AP World Chapter 23

Democracy in Africa

A subject of debate among scholars, the democracies established in the wake of decolonization in Africa proved to be fragile and often fell to military coups or were taken over by single-party authoritarian systems; Africa's initial rejection of democracy has sometimes been taken as a sign that Africans were not ready for democratic politics or that traditional African culture did not support it

Mahatma Gandhi

(1869-1948) A political leader and the undoubted spiritual leader of the Indian drive or independence from Great Britain

Economic Development

A process of growth or increasing production and the distribution of the proceeds of that growth to raise living standards; nearly universal desire for economic development in the second half of the twentieth century reflected a cultural belief that poverty was no longer inevitable

In what ways did thinking about the role of the state in the economic life of developing countries change? Why did it change?

Early in the twentieth century, people in the developing world and particularly those in newly independent countries expected that state authorities would take major responsibility for spurring the economic development of their countries, and some state-directed economies had real successes. But in the last several decades of the twentieth century, the earlier consensus in favor of state direction largely collapsed, replaced by a growing dependence on the market to generate economic development. At the dawn of the new millennium, a number of Latin American countries were once again asserting a more prominent role for the state in their quests for economic development and social justice.

What obstacles confronted the leaders of movements for independence?

Efforts for independence were usually fragile alliance of conflicting groups & parties representing different classes, ethic groups, religions, or regions. They struggled with questions of leadership, power, strategy, ideology, and material benefits distribution. National self-government posed contentious questions: What group of people deserved rule to rule their nation? - Because of new Nationalism.

What international circumstances and social changes contributed to the end of colonial empires?

Europe was weakened through wars and discredited moral superiority. The United Nations provided a way to conduct anti-colonial agitation. Transformation of social values encouraged African and Asians to seek political independence. Western-educated elites rose in colonies to insist on independence. People became increasingly aware of unfair colonial rule. Wanted independence. Some colonial leaders sought new political relationships with colonies.

Ayatollah Khomeini

Important Shia Ayatollah (advanced scholar of Islamic law and religion) who became the leader of Iran's Islamic revolution and ruled Iran from 1979 until his death in 1989

Soweto

Impoverished black neighborhood outside Johannesburg, South Africa, and the site of a violent uprising in 1976 in which hundreds were killed; that rebellion began a series of violent protests and strikes that helped end apartheid

Satyagraha

Literally, "truth force"; Mahatma Gandhi's political philosophy, which advocated confrontational but nonviolent political action

Decolonization

Process in which many African and Asian states won their independence from Western colonial rule, in most cases by negotiated settlement with gradual political reforms and a program of investment rather than through military confrontation

From the viewpoint of the early 21st century, to what extent had the goals of nationalist or independence movements been achieved?

-3rd world nations had gained independence from foreign rule and and gained national consciousness -newly independent nations rejected racism -newly independent nations reasserted traditional culture -newly independent African nations embraced cultural styles in dance, music, social norms, family style, and religious outlook -New developing nations meant declining infant mortality, rising life expectancy and literacy -Substantial industrialization in South Korea, Taiwan, China, and India -Former colonies were able to provide a somewhat unified voice on issues such as global warming and the WTO -Many states failed such as Somalia, Sierra Leone, Liberia, and the Congo -Many post colonial countries experienced civil war and genocide -Larger political units often broke up such as colonial India -Newly independent states became proxies in the Cold War -Many new nations were dependent upon western corporations and achieved little economic stability or autonomy

To what extent did the experience of the former colonies and developing countries in the 20th century parallel that of the Earlier "new nations" in the Americas in the 18th and 19th centuries?

-All sought to define their states after European Dominance -Claimed international status equivalent of their prior rulers -often secured freedom through revolutionary struggle -Tried to develop their economies, that were influenced by prior rulers, and interacted with industrial nations in west

How could you compare the historical experience of India and China in the 20th Century?

-Both got independence in the 1940s -Both were under considerable western influence -Both grew rapidly in the later half of the century and emerged as economic powers -Indias revolution was peaceful whilst China's wasn't -India was only part of the British empire while China was occupied but many European powers and Japan -India created a Democratic gov't while China's was Communist -India maintained private property while China slowly transitioned from communism to a more capitalist approach

In what ways did the colonial experience and the struggle for independence shape the agenda of developing countries in the second half of the 20th century?

-economic development was another critical element -tried to increase production -tried to raise living standards -colonialism created a national identity crucial to creating gov't.

How did India's nationalist movement change over time? (CH. 23)

Beginning - India had only geographic unity on South Asian peninsula - no one was considered an "Indian." Cultural identities were local and varied on language, religion, caste, etc. British colonial rule promoted sense of Indian identity - unified native people against British leaders. Created communication between India's Western Educated Elites. India became unified with Hinduism. Unified under the INC - which was a political protest - later gained support. The INC originally yearned for acknowledgement of the Indian into society, where they could greater participate in society and improve the condition of the nation.

Kemal Ataturk

Founder and first president of the Republic of Turkey (1881 - 1938); as military commander and leader of the Turkish national movement, he made Turkey into a secular state

What was the role of Gandhi in India's struggle for independence?

Gandhi became a lawyer as a Western Educated Elite. Experienced racism for the first time in South Africa. Created the concept of India with both Muslims and Hindus. Created Truth Force, political nonviolent philosophy. Became leader of the INC, campaigned massively, and led to the rise in popularity of the INC. Hinduism was important for unity. Opposed modern industrial future for India. Unified people with principles of duty and morality. Assassinated in 1948 by Hindu extremist.

What conflicts and differences divided India's nationalist movement?

Gandhi opposed industrialization, but his chief lieutenant, Jawaharlal Nehru, supported it. Not all nationalists accepted Gandhi's nonviolence or his inclusive definition of India. Some militant Hindus preached hatred of Muslims. Some saw efforts to improve the position of women or untouchables as a distraction from the chief task of gaining independence from Britain. There was disagreement about whether to participate in British-sponsored legislative bodies without complete independence. A number of smaller parties advocated on behalf of particular regions or castes. There was a growing divide between India's Hindu and Muslim populations, which led to arguments that India was really two nations rather than one.

How did South Africa's struggle against white domination change over time?

In the opening decades of the twentieth century, the educated, professional, and middle-class Africans who led the political party known as the ANC sought not to overthrow the existing order but to be accepted as "civilized men" within that society. They appealed to the liberal, humane, and Christian values that white society claimed. For four decades, the leaders of the ANC pursued peaceful and moderate protest, but to little effect. During the 1950s, a new and younger generation of the ANC leadership broadened its base of support and launched nonviolent civil disobedience. In the 1960s, following the banning of the ANC, underground nationalist leaders turned to armed struggle, authorizing selected acts of sabotage and assassination, while preparing for guerrilla warfare in camps outside the country. The 1970s and 1980s saw an outbreak of protests in sprawling, segregated, and impoverished black neighborhoods as well as an increasingly active black labor movement. The South African freedom struggle also benefited from increasing international pressure on the apartheid government.

Muhammad Ali Jinnah

Leader of India's All India Muslim League and first president of the breakaway state of Pakistan (1876-1948)

Indian National Congress

Organization established in 1885 by Western-educated elite Indians in an effort to win a voice in governance of India; over time, the INC became a major popular movement that won India's independence from Britain

What accounts for the ups and downs of political democracy in postcolonial Africa?

Some have argued that Africans lacked some crucial ingredient for democratic politics—an educated electorate, a middle class, or perhaps a thoroughly capitalist economy. Others have suggested that Africa's traditional culture, based on communal rather than individualistic values and concerned to achieve consensus rather than majority rule, was not compatible with the competitiveness of party politics. Some have argued that Western-style democracy was simply inadequate for the tasks of development confronting the new states. Creating national unity was more difficult when competing political parties identified primarily with particular ethnic or "tribal" groups. The immense problems that inevitably accompany the early stages of economic development may be compounded by the heavy demands of a political system based on universal suffrage. Widespread economic disappointment weakened the popular support of many postindependence governments in Africa and discredited their initial democracies.

Why was African majority rule in South Africa delayed until 1994, whereas the overthrow of European colonialism had occurred much earlier in the rest of Africa and Asia?

South Africa's struggle was not waged against European colonial power - independent from Britain since 1910 - Independence given to white government under Apartheid - Black had no political rights = internal reform. Not against colonial power. Community of white elites did not want racial equality with Blacks. Had modern economy - unlike India, etc. - created dependence on white-controlled economy.

Black Consciousness

South African movement that sought to foster pride, unity and political awareness among the country's African majority and often resorted to violent protest against white minority rule

Nelson Mandela

South African nationalist (b. 1918) and leader of the African National Congress who was imprisoned for twenty seven years on charges of treason, sabotage and conspiracy to overthrow the apartheid government of South Africa; he was elected president of South Africa in 1994, four years after he was finally released from prison

African National Congress

South African political party established in 1912 by elite Africans who sought to win full acceptance in colonial society; it only gradually became a popular movement that came to control the government in 1994

Muslim League

The All-India Muslim League, created in 1906, was a response to the Indian national Congress in India's struggle for independance from Britain; the League's leader, Muhammad Ali Jinnah, argued that regions of India with a Muslim majority should form a separate state called Pakistan

In what ways did cultural revolutions in Turkey and Iran reflect different understandings of the role of Islam in modern societies?

The cultural revolution in Turkey sought to embrace modern culture and Western ways fully in public life and to relegate Islam to the sphere of private life. With that in mind, almost everything that had made Islam an official part of Ottoman public life was dismantled, and Islam was redefined as a modernized personal religion, available to individual citizens of a secular Turkish state. The cultural revolution in Iran cast Islam as a guide to public as well as private life. With this goal in mind, the sharia became the law of the land, and religious leaders assumed the reins of government. Culture and education were regulated by the state according to Islamic law.

What was distinctive about the end of Europe's African and Asian empires compared to other cases of imperial disintegration?

The end of Europe's African and Asian empires was associated with the mobilization of the masses around Nationalism, and they generated a plethora of nation-states. Comparison - new nations after decolonization claimed international status = to former rulers. African and Asian struggles differed because they affirmed vitality of their cultures - Hinduism, animism, etc. and asserted political independence.

What obstacles impeded the economic development of third-world countries?

The quest for economic development took place in societies divided by class, religion, ethnic groups, and gender and occurred in the face of explosive population growth. Colonial rule had provided only the most slender foundations for modern development to many of the newly independent nations, which had low rates of literacy, few people with managerial experience, a weak private economy, and transportation systems oriented to export rather than national integration; Development had to occur in a world split by rival superpowers and economically dominated by the powerful capitalist economies of the West. Developing countries had little leverage in negotiations with the wealthy nations of the Global North and their immense transnational corporations.

Why was Africa's experience with political democracy so different from that of India?

The struggle for independence in India had been a far more prolonged affair, thus providing time for an Indian political leadership to sort itself out. Britain began to hand over power in India in a gradual way well before complete independence was granted. Because of these factors, a far larger number of Indians had useful administrative or technical skills than was the case in Africa. Unlike most African countries, the nationalist movement in India was embodied in a single national party, the INC, whose leadership was committed to democratic practice. The partition of India at independence eliminated a major source of internal discord. Indian statehood could be built on cultural and political traditions that were far more deeply rooted than in most African states.