Overview
Peer 1 Fuyu L
The process of decolonization presented substantive political issues and novelties in former colonies as this process was characterized, in many ways, by the formation of new political systems. For the colonial powers, the reality of decolonization presented unique challenges to their massive dependence on the colonized nations’ resources, for instance, Britain had a strong desire to extend its imperial grasp as it drew significant resources from imperial companies such as the Anglo-Iranian Oil Company (Allosso and Williford 2021, 445). In the case of political situations in the newly independent states, the newfound power and authority enjoyed by revolutionaries were often abused through the formation of authoritative and repressive regimes that virtually embraced neocolonialist attitudes. For instance, in the independent Burkina Faso, revolutionary and leader Thomas Sankara would assume total authority over the country, refusing to delegate power, and thus angering fellow revolutionaries and the public (Petrocelli, “African revolutionaries,” slide 17). In many of these situations, the authoritative leaders were removed through coups and assassinations, which meant setting the precedent for the undemocratic, forceful acquisition of power that still exists in many former colonies today. Therefore, despite the hard-fought gift of self-governance, many former colonies lacked the capacities and systems necessary to set up stable, democratic systems that would prioritize the nation over the individual rulers and as such, these nations would be thrust into waves of political instability for many decades.
Apart from political instabilities, newly independent nations saw the flight of important production resources as colonial settlers and technologies moved from the nations, which elevated economic dependence as they could not produce as much as the required capacities. The culmination of factors such as political instability, the legacy of colonialism, and economic dependency on former colonial powers and other nations meant that these countries became increasingly susceptible to external influences. As such, if these countries were to attain meaningful pathways to stability, they needed economic support and guidance, which would be most notably provided through the International Monetary Fund (IMF) and associated conventions. Formed with the predominant influence of the United States, the IMF was created specifically to lend money to distressed economies that suffered from hyperinflation during the period of decolonization (Allosso & Williford 2021, 471). As such, by forming and managing conventions that helped distressed countries to support their economies, the U.S. played an important role in preventing the possibilities of neocolonialism or extreme economic dependence that could have driven the independent nations back to colonialism. In a way, the IMF and other supporting organizations from the U.S. were influential in cementing decolonization and post-independence economic growth for many nations.
Peer 2 Aoxiang
Decolonization presented many challenges to many regions because the leaders who rose against colonialism were associated with communism. The western powers were scared of communism spreading all over the world and such resistance was perceived as a support for communism (Petrocelli, Revolutionaries Lecture Audio, at 4:10). The African leaders who emerged to fight against colonialism for instance did not do it because they supported communism but their efforts were brutally suppressed by the colonial powers making their quest for freedom challenging.
Despite gaining their independence from their colonizers, some regions still had to depend on their former colonizer's support, and this caused a lot of instability because the colonizers were not willing to help without interfering. In Africa, for instance, Upper–Volta, presently known as Burkina Faso, attained its independence in 1960, and Mawalagmba Yaméogo became the first president. Unfortunately, the president turned corrupt and only pursued personal individual interests over national interests (Petrocelli, African Revolutions, slide 12). The country was unstable and depended on loans from France and their neighbor, Cote d'Ivoire. A coup overthrew the first president, and Sankara took over, but still, there were challenges experienced in his leadership. He did not allow opposition, and the People's Revolutionary Tribunals fostered vengeance and punishment. Sankara's opposition to neocolonialism did not go well with the Western powers (Petrocelli, African Revolutions, slide 16). The same challenges were also visible in Egypt with Nasser's one-party system. Democracy was not a priority to Nasser's leadership, which ensured that all parties they had existed were banned. He changed his form of leadership and became authoritative even though he had initially supported a liberating type of governance (Petrocelli, Egypt 1914-1917, slide 13).
The Western nations played a significant role in the divisions that most regions experienced after independence. For instance, there were internal divisions in India after attaining independence. The British encouraged this division by sending troops to police the majority of Hindus and Minority Muslims (Allosso and Williford, 449). These actions made the people from both sides feel like they were enemies rather than people who needed to join hands and form an effective country. Europe and the United States also offered a lot of aid that would ignite divisions among the people who saw each other as enemies. Israelis, for instance, received a lot of support from the U.S. and Europe (Allosso and Williford, 454). The aid enabled them to expand their territory and push the Arabs away. Despite attaining independence, the United States would identify a leader they could easily brainwash and support, leading to divisions amongst themselves. The leaders who did not follow the Western powers course faced rejection and supported opponents in all ways possible to overthrow such a leader. The case of Sankara, who was assassinated in a coup by Blaise Compaore, as indicated by Petrocelli (African Revolutions, slide 17 is a good example of the role that the U.S. played in the challenges that countries faced. The role that the U.S. played has caused animosity among some countries that felt that the U.S. failed to support them and perceived them as the root of their problems. Despite being resentful of the U.S. interference, most countries have to lay low to get support. The United Arab, Sudan, and Bahrain, for instance, had to recognize Israel to qualify for military and economic aid because of the instability caused by war and terror in the nations (Allosso and Williford, 454).