Africa in 1970s – 1990s: a continent in crisis

Africa in 1970s – 1990s: a continent in crisis

Colonialism is a relic of the past, but plenty of troubles remain

“Seek ye first the political kingdom”, advised Kwame Nkrumah, who followed his own advice and became the first leader of an independent Ghana. Indeed, most of Africa followed his counsel. As Gavin Williams, a professor at Oxford University, has noted, the period from World War II to the present in Africa has been dominated by two related themes: political nationalism and economic development. With the independence of Eritrea from Ethiopia in 1993 and the election of Nelson Mandela as president of South Africa in April 1994, the African struggle for national independence reached its successful culmination.

The quest for economic development is another story altogether. At the outset of the 1990s, most African states were bankrupt. Things haven’t measurably improved since. African rulers – whether military officers or civilian politicians – lost credibility, largely as a result of arbitrary or corrupt government. (Mandela remains a notable exception). Disasters – some natural, like droughts or famines, some manmade, such as the spread of AIDS and the genocide in Rwanda – further impeded the prospects for economic progress. In the last quarter-century, Africa has changed dramatically, but it still remains a continent in crisis. Some key historical highlights.

1970 – The final days of Nigeria’s bloody civil war: A civil war, which lasted over four years, ends when the Nigerian government defeats the secessionist state of Biafra. Relations improve between the Ibo, the main ethnic group in the former Biafra state, and other Nigerians. But within Ibo ranks, conflict continues between those who did and did not support secession. The year marks Nigeria’s tenth anniversary of independence from Britain.

Sign of new life. Photo by Elena

1971 – Idi Amin seizes power in Uganda: Amin launches a reign of terror against Ugandan opponents, torturing and killing tens of thousands – Amnesty International estimates that 300,000 may have died under his rule. Amin declares himself President for Life in 1976. He is ousted in 1979.

1974 – A coup crushes Ethiopia’s Feudal System: A revolt against Ethiopia’s feudal order begins with strikes and protests by students, taxi drivers and trade unions and ends with a bloodless coup against Ethiopian Emperor Haile Selassie I (1892 – 1975) , who has ruled black Africa’s oldest state since 1930. The new military regime summarily executes aristocrats and former officials and creates a nominal socialist government and nationalized economy.

1974 — 75 – The fall of Portugal’s African Empire. Antonio Oliveira Salazar rules Portugal – and its African colonies, Angola and Mozambique among others – with an iron hand from 1926 until he dies in 1970. His successor, Marcello Caetano, clings to power for four more years before being ousted by a revolution on April 25, 1974 – brought down, in part, by the escalating guerilla activity in Angola and Mozambique. In 1973, Portugal is forced to dispatch 40,000 troops to Mozambique to fight the rebels. The revolution not only liberates Portugal, a ceased-fire is signed in Mozambique in September 1974, when Portugal agrees to grant its independence. Angola becomes independent in 1975.

1979 — Rhodesia is dead, long live Zimbabwe: Rhodesia is renamed Zimbabwe after a new constitution transfers control of the country to the black majority – in the aftermath of a seven-year civil war between the Rhodesian government and Patriotic Front guerilla forces. Bishop Abel Muzorewa becomes the country’s first black prime minister after the new nation’s first all-race election. In 1980, Zimbabwe becomes fully independent of Great Britain.

1983 – 1985 – The drought of the century: The region’s worst drought in 150 years threatens sub Saharan Africa with a famine even worse than the 1973-74 disaster. Estimates put the number of people facing food shortages at 200 million. Tens of thousands are said to die from starvation.

Insect damage of Cassaba Belt (from Senegal to Mozambique) crops, outbreaks of infectious diseases in cattle, bush fires, war and civil unrest add to the food shortage problem. Musicians around the world join for a Live Aid benefit, the proceeds of which go to help famine victims.

1986 – South Africa – Cry, the beloved country: Like a scene from the famous Alan Paton novel, black protests escalate and the government imposes a state of emergency. The African National Congress (ANC) stages school and consumer boycotts, rent strikes, and localized general strikes. In response, the South African government raids alleged ANC terrorist camps in Botswana, Zambia and Zimbabwe.

1990 – Nelson Mandela is free at last: ANC leader Nelson Mandela, the world’s best known political prisoner, is freed by South African President F.W. De Klerk after 27 years in prison. A few days before his release, the government removes the ban on the ANC, the South African Communist Party, and 33 other organizations, freeing them to organize openly and recruit members.

Both the government and the ANC begin setting the stage for a new constitution and a new order. After years of dedicate negotiations, South Africa holds its all-race election in April 1994. Mandela is elected president – in a landslide.

1991 – 93 – The rise of Islamic fundamentalism in Algeria: he Algerian army deposes president Chadli Bendjedid after the fundamentalist Islamic Salvation Front party wins the first round of elections in December 1991. The military then cancels the second round of elections and declares a state of emergency. Government forces crack down on Islamic groups, immediately arresting 9,000 militants and interning them in Sahara camps. By October 1993, about 1,000 Islamists sympathizers are dead, 3,800 await trial by special security courts, and 240 are condemned to death.

1992-93 – The rise of Islamic fundamentalism in Egypt: Islamic fundamentalist extremists, in an attempt to oust Egypt’s secular, military-backed government, kill several Europeans traveling by cruise ship down the Nile River. Their goal is to hobble tourism, a major source of government revenues. They are successful; tourism plummets 40 percent in 1992 and another 30 percent in the first eight months of 1993. The government condemns 38 of the terrorists to death and eventually hangs 29 of them. It is the largest number of political executions at once in Egypt’s recent history.

In June 1995, 14 years after his predecessor, Anwar al-Sadat, was gunned down, Egyptian president Hosni Mubarak escapes unharmed from an assassination attempt in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia. Sudanese Islamic fundamentalists are blamed for the attack.

1994 – Genocide in Rwanda: Between 500,000 and 1 million Rwandans die in genocide instigated by Hut extremists against the Tutsi minority. The Rwandan Patriotic Front, a mainly Tutsi exile force, defeats Hutu forces responsible for the massacre, resulting in a mass exodus of Hutus afraid of retaliation into Zaire, Burundi, and Tanzania. Thousands more Hutus die in refugee camps from disease.