Decolonization in Ghana and Algeria

Britain agreed to negotiate independence for its West African colony of the Gold Coast, just as it had for its colonies in South Asia. The Gold Coast combined with the former British Togoland to form Ghana, the first sub-Saharan African country to gain independence in the 20th century. (The new country of Ghana was smaller in area than the historic kingdom of the same name.) Negotiations led by the United Nations helped bring about Ghana’s independence in 1957. Its first president, Kwame Nkrumah, took office in 1960.

Ideas from modern nation-states influenced Ghanaian nationalism. Nkrumah emulated nationalistic traditions he learned during his time in the United States and Britain. For example, Nkrumah constructed a national narrative that centered on having a historical past of glory and rich tradition, founding fathers, a currency, a flag, an anthem, museums, and monuments. He was responsible for numerous public works and development projects, such as hydroelectric plants. However, some critics accused him of running the country into debt and allowing widespread corruption—an economic pattern that often happened in later African dictatorships. In 1964, Nkrumah claimed dictatorial powers when the voters agreed to a one-party state, with him as party leader.

Nkrumah strongly advocated Pan-Africanism, a term with multiple meanings. In the 19th century, American and British abolitionists called their plans to return freed men and women to their homes in Africa Pan-Africanism or Africa for Africans. The country of Liberia was founded on this vision. In the second half of the 20th century, for some Africans, the term Pan-Africanism meant a celebration of unity of culture and ideas throughout the continent. These Pan-Africanists rejected intervention by former colonial powers.

In keeping with his vision of Pan-Africanism, Nkrumah founded the Organization of African Unity (OAU) in 1963. However, three years later, a military coup overthrew Nkrumah’s government and expelled many foreigners from the country. Not until 2000 would Ghana witness a peaceful transfer of civilian power from one elected president to another.

Algeria In northern Africa, the French colony of Algeria endured far more violence than Ghana before becoming independent. Mounting social, political, and economic crises in Algeria resulted in political protests. The French government responded with restrictive laws and violence.

Many Algerians, driven by feelings of nationalism, campaigned for independence after World War II. The Algerian War for Independence began in 1954, and it involved many groups. Because so many French people lived in Algeria as settlers, the French government considered Algeria a part of France and was adamant that it could not become a separate country. The FLN (National Liberation Front) led the Algerian movement for independence. The FLN sought self-determination through guerrilla techniques against half a million French forces sent to Algeria. While French military casualties were relatively low, hundreds of thousands of Algerians died in the war, often in violent street-by-street battles. French historian Pierre Vidal-Naquet confessed that there were “hundreds of thousands of instances of torture” by the French military in Algeria.

The Algerian conflict caused sharp divisions in France. The French Communist Party, powerful at the time, favored Algerian independence. Violence broke out in cities throughout France. In 1958, French President Charles de Gaulle had a new mandate for expanded presidential power under the constitution of the new Fifth Republic. De Gaulle planned the steps through which Algeria would gain independence. He then went straight to the people of France and Algeria to gain approval of his plan in a referendum, thereby bypassing the French National Assembly.

However, with the coming of independence in 1962, war broke out again in Algeria. Thousands of pro-French Algerians and settlers fled the country. The influx of these refugees into France created housing and employment problems as well as increased anti-immigration sentiment. Violence in Algeria left between 50,000 and 150,000 dead at the hands of FLN and lynch mobs.

The first president of the new Algerian Republic was overthrown in 1965 in a military coup led by his former ally. The National Liberation Front continued in power under different leadership, making Algeria a single-party state for a number of years. The FLN maintained a socialist authoritarian government that did not tolerate dissent. Meanwhile, the government led a drive for modernization of industry and collectivization of agriculture.

Algerian Civil War In 1991, violence again surfaced in Algeria, this time in reaction to one-party rule. The Islamic Salvation Front won the first round in an election that was then canceled. A bloody Algerian Civil War followed (1991–2002), during which the FLN continued in control. The army chose President Abdelaziz Bouteflika in 1999. In his second term, he attempted to be more inclusive of insurgents, although suicide bombings continued. In 2011, the military state of emergency, in place since 1992, was finally lifted in response to protests in the wake of major uprisings in nearby states, including Tunisia, Egypt, and Libya.

Comparing Ghana and Algeria Both Ghana and Algeria experienced growing pains under military rule. The main struggles were between those who favored multiparty states and those who favored single-party socialism. Ghana created a new constitution in 1992, easing the transfer of power between elected governments. One point of national pride was that a Ghanaian leader, Kofi Annan, became UN Secretary General in 1997. In Algeria, by contrast, religious tensions grew worse. As in other countries in North Africa and the Middle East, a growing right-wing Islamist movement that was willing to use violence challenged the power of mainstream Muslims. In 1992, an Islamist assassinated Algeria’s president. As in Egypt and Turkey, the military responded by repressing Islamic fundamentalists. In 1997, Algeria banned political parties that were based on religion.