Liberation From Colonial Rule

Answer : Apartheid constituted one of the peculiar and abhorrent forms of discrimination that was perpetrated against the blacks in South Africa. It was a phase of racial discrimination against the Blacks.

The policy of apartheid (separateness) was introduced by the Prime Minister Malan in between 1948 to 1954. This tightened up the control over blacks.

Apartheid had certain distinguishing features. One, there was complete separation of blacks and whites as far as possible at all levels. In country areas blacks had to live in special reserves in urban areas they had a racial classification and an identity card. There were strict pass laws which meant that the black Africans had to stay in their reserves and all traveling was forbidden without permission.

Marriage and sexual relations between whites and non-whites were forbidden, this was to preserve purity of white races. Africans moreover had no political rights and their representation in parliament, which had been by White MPs was abolished.

The opposition to the apartheid took place inside Africa and outside it. Inside Africa, the opposition to the system was difficult.

Anyone who objected was accused of being communist and perished. Africans were forbidden to strike and their political party, the African National Congress was helpless.

Inspite of this, protests did take place. Chief Albert Luthuli, the ANC leader organized a protest campaign in which black Africans stopped work on certain days. In 1952, Africans attempted a systematic breach of the laws by entering shops and other places reserved for the whites. Over 8000 blacks were arrested and many were flogged. Luthuli was jailed and the campaign was called off.

In 1955, the ANC formed a coalition with Asian and coloured groups and announced a freedom charter at Kliptower. The police broke the open air meeting. The charter however became the main ANC programme. It declared that South Africa belongs to all who live in it – black and white and went on to demand equality before law, freedom of assembly, movement, speech, religion, right to vote, right to work, free-medical care and free and compulsory education.

Church leaders and missionaries spoke out against apartheid. Later the ANC organized other protests including the 1957 bus boycott. The Africans refused to pay the raised fares and walked to work for three months.

Protests reached a climax in 1960 when a huge demonstration took place at Shoupville near Johannesburg. Police fired on the crowd, killing sixty seven Africans and wounding many more. After this, 15000 Africans were arrested and the ANC was banned. Hundreds of people were beaten by the police.

This was an important turning point in the campaign – the protests which had been non-violent till then, due to brutal police suppression made Africans to realize that violence could only be met by violence.

There was a spate of bomb attacks, but the police soon clamped down, arresting most of the black leaders like Nelson Mandella who was sentenced to life imprisonment. Chief Luthuli still persisted with non-violent protests and was ultimately killed in 1967.

Discontent and protests increased again in the 1970s because wages of Africans failed to keep pace with inflation in 1976 when the Transvaal authorities announced that Africans was to be used in black African schools, massive demonstrations took place at Soweto near Johannesburg.

The police opened fire on the crowd killing at least 2000 black Africans, many of them children. This time the protests did not die down and they spread over the whole country. Again, the government responded with brutality killing 500 Africans over the next six months including Steve Priko, a young African leader.

Outside South Africa there was opposition to apartheid from the common wealth, the United Nations, the organization of African Unity, India etc.

The new Prime Minister P.W. Botha realized that all was not well with the system. He decided to reform Apartheid, dropping some of the most unpopular aspects in an attempt to preserve white control.

This was due to severe economic problems in South Africa. South Africa was hit by recession in late 1970s and whites began to emigrate in large numbers and black population was increasing. Moreover, African homelands were a failure.

They were poverty-stricken, their rulers were corrupt and no foreign government recognized them as genuinely independent states. Further, the Unites States of America which was treating its own black people better during the 1970s began to entire South Africa.

Consequently, Botha relaxed several of important controls. The blacks were allowed to join trade unions and to go to strike. They were allowed to elect their own local township councils, a new constitution was introduced sating up two new homes of parliament, sexual relations and marriage were allowed between people of different races and the hated pass laws for non-whites were abolished.

However, Botha did not consider the main ANC demand of right to note and to play a full part in ruling the country. The blacks were increased that the new constitutions made no provision for them, and were determined to settle for nothing less than full political rights. Violence escalated, the blacks under the ANC used the necklace of tyre set on fire, to murder black councilors and police who were regarded as collaborators of apartheid.

On the twenty fifth anniversary of Sharpville, police opened fire on a procession of black mourners going to a funeral near Uitenhage killing over forty people. In July, a state of emergency was declared in the worst affected areas, and was extended to the whole of country in 1986. This gave the police the power to arrest people without warrants, thousands of people were arrested and newspapers, radio and TV were banned from reporting demonstrations and strikes.

By the late 1980s however the international pressure continued to build with the common wealth agreeing on a strong package of sanctions. The United States Congress voted to stop American loans. Moreover, the black population had become well-educated, and professional. The Dutch Reformed Church which once supported apartheid now condemned it as incompatible with the Christianity. Consequently, F.W. de Clark in 1989 started the process of ending apartheid and ushering in transition to black majority rule.

Nelson Mandela was released after twenty seven years in jail, the remaining apartheid laws were dropped and talks began in 1991 for adopting a new constitution. In 1993 the talks were successful and there was transition to black majority rule. Thus was ended the worst form of racial discrimination.

Answer : The aims of the establishment of the Arab League were to implement the agreements made between member states to strengthen their mutual relations, to call their meeting from time to time, cooperation in political spheres, protecting independence and sovereignty of the member nations, discussing matters related to Arab nations and cooperating with each other in the fields of economy, culture and transportation.

The main principles of the Arab League were respect for sovereignty and territorial integrity of the member states; each state was free to follow the agreements with other countries; Non-aggression and peaceful solution of disputes; Respect for the administrative system of the members states; and unity among all members. The rise of the spirit of nationalism among the Arab people living in West Asia is an important event of the post world war period. During the world war II, the Allied powers needed the goodwill and cooperation of the Arab world. This strengthened the spirit of nationalism among them and they were determined to turn the imperialists out of the Arab world. Consequently, Arab countries subdued for long, gained independence one by one.

With the object of maintaining and strengthening Arab solidarity, the Arab nations signed a treaty in Cairo on March 22, 1945 and formed a union called the Arab League. In the beginning Egypt, Iraq, Syria, Jordan, Saudi Arabia, Yemen and Lebanon joined it. Each country enjoyed full sovereignty and was not bound to abide by the decisions of the league. In the post war period, the nature of leadership in the Arab countries also underwent a change. The old guard nationalist leaders were replaced by new and young leaders. It was the old leadership who organised independent states into a loose regional organisation known as the League. It could not succeed because it was contrary to the hopes and aspirations of the Arab nationalists in so far it merely served to freeze the political status quo and strengthened the foreign political structure. It did not in any way provided spring board towards Arab unity. Though the league considerably declined in prestige after defeat in 1948, still it continued to serve a platform for discussion on common issues and rendered valuable services to the member states in the economic and cultural spheres.

The ideological cleavage which characterised the world politics in the post world war II also gripped the Arab states and they came to be sharply divided on the basis of ideology, economic organisation and social policy. As a result the Arab world, instead of being united got divided into a number of states which were keen to preserve their independence and resisted their submission in the larger Arab whole.

The possibility of consolidating the Arab world was like a mirage. The Arab league failed to do anything worthwhile because of mutual disputes, rancour, bitterness among the member states. The league failed because of its own inherent problems. By nature, the Arabs are highly individualistic. No Arab country was willing to accept the influence or pressure of another Arab country. Some heads of states suffered from traditional dynastic rivalries. For example, Shah Hussain of Jordan and Shah Faisal of Saudi Arabia were sworn enemies. There were no unanimity on the question of leadership of the Arab league. The United Arab Republic (Egypt) was the most highly developed among the Arab States and therefore it was natural that it wanted to keep the leadership of the Arab world with it. But because pilgrimage centres like Mecca and Medina were in Saudi Arab, it considered itself most important among the Arab nations. The Arab nations suffered from internal dissension, conflict and groupism. Sometimes the member - states quarrelled over the venue and agenda of the proposed meeting. Many Arab states felt convinced that the league was an instrument for implementing the national policy of the United Arab Republic, and to free it from the influence of Nasir, its headquarters should immediately be shifted from Cairo. So these mutual conflicts between the Arab states obstructed the smooth functioning of the league.

Thus, because of their mutual quarrels, enimity and bitterness, the Arab nations could not take unanimous decision in any matter. To gain their own ends, the western powers fanned their dissension. So this organization lacked the strength it needed. Opposition to Israel and the desire to annihilate her might bring them together, but on this question also they were divided.

In spite of all these weaknesses, the Arab league is a regional organisation symbolising the glory of the Arab nations and keeps a permanent observer in the U.N.O.. It has signed formal agreements and made informal arrangements with most of the specialised agencies of the UNO. With the help of the UNO and Afro-Asian community, it has carried on an anti-colonial campaign and had succeeded in liberating several Arab countries from the clutches of the colonial campaign and has succeeded in liberating several Arab countries from the clutches of the colonial powers. It has secured the support of a very large section of the world society in the case of Palestinian opposition to Israel. By using ‘oil diplomacy’ or using oil as a political instrument in the international politics against its opponents, it has forced them to bow down. In 1973, all Arab nations except Libya used oil as a potential instrument and forced many powerful countries to make extensive changes in their policy towards the Arabs.