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May 27, 2006

Ozodi Osuji Weekly Lectures on African Countries #23 of 54: Guinea Bissau

by Ozodi Thomas Osuji, Ph.D. (Seatle, Washington) --- 23. GUINEA BISSAU

Formal Name: Republic of Guinea Bissau.

Term for Citizens: Guinea Bissauns.

Capital: Bissau. Population: 292,000.

Independence Achieved: September 10, 1974, from Portugal.

Major Cities: Bissau.

Geography:

Guinea Bissau is in West Africa. Guinea Bissau covers an area of 13, 948 square miles. Guinea Bissau is bounded by Senegal, Guinea and the Atlantic Ocean. The country is mainly low-lying land and covered with mud flats and mangrove swamps. The swamps are often inundated by rising tides. The lowlands gradually give way to the Futa Djalon highlands in Guinea. The country also has islands in the Atlantic. It has two seasons, wet and dry. There is substantial rainfall at the coast.

Society:

The population is estimated at 1,493,000.

Ethnic Groups: Fulani, Balantes, Mandigo (Manyako, Malinke, and Papel).

Languages: Portuguese and several African languages.

Religion: Christianity and Islam.

Education: primary school education is available to all children. Literacy rate is estimated at 55%.

Economy: Farming is the primary activity in the country. Rice, sorghum, sweet potatoes, cassava, maize, beans, and other crops are raised for food and cashew is raised for export. Fishing is also an important economic activity. In the higher lands, herding of sheep, goats and cattle is prevalent. Bauxite mining is becoming a prominent economic activity. GDP estimate: $1.1 billion; Per Capita GDP: US $160 (World Bank, 2005). Monetary Unit: CFA Franc BCEAO (XOF).

History and Government:

Portugal was the colonial ruler of Guinea Bissau until 1974. Portugal refused to give the country independence when it demanded it and a long protracted war ensued, a war that ended only in 1974. Military persons in Guinea Bissau quickly overthrew the civilian government. The competition between civilians and the military to rule the country has not died down to produce a genuine democracy. The country is divided into 9 regions. An interim president governs the country.


CONTEMPORARY HISTORY AND POLITICS


Guinea Bissau was part of the ancient empire of Mali. However, its contemporary history began with the Portuguese visits to the Guinea coast in the fifteen hundreds, to buy African slaves to be shipped to the Americas. Guinea Bissau became part of Portugal during the European scramble to colonize Africa. It was part of Portuguese Guinea and Cape Verde. Portugal essentially transformed the territory to cashew plantations and exported cashew nuts from the area to the rest of the world.

Portugal regarded its African territories as part of itself and was not interested in giving them independence. Whereas the British and French made plans to give their colonies independence, after the Second World War, Portugal claimed that her African territories were continuous to Portugal and did not make such arrangements.

Seeking independence from Portugal, African nationalists formed a group called The African Party for the Independence of Guinea and Cape Verde, PAIGC, in 1956. The group engaged in war with Portugal, and in 1973 unilaterally declared its independence from Portugal. In 1974, the dictatorial Salazar government of Portugal fell and the United Nations recognized the Independence of Guinea Bissau and Cape Verde.

PAIGC leader, Amilca Cabral was installed as the President of the country. Mr. Cabral proceeded to nationalize the economy and turn it towards socialism. Thereafter, the economy went south and the people suffered. He appointed Joao Bernardo Vieira his military chief. Six years later, complaining about the country’s economic mismanagement and corruption, Vieira successfully carried out a military Coup and removed Mr. Cabral from office.

Subsequently, there was a falling out between the more Europeanized persons living at Cape Verde Islands and the more Africans living at Guinea Bissau and the later separated from the joint republic. Mr. Vieira continued to rule Guinea Bissau.

In 1994, there was a brief uprising by the army and in 1998/9 there was a civil war when Mr. Vieira removed the leader of his military. In an election conducted in 2000, Mr. Vieira lost and went into exile.

Mr. Kumba Yala was elected the president. In 2003 there was a military coup against Mr. Yala and he was removed from office. In 2005, another presidential election was held and Mr. Vieira, who had by now returned from his exile in Portugal, won the election and is the present President of Guinea Bissau. Mr. Vieira changed the direction of the country, from Mr. Cabral’s socialistic tendencies to a more pro-western, capitalist economy.

Guinea Bissau is divided into eight regions, which are, in turn, subdivided into 37 sectors.

The economy of Guinea Bissau is based on the exporting of cashew. This is not much of a resource and the country is poor, with an income per capita of only US $160 (World Bank, 2005).

The economic future of Guinea looks bleak. However, if democratization becomes real, it is possible for the country to attract foreign investment and that would improve things, some.

ozodi@africainstituteseattle.org

Posted by Administrator at 12:07 PM | Comments (0)

Ozodi Osuji Weekly Lectures on African Countries #22 of 54: Guinea

by Ozodi Thomas Osuji, Ph.D. (Seatle, Washington) --- 22. GUINEA

Formal Name: Republic of Guinea.

Term for Citizens: Guineans.

Capital: Conakry. Population: 1, 272, 000.

Independence Achieved: October 2, 1958, from France.

Major Cities: Conakry.

Geography:

Guinea is in West Africa. It is bordered by Guinea Bissau, Senegal, Mali, Ivory Coast, and Liberia and the Atlantic Ocean. Guinea encompasses an area of 94, 926 square miles. The coastal regions tend to be forested and that gradually gives way to savanna, and eventually to the Sahara Desert. Climatically all of Guinea has two seasons: wet and dry. The wet season (April to October) witnesses’ heavy rainfall in the coastal regions, and less rainfall in the interior, and even less rainfall in the north. Conakry on the coast receives over 170 inches of rainfall annually. Upper Guinea receives less than 60 inches of rain annually. Temperature is topical, around 82.F but generally hotter in the north of the country.

Society;

The population of Guinea is estimated at 8, 480,000.

Ethnic Groups: The main ethnic groups are: the Susu, Mandingo, Dialonke, Landoma, Bega, and Nalou.

Languages: Fulbe, Badyaranke, Basari, Coniagui, Mandingo, Dialonke, Mandinka, Kpelle, Loma, Kissi and others.

Religion: Sunni Islam is the dominant religion. Small Christian and Indigenous populations exist.

Education: There is free and universal primary education. Literacy rate is estimated at 36%.

Economy: Agriculture and some mining remain the dominant sectors of the economy. Rice, cassava, millets, sweet potatoes, corn, bananas, palm oil and kernel, coffee, groundnuts, pineapples and citrus fruits remain the chief agricultural products. Iron ore, bauxite, and diamonds are extensively mined. GDP estimate: $15.9 billion; Per Capita GDP: US $460 (World Bank, 2005). Monetary Unit: Franc (GNF)

History and Government:

France ruled Guinea. When the fifth French Republic came into being with the 1958 constitution that brought Charles De Gaulle to power, De Gaulle gave France’s African colonies the choice to remain in France or to have their independence. Guinea demanded immediate independence from France in 1958 and was granted its wishes by Charles de Gaulle. France immediately pulled all its personnel out of Guinea and dismantled the administrative infrastructure it had set up to govern Guinea. The country thus began its independence with very few trained personnel to govern it. Sekou Toure, the new African leader, embarked on a socialist cum personalistic rule. Post Toure Guinea is still not fully democratic although on the surface the framework for democratic governance seems in place: parliament, judiciary and executive branch of the government. The country is divided into 4 administrative regions and one special zone. At present, President, General Lansana Conte governs through a prime minister, the typical French pattern of presidential democracy.


CONTEMPORARY HISTORY AND POLITICS

Present day Guinea was part of the three middle ages African empires of Ghana, Songhai and Mali. As part of those empires, it had substantial contact with the Arab-Moslem world and the country is largely Muslim.

The name Guinea is derived from contact with North Africans, for it is of Berber origin, meaning “land of blacks”. (Guinea Coast, as the Coast of West Africa was called, meant black folks coastal lands.)

Europeans (Portuguese) came to the Guinea coast in the fifteenth century and initiated slave trade from many outposts.

During the scramble for Africa, France took over Guinea in 1890 and established their capital at Conakry on Tombo Island.

Guinea was part of French West Africa until 1958 when its leader, Ahmed Sekou Toure, opted to separate from France rather than join the French community proposed by Charles De Gaulle. As a result of that decision for independence, France withdrew from any role it had hitherto played in aiding Guinea. It was reported that the French even took their telephones when they left in 1958, leaving Guinea to start from the scratch.

President Sekou Toure embraced socialism and joined forces with the socialist world. Naturally, the capitalist world shut Guinea out and very little economic development took place in Guinea during the 26 year rule of Sekou Toure.

Sekou Toure died in 1984 and the military took over governance. Mr. Lansana Conte, the military strong man, took over and is still in power. He made an about turn and embraced capitalism and turned towards the West for help.

Unfortunately, Mr. Conte is an autocrat and permits no opposition to his rule. He continued the stifling of the people, particularly the Press. Very little criticism of the government is permitted. In this atmosphere of repression, very little economic development takes place.

Guinea is divided into seven administrative regions, which in turn are subdivided into thirty three prefectures.

Guinea’s economy remains stymied in underdevelopment although the country has many natural resources that were they well managed would make the country prosperous. Guinea has the largest reserve of bauxite in the world and produces 30% of the world’s bauxite. If the government could become well managed, it is probable that Guinea could become industrialized and prosperous. As it is, the population is so grossly illiterate and suppressed by a brutal autocrat that very little creative thinking goes into improving anything. People are too afraid for their lives and devote their energies trying to survive to have any energy and time left to put to productive ends.

Many well meaning observers believe that unless Guinea mends its way that it risks becoming another failed third world country. Mr. Conte appears bent on becoming president for life. In a recent referendum, he intimidated the population into removing the two term limits his earlier constitution had stipulated and is now free to rule for however long he wants to.

Mr. Conte manages to accomplish his self serving goals despite being a recluse who is seldom seen in the public. Apparently, his agents, including his hand picked Prime Minister, Mr. Cellou Dalein Diallo, are able to control things for him.

Needless to say that Guinea is a fragile state that could explode at any moment. This political instability makes it difficult for her to attract foreign investors and the cumulative effect is that the country remains grossly underdeveloped and is one of the poorest in Africa, with a per capita income of only US $460 (World Bank, 2005).

ozodi@africainstituteseattle.org

Posted by Administrator at 11:57 AM | Comments (0)

Ozodi Osuji Weekly Lectures on African Countries #21 of 54: Ghana

by Ozodi Thomas Osuji, Ph.D. (Seatle, Washington) --- 21. GHANA

Formal Name: Republic of Ghana.

Term for Citizens: Ghanaians.

Capital: Accra. Population: 1,925,000.

Independence Achieved: March 6, 1957, from Britain.

Major Cities: Takoradi, Secondi, and Kumasi.

Geography:

Ghana is located in West Africa. It is bounded in the East by Togo, in the West by Ivory Coast, in the North by Burkina Faso and in the South by the Atlantic Ocean. Ghana’s south is in the Guinea coast; the south experiences heavy rainfall and is forested. Mangrove swamps mark the coastal region. The middle section of the country is savanna and the North is semi arid. The total area of Ghana is about 92,456 square miles.

Population:

Ghana’s population is currently estimated to be about 20,922,000. Roughly half of the population lives in urban areas, much of it concentrated in Accra, Takoradi and Kumasi.

Ethnic groups and languages:

The major ethnic groups in Ghana are the Akan peoples; they are composed of the Ashanti, Fante and Twi. The Akan people live primarily in the coastal and forested mid section of the country. Towards the Ivory Coast border are the Agni and Baule people, who are also found in the Ivory Coast. The Ga people live around Accra. The people bordering Togo speak Ewe. The people of Northern Ghana speak the different forms of Moshi-Dagomba language. Towards the border with Burkina Faso are Mamprusi and Dagati speaking groups.

Religion:

Ghana is about 60% Christian, 20% Muslim and the rest a syncretic mixture of African and other religions.

Education:

Primary education is mandatory and compulsory. About 25% of primary school graduates go to secondary schools. Less than 10% of secondary school graduates go to universities. Literacy rate is estimated at 74.8%.

Economy:

Ghana has a private enterprise economy. There is extensive government participation in the economy. About 60% of the population practice subsistence farming. Cash cropping on small plots of land is wide spread. (Cocoa, palm oil, bananas, coffee, maize and yam are the major cash crops.) The industrial sector is gradually taking off, with light manufacturing emphasized. GDP estimate: $42.5; Per Capita GDP: $2, 100. Monetary Unit: Cedi (GHC).

History and Government:

Ghana has a long pre-colonial history. The Ashanti were one of the more established African kingdoms with a centralized government and a king at its head. Beginning in the late fifteenth century, the various European groups established slaving posts at the coastal regions of Ghana. From these “Castles” slaves were exported to the new world. The Coastal peoples of Ghana had extensive contact with Europeans and were one of the first African groups to acquire Western education and initiate the struggle for independence from foreign rule. Ghana was the first black African Country to gain its independence from Europeans. Dr Kwame Nkrumah established the first postcolonial government in Africa in 1957 and was an inspiration for other Africans fighting for their liberation from European rule. Initially, the government of Ghana was modeled after the British, with a House of Representatives, political parties and the majority party forming the government with a prime minister and cabinet. This has since changed into American oriented presidential system of government. Ghana now has an elected president, an elected legislature and an independent judiciary. After a period of military interventions in government, Ghana is today one of the most stable African countries where elections are regularly held, and power smoothly transferred to the party that won the election.

CONTEMPORARY HISTORY AND POLITICS


The name Ghana is derived from the tenth century West African empire called Ghana. The area itself was the home of many African groups, including the Ashanti and Fante.

During the transatlantic slave trading, Europeans built forts on Ghana’s coasts and from there bought slaves to be sold to the new world. Gold was also bought.

In 1874, Ghana, then called the Gold Coast, officially became a British colony. Ghana gained independence from Britain in 1957; she was the first black African country to do so.

Between 1957 and 1966, Kwame Nkrumah, the first President of Ghana, ruled the country. In 1966 were a military coup and thereafter a series of military coups. The last of these military interventions in governance was by flight Lieutenant Jerry Rawlings in 1981.

In 1992, Rawlings wrote a constitution and was elected as a civilian President. He was reelected in 1996 and at the end of his second and final term, according to the new Constitution, relinquished power to his successor, John Kufuor. Mr. Kufuor was reelected in 2004 and all indications are that he would hand over government to a successor. Ghana appears to be on the path to true democracy.

Ghana is divided into ten regions which are in turn subdivided into 138 districts.

John Kufour appears to be managing Ghana’s economy rather well. Whereas subsistence farming still plays a key role in Ghana’s economy, the country appears to be making headways in becoming an industrialized nation. The economy is considered stable enough to attract international investors. The government seems very transparent and corruption is on the decline.

Ghana, of all the West African countries, probably has the most disciplined civil service. The country has produced a number of well known civil servants, including the current Secretary General of the United Nations, Mr. Kofi Annan.

Education is well developed in Ghana; in fact, Ghana, relative to other African countries, has produced many well educated persons. Elementary and junior secondary schooling is free to all children. Senior secondary schooling and university education is available to those who can pay for them. But the most important thing is that education is available and many Ghanaians have access to modern education.

On the whole, Ghana is one of the most stable African countries. The various ethnic groups appear to get along well with each other. However, in 1994/5, there was substantial ethnic unrest in the Northern part of Ghana that resulted in the death of over 1000 persons and the displacement of over 150, 000 persons. Nevertheless, ethnicity does not seem to play a major role in Ghanaian politics, as in some African countries.

The Press in Ghana appears relatively free and not muscled by the government. There is private ownership of many outlets of the media.

The future of Ghana looks bright: with a well educated labor force and non-corrupt leaders, Ghana appears finally poised for economic take off.

ozodi@africainstituteseattle.org

Posted by Administrator at 11:47 AM | Comments (0)

Ozodi Osuji Weekly Lectures on African Countries #20 of 54: Gambia

by Ozodi Thomas Osuji, Ph.D. (Seatle, Washington) --- 20. GAMBIA

Formal Name: Republic of Gambia.

Term for Citizens: Gambians.

Capital: Banjul. Population: 418, 000.

Independence Achieved: February 18, 1965 from Britain.

Major Cities: Banjul.

Geography:

Gambia is in West Africa. Gambia covers an area of about 4, 361 square miles. It is a strip of land along the Gambia River. Gambia is bordered by the Atlantic Ocean and Senegal on three sides. Gambia is generally well watered by the river Gambia. Rainfall, especially along the coast, is over 60 inches annually. This permits subsistence farming. Herding of sheep, goats and cattle is also practiced. There are two seasons, wet and dry.

Society:

Gambia has an estimated population of 1, 426, 000.

Ethnic Groups: Mandingo, Fula, Serahuli, Jola, Diola and Wolof.

Languages: Mandingo, Fulani. English is the official language.

Religion: Muslim 80%, Christian 16%, the rest indigenous beliefs.

Education: Free primary education. Literacy rate is estimated at 40.1 %

Economy: Subsistence farming along the river Gambia. Herding of sheep, goats and cattle. Tourism industry is well developed in Banjul. GDP estimate: $2.6 billion; Per Capita: $290(World Bank, 2005). Monetary Unit: Dalasi (GMD).

History and Government:

Upon independence from Britain, Gambia inherited British type parliamentary system. A military coup disrupted that situation. At the present, there is stability under president Yahya Jammeh. The country is divided into five divisions and one city.

CONTEMPORARY HISTORY AND POLITICS


What is now called Gambia was part of the middle ages successive African empires of Ghana, Songhai and Mali. In that sense, it has been around for quite a while. However, the modern history of Gambia began with the Trans Atlantic slave trade. The various European Countries, at one time or another plied the Gambia River, a river that crosses the middle of Gambia, buying slaves.

Portugal set up shop in 1588 and thereafter was replaced by emergent European sea powers, including, at one time, the Polish (1651-1661).

The British abolished slave trading in 1807 and sent her war ships to patrol the coast of West Africa, indicting ships carrying slaves. The British set up camp at what they called Bathurst, now the capital of Gambia, Banjul. In 1857, Britain officially claimed Gambia and in 1888 Gambia became a British protectorate.

Gambia was not exactly a crown jewel of the British Empire, for it had very little economic resources for Britain to exploit. Most of the land is arid except for the strip of land along river Gambia, where groundnuts are planted. The chief crop of Gambia, to the present, remains groundnuts, a crop whose price fluctuates in the world market.

Not much was heard about Gambia until Britain gave it independence in 1965. Mr. Dawda Jawara was elected the Prime Minister and remained in that office until 1994 when a military coup overthrew him.

The leader of the coup, Lt. Jammeh, became the head of state, and two years later wrote a constitution that called for a strong president, and was promptly elected the president in 1997. He has been in office since then.

Gambia is divided into five divisions, which are further divided into 37 districts and one city, the capital.

The politics of Gambia is the politics of the activities of two men, Mr. Jawara and Mr. Jammeh. These men have managed to make Gambia attractive to European tourists and Gambia’s economy is these days reliant on tourism (and allied vices that go with that industry). As long as the rulers of Gambia maintain peace and tourists keep coming to enjoy her beautiful beaches (Europeans find them as attractive as the beaches of Spain and Portugal), the economy is doing as well. Moreover, Gambians contact with foreigners has made it possible for them to travel to all over the world and repatriate money home and that helps the economy, too.

On the whole, Gambia is doing as well as might be expected of a small country that lacks natural resources.

ozodi@africainstituteseattle.org

Posted by Administrator at 11:31 AM | Comments (0)

Ozodi Osuji Weekly Lectures on African Countries #19 of 54: Gabon

by Ozodi Thomas Osuji, Ph.D. (Seatle, Washington) --- 19. GABON

Formal Name: Republic of Gabon.

Term for Citizens: Gabonese.

Capital: Libreville. Population: 573, 000.

Independence Achieved: August 17, 960, from France.

Major Cities: Libreville.

Geography:

Gabon is in West Africa. Gabon covers 103, 347 square miles. Gabon is bordered by Equatorial Guinea, Cameroon, Congo and the Atlantic Ocean. Gabon lies on the equator. The coastal lands is flat, followed by a rugged higher lands covered by tropical rain forest. The entire country lies in the Ogooue River Basin. Most people in Gabon live along the banks of this river and its tributaries and practice fishing and or farming. Gabon has tropical climate and has two distinct seasons, wet and dry.

Society:

The population of Gabon is estimated to be 1,329,000.

Ethnic Groups: Fang, Bakota, Shira, Adouma, Galoa, Orungu, Enenga, Okande, Seke, Mbede, are the major ethnic groups.

Languages: Fang and other African languages. French is the official language.

Religion: Christianity and indigenous beliefs.

Education: Universal free primary education and junior secondary education. Literacy is estimated at 63%.

Economy: Traditionally, the people farmed their lands and fished. But with the discovery of petroleum the oil industry has become the dominant sector of the economy. Urbanization attracts people to cities, particularly the capital and they engage in non-agricultural trades. The public sector is expanding. GDP estimate: $7 billion; Per Capita GDP: $3940 (World Bank, 2005) Monetary Unit: CFA Franc BEAC (XFA).

History and Government:

Portuguese and Dutch traders visited the coast of Gabon beginning in the fifteenth century. In the 18th century French trading ships began to call on Gabon’s ports. The French annexed the country in the 1880s. Slaves who rebelled in 1849 established Libreville, the capital. Upon independence from France, French presidential democracy was established but soon President Omar Bongo transformed the country into a one-man government. He has been in power since 1967. Opposition leaders are generally severely dealt with and or forced into exile. The country is divided into 9 provinces.

CONTEMPORARY HISTORY AND POLITICS

The earliest people who lived in what is now called Gabon were the Pygmies. The Bantus from West Africa swept into the region during the Bantu expansion. Gabon today is largely composed of Bantu groups, the largest of which is the Fang.

The Europeans made incursions into what is now Gabon during the three hundred years slave era (1500-1800s).

During the last quarter of the nineteenth century, Europe scrambled to colonize Africa and France, in 1885, colonized what is now called Gabon. Gabon was part of French Equatorial Africa until 1959.

In 1961, Gabon gained independence from France and Leon Mba became the first elected President and Albert Bongo was his vice president.

Upon the death of Mr. Mba in 1967, Mr. Bongo became the president. He is still the President, and is Africa’s longest serving president.

Gabon was an insignificant agriculture based economy until oil was discovered off shore. With oil money Gabon took on more geopolitical importance; the French and other Nationals poured in. It is estimated that there are over 10, 000 French men alone in Gabon.

The politics of Gabon is the political behavior of its one man ruler, El Hadj Albert, Bernard Omar Bongo (he converted to Islam in 1973). He structured the government after France’s fifth republican constitution, with a president elected every seven years, a nominal National Assembly and a putative independent judiciary, except that the President essentially determines every thing in Gabon. In 2003, Mr. Bongo amended the constitution to permit him run for office however many times he wants and has been in office a year short of forty years.

Gabon is divided into 9 provinces and 37 departments.

The economy of Gabon is currently based on Petrodollars. As long as oil prices are on the rise, Gabon enjoys a thriving economy, but tends to suffer financial difficulties when oil prices plummet downwards, as was the case during the mid 1980s. At present, Gabon is enjoying plentiful oil revenue. This revenue gives it the opportunity to develop the country. This is enhanced by the fact that Gabon has a small population hence the people can benefit more from the oil revenue than they would if the population is large. Even after pilfering by Bongo and his coterie, enough money is still left for the people of Gabon. Gabon has the highest income per capita in black Africa, US $3940 (World Bank, 2005). Gabon’s population is so small that it imports foreign workers to meet its labor demands. Africans from other countries flock into Gabon for work.

Omar Bongo is an autocrat, no doubt about that. However, he has managed to procure political stability for his country. The ethnic tensions that mark several African countries seem absent in Gabon. This social stability attracts foreign investors to Gabon and currently Gabon is a haven for foreign investors and the economy is thriving. But Bongo obtains this ability by repressing dissent. Though nominally he changed the constitution in the 1990s to permit multi party completion for political offices, but the system is structured in such a manner that his ruling party has the upper hand. Opposition parties often boycott elections for they believe that the outcome of elections are already predetermined before voting. Whether the claims of opposition parties are true or not, the fact is that unless Gabon becomes truly democratic, it would, sooner or later, descend into political Chaos, particularly when the Bongo crowd is finally driven out of office or when their head, Bongo, dies, as he must (he was born in 1935). In the meantime, the government controls the media and makes sure that there is very little opposition to Bongo’s one man rule.

ozodi@africainstituteseattle.org

Posted by Administrator at 11:14 AM | Comments (0)

Ozodi Osuji Weekly Lectures on African Countries #18 of 54: Ethiopia

by Ozodi Thomas Osuji, Ph.D. (Seatle, Washington) --- 18. ETHIOPIA

Term for Citizens: Ethiopians.

Capital: Addis Ababa. Population: 2, 753, 000.

Independence Achieved: Ethiopia is the only African country that was not colonized, though Italy briefly gained a foothold in the land.

Major Cities: Addis Ababa.

Geography:

Ethiopia is in East Africa. It is bounded by Sudan, Somalia, Eritrea, and Kenya. Ethiopia covers an area of 437, 794 square miles. The center of the country is high plateau, through which runs a depression, the Great Rift Valley. The plateau region has mild temperature and is fertile for agriculture. Southeast of the plateau is dry and desert like. Rainfall is very sparse and drought is quiet common.

Society:

The population of Ethiopia is estimated at 74, 678,000.

Ethnic Groups: Ethiopia has many ethnic groups but the major ones are the Amhara, Oromo, Falasha, Danakils, Gallas, Shankils, Somalis, Arabs, Greeks, and Armenians.

Languages: Each of the ethnic groups speaks its own language. The major languages are Amharic, Geez, Arabic and English.

Religion: Ethiopia is evenly divided between Orthodox Christianity and Islam.

Education: Free primary education is available to all children. Literacy rate is estimated at 42.7%.

Economy: The highlands are fertile and people plant crops for subsistence living. Cattle are raised in the semi arid lowlands. Ethiopia is a very poor country with underdeveloped economy. What money there is seemed squandered in endless wars with its neighbors, Eritrea, Djibouti, Somalia, and ideological wars such as the effort to turn the country into a socialist state? GDP estimate: $50.6 billion; Per Capita GDP: US $110 (World Bank, 2005). Monetary Unit: Birr (ETB).

History and Government:

Ethiopia is the only African country without a history of colonial rule. However, Italy did try to colonize Ethiopia, and after major wars withdrew its ambition. For centuries, Amhara groups and their kings who claimed decent from the biblical Queen of Sheba and King Solomon ruled the highlands of Ethiopia. The last of such rulers was Haile Selassie, who was overthrown in 1974. A series of military and socialistic adventurers then ruled Ethiopia. At present, President Zinawi appears to have restored some stability in the country. However, some restive groups, such as the Oromo, seem poised to separate from the country and may generate another round of political instability. The country is divided into 9 regions, and 2 chartered cities.

CONTEMPORARY HISTORY AND POLITICS

Ethiopia is the pride of black Africa, for it is the only African country that was not ruled by foreign powers, except during a five year interregnum, 1936-1941, when Italy occupied it, and even then, the Ethiopians waged a vigorous war, and with the aid of the British saw the defeat of Italy, a first for an African country. (Africans are so proud of Ethiopia that they selected her as the headquarters of their Africa Union; Ethiopia is a symbol of black people’s independence.)

The history of Ethiopia is long, going as far back as the tenth century BC. However, the ascertainable history of Ethiopia began a century before the Birth of Christ, with the rise of the kingdom of Axum.

In the fourth century AD, Ethiopia was converted to Christianity and has remained so since. However, in 616 AD, some followers of Prophet Mohammed came to Ethiopia, that is, during the life time of the Prophet, and Islam has flourished in parts of Ethiopia ever since. Christianity and Islam have coexisted in Ethiopia.

Ethiopia moved along until its encounter with modern European states. The rulers of Ethiopia, being a Christians, embraced Christian Europe, and the latter supplied their armies with weapons for their ceaseless wars with their neighbors. Indeed, the Catholic Church sent in missionaries who began converting Ethiopians to Roman Christianity until the resentment of the local Coptic Christianity led to conflicts, conflicts that were resolved when foreign missionaries were banned from Ethiopia.

In 1882, Italy tried to colonize Ethiopia and the two countries waged their first war. A peace treaty signed between Italy and Ethiopia in 1896 affirmed Ethiopia’s independence.

The early 20th century Ethiopian history was the history of its emperor, Haile Selassie. He successfully fought off Italy in the 1930s (1936-1941) and with the aid of the British defeated Italy in 1941. The defeat of a European power by an African power, sort of (Ethiopians are mostly Semitic whereas Africans are Negroid) led blacks in the Caribbean’s to adopt Hailie Selassie as their god. The Raftarians movement in Jamaica saw Hailie Selassie as their savior, their Jesus Christ.

Haile Salassie ruled Ethiopia until 1974 when Hailie Mengistu Mariam and his socialist band won control of Ethiopia. These socialists formed a revolutionary ruling council called the “Derg”, and proceeded to nationalize just about everything in Ethiopia. They formed alliance with the Soviet Union and became a Soviet outpost in the horn of Africa.

The United States, perhaps, not to be outdone, after all this was during the cold war era, aligned with Somalia and encouraged the later to attack Ethiopia, and in 1977 the war between Ethiopia and Somalia, supposedly over the Ogaden, a Somali speaking part of Ethiopia, began. America supplied weapons and money to Somalia and the USSR armed Ethiopia. The proxy war between the two superpowers devastated the economy of both Somalia and Ethiopia. Ethiopia had to devote a considerable part of her already meager resources to military purposes. And this enhanced military spending was in the face of famine and starvation in Ethiopia.

Mengistu’s high handed ruling led to opposition to his rule. The various ethnic groups that constitute Ethiopia have traditionally hated the ruling Amhara group. These groups formed militias or armies and started a war against the government of Mengistu. In 1991, these groups finally chased Mengistu out of office and into exile.

In 1993, after a referendum, Eritrea was permitted to secede from Ethiopia. What was left of Ethiopia was reorganized along ethnic lines.

The emergent Meles Zenawi government divided Ethiopia along its ethnic make up: Afar, Amhara, Benishangul-Gumaz, Gambela, Harari, Oromia, Somali, Tigray and Southern Nations. These nine ethnically based regions appear to have, more or less, effectively addressed the ethnic problem that bedeviled Ethiopia. Each region governs itself and levies taxes to do so, but sends representatives to the national government to address their common issues.

Zenawi appears a very realistic and pragmatic new breed of African politician. He was reelected in 2000 and in 2005 (although the later election was challenged by losing opposition parties, who alleged rigging; investigation by both domestic and international organizations did not seem to corroborate the allegation of rigging, so the election holds).

Ethiopia remains a very poor country. The economy is dependent on agricultural produce, such as coffee. Agriculture employs over 80% of the labor force, and generates over 41 percent of the gross domestic product. The income per capita of Ethiopia is US $110 (World Bank, 2005).

Mr. Zenawi appears a breed of realistic politicians that is beginning to emerge in Africa. These politicians understand the need to give the various ethnic groups constituting their countries relative autonomy; if they are to have internal peace and tranquility. He was one of the architects of the 1994 constitution that made Ethiopia over into a Federal Democratic Republic, real Federalism, with each ethnic group essentially semi autonomous, and grouping of the small ethnic groups into a region that they collectively have control over.

Finally, the Zenawi government has instituted freedom of the Press and allowed privately owned newspapers (as opposed to the nationalization of the media by the Mengistu government). One the whole, whereas there is still some subtle repression of the Press, Zenawi, after all was a Marxist-Leninist who, though he has turned a new leaf, is now a capitalist-democratic, is still aware of how the old Leninist apparatchiki worked, and applies it when it suits his desires. During the demonstrations following allegations of rigged elections, several people were shot to death and hundreds arrested and sent to prison camps, where they are still languishing. Old Stalinists seldom become totally (Thomas) Jeffersonian democrats. A loaf of bread, however, is better than none.

ozodi@africainstituteseattle.org

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Ozodi Osuji Weekly Lectures on African Countries #17 of 54: Eritrea

by Ozodi Thomas Osuji, Ph.D. (Seatle, Washington) --- 17. ERITREA

Formal Name: Republic of Eritreaa.

Term for Citizens: Eritrean.

Capital: Asmara. Population: 503,000.

Independence Achieved: May 24, 1993 from Ethiopia.

Major Cities: Asmara.

Geography:

Eritrea is in northeast Africa, the horn of Africa. Eritrea covers a land area of 46, 842 square miles. Eritrea, until recently, was part of Ethiopia, the northern tip of it. Ethiopia, Sudan, Djibouti and Somalia and the red Sea border Eritrea. The country is mostly grassland and mostly dry. The coastal regions tend to have enough rainfall to encourage subsistence farming (corn, sorghum). Herding sheep, goats and cattle is a major economic activity.

Society:

The population of Eritrea is estimated at 4,141,000.

Ethnic Groups: Eritrea, Tigray, Arabs.

Languages: Eritrean.

Religion: Eritrea is evenly divided between Christians and Muslims.

Education: Primary education is available to all children. Literacy rate is estimated at less than 58.6%.

Economy: Subsistence farming and herding are the primary economic activities. Eritrea has just concluded a brushing war for its independence from Ethiopia and is currently devastated and very poor. Its economic infrastructure is grossly underdeveloped. GDP estimate: $3.3 billion; Per Capita: $180. Monetary Unit: Nakfa (ERN)

History and Government:

Eritrea was until recently part of Ethiopia, as part of Ethiopia’s Northern province. Prior to absorption into Ethiopia, it was ruled by Italy. Eritrea’s location on the Red sea had made it a land where many cultures and faiths met, Christianity and Islam for example. People from different religious communities battle for power and control of the country, and the result is conflict between the combatants. At present, after winning its war with Ethiopia, Eritrea appears stable. The government is a strong quasi-military democratic one. The country is divided into six regions.


CONTEMPORARY HISTORY AND POLITICS


Eritrea has a long history, and along with Ethiopia, is one of the longest in black Africa. For our present purposes, however, we can start with her modern history.

The Ottoman Turks occupied parts of what is now called Eritrea in 1557. In one form or another, the Turks were in control of Eritrea’s Red Sea ports for three hundred years.

The late nineteenth century was the era of European scramble for the control of Africa. In 1885, Italy purchased a sea port in Eritrea and subsequently occupied much of the country. The Italians remained the colonial power occupying Eritrea until 1941 when the British displaced them and Eritrea became a British protectorate.

After the Second World War, Eritrea became a United Nation’s trust territory. But Ethiopia claimed ownership of Eritrea. A negotiated settlement between Ethiopia and Eritrean nationalists, who were clamoring for independence, resulted with Ethiopia agreeing to form a federation with Eretria in 1952. In 1960, Ethiopia annexed Eritrea and Eritreans declared a war of independence with Ethiopia that lasted thirty years.

The Eritrean Liberation Front (drawing mainly from the Moslem part of Eretria) and the Eritrean People’s Liberation Front (drawing mainly from the Christian part of Eritrea) joined forces with rebellious Ethiopian forces fighting against the Marxists-Leninists Mengistu Haile Mariam government of Ethiopia.

In 1991, these combined forces chased Mengistu out of Ethiopia and into exile in Zimbabwe. In 1993, a referendum conducted by both Ethiopia and Eritrea had Eritrea overwhelmingly vote for independence from Ethiopia and thus Eritrea became independent and the leader of EPLP, Isaias Afewerki, became the leader of Eretria.

A new constitution was drawn and a National Assembly of 150 members was elected, all from the same party, EPLF, and they elected Afewerki the President of Eritrea.

A new election scheduled for 1997 was canceled and another election scheduled for 2001 was also postponed. In that same year, 2001, the Afewerki government restricted freedom of the Press. Essentially, Afewerki became another African undemocratic leader.

In the meantime, Eritrea has on-going border settlement issues with its neighbors, particularly Ethiopia. In 1998, a border war erupted between the two countries, a war that lasted until 2000 and saw the death of thousands on both sides of the border. At present, a United Nation’s peace keeping force is separating the two countries, and every indication is that without that force they would resort to a shooting war. Eritrea also has border wars with Yemen, across the Red sea, and border disputes with Somalia.

Eretria is divided into six regions which are further subdivided into 55 districts.

Much of the economy of Eretria is based on Agriculture. Eritrea is very poor; her income per capita is $180 a year. Eritrea depends on foreign aid to feed most of its population.

Ozodi@africainstituteseattle.org

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May 23, 2006

Ozodi Osuji Weekly Lectures on African Countries #16 of 54: Equatorial Guinea

by Ozodi Thomas Osuji, Ph.D. (Seatle, Washington) --- 16. EQUATORIAL GUINEA

Formal Name: Republic of Equatorial Guinea.

Terms for Citizens: Equatorial Guineans.

Capital: Malabo. Population: 33,000.

Independence Achieved: October 12, 1968, from Spain.

Major Cities: Malabo, in Fernando Poo/Bioko.

Geography:

Equatorial Guinea is in West Africa. Equatorial Guinea covers an area of 10, 831 square miles. Bioko Island is off the coast of the mainland, Rio Muni, on the West African Coast. The country is bordered by Gabon, Cameroon and the Atlantic Ocean. Bioko originated in volcanic eruptions. Rio Muni’s topography is mangrove swamps and low plain of forested lands following it.

Society:

The population of Equatorial Guinea is 521,000.

Ethnic Groups: Fang 80%, Bubi 10% and others.

Languages: Spanish and French and others.

Religion: 90% Roman Catholic and the remainder indigenous African religions believers.

Education: Primary Education is available to all children. Literacy rate is estimated at 85.7%.

Economy: Chief crops: cocoa, coffee, peanuts, sweet potatoes, corn, yams, cassava, Fishing; saw milling, and plantation farming. Uranium and natural gas are mined. Since oil was discovered, it is increasing becoming the dominant industry and money generator. GDP estimate: $1.3 billion; Per Capita: $930 (World Bank, 2005). Monetary Unit: CFA Franc BEAC (XAF).

History and Government:

The country is divided into seven provinces for administrative purposes. It has witnessed a series of military coupes and the rule of strong men. A prime minister assists the President.



CONTEMPORARY HISTORY AND POLITICS

The original people of the area now called Equatorial Guinea were the Pygmies. The Pygmies were displaced by Bantu peoples from West Africa. The Fang, a Bantu group, with over 80% of the population, are the dominant group in Equatorial Guinea.

The Portuguese came to the area in the fifteenth century and later were displaced by the Spaniards. These Europeans had a strong presence in Equatorial Guinea; particularly on the Islands that constitute the economic hub of the country, such as Fernando Poo (now called Bioko island; the capital, Malabo, is on that Island).

People from many parts of West Africa, particularly Igbos, were drawn to work in the coffee and cocoa plantations of Fernando Poo. Thus, there are considerable foreign peoples in Equatorial Guinea, people who have mixed with the local population to constitute present day people of Equatorial Guinea.

Spain gave Equatorial Guinea independence in 1968. Since then, two Presidents, both from the same family have ruled the country. First was President Francisco Marcias Nguema, who was put to death by his cousin, now, President Teodoro Obiang Nguema Mbasogo, after a military coup in 1979. Mr. Obiang, as he is called, is still in office since 1979.

In the 1990s oil was discovered in Equatorial Guinea. This changed the dynamics of politics in the country as foreign powers were suddenly interested in the hitherto sleepy agricultural economy. The economic and political big boys of the West descended on Malabo and things began to get a bit heated. In 2004, the son of the former British Prime Minister, Margaret Thatcher, Denis Thatcher, reportedly participated in an attempt to overthrow the government of Obiang.

Equatorial Guinea is divided into seven provinces. Nominally, there is the facade of democracy: a legislature, Supreme Court, a prime minister appointed by the President who supposedly governs the day to day affairs of the country. But, in fact, the President micro manages the politics and economy of Equatorial Guinea, including deciding who is appointed a minister and how long he or she serves. This man and his uncle, the one he killed, are dictators and to escape their brutal rule refugees flee to neighboring African countries.

The economy of Equatorial Guinea is now driven by revenue from oil. As in other African countries, however, that money is fretted away in corruption. Obiang, indeed, keeps figures on revenue from oil a state secret, perhaps, so as to better do with it as he feels? Mr. Obiang is reportedly one of the worst dictators in black Africa. Opposition to Mr. Obiang is destroyed. In a recent election, opposition was forced to withdraw from challenging Mr. Obiang and he was said to have won 99% of the votes.

Equatorial Guinea is one of those one man ruled countries. As long as the ruler appears to be strong he keeps opposition in check, and there appears stability in the country. But as in such matters, other folks eye the government and would like to chop off the head of the current dictator and take over the government. Thus, nobody knows what is going to happen the next day in the dictatorate of Equatorial Guinea.

Ozodi@africainstituteseattle.org

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Ozodi Osuji Weekly Lectures on African Countries #15 of 54: Egypt

by Ozodi Thomas Osuji, Ph.D. (Seatle, Washington) --- 15. EGYPT Formal name: Arab Republic of Egypt.

Term for Citizens: Egyptians.

Capital: Cairo. Population: 9,586, 000.

Independence Achieved: 1951, from Britain.

Major Cities: Alexandria, Cairo.

Geography:

Egypt is in Northeast Africa. It is bordered by Israel, Sudan, Libya and the Mediterranean Sea. Egypt encompasses approximately 385,662 square miles. The topography is divided into four regions: Nile Valley and Delta. 99% of the population live here), Western Desert, Eastern Desert and Sinai Peninsular. There is moderate rainfall along the Mediterranean coast, and arid interior. Mild winters (November to April) and very hot summers (May to October).

Society:

The population is estimated at 74, 931,000 and mostly concentrated along the banks of the lower Nile and the Mediterranean coast.

Ethnic Groups:

Arabs are the dominant group. Greeks, Nubians, Armenians and Berbers are also present in considerable numbers.

Language: Arabic. The educated class tends to also speak English.

Religion: Over 90% Sunni Muslim; 9% Coptic Christians and 1% other Christians.

Education: Free elementary education. Literacy rate is about 57.7%.

Economy: Agriculture is the largest sector of the economy, with a nascent industrial sector. GDP estimate: $268; Per Capita GDP: $1,310 (world Bank, 2005). Monetary Unit: Pound (EGP).

History and Government:

Egypt has a long history spanning over five thousand years. The legendary Egypt of the Pharos, however, is not today’s Egypt. After Mohammed (570-622 AD) formed the religion of Islam, his followers swept into many lands, including taking over North Africa. The Arabs and their Islamic religion transformed Egypt into what it is today. There was an interregnum of Turkish (Ottoman) rule and European rule, but essentially today’s Egypt is an Islamic republic. The Arabs got rid of their last foreign rulers, Europeans, in 1951. A military coupe in 1952 got rid of king Farouk and established a secular government in Egypt. Egypt has a very strong presidential government. That government is a continuation of Gamal Nasser’s 1952 military coup against King Farouk. In effect, Egypt has a military dominated non-democratic government. President Hosni Mubarak has been in office since 1981, he took office when some fundamentalist Muslims assassinated his predecessor, President Anwar Sadat. There is tension between the quasi-military rulers and the fundamentalist Muslims who agitate to impose theocratic government on Egypt. The result is a tendency for the government to suppress the Islamists while at the same time allowing them to absorb frustrated unemployed persons. Religion is often where frustrated persons give vent to their paint up anger, this time redirected to Western countries. Egypt is divided into 26 regions with governors appointed for each by the president.


CONTEMPORARY HISTORY AND POLITICS
Egypt is an ancient country with a long history that cannot be reviewed in a few lines. Let us just observe that in the seventh century that victorious Arab Moslems swept into what is now called Egypt and began their rule. Thereafter, Egypt was converted to Islam and to speaking of the Arabic language and is now considered an Arab country. Indeed, Egypt is considered the headquarters of the Arab world.

In 1517 Egypt was conquered by the Ottoman Turks who ruled her until the coming of the Europeans. The various European countries, at one time or another, made their presence felt in Egypt, Napoleon, for example, landed his troops in Egypt, and the French constructed the Suez Canal in 1869, but it was in the late 1800s that Egypt officially became a European colony. Apparently, Egypt owed Great Britain a lot of money, and the British had invested heavily in Egypt and feared loss of their investments and to protect their investments Britain invaded and colonized Egypt in 1882.

Britain ruled Egypt through the Second World War, although the Egyptians were given nominal self rule within the British Empire. In 1952, there was a military coup that overthrew the king of Egypt, King Farouk. In 1953, Egypt was declared a republic and Gamal Abdel Nasser began his rule, a rule that lasted through 1970 when he died while in office.

During Nasser’s rule, Egypt had several wars with Israel including in 1956, 1967. In 1956, fearing the radical rule of Nasser, Britain and her allies seized the Suez Canal and provoked an international crisis. The opposition of the United States prevented an out right war from breaking out between the Europeans and the Arabs.

Nasser attempted to form what he called a United Arab Republic with some Arab countries, beginning with Syria. These did not pan out. Nasser died and was replaced by Anwar Sadat, another military General.

Under Anwar Sadat the Arabs launched a war against the Israelis in 1973 and were defeated. Thereafter, Sadat changed sides, from being a supporter of the USSR to being the ally of the United States of America. In 1979 Sadat signed a peace treaty with Israel and Egypt recognized Israel and got Sinai back from Israeli occupation.

The signing of peace treaty with Israel and the recognition of Israel did not sit well with nationalist Arabs and pro-Palestinian Muslims. Sadat was assassinated in 1981 and was replaced by another military General, Hosni Mubarak. Mubarak has been in office since 1981.

Essentially, Egypt is ruled by the military. However, in 2005 Mubarak made a show of tolerating Democracy and for the first time said that he was going to permit many parties to compete in the elections. But he proceeded to make it difficult for opposition candidates to register and challenge him and was, of course, declared the winner of the presidential election. Let us not be detained by this sham show of democracy. What we have in Egypt is the rule by the military in civilian uniform. The president appoints a prime minister and other ministers and has the ability to remove from office whomever he chooses to remove; hence Egypt is ruled by a strong man.

Egypt is divided into 26 governorates (regions with governors ruling them). These regions are controlled by the central government.

All Egyptian males over the age of 18 are required to serve in the military, although they can defer their military service if they are in school but must serve by age 28.


The military rule of Egypt has seen some economic development of the country, including the construction of the Aswan High Dam in 1971. The signing of the peace accord with Israel brought financial support from the United States and guaranteed the inflow of foreign capital from the West. Last year alone, $2.2 billion dollars of American aid came to Egypt. (To put that amount in perspective, consider that during the same period, all of black Africa, over 500 million persons, received about $250 million in American foreign aid.)

By African standards, Egypt is doing well economically but by Western standards she is a backward country. The income per capita of the 77 million Egyptians is US $1310 a year. Many Egyptians irk out marginal living from farming, which is done mostly along the banks of River Nile (the rest of the country is arid).

Interestingly, the original Egyptians tend to be found in rural farm areas, as the Fellahin, while their Arab conquerors tend to be concentrated in the cities, particularly around Cairo region. It is estimated that about 60% of Egypt is composed of descendants of original Egyptians. The ruling class of contemporary Egypt is of Arab origin.

Egypt is a strong ally of the Americans. Therefore, Americans seem to look the other way rather than insist that pure democracy prevail in Egypt. Moreover, it is evident that if democratic elections were held that the result might not be to the likings of the Americans. The recent democratic election in Palestine that saw the victory of Hamas may not be what the West desires. Such an election in Egypt may result in coming to power of fundamentalist Muslims who are hostile to the West. Therefore, the West seems to condone the rule of undemocratic elements in the Arab world, provided that these elements support it. Thus, the continued rule of the Mubarak government.

The military rulers of Egypt are noted for their repression of decent. However, these days they seem to be increasingly permitting free press, up to a point, any way. As it were, they feel it fit to keep a strong lid on fundamentalist Muslims who would like to move Egypt into a theocratic form of government with Sharia, Muslim law, as their preferred jurisprudence. Nevertheless, the media seem to be alive and thriving in Egypt; they self censor and do not go to any “no-go areas” and if they do, well, they become unemployed or worse.

Ozodi@africainstituteseasttle.org

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Ozodi Osuji Weekly Lectures on African Countries #14 of 54: Djibouti

by Ozodi Thomas Osuji, Ph.D. (Seatle, Washington) --- 14. DJIBOUTI

Formal Name: Republic of Djibouti.

Term for Citizens: Djibouti.

Capital: Djibouti. Population: 542,000.

Independence Achieved: June 27, 1977, from France.

Major Cities: Djibouti.


Geography:

Djibouti is in northeast Africa. Djibouti is 8, 880 square miles. Djibouti is on the Horn of Africa, a tiny sliver of land. Djibouti is bordered by the Gulf of Aden, Somalia and Ethiopia. The land is mostly plain and some highlands in the west. Plant life is scarce. In the semi arid area, goats and camels are raised. Temperature sometimes exceed 120.F. Rainfall is rare and less than five inches annually.

Society:

The population of Djibouti is estimated to be 703, 000.

Ethnic Groups: Afar, Issa, Somali, Arab, and Europeans.

Languages: Afar, Somali, Arabic, and French.

Religion: Muslim and Christian are evenly represented in the population.

Education: Primary education is available to all. Literacy is estimated at less than 67.9%.

Economy: Evaporated pools of water leave salt. This salt has traditionally been traded with people surrounding Djibouti, such as Ethiopians, Somalis and others. Sheep, camels and goats herding is still a primary industry. The area has traditionally been an important trade route between Arab States and Africa. GDP estimate: $619 million; Per Capita GDP: $1,030. Monetary Unit: Franc (DJF).


History and Government:

This tiny country on the horn of Africa is made up of the Afars and Issas. The French claimed rule over Djibouti, reportedly to counter British influence in the area. The French built a seaport at Djibouti between 1887 and 1917. The French first called their small colony French Somaliland but in the 1967 changed its name to the French territory of Afar and Issas. Upon independence, the people opted for the name of Djibouti. The main ethnic groups: Afar, Issas and Somali work out power sharing arrangement. However, tension exists among the ethnic groups, and occasionally flares up in violence and bloodshed. The country is divided into 5 districts. A president rules the country.


CONTEMPORARY HISTORY AND POLITICS

Djibouti is a small country on the horn of Africa. It is composed of two major groups: the Issas and the Afars. The Issas are of Somali origin and the Afars are of Ethiopian origin. These two groups traditionally warred among themselves.
In the nineteenth Century, Europe got involved with the Horn of Africa, first the Italians and later the French. The area was colonized by the French as The French Colony of Issas and Afars.
In 1977, France gave the country independence, and the country renamed itself the Republic of Djibouti, from the name of its capital.
The Issas, Somalis, are in the majority (60%) and have been in control of the government from independence to the present. Indeed, the same family has been in control of the government from independence to the present. First, was President Hassan Gouled Aptidon, who, in 1999, was replaced in office by his cousin, President Guelleh. It runs in the family. In an election, in 2005, Guelleh essentially prevented opposition candidates from competing and was said to have been returned to office by 100% of the electorate!
The Afars section of the country has been in intermittent conflicts with the Issas. In the 1990s there was overt civil war which was concluded when the Issas dominated government co-opted the leaders of the Afars militia into the government and made their leader the prime minister.

Djibouti does not have economic resources of any significance. Its primary source of income is its strategic location. It is at the crossroads of the Arab world and Africa. Traditionally, trade between Africa and Arabia flowed through Djibouti. In the present, Djibouti’s ports are from where landlocked African countries like Ethiopia ship their goods overseas. Djibouti charges these countries fees for shipping their goods for them.

Djibouti’s location makes it of strategic interest to Western powers. France stations thousands of its troops at Djibouti. The United States of America stations thousands of its troops at Djibouti. American war ships operating in the Indian Ocean and the Persian Gulf operate from Djibouti. These foreign military personnel pay the Djibouti government money for utilizing her territory. The country maintains strategic alliance with the West and the West finds its leaders, undemocratic as they are, convenient and prop them in office.

Over 80% of the population of Djibouti lives in the capital region. The rest of the people live in the county side, irking out a living from herding goads etc. Fruits are occasionally planted in the few arable lands in the mostly arid country. The country has no known economic resource and does well providing a heaven for international trade between Eastern Africa and the Arab world, and now, the Western world. Djibouti’s income per capita is US $1, 030 (World Bank, 2005).

Djibouti’s politics is of critical interest to Ethiopia since the later ships its goods through her seaports and without them would be cut off from world trade. It is, therefore, understandable why Ethiopia (as well as Somalia) meddles in Djibouti’s politics. Real politics requires Djibouti’s landlocked neighbors to be interested in who governs the country. Thus, balancing the various domestic and foreign interest groups interested in who governs this small country is a must for Djibouti’s leaders.

Ozodi@africainstituteseattle.org

Posted by Administrator at 09:16 AM | Comments (0)

May 18, 2006

Ozodi Osuji Weekly Lectures on African Countries #13 of 54: Congo (Kinshasa)

by Ozodi Thomas Osuji, Ph.D. (Seatle, Washington) --- 13. CONGO-Kinshasa

Formal Name: Democratic Republic of Congo.
Editor's Note: (During the reign of Mobutu (1965-1997), Congo (Kinshasa) was renamed Zaire. Laurent Kabila took power in 1997 and renamed the country Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC)

Term for Citizens: Congolese.

Capital: Kinshasa. Population: 5, 064, 000.

Date of Independence: June 30, 1960, from Belgium.

Major Cities: Lubumbashi, Kinshasa.

Geography:

Congo is located in South West Africa. Angola, Cong-Brazzaville, Rwanda, Uganda, Sudan and Central African Republic border it. Congo is the second largest country in sub-Saharan Africa with an area of 905, 567 square miles. Congo is in the heart of the rain forest belt of the world. However, savanna, grasses and woodlands cover its north and south. There are numerous lakes and rivers. The eastern part has high mountains, some rising well over 5000 meters. The climate is tropical with wet and dry seasons. Average annual temperature is 25.C.

Society:

The population is estimated at 56,000,000.

Ethnic Groups: It is estimated that there are well over 250 ethnic groups, but most of them are Bantu speaking. The largest groups are the Luba, Kongo, Mongo and Lunda.

Languages: French is the official language. Each of the ethnic groups speaks its own language. Four languages are given official status: Kikongo, Tshiluba, Lingala, and Kiswahili.

Religion: Christians 82%, Indigenous 16%, and Muslims 2%.

Education: About 80% of elementary age children go to school. About 25% of secondary age children go to secondary school. Adult literacy rate is estimated at 96.6%.

Economy: Congo is rich with minerals and natural resources. But its economic infrastructure is grossly underdeveloped. GDP estimated: $34 billion; Per Capita GDP: $120. Monetary Unit: Franc (CDF)

History and Government:

King Leopold of Belgium, in the 19th century took over the Congo as his private plantation. He undertook to work the people as slaves to produce rubber and other natural resources for him. He grew wealthy from treating Africans in a very inhumane manner. His cruelty towards Africans was such that he was forced by international outcry to relinquish control to the Belgium government. The later saw it fit not to develop education infrastructure in the Congo. Thus, upon independence in 1960, only a handful of persons had college education. Congo descended into chaos. The elected Prime Minister, Patrice Lumumba, was assassinated. His rivals, Moise Tshombe and Joseph Kasavubu, for a while, ruled. A military coupe led by Joseph Desire Mobutu removed the warring civilians from office. Mobutu ruled as a tyrant until 1997, when Laurent Kabila chased him out of office. When the later died, his son, Joseph Kabila, took over, and is the current unelected president. Congo has a strong presidential system of government. Mobutu Sese Seko ruled the country as if it were his personal property. Things have not improved much since he left office. The various ethnic groups jockey for power and whoever has strong hands reins them in. When authoritarian hands are missing the various ethnic groups seek to dismantle the huge real estate called Congo. Indeed, Congo’s neighbors have their eyes on its natural resources and often interfere in Congo’s internal politics, to get whatever they could from the country. Chaos still characterizes Congo. The country is divided into twenty five administrative regions.



CONTEMPORARY HISTORY AND POLITICS


The area now known as the Democratic Republic of Congo was originally inhabited by the Pygmies. When the Bantus spread out from West Africa, they swept into this region and eventually mixed with the pygmies and, later, with other groups, primarily groups from Darfur and other parts of present day Sudan that moved into the area. Gradually, a Bakongo people emerged and established an empire that encompassed present day Gabon, Central African Republic, Congo Republic, Democratic Republic of Congo and Angola. That powerful empire established wonderful trading routes that stretched from the Atlantic Ocean to the Indian Ocean on the East Coast of Africa. Unfortunately, with the coming of Arabs and Europeans, that empire degenerated into selling Africans into slavery, to the Arab world and to the Americas.

With the collapse of the Atlantic Slave trade in the nineteenth century, the Bakongo Empire disintegrated. During the last quarter of the nineteenth century, the King of Belgium, Leopold, engaged Stanley to explore the region now known as the Congo and eventually laid claim to it as his private property. He brutalized the natives and the public outcry against that brutalization eventually led to his transfer of the governing of the Congo to the Belgium government in 1908. The later seemed to have improved the lot of the Congolese a bit.
During the 1950s, a small cadre of Africans was sufficiently educated in European ways (evolues) to begin to demand that they be allowed to participate in the governing of their country. In 1960, without preparing the country for self rule, Belgium abruptly gave independence to the country and Patrice Lumumba was elected the first prime minister.

Right from the get go, Congo descended into conflicts. The President of the Congo, Joseph Kasavubu, sacked the prime minister and the premier of mineral rich Katanga province, Moise Tshombe, declared secession from the Country. The Army, under Colonel Joseph Desire, got involved, kidnapped and eventually killed Lumumba. The United Nations sent an African peace keeping army to the Congo but that not withstanding, several attempts at governing the country failed and in 1965 Joseph Mobutu declared himself the President of Congo. He ruled until 1997 when Laurent Kabila’s rebel forces, with the aid of Rwanda and Uganda, chased him out of power.

Mobutu’s reign was allegedly the most corrupt rule in even Africa. At one point, Mobutu was alleged to have over five billion dollars stashed away in foreign banks. This man, apparently, saw the country as his private property and made use of the country’s resources as he saw fit.

Congo is a vast country, the third largest in Africa. It is composed of many ethnic groups (some estimate them to be at 250, with four major ones). Groups not affiliated with Mobutu’s tribe resented his rule, and civil strife became the standard faire of the country. But as long as Mobutu presented himself as a friend of the West, particularly America (which obtained its uranium for exploding the first atomic bomb from the Congo), America supported the repressive regime of Mobutu. But with the end of the cold war, Congo was no longer of strategic importance to America. America had no more need to prop a corrupt African thief in office and, thus, Mobutu, the great thief of the Congo, was swept out of office by Kabila’s forces in 1997, and died ignominiously, as is mostly the case with Africa’s tin can dictators.

The allies of Kabila soon turned against him and the surrounding countries jumped on board to divide the spoils of war. Angola, Uganda, Rwanda, Zimbabwe and others aligned themselves with the various parities fighting for the control of the sprawling country called Congo. In 2001, Kabila was killed in an unsuccessful coup and his son, Joseph Kabila, was propped into office by the faction that thwarted the coup.
Young Joseph Kabila, he was barely thirty years old, surprised all by calling for a negotiated peace settlement of the civil war that has killed over 3 million Congolese.

In 2005, Joseph Kabila wrote a new constitution that divided the country along its ethnic lines; making each of the twenty five regions semiautonomous. The constitution was approved by the people. A national election is scheduled on April 29 to elect a new President.
Joseph Kabila appears to have brought some semblance of peace in the Congo, except the eastern part of the country where lawless militia groups still roam around, causing havoc in the county side, killing whoever they deem not supportive of their cause. The United Nations has a peace keeping presence in Eastern Congo; nevertheless, what obtains in the country is fragile peace.

Congo is a classic African case where incompetent leaders are finding it difficult to meld the various ethnic groups into a sense of nationhood. Most of these leaders are corrupt and, apparently, have failed in building a sense of nationhood in their population. Kabila seems on the right track in recognizing that each of the ethnic groups, particularly the large ones, must have some sort of autonomy to rule itself while sending representatives to a national government that looked after their joint affairs. There is simply no way peace can exist in the Congo, or any other African country, if some tribes feel oppressed by others. Let us then hope that Joseph Kabila will succeed in his endeavors.

Despite Congo’s enormous economic resources, she remains one of the poorest countries in the world. Her income per capita is US $120 (World Bank, 2006).

Kabila has loosened the grip on the media that Mobutu initiated. Criticism of the government is now permitted, but whether those criticisms are listened to is a different matter. However, media freedom is limited because the various militia groups do not necessarily take marching orders from Kinshasa and do as they please; including arresting, even killing journalists, in areas that they control.

The success of Congo Democratic Republic is the success of all African countries, for her problems is a microcosm of African countries problems: the conglomeration of many ethnic groups in a polity, groups that do not have cultural affinity hence are in constant conflict with one another. The Africa Union and other international organizations are working very hard to make Congo a success case.


Ozodi@africainstituteseattle.org

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Ozodi Osuji Weekly Lectures on African Countries #12 of 54: Congo (Brazzaville)

by Ozodi Thomas Osuji, Ph.D. (Seatle, Washington) --- 12. CONGO-Brazzaville)

Formal Name: People’s Republic of the Congo.

Term for Citizens: Congolese.

Capital: Brazzaville. Population: 1, 360,000.

Independence Achieved: August 5, 1960, from France.

Major Cities: Stanley, Brazzaville.

Geography:

Congo-Brazzaville is in South West Africa. Congo-Kinshasa, Equatorial Guinea, Gabon, and Central African Republic border it. Congo Brazzaville has an area of 132, 047 square miles. It has four natural regions: Coastal plain, Niari Valley in the central area, which contains most of the fertile soil, Central highlands of plateaus and rolling plains, and Congo Basin composed of dense equatorial forest and in its upper region, savanna. The climate is tropical with two well-defined seasons, wet and dry. The rainy season is from April to October and the dry season is from November to March.

Society:

The population of Congo Brazzaville is estimated at 3,724,000. The heaviest concentrations of people are in the South of the country. About 50% of the population lives in urban areas (mainly at Brazzaville, by Stanley Pool, right opposite Kinshasha, the capital of The Democratic Republic of the Congo.

Ethnic Groups: There are many ethnic groups, most of whom are Bantu, and speak the Bantu languages of Lingala and Monokutuba.

Languages: Lingala and Monokutuba. French is the official language.

Religion: 70% Christian, 2% Muslim and the rest indigenous beliefs.

Education: Elementary education is free and compulsory, scant secondary school attendance and even scantier university level education. Literacy rate is estimated at 65.5%.

Economy: Agriculture plays more than 60% role in the economy. Timber harvesting is a key sector of the commercial economy. Potassium chloride mining is a growing part of the manufacturing economy. GDP estimate: $2.5 billion; Per Capita GDP: $770. Monetary Unit: CFA Franc BEAC (XAF)

History and Government:

Congo was colonized by France and gained its independence in 1960. The country’s government is modeled after the French but the president tends to be the strongest of the three branches of government. Congo has had periods of political instability and military intervention in government but seems to be stabilizing. The country is divided into ten administrative regions, and six communes, each under the authority of a government commissioner; the regions are further subdivided into districts and towns.


CONTEMPORARY HISTORY AND POLITICS


The history of modern Republic of Cong (aka Congo Brazzaville) began with the French explorer, Brazza, in the late nineteenth century. Of course, prior to him, there were people living in that real estate. The first known people living there were the Pygmy. The Pygmy were later displaced by the various Bantus tribes.

The Bantus formed the Bakongo Empire that stretched from present day Gabon to the Republic of Congo, Congo Democratic Republic and to Angola.

The Europeans, that is, the Portuguese visited the Kongo Empire during the fifteenth century and both had spirited relationships, a relationship that, unfortunately, became perverted into trading in human beings. Many Congolese were sold to the Americas as slaves and later to the Arab world.

With the end of the trade in human beings, the various Kongo Empires collapsed, for their basis for existence, selling of Africans to Europeans and Arabs was no longer tenable. They lost their sole economic resource: revenue from selling Africans.

The French came to the area during the last quarter of the nineteenth century and what is now the Republic of Congo became part of French Equatorial Africa (AEF). Out of that conglomeration of tribes emerged modern Gabon, Chad, Central African Republic and Republic of Congo.

During the Second World War, when the Germans occupied France, Brazzaville, for three years, served as the capital of Free France (1940-1943). This gave Brazzaville a head’s up in economic development. Railway lines and roads were built into the interior of the country.
In 1960, France gave Congo Republic independence. Fulbert Youlou became the first President. He was ousted in 1963 by Alphonse Massamba-Debat, who, in turn, was ousted by another military coup d’etat in 1968 by Captain Marien Ngouabi. In 1977, President Ngouabi was assassinated and another military junta took over, under Joachim Yhombi-Opango.

Opango was, in turn, displaced by a member of his military junta, Dennis Sassou-Nguesso. During the 1990s, African countries were under a lot of international pressure to hold elections and become democratic, if they wanted to continue receiving Western economic assistance. Sassou held an election in 1992 and was defeated by Pascal Lissouba. Mr. Lissouba ruled for the prescribed five years and planned an election in 1997.

During the 1997 Presidential elections the key candidates were Sassou-Nguesso and Pascal Lissouba. For four months, during the summer of that year, the two camps engaged in war; militias obedient to each party fighting the other. There seemed a deadlock. With the aid of Angolan troops, Sassou defeated Lissouba’s militia and declared himself the president. In the 2002 election, Sassou essentially prevented his opponents from running against him and was proclaimed the winner with 90% of the votes.

Having consolidated power, Sassou changed the constitution and made his term seven years (from five years).

The new constitution divided the Republic of Congo into 10 regions, which are further subdivided into 46 districts. There is a National Assembly and a Supreme Court, both of which are under the control of the president.

Mr. Sassou, however, is not home free in his new unfettered reign, for his rivals are in the background plotting, biding their time for a chance to cut his throat. And he knows that given the opportunity that his throat would be cut, so he devotes a great portion of the country’s resources to protecting himself.
Nevertheless, Congo Republic is financing large scale development projects and has averaged 5% annual growth rate in its GDP. The income per capita of the country, unfortunately, is still very low, US $770 (World Bank, 2005).

Currently, revenue from oil is the main source of funds for financing the government and developmental activities, but like most African countries, the majority of the people still irk out their marginal living from subsistence agriculture.

Mr. Sassou-Nguesso leans towards the West and appears to be managing the economy as well as can be expected of a man who hangs on to power precariously. Like other extant African dictators, he has learned to manage the Press by allowing it to exist and seem able to criticize the government without reporters going missing. The major media, radio and television, are owned by the government and reflect the views of the government.

The Republic of Congo appears to be enjoying a Carthaginian peace that could be shattered at any moment when the many enemies of Sassou-Nguesso find new life for their quest to oust him. There is no true democracy in the Republic of Congo, yet Mr. Sassou-Nguesso is the current Chair person of the fifty three members Africa Union.

Ozodi@africainstituteseattle.org

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May 09, 2006

The Aging Process and Women's Psychology

by Ozodi Thomas Osuji, Ph.D. (Seatle, Washington) --- The physical aging process, with minor exceptions, is the same in men and women, black and white. As the human body ages, it looses its vitality and becomes weak. At age twenty five, the height of youthful vigor, the average individual can run the mile in under six minutes, but at age sixty five and above it is doubtful that he can.

The human body slows down as human beings become older and this is a natural process. Of course, with good living habits: good nutrition, medications, regular exercises, not smoking, absence of alcoholism and drug taking, it is possible to slow down the aging process. Scientists now project that before the end of the twenty-first century that human beings, at least in developed countries, would be living up to hundred or more years. (120 years is projected as the optimal longevity for the human body.)

Whereas the physical aging process is more or less the same for men and women, the psychological process appears to be different for the two genders. This difference is probably due to the social expectations from the two sexes.

In most extant societies, men, for example, are expected to be strong and not cry; they are expected to grit their teeth and bear pain and do what they have to do to cope with the exigencies of this tough world we live in. Men are not expected to be soft or show sentimentality. The result is that many men, in childhood, resolve to be tough men.

As they grow old and their physical powers wane these men seem unable to accept their weaknesses. Some of them continue to pretend that they are strong and resent it if they think that other people treat them as if they are weak. Thus, you see eighty-something year old men acting as if they are still in their twenties. Unfortunately, this may degenerate into pretending to be powerful.

Acting as if one is who one is not often leads to delusional thinking and behaving. The deluded person (as in delusional disorder) is a person who, generally, feels weak and denies his weakness and posits an alternative strong self and tries to become that imaginary strong, powerful and all important self. He wants the world to validate his preferred powerful self concept and self image and feels happy with those who collude with him and confirm his imaginary important self and feels angry at those who treat him as if he is an ordinary mortal.

The deluded human being, at any age, acts as if he is an all important, powerful, wealthy and famous person, when, in fact, he is none of those persons and need not be, for he ought to accept his imperfect self.

In old age, some men become delusional. Nursing homes and assisted houses where old folks live tend to have a high concentration of deluded men acting as if they are strong men. You find a ninety year old man challenging a twenty five year old man to a physical fight, to prove that he can whip the young man; an impossibility.

The deluded old man refuses to accept his aging, hence weakening body and desires a strong body; he is therefore not accepting the truth and wants to make the untrue, that he is powerful, seem true. Delusional disorder is belief in what is not true as true and acting as such. If one is a human being, hence weak and imperfect, and one believes that one is powerful and acts as such, one is deluded. One is not powerful, for all it takes is a bullet in ones head and one is dead.

Society is very vicious towards women. Women are judged primarily by how they look. Professional women like newscasters are generally let go if they get to a certain age whereas older men are allowed to keep their jobs to old age. You find seventy year old male newscasters but seldom do you find fifty something year old female newscasters. It seems that society prefers young faces to grace the broadcasting world. This is interesting given that older looking women actually look wiser and believable and one would think that they would make more believable newscasters for the audience.

In most jobs it is simply true that older women are discriminated against and that women who are pretty looking or meet whatever is current social idea of beauty are hired. God forbid that a woman is overweight, not attractive and she presents herself for job interviews.

These practices obviously take their tolls on women, for they are aware that they are judged on how their bodies look like and are discriminated against if they do not meet society’s idea of ideal womanhood, and that their intelligence is secondary.

Women tend to have a different set of psychological issues as they age. Most human societies tend to want women to be pretty bodies. Women are generally evaluated as good to the extent that they are beautiful and well dressed than to the extent that they are strong and achieving in society. In fact, most societies expect women to be soft and weak not strong. If a woman is overly physically strong, many men tend to see her as an anomaly and shy away from her. (Nwayi Ike wu onye ahuhu, the Igbos say, meaning that a strong woman is a suffering woman; that is, they expect women to be soft and pretty and not work hard.)

Because women are judged as good to the extent that they are physically good looking, as they age and their bodies become weak and not so good looking, they tend to become aware that society, especially male society, does not value their bodies that much.
Even older men in their sixties seem to prefer younger women (less than forty) for sexual activities.

If it were not for social strictures against older men marrying younger girls, it would be the case that older men would discard their old wives and marry young girls in their twenties. Apparently, being with a young woman makes these old men feel young, again. Being with a woman who still can bear children, it seems, makes old men feel that they are still youthful and able to produce children (which they can do at advanced ages). Being with a post menopausal woman tends to make men feel that they are old farts, and are no longer able to reproduce and they would rather not have that feeling. But since society frowns on older men frolicking with girls young enough to be their grand children, such men desist from gratifying their wishes to have young wives.(In biblical times, men in their seventies used to marry teenage girls.)

Until recently, society forbad older women from having younger boy friends. In many parts of the world, a woman in her fifties (and above) who has a lover under a certain age is material for social gossip, if not punishment, the least of which is ostracism.

Simply stated, women did not have the luxury to gratify their fantasies of youth, as men did. They had to reconcile themselves to their aging realities, and, perhaps, pretend not to be old.

(It is culturally considered unwise to ask a woman above forty what her age is, for she probably would feel embarrassed by that question. Many women apparently tell lies about their age; they tell you the age they think that they look like but not their actual age; thus, if she is sixty and thinks that she looks forty five, if you must ask about her age, she tells you that she is forty five and both of you collude and accept this fantasy, knowing that it is lies.)

As women age, their bodies weaken and look old; this is a natural enough situation but because of society’s insistence that women look young and pretty, women tend to experience psychological issues from their waning beautiful bodies. Those women who had been socially sought after because of their physical beauty (not intellectual accomplishments), who in old age are socially ignored, tend to experience this situation more severely.

The aging model, gymnast, ballerina or actress who earned her living from being seen as very beautiful and sexually desirable to men (men often masturbate from merely visualizing very beautiful models; that is largely why they buy pornographic magazines…in secondary school, this writer’s friends used to masturbate looking at playboy centerfolds) tends to be shocked that men who used to drool at her in her youth now do not even acknowledge her existence.

That is correct; men her age, that in her youth would have gone to war to have her, now do not even notice the presence of the sixty-something year old hitherto graceful ballerina. Of course, younger men totally ignore her (unless she has something to give to them and they tolerate her aging body; this phenomenon is called being a Gigolo).

Some women tend to experience narcissistic injury as they grow old; their pride is hurt because men no longer desire their hitherto desired bodies; they feel attack on their vanity, their fragile self concepts, and self-mages. Their self esteem suffers from the aging process. If they had seen themselves as desirable based solely on their physical appearances and are now objectively not desired they may, in fact, experience depression.

There are all kinds of depression. In clinical depression the individual feels that his life is not worth living, and loses interests in activities of daily living, such as lack of interest in eating food, lack of interests in sports, work, making friends, grooming; fatigue and tiredness, to the point of not wanting to get up from bed and face the world, a desire to just lay there and mope; a feeling that since life is no longer worth living that he might as well kill himself; some depressed persons actually try and or commit suicide.

We are not talking major depression here, for that probably has something to do with the individual’s biochemical status. (The present assumption is that serotonin, a neurotransmitter, is not properly retained in the depressed individual’s brain, hence serotonin reuptake blockers like Prozac, Zoloft and Paxil are given to him and they seem to help accumulate that neurotransmitter in his brain and dispel the symptoms of depression.)

We are talking about neurotic depression, dysthymia. In this type of depression, situational events makes the individual to feel that he is worthless and valueless and have low self esteem.

Loss of job, poverty, divorce, children leaving home, lack of friends, feeling that one is not sexually desirable to other people etc could contribute to depressed self view.

Older women tend to have situational or mild depression. Their depression is often exacerbated by the loss of their significant others (husbands, friends… as we age, we loose our childhood playmates to death etc).

Many women at nursing homes and assisted homes for the elderly tend to be mildly depressed and some of them are, in fact, on anti depression medications.

Whereas old men deal with their own depression by acting out (paranoia is a mask over underlying sense of weakness, pretence that one is strong when one is vulnerable), women accept their vulnerabilities, hence depression.

In old age, generally speaking, we see deluded men and depressed women. (Of course, there are deluded women and depressed men; we are speaking in general terms; exceptions exist in every general rule.)

Many of the older men at nursing homes are on anti psychotic medications to deal with their delusional thinking and behaving, whereas many of the women are on antidepressants to deal with their depressed thinking and behaving.

UNCONDITIONAL POSITIVE SELF ACCEPTANCE

Clearly, a solution to this problem is for individuals, men and women, to have realistic and healthy self concepts. If the individual accepts himself or herself as he or she is, without external referents, he or she is less likely to become paranoid or depressed.

If a man says: so I am weak and powerless, so what, I will accept that reality and to hell with the fact that society expects me to be strong before it accepts me, he is likely going to avoid paranoia.

If a woman says: so I am not the most beautiful woman on earth, so what, I will accept myself the way I am, now, not the way that society wants me to become before it accepts me, pretty, she is likely to have a healthy self concept and positive self esteem.

Good psychotherapists enable their clients, women included, to develop positive self esteem and have high self confidence.

Good self confidence lays in trusting ones self to do what one needs to do to navigate this world without always wondering what other people think of one, or wishing for others to do things for one, what one could do for ones self. (Of course, we need each other and rely on each other’s help.)

Good self esteem and high self confidence means that one believes that one can do or, at least, try doing what existence on earth requires of one to do for survival, and if other people insist on preventing one from doing those things one insists on doing them. Women, for example, must tell men to get out of their way and not prevent them from doing anything they want to do.

I do not see why a woman should allow male dominated society to prevent them from doing any kind of job that they can do or accept being retired from doing certain jobs in middle or old age just because society prefers to see pretty young faces. A woman newscaster ought to do whatever she could to be on the job until she is in her seventies. (In my view, folks should not retire before age seventy; after that age folks are free to retire and spend the balance of their lives traveling the world and or sharing their wisdom with the younger generation.)

If people accept themselves in what Carl Rogers called unconditional positive manner, not conditionally, not when they meet some other persons’ standards for acceptance, they would not have to deal with the problem of paranoia and depression.

Of course, this is easier said than done. Most of us are products of society. Even our self concepts were influenced by our socialization process. We internalized the values of our society. We tend to think of ourselves as society thinks of us.

In North America, women are accepted to the extent that they are pretty. Just look at what the media does: the various magazines gracing newsstands show slim young women, seldom over age thirty-five. A woman over age thirty five in this culture is a goner. A fat woman does not even exist, as far as the media is concerned. All said, this culture prefers slim, athletic young women to older ones. The result is that women tend to construct self concepts to suit that social expectation.

Women tend to want to look slim and young and feel socially desirable as they age and become flabby and weak. Many older women, those in their fifties, patronize gyms trying to seem young…it is good to exercise, of course, it is good for our physical health…but the fact is that no matter what we do the culture does not prefer aging bodies. Nor does the culture even value the wisdom found in older women.

Women must consciously deconstruct social constructions of the role of women in society and reconstruct it. They must come to accept themselves as they are, not as society wants them to become.

A psychologically healthy person, man or woman looks at him, she, in the mirror, preferably naked, and says; this is who I am, I accept me as I am, not as I could become. I do not need to look different before I accept me. I am good as nature and nature’s god made me.

This is called having internal locus of control, as opposed to having external locus of authority. One accepts ones self internally, not because of what external others say of one.
The goal of psychotherapy is to enable human beings, men and women, children and adults, to accept themselves as they are, now, not as they should become, tomorrow.

One must accept who one is, not who other people think that one should become. It does not matter whether one is white or black, man or woman, boy or girl, tall or short, slim or fat, beautiful or ugly etc, one must accept who one is, now.

Accept your real self, not a neurotic ideal self. (The neurotic rejects his or her real self, uses his imagination to invent an ideal self, an ideal body, ideal ego and ideal everything and wants to become that idealized self. As a result, there is conflict between his real self and his desired ideal imaginary self. He lives in tremendous conflict and tension. The neurotic always has anxiety, exaggeration of human fears; this fear emanates from the conflict between his imperfect real self and his desired ideal perfect self. As long as one aspires after perfection, given our inherent earthly imperfection, one must feel inner tension, conflict and anxiety. The individual must accept his real self to reduce neurotic free-floating, generalized anxiety. If one accepts who one is, imperfect, one tends to become calm, peaceful and happy. See Karen Horney, Neurosis and Human Growth; also see her The Neurotic Personality of Our Time and her Feminine Psychology.)

Psychotherapy, of course, does not provide a quick fix. It takes years for the adult individual to understand his self structure and then attempt to restructure it through cognitive reorientation. Reading books on the self concept and attending workshops that teach the individual to accept his or her real self is always a good supplement to secular psychotherapy.

As I have pointed out elsewhere, human beings are more than their bodies. We are spirit having physical experience. We must, therefore, pay attention to our spiritual nature.

Religion generally provides people with insights into their spiritual nature. People are free to gravitate to a religion that makes sense to them. But where extant religions do not make sense to the individual, he or she could try Spiritual psychotherapy.
Spiritual psychology is not a religion and is not found in any one religion. It is an attempt to draw from the essence of religion and articulate human spiritual nature.

Spiritual psychotherapy consciously teaches the individual that despite appearances that he is body only, that there is a spirit of God in him or her. My spiritual psychology teaches that we are, in truth, unified spirit but in appearance seeming separated persons in body. We are the parts of one whole spirit, Holy Spirit, God.

As parts of the whole we must affirm that whole to feel complete. Love and forgiveness are means of returning to the awareness of our unified spirit nature. (See my writings on spiritual psychology.)

For our present purposes, the salient point is that women tend to suffer injury to their self concepts because as they age their bodies are no longer instruments for them to obtain social attention and sense of specialness. In as much as they still desire attention and approval from other people and still want to seem special, women tend to feel depressed self esteem in old age. This is what is, but what needs not be.

Psychotherapy, secular and spiritual (both are necessary, I think) can enable the average woman to accept herself in an unconditionally positive manner. She must come to love and respect what she is and love and respect all human beings, men and women. It is in love and forgiveness of ourselves that we find peace and happiness.

Any time hate enters our minds, be it self hate or hatred for other people, we disturb our peace, personal or social peace. In love lies mental health; love of ones real self and other peoples real selves and love for our unified spirit self gives us peace and happiness.

. Please read my “Real Self Therapy” to understand what this brief essay merely alluded to.

Ozodi@africainstituteseattle.org

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Ozodi Osuji Weekly Lectures on African Countries #11 of 54: Comoros

by Ozodi Thomas Osuji, Ph.D. (Seatle, Washington) --- 11. COMOROS

Formal Name: Federal Islamic Republic of the Comoros.

Term for Citizens: Comorans.

Capital: Moroni. Population: 49,000.

Date of Independence: July 6, 1975, from France.

Major Cities: Moroni.

Geography:

Comoros is composed of four islands in the Indian Ocean. Comoros is an estimated 838 square miles in size. The four main islands are volcanic in origin: Grande Comore, the largest and where the capital, Moroni is located, Anjoun, Moheli and Mayotte. The climate is tropical with two seasons, hot and humid from November to April and cooler and dryer from May to October. Average rainfall is estimated at 2,000 centimeters annually.

Society: The population is estimated at 768, 000.

Ethnic groups: