Freemanpedia

Decolonization is the undoing of colonialism, the unequal relation of polities whereby one people or nation establishes and maintains dependent Territory over another. The term refers particularly to the dismantlement, in the years after World War II, of the Neo-Imperial empires established prior to World War I throughout Africa and Asia.

Regional setting for the Indian independence movement

• Indian sub-continent
• British India
• India
• Pakistan (former West Pakistan)
• Bangladesh (former East Pakistan
• Sri Lanka (former Ceylon)

Evolution of the Indian independence movement

• British rule in India
• Indian National Congress (INC)
• Leadership of Mohandas Gandhi
• Role of civil disobedience and passive resistance
• Political division along Hindu-Muslim lines, Pakistan/India

Republic of India

• World’s largest democratic nation
• Federal system gives many powers to the state

Indian Democracy

• Jawaharlal Nehru – a close associate of Gandhi, supported Western style industrialization
• Ethnic and religious differences caused problems in the development of India as a democratic nation
• New economic development has helped to ease financial problems of the nation

The independence movement in Africa

• Right to self-determination (U.N. charter)
• Peaceful and violent revolutions after World War II
• Pride in African cultures and heritage
• Resentment toward imperial rule and economic exploitation
• Loss of colonies by Great Britain, France, Belgium, and Portugal
• Influence of superpower rivalry during the Cold War

Examples of independence movements and subsequent development efforts

• West Africa—Peaceful transition
• Algeria—War for Independence from France
• Kenya (Britain)—Violent struggle under leadership of Kenyatta
• South Africa—Black South Africans’ struggle against apartheid
  • led by Nelson Mandela, who became the first black President of the Republic of South Africa.

Mandates in the Middle East

• Established by the League of Nations
• Granted independence after World War II
• Resulted in Middle East conflicts created by religious differences

French Mandates in the Middle East

• Syria, Lebanon

British Mandates in the Middle East

• Jordan
• Palestine (part became independent as the State of Israel)

Golda Meir

• Prime Minister of Israel
• Led Israel to victory in Yom Kippur War
• Sought support of United States

Gamal Abdul Nasser

• President of Egypt
• Won Suez Canal back from Britain
• Established relationship with Soviet Union
  • Built Aswan High Dam (artificially controls the “Miracle of the Nile”)

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