Dr.
Kenneth Kaunda of North Rhodesia, Julius Nyerere of Tanzania, Jomo
Kenyatta of Kenya, and Dr. Milton Obote of Uganda at the East African
Heads of Government Conference, 1964 (photo source: Trip Down Memory Lane blog)
A treaty
establishing the East African Community was finally ratified in 1999 and
took effect in 2000. The journey towards East African political
Federation reached a milestone in April of 2014 when the heads of state
decided to start the process of drafting a constitution for political
federation.
This was
not the first time that East African leaders came to the table with the
goal of establishing a Federation. The heads of state from Kenya,
Uganda, and Tanganyika, signed the Declaration of Federation in June 5,
1963. The initiative never came to fruition as both internal and
external factors led to the collapse of the negotiations. While there
was a fair share of blame on all the parties involved, there is one
particular factor for the collapse of the 1963 East African Federation
initiative that deserves closer scrutiny: the role of Ghana in killing
the East African Federation.
Two
giants emerged in the African political scene of the early 1960s: Kwame
Nkrumah of Ghana and Julius K. Nyerere of Tanzania. The two were staunch
proponents of Pan Africanism, an ideology and a movement that
encourages the solidarity of Africans in Africa and around the world.
Nkrumah and Nyerere ultimately wanted to see continental unity and the
establishment of a “United States of Africa.” However, by the end of
1961, the two differed on the approaches to achieving their common goal
of unifying Africa. Nkrumah called for the immediate establishment of
the “United States of Africa.” Nyerere on the other hand, argued that
the best approach is a regional approach. Build regional unity first and
eventually bring them together to create a “United States of Africa.”
This approach, Nyerere would argue, was more practical.
The quest
for African unity remains elusive a little more than 50 years later.
There is a raging debate on whose approach was correct. On one side,
there are those who blame the adherents of regional approach for the
decision to reject Nkrumah’s proposal at the first and second OAU
Summits. They argue that the Second OAU conference in Cairo was the last
nail in the coffin for any hopes of building continental unity. These
pundits point to the failure of the regional attempts to build unity as
an example of the futility of such initiatives. This debate exhumes
passion from adherents of both sides. While Nkrumah’s call for an
immediate establishment of the “United States of Africa” was never given
a chance, it must be pointed out that regional political Federation was
never given an opportunity to be tested either.(P.T)
Nkrumah
started as a staunch supporter of building regional unity. He called for
regional Federation in 1953. He worked diligently to establish West
African Federation in the 1950s after Ghana (then Gold Coast) won
self-government. The initiative eventually failed. Nkrumah was briefly
successful with the Ghana-Guinea Union of 1958. The two countries were
joined by Mali in 1961 to form the Union of Ghana, Guinea, and Mali. The
Union faced many challenges from the outset. The Union of the three
countries failed by the end of 1961.
Nyerere
came to view regional unity as the correct path for building African
unity in the end of the 1950s. Nyerere and Tom Mboya of Kenya discussed
the idea of building regional unity in 1958 after returning from Ghana’s
first independence anniversary celebrations. The two east African
leaders decided to establish a Pan African regional body to bring
together independence movements from the region to share ideas,
resources, and build unity. Nyerere was the only one in position to
establish such an organization.
TANU had
just won the first Legislative Council elections and it was clear that
self-government was within reach. Thus in September of 1958, Tanganyika
leaders called a conference in Mwanza that led to the establishment of
Pan African Freedom Movement for East and Central Africa (PAFMECA).
Delegates came from Malawi, Zambia, Rwanda and Burundi, Uganda, Kenya,
and Zanzibar.
One of
the agendas discussed at the conference was the question of Federation. A
decision was made to postpone the issue of Federation until a later
date. It was decided that the question of Federation should be revisited
once the territories had advanced towards independence and won
self-government.
The idea
of Federation was forefront in Nyerere’s plans for east Africa. The
victory of 1958 and 1959 elections guaranteed that Tanganyika would win
self-government soon. This victory indicated to Nyerere that the time
was ripe to start campaigning for East African Federation.
He
announced through BBC London on January 1, 1960 his desire to see
Tanganyika, Kenya, and Uganda join together in a Federation. Nyerere
then took his case to the Conference of Independent African States in
Ethiopia in June of 1960. He announced his willingness to delay
Tanganyika’s independence up to six months to allow for the formation of
East African Federation.
Nkrumah
and Nyerere, the two African giants, followed a similar path, but at
different times. Nkrumah announced in 1953 after the Gold Coast won
self-government that he wanted to see the “amalgamation of territories
on a regional basis and methods of progress towards an ultimate
Pan-African Commonwealth of Free, Independent United States of Africa.”
This quest remained unattainable as each territory moved closer to
independence in West Africa. Nkrumah’s failure to build regional unity
would eventually convince him to bitterly oppose any such attempts
elsewhere.
Nyerere
moved full force after 1960 in his quest to establish East African
Federation. He took the case to the PAFMECA Conference in Mbale, Uganda
in December of 1960. Nyerere tabled a memorandum entitled “East African
Federation (Freedom and Unity)” for discussion and approval. He
continued to push for Federation with Kenya, Uganda, and Zanzibar
leaders between 1961 and 1962.
Nkrumah
changed his mind by late 1961 on the merits of a regional approach to
build African unity. He not only came to view regional approach as
wrong, he came to see it as a serious threat to the quest for building
African unity. He would argue that regional groupings were part of
“Balkanization of Africa,” borrowing from a 19th century saying that
described the disintegration into smaller territories of the Balkans in
Eastern Europe. According to Nkrumah, regional groups were a major
threat to the quest for establishing the “United States of Africa.”
Efforts
to speed up the process towards East African Federation increased in the
course of 1962. Nyerere lobbied with his counterparts in Uganda and
Kenya. He published an article in March of 1963 entitled “A United
States of Africa.” The article was the most explicit explanation of his
vision for a united Africa. Nyerere argued eloquently that Africa must
unite. He asserted, “For the sake of all African states, large or small,
African unity must come and it must be real unity,” and added, “Our
goal must be a United States of Africa.” As for the approach, Nyerere
argued “This goal must be achieved, and it does not matter whether this
is done by one step or by many…” Nyerere was committed to building a
“United States of Africa.”
The
situation in African scene was tense in the first half of 1963. To make
matters worse, tension between Tanganyika and Ghana increased after the
assassination of the President of Togo, Sylvanus Olympio in January 13,
1963. Nyerere sat with his hands on his head and wept after announcing
the assassination of President Olympio. The assassination shocked many
African leaders. Tanganyika did not hide its suspicion that Ghana played
a role in the assassination. Ghana and Togo were involved in a tug of
war over its borders. Nkrumah had laid claims to parts of Togo.
It was
partly in reaction to this crisis and the assassination of President
Olympio that Tanganyika would take a strong position at the First OAU
Summit in Ethiopia in 1963 on the issue of respecting existing borders
and not interfering in the internal affairs of other countries. This,
some critics have argued, killed any hopes of achieving continental
unity. But did it? What of regional approach? What happened to that
initiative?
Nyerere
and Nkrumah clashes became more pronounced at the First OAU Summit in
Ethiopia. Oscar Kambona, Tanganyika Foreign Minister, was selected as
the chairman of the powerful Political Committee. The decision by the
majority of African leaders to give that important position to a
Tanganyikan instead of a Ghanaian, was telling. The decision gave some
indication on where the majority of African leaders stood on the Nyerere
Vs. Nkrumah dispute.
In the
end, Kambona played a major role in shaping the final OAU charter. This
was the first blow to Nkrumah. Another blow to Nkrumah was the decision
by the OAU to exclude Ghana from the Committee of Nine (African
Liberation Committee). Nkrumah took umbrage at the decisions made by the
OAU in May and June of 1963 that excluded his country.
The move
towards East African Federation showed most promise in June of 1963 when
Jomo Kenyatta, Milton Obote, and Nyerere agreed to work on establishing
the East African Federation. It was at this point that the opposition
to the Federation initiative by Ghana went from rhetoric into action.
Ghana organized a campaign to sabotage the East African Federation.
The
efforts concentrated in Uganda. But efforts were also made by Ghana to
convince Kenya, Zambia and Malawi leaders to reject Federation. The
focal point of the campaign centered on Uganda.
The clash between Nkrumah and Nyerere reached its apex after East African leaders issued the Declaration of Federation. Nkrumah moved with full force to torpedo the initiative.
The clash between Nkrumah and Nyerere reached its apex after East African leaders issued the Declaration of Federation. Nkrumah moved with full force to torpedo the initiative.
He wrote
“Having accepted a common destiny for Africa at Addis Ababa, we can no
longer stand aloof in the fact of any danger that threatens our common
cause. It is for this reason that I have been compelled to express my
own apprehensions concerning the proposal to unite East African States
into a single political entity.” Nkrumah would claim that the scheme
would build regional royalty and frustrate any hopes of a continental
unity.
He also
expressed worries that the East African Federation was an imperialist
scheme because it received support of the West. There could only be one
solution for him: take action to kill the East African initiative. This
Nkrumah did skillfully. Obote,
Nyerere, and Kenyatta issued the Federation Declaration on June 5,
1963. The Declaration stated: “We, the leaders of the people and
governments of East Africa… pledge ourselves to the political federation
of East Africa. Our meeting today is motivated by the spirit of
Pan-Africanism, and not by mere selfish regional interests. … We believe
that the East African Federation can be a practical step towards the
goal of Pan-African unity. We share a common past, and are convinced of
our common destinies.” This Nairobi agreement was the closest East
African leaders would come to establishing a Federation.
The
position of Uganda would change drastically in the months to come
leading to the collapse of the negotiations. About two months after the
Declaration was issued, Nyerere would tell an American diplomat that
Uganda was pulling out of the agreement they signed in June of 1963.
Nyerere told the diplomat that the problem was not with the concept of
Federation itself, but that Uganda leaders were making frivolous demands
such as the site of the capital and demands for jobs. What was the
cause of this policy reversal?
Part of
the explanation lies with external influences on Uganda stemming from
Ghana. Nkrumah told the Ghana National Assembly in June 21, 1963 that
the “idea of a political federation of East Africa” was supported by the
British government because they wanted to be “sure of retaining their
rapidly waning influence in Africa.” Nkrumah dispatched his most
skillful lieutenants to East and Central Africa. He concentrated his
efforts in Uganda where Milton Obote was one of his greatest admirers.
He sent Busumtwi-Sam to Uganda.
Nkrumah
also dispatched A.K. Barden, the former head of the powerful Africa
Bureau, to East Africa. Barden, a former police, had recruited police
into the Bureau and ran successful operations. Ghana High Commission in
Tanganyika was reduced to a handful of people after June of 1963 as
tension between Tanganyika and Ghana rose. Some of the Ghanaian
diplomats were transferred from Tanganyika to Uganda.
The
Government of Ghana poured money into Uganda between 1962 and 1963.
Paulo Muwanga, Ugandan MP, received $39,000 from Ghana in 1963 to start
farmer’s council in Uganda. Ghanaian funds were also funneled to Uganda
through trade unions. For example, the Uganda Federation of Labor had
cozy relations with Ghana labor and farmer’s unions AATUF and AAFU.
Ghana
gave tens of thousands of dollars to the Uganda labor union UFL. It is
not surprising that UFL took the Ghana view of the immediate
establishment of “United States of Africa.” TheTimes of UK reported in
September 1963 that Nkrumah was “bitterly opposed to an East African
Federation and is influential with Mr. Obote..” One of the most telling
examples of Obote’s close relations to Nkrumah took place after Obote
married Miria Kalule in November of 1963.
Ghana Air
Force plane was sent to pick up the newly weds to fly to Accra for
their honeymoon. It cannot be denied that the Ugandan position could
have come from the conviction that immediate establishment of
continental unity was the best approach, yet it would be injudicious to
dismiss the possibility that the large sums of money handed to the
Ugandan leaders did not influence their views.
Obote and
Benedicto Kiwanuka came to oppose the East African Federation
initiative. The reasons given by Uganda leaders for the opposition after
signing the Federation Declaration varied from frivolous to serious
concerns. For example, Adoko Nekyon, Uganda delegate to the East African
Federation negotiations and Obote’s brother in-law, demanded that each
country should have a separate foreign representation.
There
were also fears that Uganda’s trade surplus and balanced budget would
crumble once they united with their neighbors. The Ugandans claimed to
be in support of East African Federation, but raised some of the above
issues to say it would not work out for them. The negotiations for
political Federation reached a stalemate. Numerous subsequent attempts
were made to revive the talks; such attempts were eventually
unsuccessful.
The
resistance from Uganda after July of 1963 led Nyerere to conclude that
there were external interference that led to the change of heart by
Uganda. Nyerere told an American diplomat in August of 1963 that
“various external influences” were at work in Kampala.
Talks
continued and eventually an agreement was reached for the establishment
of East African Community that lasted from 1967 to 1977; however, the
grand scheme of an East African political Federation was never given an
opportunity to be established and tested. Like Nkrumah’s continental
unity initiative, Nyerere’s attempt to build regional unity through
Federation was also never given a chance. In a speech given in January
of 1964, Nyerere would pronounce: “The Challenges of the 20th Century is
the conversion of nationalism into internationalism.” This is a
challenge that remains elusive in the 21st century.
It
remains to be seen if East African leaders will rise to the challenge
and make the dream of a united East Africa a reality. This dream must
include measures to build continental unity. For it is with the “United
States of Africa” that the hopes of a vibrant and flourishing Africa
lies.
This article was published by Business Times (Tanzania), October 3, 2014
Azaria Mbughuni is an Assistant Professor of History at Spelman College, Atlanta, USA. (azmbughuni@gmail.com). Follow me on Twitter @AzariaTZ
© Azaria Mbughuni
© Azaria Mbughuni
- The above article was cross-posted from the write's blog: United Africa
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