
Washington, DC, to San Francisco is 2,400 miles). Its 18,900-mile
coastline is washed by the Atlantic and Indian Oceans and the
Mediterranean and Red Seas.
..........Sub-Saharan Africa, separated from the Mediterranean by the
Sahara Desert, covers 9 million square miles, about four-fifths of
Africa's total area. It also includes the island countries of
Madagascar, Cape Verde, Comoros, Seychelles, Sao Tome and
Principe, and Mauritius. Sub-Saharan Africa is almost three times
as large as the continental United States. Zaire, Africa's third
largest country in land area (behind Sudan and Algeria), is larger
than 26 US states east of the Mississippi River.
..........Sub-Saharan Africa presents a varied landscape. It comprises
desert (including part of the Sahara) and desert shrubland, tropical
forests (chiefly in Central Africa), savannas and woodlands (north
and south of the tropical forests), and high mountain ranges.
Topographical features include the East African rift, which extends
from Ethiopia to Tanzania and is the deepest fracture in the world's
crust; Mount Kilimanjaro and Mount Kenya in East Africa--both
higher than Mount Rainier; and the Nile and Zaire Rivers, both rising
in eastern Africa and longer than the Ohio and the Mississippi.
..........With all this variety, much of Sub-Saharan Africa consists of
plateaus ranging from 3,000 to 9,000 feet above sea level that fall
to low-lying coastal zones averaging only 20 miles in width.
Climate
Sub-Saharan Africa lies almost entirely within the tropical zone.
The only temperate regions are found at the southernmost point,
along the shores of the Cape of Good Hope, and on the higher parts of
the inland plateaus. The deserts are hot during the day and
extremely cold at night.
..........The Equator divides Sub-Saharan Africa into two almost equal
halves. The area within five degrees of the Equator is a region of
year-round rain, in some places amounting to more than 400 inches
annually. In the desert regions further north and south of the
Equator, accumulated rainfall is less than 10 inches annually;
sometimes no measurable rainfall occurs for years. Farther still
from the Equator, mild, rainy winters and warm, dry summers
prevail.
Connections With Other Continents
Except for caravan routes across the Sahara and limited navigation
down the Nile, Sub-Saharan Africa's contact with other continents
was, at one time, possible only by sea. Voyages from Europe and
North America were long and arduous. Now, however, direct air
connections exist from Europe and from North America to Sub-
Saharan African cities. A flight from Washington, DC, to Dakar,
Senegal, with a layover in Paris, takes about 15 hours and from
Atlanta to Lagos, with a layover in London, about 18 hours. To Cape
Town, South Africa, however, the 9,500-mile flight from New York,
with layovers, requires some 33 hours.
PEOPLE AND CULTURE
Population
Africa's estimated population is more than 580 million (1987
estimate), 85% of whom live south of the Sahara. If the current 3%
annual growth rate continues, the continent's population will reach
800 million by the year 2000--an increasing concern of many
African governments.
..........Because of the vastness of the continent, population density
is less than half that of the United States--about 30 persons per
square mile. However, people are distributed unevenly throughout
the region. Large expanses of desert and mountains are virtually
uninhabited while several areas with good climate, fertile land,
navigable rivers, and safe ports have a population density as high as
500 persons per square mile. Sub-Saharan Africa's most populated
areas are:
..........-- The lands bordering the Gulf of Guinea in West Africa,
particularly Nigeria and the southern parts of Ghana, Benin, and
Togo;
..........-- The Nile Valley in northern Sudan;
..........-- The East African highlands, particularly the plateaus of
Ethiopia, Kenya, eastern Zaire, Rwanda, Burundi, and Tanzania; and
..........-- South Africa's eastern and southern coasts and the interior
High Veld.
Languages
The largest language family is the Niger-Congo and Kordofanian
(Nigritic), of which the Bantu sub-language group is the most
important. Speakers of these languages occupy much of Sub-
Saharan Africa.
..........The Afroasiatic (Hamitic) group--including Semitic-, Berber-,
and Cushitic-speaking people--stems from the early Caucasoids and
is found in North and Northeast Africa. The Sudanic group is found
in a region stretching along the lower Nile and westward through
the area known as the Sahel. The Bushmen and Hottentot peoples of
Southern Africa speak Khoisan or "click" languages. Some
languages, such as Swahili and Hausa, serve as linguas franca
between widely divergent groups, especially in trade.
Urbanization and Changing Family Patterns
Most Africans still live in small rural groups. But while Africa is
less urbanized than other continents, its urban population is
growing faster than that of any other region. At present, there are
10 cities with more than 1 million inhabitants.
..........The majority of city dwellers are first-generation migrants.
During colonial rule, many Africans went to the cities to take
short-term employment, remitting their incomes to their homes in
the countryside. After independence, more permanent migration
began. Most of these migrants still maintained close ties with
what they consider their true homes, which provide them some
"social security." The extended family retains much of its
traditional importance. Studies indicate that new forms of social
organization are developing in the cities based on traditional tribal
association.
..........Traditionally, African cultures throughout the continent were
closely tied to religion and religious ritual. This is true of the
Christianity established in Ethiopia in the 4th century, which now
has close to 19 million adherents, and also of Islamic Sub-Saharan
Africa. By the beginning of the European "scramble for Africa"
(1885-1914), the Islamic regions comprised the Somali territories,
the East African coast down to Mozambique, the stretch from the
Atlantic Ocean to the Red Sea just below the Sahara, and large parts
of Nigeria and Cameroon. In the animistic religions in other parts
of Africa, social and family life and the view of the world around
were expressed artistically through mythology, music, painting and
sculpture, and dance.
..........Colonialism forced change upon traditional cultures. By the
end of the 19th century, European powers had drawn boundaries that
divided many major ethnic groups. The Bakongo, for example, were
divided among Angola, Zaire, the Congo, and Gabon, while the Somali
in the east were divided among Ethiopia, Kenya, Somaliland
(Somalia), and Djibouti. Missionaries from Europe and the United
States brought a new wave of Christianity and founded schools that
taught secular subjects as well.
..........Railroads, mining, and other economic activities that required
labor-intensive skills disrupted traditional agricultural societies.
And with colonialism came the European languages that were used
for contacts with the outside world, as the tool for educating
Africans in European culture and technology, and as a means of
bridging the differences between linguistic and cultural groups now
assembled under various administrations. All the independent
countries established national educational systems in which
European tongues (French, English, Portuguese, or Spanish) are the
chief languages of instruction (though in Tanzania, Swahili is the
medium of instruction throughout primary years).
Pan-Africanism and African Culture
The conditions created by colonialism gave rise to a search for
identity--for ideas, values, and viewpoints--that might
characterize Africa as a whole. The former Senegalese President,
Leopold Senghor (1906- ), is the best-known proponent of cultural
Pan-Africanism. A French-educated poet who accepted European
political institutions and ideas, Senghor attempted to mold them in
ways suitable to African conditions and culture. He believed in a
unique African quality which he called "negritude," defining it as
"the sum total of cultural values of the Negro-African world." As a
student in Paris, where he saw how deeply African art had
influenced modern European art, he concluded that Africa was a
source of artistic and cultural inspiration for the rest of the world.
..........And, indeed, African culture has had a global influence.
Twentieth-century Western sculpture and painting would not have
taken new paths without the influence of African sculpture and
decoration. The bolero and the rumba, spirituals, blues, gospel, and
jazz were adapted from the musical heritage of African slaves
brought to the Western Hemisphere. Dance forms based on African
originals are likewise universal.
..........At the same time, the traditional arts that have so influenced
Europe and America were likewise deeply influenced by contact
with the outside world. Sculpture is the best-known African art
form. While today many artists continue to produce sculptures for
religious purposes, many also make copies for the tourist trade. At
African universities, Western artistic principles are taught, and
traditional forms often are used for decorative effect rather than
for ritual.
..........In popular music, some indigenous elements have disappeared.
However, traditional music, dance, and other art forms continue,
although often separated from the ritualistic and social context.
HISTORY
African Origins and Early Society
Anthropological research supports the theory of the African origin
of the human race. Excavations in various parts of the continent
have unearthed remains of the forerunners of modern Homo sapiens.
Scholars believe that groups of people formed in Africa migrated to
other continents where they became established and spread.
..........Three main physical types evolved in Africa: Negroid,
Bushmanoid, and Pygmoid. Of these, the Negroid became dominant.
Between 1000 BC and 1000 AD, Bantu speakers, a Negroid sub-
group, took control over much of southern Africa, nearly eliminating
the Pygmoid and Bushmanoid people in the process. Only in Northern
and Northeast Africa did Caucasoid groups from the Mediterranean
area establish themselves in the pre-Christian and pre-Islamic
eras.
..........Sophisticated societies developed early in Sub-Saharan
Africa. The Kush Kingdom (700 BC-200 AD) arose in the area of
present-day Sudan. The Axum Empire, established by 350 AD,
comprised much of modern Ethiopia. The Kingdom of Ghana,
stretching from the Atlantic Coast to Timbuktu, lasted from the 4th
century AD to the 11th century AD. Most of this territory passed to
the Mandingo Empire and then under the control of the Songhai
Empire. By the 15th century AD, city states had formed on the
Guinea Coast--Ife, Benin, and Yoruba. These highly organized states
engaged in long-distance trade in salt, gold, cattle, horses, and
ivory.
..........Arabic Muslim influence began in the 7th century AD, when the
Arabs swept across North Africa. In the 10th century, Arabs pushed
into West Africa, hastening the fall of the Kingdom of Ghana. The
Mandingo and Songhai rulers were converted to Islam. Arabs also
landed on the East African coast, founding Mogadishu and Mombasa
and other trading centers.
European Contact
Portugal was the first European power to establish a foothold in
Africa. The Portuguese began to explore the West Coast of Africa in
the 13th century and established trading centers by the 15th
century. A few years after Vasco da Gama rounded the Cape of Good
Hope on the way to India, the Portuguese had established bases on
the East African coast. In 1574, they also founded a settlement at
Luanda, the present-day Angolan capital. In the 16th and 17th
centuries the Spanish, English, French, and Dutch also set up trading
posts along the Atlantic Coast. But there was no permanent
settlement of Europeans in Africa except in the Dutch colony at the
Cape of Good Hope, established in 1652. English settlement in
Southern Africa began after the Cape Colony passed into English
hands in 1815. In the 1899-1902 South African War, the British
defeated the Dutch settlers, the Boers, who had expanded their
control northeastward and affirmed British control of all present-
day South Africa. (The Union of South Africa became a self-
governing British Dominion in 1908 and, as such, a member of the
British Commonwealth of Nations. South Africa withdrew from the
Commonwealth in 1961 and declared itself a republic.)
..........The slave trade, which was to become an important part of
European commerce with Africa, began in earnest in the 16th
century after the discovery of the New World and the development
of plantation economies. Until the European powers in the early
19th century agreed to suppress this trade, millions of black
Africans had been transported across the Atlantic to labor on
plantations of North and South America. The Arabs, too, had
engaged in the slave trade, mainly from their footholds on the
Indian Ocean.
..........The slave trade became more important than commerce with
Arabs in the Sudan and consolidated the power of tribal rulers who
had monopolized this profitable activity. Dependent on these rulers
for the success of their commerce, European traders remained
confined primarily to the coastal fringe.
The Scramble for Africa
Until 1880, African native rulers controlled 80% of the continent.
But European power politics triggered a race among Britain, France,
Germany, and Italy to seize African territory. At the Berlin West
African Conference in 1884-85, the powers agreed that territorial
claims would be recognized only if the territory was already under
effective occupation.
..........By the outbreak of World War I, in 1914, only Liberia
(established by private initiative as a haven for freed American
slaves in 1822 and declared an independent republic in 1847) and
Ethiopia remained free of foreign control. Within 30 years, the
European powers had created 40 new territories, which bore little
relation to the boundaries between tribes and native kingdoms.
..........European technology and financial resources made conquest
inevitable. However, their encroachments often were fiercely
resisted, as in Ghana, where the British subdued the Ashanti only
after three campaigns, and in Sudan, where they were victorious
only after a difficult 15-year struggle. Only the Ethiopians were
able to resist European incursions successfully, defeating Italian
invaders in the Battle of Adua in 1898.
..........European rule in Africa was modified at the 1919 Paris Peace
Conference ending World War I. The victorious powers set up the
League of Nations "mandate" system under which the German
colonies and certain former Turkish territories were transferred to
Allied powers to be held in trust. In Africa, the bulk of German East
Africa became the British mandate of Tanganika (present-day
Tanzania), while Belgium was entrusted with present-day Rwanda
and Burundi. German Cameroon and Togoland were split between the
United Kingdom and France, and German Southwest Africa (present-
day Namibia) was transferred to South Africa.
..........The United Nations, established in 1945 at the end of World
War II, replaced the mandate system with the International
Trusteeship System to promote the progressive development of the
trust territories (former mandates) toward self-government or
independence. The United Nations also emphasized the right of all
people to self-government.
Movement Toward Independence
Many factors helped create a climate favoring independence. These
included participation of African soldiers in World Wars I and II; the
growth of African nationalist movements (partly inspired by the
idea of self-determination, motivating the World War I peace
settlement and the Anglo-American Atlantic Charter of 1941, which
proclaimed the right of all peoples to choose their form of
government); and realization by the European powers that the
burdens of empire were too great.
..........Before the wave of African independence began in 1957, the
only independent countries were Liberia, Ethiopia, and white-ruled
South Africa. (Sudan had become independent in 1956 after a
national referendum based on an agreement between Egypt and the
United Kingdom, former joint administrators of the country.) Led by
the Gold Coast (later Ghana), the Ivory Coast (Cote d'Ivoire), and
French Guinea (Guinea), a host of Sub-Saharan countries in rapid
succession gained political independence (usually without violence)
from their colonial rulers.
..........Portugal, the first to establish a foothold in Sub-Saharan
Africa, was the last to give up its colonies. In 1951, the
government had incorporated the colonies into Portugal as overseas
territories (without, however, granting civil equality to the non-
assimilated native populations). In the 1960s, Portugal had to
commit large forces in the colonies to contain various armed
independence movements. The problems caused by these wars led to
the 1974 military coup in Lisbon, after which Portugal began to
relinquish its colonies.
..........Independence was long delayed in two other areas--Southern
Rhodesia and South West Africa. In 1965, a government controlled
by British settlers declared Southern Rhodesia
to be independent. But pressure from abroad and the strength of the
black nationalist movements forced the minority government to
give up its control and permit national elections, after which, in
1980, the state of
Zimbabwe was created.
..........South West Africa, originally a German colony, was given to
South Africa in mandate after World War I. After World War II,
South Africa refused to accept the authority of the UN Trusteeship
Council over South West Africa and treated the area as another
South African province. Renamed the Republic of Namibia, South
West Africa did not achieve its independence until 1990 as the
result of complicated international negotiations in which the United
States played a leading role.
..........The newly independent states, having a common colonial
background and facing common problems, recognized the need for
cooperation. In 1963, they joined with the North African countries
to form the Organization of African Unity (OAU) to consult on their
problems and organize specialized agencies to promote economic
development. Since the new states assumed control in territories
created by colonial powers who ignored linguistic or cultural
groupings, one of the main points of the OAU Charter was respect
for established boundaries.
America's Early Ties to Africa
Unofficial American relations with Sub-Saharan Africa date from
the earliest days of North American settlement. European ships
brought slaves to American shores in 1619, and Americans also
engaged in this trade. The slave trade sometimes was associated
with other commerce, as in the profitable "triangular trade" carried
on by New England merchants. In this trade, New England ships
carried rum to Africa, where it and other goods were exchanged for
slaves; the slaves were taken to the West Indies, where they were
exchanged for molasses; finally, the molasses was carried to New
England to be distilled into rum.
..........The preferred fuel oil of the 18th century--whale oil--also
provided a link between America and Africa. Following ocean
currents to Africa, New England whalers reached the Guinea coast in
1763 and Walvis Bay in South West Africa in 1770. Ship captains
hired Africans as sailors and purchased local goods to reprovision
their ships.
..........US trade with Africa grew rapidly in the first years of
American independence. Ivory, wax, gold dust, whale oil, peanuts,
and hides (used in the New England shoe industry) were imported by
US traders. During the Napoleonic Wars (1793-1815) Africa's
European settlers, cut off from Europe, became dependent on
American rum, beef, flour, tobacco, and lumber. The US Government,
however, never acquired a foothold in Africa to support the well-
established trade, but it did open a commercial agency in Bissau and
consulates in The Gambia and in Angola.
..........Trade with East Africa was carried on largely through the
island of Zanzibar, which, in the early 19th century, was ruled by
the Arabian Sultan of Muscat. Ivory was the chief item of trade.
The US-Muscat commercial treaty signed in 1833 was the first US
treaty with a non-European African potentate. A consulate was
opened in Zanzibar in 1836. After the American Civil War, the
United States increasingly lost its pre-eminence in West African
trade to Britain and Germany, re-establishing its strong position
only in the 1920s.
..........An important aspect of early relations with Africa was the
effort to repatriate freed slaves. In 1816, a group of prominent
Americans, mainly southerners, including George Washington's
nephew Bushrod, Henry Clay, Francis Scott Key, and John Randolph
(with the support of President James Madison), founded the
American Colonization Society. In 1822, the society founded a West
African colony for freed American slaves which was named Liberia.
In 1847, Liberia became an independent republic. Between 1822 and
1892, more than 16,000 freed American slaves settled in Liberia,
forming a ruling elite known as Americo-Liberians.
Growing American Influence
The United States, though not a colonial power, contributed to
introducing Western knowledge and skills into Africa during the
period of colonial rule. Churches and other private organizations
opened schools in many of the colonies. Thousands of Africans came
to the United States to study. While here, many of them, including
some of the leaders in the movement for independence (among them
Kwame Nkrumah and Hastings Banda), were influenced by the ideas
of W.E.B. DuBois, founder of the National Association for the
Advancement of Colored People and of the Pan-African Movement,
and of Marcus Garvey, founder of the Universal Negro Improvement
Association and the initiator of the back-to-Africa movement.
..........Official American policy also encouraged black African
interests. At the Paris Peace Conference that ended World War I,
President Woodrow Wilson promoted the League of Nations
"mandate" system established for the former German colonies in
Africa. And during World War II, the United States worked actively
for a reformed system of collective security, the United Nations,
established in 1945, with its emphasis on the right of all people to
self-government.
Issues and Problems of Independence
Sub-Saharan African countries conduct their foreign relations not
only bilaterally but also through multilateral organizations, of
which the most important is the Organization for African Unity.
The United Nations, where they constitute one-third of the
membership, also is a key instrument of their international policy
because of the organization's responsibility to eliminate
colonialism and encourage economic development. They also work
through UN subsidiary organizations such as the Economic
Commission for Africa (ECA), created in 1958, which has an
exclusively African membership. Originally, the ECA-sponsored
African Development Bank, inaugurated in 1964, also was
exclusively African.
..........The Sub-Saharan countries also constitute about one-third of
the membership of the Non-Aligned Movement (founded in 1961 to
help eliminate the vestiges of colonialism and increase the Third
World's share of the world's economic resources) and of the Group
of 77 (an association of more than 120 developing countries founded
in 1964 for the purpose of preparing common positions for
international economic negotiations).
..........Sub-Saharan African countries also belong to the African,
Caribbean and Pacific Group of States (ACP), a group of more than
60 developing countries (two-thirds African) enjoying trade and aid
preferences with the European Community (EC). Created by the
1975 Lome Convention, the group originally was limited to former
colonies of EC members but now includes Liberia and Ethiopia.
..........Many countries have special associations with their former
colonial powers. The 17 former British colonies in Africa belong to
the 49-member Commonwealth, which, when restricted to the UK
and the European-ruled self-governing dominions, was known as the
British Commonwealth of Nations.
Developing Stable Governments
The new countries, like many other countries released from colonial
rule, faced the problem of developing stable and representative
governments. It was difficult after independence to bring about
national cohesion in countries created within the boundaries set by
colonial administrations. Tribal loyalties remained strong, and the
various peoples had little experience with representative
government on a one-man, one-vote basis. Some leaders maintained
that national authority could not be established within a multi-
party system. Julius Nyerere, former president of Tanzania and one
of the original group of independence leaders, argued that the
single-party system was more democratic "providing it is
identified with the nation as a whole." In addition, some of the
political movements that achieved dominance were imbued with
Marxist-Leninist ideas calling for one-party rule. And in many
places, the armed forces represented a strong nucleus of power.
Consequently, in many countries military dictatorships and single-
party regimes were established.
Regional Conflicts
Although national boundaries followed those set by colonial
administrations, territorial conflict between African states has
been relatively limited. The OAU principle of respect for the
established boundaries rarely has been violated. The most enduring
boundary dispute is that between Ethiopia and Somalia, which
arises from Somalian claims to the Ethiopian Ogaden region
inhabited by Somali peoples. With Soviet and Cuban aid, Ethiopia
repulsed the Somali invasion of 1977. In the 1988 peace treaty, the
two parties "agreed to disagree" and to recognize the existing
borders.
..........Chad has been the victim of Libyan aggression, which began
with Libya's occupation in 1973 of a part of northern Chad known as
the Aozou Strip. Libya, intervening in the Chadian civil war in
1980, announced its intention to annex Chad. After French and
Zairean forces had come to the aid of the Chadian Government,
Libya, in 1984, agreed to remove its forces. However, it still has a
number of troops in Chad.
Civil Wars
Far more disruptive have been the civil wars, which, in some cases
also have prompted foreign intervention. Some civil strife results
from efforts of ethnic or religious minorities to achieve
independence or better treatment. From 1967 to 1970, Nigeria was
torn by the war of the Biafran secession, a regional and ethnic
struggle which ended after much destruction with the defeat of the
secessionist rebels. In Sudan, the majority northerners--"Arab"
Muslims, and the minority southerners--Africans, either Christian
or animists--have been unable to agree on how to share power and
resources.
..........The most enduring of the civil conflicts--between the
Ethiopian Government and the Eritrean secessionists--ended in May
1991, when the Mengistu regime fell. The transitional government
in Ethiopia and the provisional government in Eritrea have
established a working relationship and have wisely deferred for 2
years the holding of a referendum on Eritrean independence.
..........Civil war has been raging in the two former Portuguese
colonies of Angola and Mozambique almost from the moment of their
independence. In 1975, following the collapse of Portuguese
authority in Angola, the Marxist Popular Movement for the
Liberation of Angola (MPLA) came into power, and soon received
Soviet materiel and Cuban troops (eventually to number some
60,000).
..........Another resistance group, known as the National Union for the
Total Liberation of Angola (UNITA), survived as the only alternative
to the Soviet-bloc and Cuban-supported MPLA. UNITA at first
received Chinese and South African support, while South Africa
occasionally intervened with troops in the struggle. After the
repeal, in 1985, of the Clark amendment prohibiting US aid to the
anti-government forces, UNITA began to receive appropriate and
effective support from the United States. This support was
designed to convince the MPLA that there could be no military
solution to the conflict and to negotiate seriously with UNITA on a
political settlement. This policy began to bear fruit in April 1990,
when direct talks commenced under Portuguese mediation.
..........The United States and the Soviet Union have worked together
to support Portuguese efforts. Following several negotiating
sessions, the MPLA and UNITA began intensive discussions in
Portugal in early April 1991 on remaining issues relevant to a
cease-fire signing, with a goal of resolving these issues by April
30. Until national reconciliation, which includes free and fair
internationally monitored elections, is achieved, the United States
will not recognize a government in Angola.
..........In Mozambique another Marxist group, the Revolutionary Front
for the Liberation of Mozambique (FRELIMO), came to power when
Portugal gave up the colony in 1975. FRELIMO set up a one-party
socialist state and established close ties with the Soviet Union.
The 1977 Mozambican-Soviet Treaty of Friendship and Cooperation
was followed by an influx of Soviet, East German, and Cuban
economic, military, and secret police advisers. Shortly after
independence, the anti-government Mozambique Resistance
Movement (MR), later called the Mozambican National Resistance
(RENAMO), came into existence with Rhodesian support. After
Rhodesia became independent in 1980, the South African
Government began providing RENAMO with logistical support and
training. South African President F.W. de Klerk has stopped official
support for RENAMO. Zimbabwean troops also entered Mozambique
to protect the rail line from Zimbabwe to the Mozambican port of
Maputo.
ECONOMIC CONDITIONS
Uneven Distribution of Resources
Sub-Saharan Africa has considerable mineral resources, including
bauxite, chromium, cobalt, copper, diamonds, gold, iron ore, and
petroleum. It has a large supply of arable land and economically
useful forest. And in most countries, there is a plentiful supply of
labor.
..........But the resources are not evenly distributed. The chief food-
producing areas form two belts, one across West Central Africa
from Senegal to Kenya, another from southern Tanzania to the
northern provinces of South Africa. The area of significant
fisheries is limited to the Angolan, South African, Namibian,
Tanzanian, and Kenyan coasts, and part of the coasts of Madagascar.
The location of recoverable minerals is even more severely
restricted: South Africa has the major deposits of chromium,
industrial diamonds, and platinum group metals; Gabon and South
Africa, of manganese; Zaire and Zambia, of copper. Nigeria, Gabon,
Angola, Cameroon, and Congo are the major producers of crude
petroleum, with Nigeria, in 1990, accounting for 62% of total Sub-
Saharan African production and 3% of world production. In contrast,
countries of the interior Sahel have no easily recoverable natural
resources.
Natural Disasters and Political Turmoil
Natural disasters, civil strife, and international wars have
inhibited economic development in many countries since
independence. Drought is a serious threat to food production in
many regions of the continent. In 1991, poor rainfall contributed to
serious food shortages and economic paralysis across the Sahel, in
the Horn of Africa, and in the southern region. Along with drought,
the Sahel is experiencing desertification--the encroachment of
desert on once useful grazing and agricultural land. In some
countries-- notably Ethiopia, Chad, Somalia, Mozambique, Angola,
and Sudan--civil strife has compounded the damage wrought by
natural disasters.
Displaced Persons
Civil strife, warfare, and natural disasters have created a massive
movement of population--the largest in the world today. Many of
these persons are not refugees in the strict sense of the 1951
Geneva Convention on Refugees (which was designed chiefly for
European political refugees), because they are fleeing natural
disasters and are attempting to escape from violence and can return
to their homelands only when conditions have returned to normal. In
addition, many are easily assimilable in the host countries where
the inhabitants are of the same ethnic background. But they do meet
the OAU definition of refugees adopted in 1974, and the Office of
the UN High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) has taken
responsibility for assisting these refugees whose support greatly
burdens the economy of the host states.
..........Of the 1990 worldwide total of about 15 million refugees, an
estimated 5 million are in Africa, two-fifths of these in the Horn,
Somalia, Ethiopia, Djibouti, and Sudan. There are some 400,000
Sudanese and 530,000 Somali refugees in Ethiopia, while Sudan
hosts some 700,000 Ethiopians and 69,000 Chadians. The refugee
total includes 1.2 or 1.3 million Mozambicans (mostly in Malawi),
400,000 Angolans (mostly in Zaire), 250,000 Burundians, and
225,000 Rwandans. Since June 1990, some 720,000 Liberian
refugees (more than one-fifth of the country's population) have
sought asylum in the neighboring countries of Guinea, Cote d'Ivoire,
and Sierra Leone.
Inefficient Government Policies
Natural and man-made economic difficulties have been exacerbated
in many countries by government policies that work against the
development of free markets which attract foreign investment. The
newly independent countries all adopted plans for economic and
social development, making use of the UN agencies concerned with
economic development, intra-African agencies, and bilateral
assistance. Many countries--not only those with an avowed
Marxist-Leninist leadership--adopted central planning with
government monopolies and regulated prices. The emphasis was
often on industrial development.
..........Unfortunately, this was accompanied in many countries by a
bias against agriculture. Instead of encouraging agriculture as a
means to finance development and free markets, high export taxes
were levied, food prices were kept artificially low (a subsidy for
city dwellers), the prices of agricultural exports were set by the
government, and exchange rates were kept high (which made the
products less attractive to export). These were powerful
disincentives to production, and the program of low prices and high
taxes was self-defeating. Since independence, food production per
capita in Sub-Saharan Africa has fallen. Food imports and food
assistance have increased significantly to feed a growing
population.
..........While food production declined, population grew rapidly--
some 3.2% annually in the 1980s, the result of continued high
fertility rates and of a reduction in the annual death rate because of
improved public health and sanitation.
..........On a more positive note, by 1991, almost all African countries
were firmly embarked on more market-based economic reform
programs. Working with the international financial institutions and
bilateral donors, reforms were already beginning to pay off in a few
countries.
Poverty
Because of the problems previously noted as well as lower
commodity prices, Sub-Saharan Africa, though it shared in the
general economic progress made by the developing world since
1960, lost ground in some respects and could not sustain the growth
into the 1980s. As measured by the World Bank, Sub-Saharan Africa
had a disproportionate amount of poverty in 1988: While the
average per capita income in all low- and middle-income countries
was $799, in all of Sub-Saharan Africa, it was only $346.
..........There are other indications that Sub-Saharan Africa is lagging
behind other developing regions. The major educational objective of
all African states has been to increase primary school enrollment.
But although the enrollment rate of 55% achieved in 1985 was
double that of 1965, Africa, in this respect, still lags behind other
developing regions. Life expectancy at birth of 50 years (though
having risen by nearly 25% since 1965) remains the lowest in the
world. Per capita calorie consumption--at 2,011 the lowest in the
world in 1988--actually fell from the 1965 level. And per capita
GDP (a good indication of the problems) was nearly flat in the
1970s and declined by 1.2% in the 1980s.
Foreign Debt
Beginning with the worldwide recession of the 1970s, Sub-Saharan
Africa acquired a serious burden of foreign debt, mostly to other
governments and official international financial institutions. In the
1980s, debt payments ranged from 30% to 80% of exports.
..........Whether total external debt in Sub-Saharan Africa measured
as a percentage of GDP (97%) or exports (362%), the continent ranks
as the most heavily debt-burdened. Debt rescheduling and special
programs for the poorest countries have helped, however, to keep
total debt service requirements below those in some other regions.
Cities With More Than 1 Million Inhabitants
Abidjan, Cote d'Ivoire
Accra, Ghana
Addis Ababa, Ethiopia
Douala, Cameroon
Kinshasa, Zaire
Johannesburg and Cape Town, South Africa
Nairobi, Kenya
Lagos and Ibadan, Nigeria
Early American Consulates in Africa
Gambia. A US consular post was established at Bathurst in British
Gambia with the appointment of W.M. Haxton as consul on October
17, 1834. Closed in 1900, the post was not re-opened until 1950,
when it was included in the consular jurisdiction of Dakar, then-
French West Africa.
Zanzibar. The first US consul to Zanzibar was appointed on March
11, 1836. The Consulate was closed in 1915 and not re-opened until
1961.
Angola. In 1853, the US Government appointed a "United States
Commercial Agent" to guard against illegal slave trade.
Guinea-Bissau. Original US consular representation was established
in 1859, when the first consul was appointed. (###)
Captain Paul Cuffe, 1759-1817
Paul Cuffe, born on January 17, 1759, was the son of Cuffe Slocum,
a slave. His mother, Ruth Moses, was a Wampanoag Indian. Paul
changed his name to Cuffe, basing his identity on African and Indian
descent. He became a farmer-mariner but accumulated property
primarily in shipping.
..........Beginning with small open fishing vessels for local trading,
Cuffe became captain of a succession of boats and ships used for
fishing, trading, and whaling in places such as Chesapeake, the West
Indies, Europe, and Cape Horn. He owned one-third of his largest
ship Alpha (268 tons), which he sailed to the Baltics for Swedish
iron and Russian hemp. His prize ship, Traveller (109 tons), was
built in 1807 and used for trading to Europe and on African
colonization voyages. Cuffe also made one trip on the Traveller to
investigate the possibility of establishing a settlement for freed
American slaves.
Organization of African Unity
The Organization of African Unity (OAU) is the most prominent and
encompassing organization on the African continent. Founded in May
1963, it includes all independent African states except the Republic
of South Africa and Morocco.
Members
Algeria, Angola, Benin, Botswana, Burkina Faso, Burundi, Cameroon,
Cape Verde, Central African Republic, Chad, Comoros, Congo, Cote
d'Ivoire, Djibouti, Egypt, Equatorial Guinea, Ethiopia, Gabon, The
Gambia, Ghana, Guinea, Guinea-Bissau, Kenya, Lesotho, Liberia,
Libya, Madagascar, Malawi, Mali, Mauritania, Mauritius, Mozambique,
Namibia, Niger, Nigeria, Rwanda, Sao Tome and Principe, Senegal,
Seychelles, Sierra Leone, Somalia, Sudan, Swaziland, Tanzania,
Togo, Tunisia, Uganda, Zaire, Zambia, Zimbabwe. (###)