3. Road to Independence
Pre-World War I
Nationalism
Indian National Congress &
Muslim League
Egyptian Nationalism
Dinshawai Incident
“Save the King” movement in
Vietnam
Violence
Boer Wars
Islamic Fundamentalism
the Mahdi in Egypt
Guerilla Warfare in Vietnam
Top: The members
of the 1st
Indian
National Congress
Bottom: Muhammad
Ahmad “the Mahdi”
4. Road to Independence: World War I
Promises of Self-Determination
India wanted self-government
Rowlatt Act (1920)
Arabs wanted independence
Mandate System (right)
Balfour Declaration
Locals fill colonial posts
Economic strain of the war
Treaty of Versailles
Increased nationalism
Gandhi and satyagraha
Ho Chi Minh
May Fourth Movement
5. Road to Independence: Interwar Years
Egypt
Continued nationalism
England withdrawal began 1922
Left khedival regime in power
South Africa
Self-government granted in 1910
Part of commonwealth in 1933
India
The Great Depression
Anti-government protests
Gandhi’s Salt March (1931)
Government of India Act (1935)
6. Road to Independence: World War II
Cost of Empire
Need to rebuild home
country
Declining support for
colonialism
Atlantic Charter (1941)
Soviets “loathe” colonialism
Except for Latvia, Estonia,
Lithuania, Kazakhstan,
Georgia, Armenia, etc.
Japan conquers colonies in
East Asia
The Atlantic Charter was drafted by U.S.
President Franklin Roosevelt (left) and British
Prime Minister Winston Churchill (right). In
it they voiced support for "the right of all
peoples to choose the form of government
under which they will live."
7. Post-World War II Independence
Three routes to independence
Negotiated Independence
Parts of Asia and Africa gained their independence without much
bloodshed
India & Pakistan
Japan & Korea
Ghana & the Congo
Incomplete Independence
Places with sizeable settler populations or Cold War importance
struggled to gain their independence
South Africa, Kenya, & Algeria
Vietnam
Civil War
China resumed civil war between nationalists and communists
8. Negotiated Independence: India
India & Pakistan gained their
independence August 1947
Communal violence ensued as
millions of Muslims moved to
Pakistan and millions of Hindus and
Sikhs moved to India
Violence broke out over Kashmir
Jawaharlal Nehru (right) became
the first prime minister of India
Muhammad Ali Jinnah became the
first prime minister of Pakistan
9. Negotiated Independence: Japan
United States occupied Japan from August 1945-1952
Feared Soviets would influence Japan
Japanese cooperated with the U.S.
Political and social changes
Military disbanded and military spending limited
Shintoism was abolished as state religion
New parliamentary system with constitution
Women received the right to vote
Large estates were divided and redistributed to farmers
Zaibatsu combines were temporarily dissolved
10. Negotiated Independence: Korea, et al.
Korea was divided at 38th
parallel
Korean War resulted in a Soviet
backed North Korea and U.S.
backed South Korea
Hong Kong remained a British
colony until 1997
Singapore gained independence
from Britain in 1959
Chiang Kai-shek established the
Republic of China on Taiwan
11. Negotiated Independence: Africa
African “nationalism”
Negritude movement
Pan-Africanism
World War II
West built factories in Africa
Africans migrated to cities looking
for work
Kwame Nkrumah gained
independence for Ghana in 1957
First successful mass movement
1960 is known as the “Year of
Africa”
12. Incomplete Independence: South Africa
Gained home rule in 1910
Had over 4 million white residents
Denied civil rights to black population
Whites institute apartheid in 1948
Reserved best jobs for whites
Reserved 87% of land for whites
Black Africans & Indians couldn’t vote
ANC led mass protests against
apartheid
Sharpeville Massacre (1960)
ANC leader Nelson Mandela arrested
and sentenced to life in prison in 1964
13. Incomplete Independence: South Africa
Black protests of apartheid
increased in the 1980s
Bishop Desmond Tutu encouraged
international embargo of South Africa
Gained worldwide attention due to
TV
End of Apartheid
Nelson Mandela freed in 1990
Apartheid laws repealed in 1990-1991
First free election occurred in 1994
New constitution passed in 1996
Includes U.S. style Bill of Rights
14. Incomplete Independence: Kenya
White coffee planters felt
ethnic Kenyans were not
ready for self-government
Called rebels the Mau Mau
Violence erupted in the
1950s
British captured native fighters
and resettled them in camps
Jomo Kenyatta & other leaders
were imprisoned for eight years
Kenyatta negotiated Kenyan
independence in 1961
Elected president in 1964
15. Incomplete Independence: Algeria
Algeria was viewed as an extension of France
One million settlers created a maintain at all costs attitude
France dependent upon Algerian oil & gas fields and vineyards
National Liberation Front (FLN) made up of Berbers and
Arabs demanded independence
Settlers and rich Arabs and Berbers continue fight against
the FLN
Form the Secret Army Organization (OAS)
After 8 years of violence and thousand of casualties,
France eventually negotiated independence in 1962
Millions of French settlers and wealthy Arabs and Berbers
emigrated to France
16. Incomplete Independence: Vietnam
World War II
Viet Minh (communists) successfully
resisted Japanese occupation
Provided assistance during famine
Instituted communist reforms
Ho Chi Minh declared Vietnam
independent from France in 1945
French refused to recognize
independence and tried to
reoccupy the region
Defeat the French at Dien Bien Phu
in 1954
Leaders of the Viet Minh: Vo
Nguyen Giap (left) and Ho Chi
Minh (right)
17. Vietnam War (1954-1973)
France leaves after being defeated at Dien Bien Phu
Ho Chi Minh agrees to divide Vietnam into two parts
Communists dominated northern Vietnam
Elections were promised within two years to decide who
should rule a united Vietnam
U.S. sends in “advisors” to help South Vietnam in 1954
U.S. viewed conflict as part of the Cold War
U.S. supported anti-communist dictator Ngo Dinh Diem
Diem attempted to suppress communists in South Vietnam
Viet Minh (Viet Cong) sent military supplies to aid southern
communists (National Liberation Front)
18. Vietnam War (1954-1973)
Richard Nixon continued to
escalate U.S. presence in
Vietnam
Resort to carpet bombing &
chemical warfare
Some historian argue the bombing
of Cambodia triggered the Khmer
Rouge
Pol Pot killed approximately 20% of
the Cambodian population
U.S. ended involvement in 1973
Communists unite Vietnam in
1975
Some Buddhist monks expressed
opposition to the war by practicing self-
immolation. This monk, Thich Quang
Duc is a national hero in Vietnam
21. Asia & Africa After Independence
Challenges facing independent states
Political Instability
Most countries end up one-party states or military dictatorships
The Cold War
Colonial Legacy
The Population “Bomb”
Parasitic Cities & Endangered ecosystems
Women’s Subordination
Neocolonialism
25. Military Dictatorships
Why military dictatorships?
Military is more resistant to
religious and ethnic rivalries
Military used to suppress ethnic
and religious tensions
A monopoly of force
A degree of technical training
Most are staunchly
anticommunist
Military dictatorships often
bring political stability but
economic development is rare
Clockwise from top
left: Idi Amin of
Uganda, Mobutu
Sese Seko of the
Congo, Muammar
al-Gaddafi of Libya
26. Military Dictatorship: Egypt
Gamal Abdel Nasser
Seized power in 1952
Embarrassed by defeat in Arab-Israeli
War of 1948
Instituted a series of reforms
Land reform, education, subsidized food
costs, emphasized industrial growth
Reforms foiled by corruption, lack of
foreign investment, & population growth
Supported Pan-Arabism
Opposed Israel
Built the Aswan Dam
27. One-Party State: Ghana
Kwame Nkrumah
Originally committed to social &
economic reform
Reforms hindered by lack of
education, industrialization, and
decline of cocoa prices
Leftist (socialist) leanings won
support from Soviets & alienated
Western investors
Ruled as a authoritarian dictator
Crushed political opposition,
staged “events”, manipulated
history, etc.
28. Democracy: Botswana
Democratic since gaining
independence in 1966
Stable economy based upon
diamonds, tourism, &
manufacturing
Per capita GDP: $12,500
World average: $7,400
Predominantly Christian
AIDS/HIV rate was 24% in
2006
29. Democracy: India
Advantages
Military defends secular democracy
Came to independence with a larger industrial and scientific
center, better communication systems, and a larger, more
skilled middle class
Disadvantages
Population growth, poverty, unemployment, religious & ethnic
diversity, and natural disasters
Military conflicts with Pakistan over Kashmir
Early Government
Reforms to help lower castes and women
Spearheaded the nonalignment movement
30. Democracy: India
Indira Gandhi
Tried to limit freedom of press
Proposed involuntary sterilization to slow
population growth
Indian Economy
Mix of private and state initiatives
Green Revolution
Introduced improved seed strains, fertilizers,
and irrigation
Credited for averting a global famine
Growing middle class
World’s largest film industry
31. The Cold War
U.S. and Soviet Union attempted to influence new states
Bandung Conference 1955
Conference participants claimed to be “non-aligned”
Nasser and Nkrumah attended the conference
Many independence movements received help from the
Soviet Union or Cuba
United States often interfered in these nations
The Congo and the Cold War
Nkrumah overthrown by C.I.A. in 1966
Proxy wars fueled ethnic tension & genocide
Hutus in Rwanda massacred 750,000 ethnic Tutsis in 1995
32. Colonial Legacy
All new nations were “artificial nations”
European colonial boundaries rarely took into account the
ethnicities, interests, and histories of the people
European control often intensified existing divisions
Minority Tutsi were favored over the majority Hutu in Rwanda
Europe often “cut-and-run” at the end of colonial rule
Often led to ethnic strife in new nations
India, Nigeria, the Congo, Palestine, etc.
Pakistan quickly divided into two nations – Pakistan & Bangladesh
New rulers create a national identity
Separatist movements emerged and led to civil war in Morocco,
India, the Sudan, & Nigeria
33. Population Bomb
Why?
Introduction of new food crops (Columbian Exchange), colonialism
ended local warfare, railroads cut down on famine, improved hygiene &
medicine, resistance to birth control, declining infant mortality rates
37. Parasitic Cities
Massive post-independence urbanization occurred in
most countries
No expanding industrial centers meant few jobs & low wages
Urban poor could become politically volatile
Little or no urban planning
Slum areas with no electricity, running water, or basic sewage
Cities are not productive thus “parasitic”
Puts pressure on rural areas
Draw food and resources from depleted countryside
Contributes to soil depletion, deforestation, desertification,
etc.
40. Women’s Subordination
New nations often supported women’s suffrage, equal
legal rights, education, & occupational opportunities (in
theory)
In reality, most societies remained patriarchal
Men dominated most political positions
Prominent female leaders were often related to powerful men
Indira Gandhi, Benazir Bhutto, Corazon Aquino
Arranged marriages, early marriage ages, and large families
Dietary customs increase chances of malnutrition
Female infanticide is common in many places
China, India, East Africa
Religious revivalism erodes women’s rights
Saudi Arabia, Afghanistan, India, the Sudan
41. Neocolonialism
Most nations continued to rely upon trading cash crops
or raw materials to industrialized nations in return for
manufactured goods
Price of commodities (cash crops and minerals) often fluctuate
One or two bad years could destroy an emerging nation’s economy
Some organizations have been formed to limit fluctuation
OPEC – Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries
Government corruption and lack of reforms also
contribute to neocolonialism
Nations turn to international organizations or industrial
nations for help
International Monetary Fund (IMF) or the World Bank
43. Arab Independence
Saudi Arabia became independent
after World War I
Egypt, Syria, Iraq, Lebanon, and
Jordan gained independence after
World War II with little difficulty
Complete autonomy was difficult
Egypt due to Suez Canal
Cold War tensions
Other states due to oil
OPEC
44. Creation of Israel
Israel was created by a
UN mandate in 1947
Israel seized control of
Jerusalem & all of
Palestine except the
West Bank & Gaza Strip
in 1949
Israel easily wins the
Arab-Israeli War of
1967 and the Yom
Kippur War in 1973
45. Arab Nationalism
Problems facing Arab nationalism
Cold War splits nations as some allied with the U.S. and
others the USSR
Differing government types (monarchy, military dictatorships,
Islamic revolutionary)
Sunni-Shi’a split
Anwar Sadat facilitated peace process between Arab
world & Israel (1978-1980)
His reward? He was assassinated in 1981
Sadat’s assassination made Saddam Hussein leader of the
Arab world
46. Palestinian Liberation Organization
Created in 1964 by Yasser
Arafat to promote
Palestinian rights
Often resorted to
“terrorism” against Israel
Negotiated limited
Palestinian self-rule in 1993
and 1995
PLO was replaced by Hamas
as the leading anti-Israeli
organization in Palestine
Yasser Arafat, founder of the PLO,
and Yitzak Rabin, Israel’s prime
minister, shake hands after signing
the Olso Accords in 1994
47. Iranian Revolution
Preliminary Phase
Iran was never colonized
Shah Reza Pahlavi ruled as a dictator
Used oil profits to modernize Iran
Reforms angered the middle class,
religious leaders, merchants, rural
poor, urban laborers, and the army
The Event
In the late 1970s a decline in oil prices
caused massive unemployment and
rural unrest
48. Iranian Revolution
Initial Phase
Sit-ins, riots, urban protests
Government exiled religious leaders
Military was unwilling to defend the
Shah
Radical Phase
Ayatollah Khomeini returned from exile
in France & overthrew the Shah in 1979
Ayatollah proclaimed himself
“jurisprudent”
Ayatollah quickly repressed
constitutional & leftist revolutionaries
51. Recovery Phase
Shiite Fundamentalism
Purge Iran of the “satanic” influences of the U.S. & Europe
Banned alcohol, coeducational classrooms, mixed swimming, &
western entertainment
Institute Sharia law
Iran Hostage Crisis
Iranians stormed the U.S. embassy taking 70 Americans captive
Government Reforms
Nationalized banks, insurance companies, & large farms
Attempts at land reform and economic development
were minimal due to the Iran – Iraq War (1980-1988)
