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Discussion of British Experience of Decolonization

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13th December 2018

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Colonization involved the exploration, settling, and exploitation of regions by European

nations. Britain was one of the biggest colonizers with colonies in Asia, Africa, and the Americas
Colonization, had a major influence on the native's socioeconomic aspects since it not only
involved economic exploitation but cultural, religious and ideological and political dependency
as well. After the Second World War (WWII) European colonizers could no longer maintain
control of their colonial geographies for various reasons, including the rise nationalist
movements and weaknesses caused by WWII. As such, after the WII colonial powers began
relinquishing political power to local leaders who gradually established independence from
colonial powers in a process that is commonly referred to as decolonization. Colonization had
greatly influenced the economic, social, and cultural dimensions of the natives. As such,
decolonization had significant effects on post-colonial states (Geda, 2002, p. 10).
The colonial legacy remains controversial with some claiming that it negatively impacted
the colonized nations while others claim it benefited them. In Africa for instance, the British are
credited for introducing formal education and western medicine. Moreover, the British are
hailed for creating infrastructures such as railways and roads. However, some claim that British
infrastructure was created for the sole purpose of exploiting locals resources. Likewise,
colonization, mainly aimed at finding raw materials for Britain’s thriving industries during the
industrial revolution while ignoring the growth of local industries. The British also introduced
cash crops such as coffee and tea. This meant that African nations continued to rely on the
exportation of raw materials to countries such as Britain. In effect, there has been slow economic
growth in former colonies with most relying on foreign debt. Scholars have argued that such
debts have led to neocolonialism where colonial nations continue to exploit for colonies.
Furthermore, former colonies especially in Africa remain unindustrialized and must rely on
imports of industrial goods, which are of higher value compared to raw materials they export
(Hansen, 1999, p. 833). In effect, there is a trade imbalance which prevents financial growth in
former colonies.
Britain had established colonies, protectorates, and dominions across the globe.
Colonialism involved full or partial political control of countries and regions by the British
government as well as the settling of British citizens in those regions. One of the major aspects
of colonization was the partition of colonial geographies. As European nations sought to
establish colonies in Africa, there emerged a risk of conflict in what is referred to as the
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“scramble of Africa”. In this realization, Otto von Bismarck, the chancellor of Germany called a
conference among colonial state to regulate the colonization of Africa in a way that avoided
conflict among colonial nations. The Berlin conference of 1884 to 1885 resulted in the partition
of Africa, where European nations drew political boundaries within which colonial powers could
administer (Roger & Robinson, 1982, p. 31). While these boundaries did not have major
implications during the colonial period, as colonies nations began gaining independence, major
problems began to emerge as a result of political boundaries. Africa and Asia are multi-ethnic
and multi-religious continents, and while drawing political borders in Africa and Asia European
nation nations had little knowledge of ethnic and religious boundaries. As a result, some groups
were partitioned in a way that promoted conflict among ethnicities and religious groups after
decolonization (Michalopoulos & Papaioannou, 2011, p. 561). An example of conflict arising
from British partition on is the India-Pakistan conflict where, as Britain set to grant
independence to India, an agreement to divide India into two territories based on religious
affiliation was struck, to protect India’s Muslim minority. In the agreement, India was to be
divided into 2 territories where Hindus and Sikhs remained in India while the region with the
Muslim majority became Pakistan (Richards, Waibel, & Paul, 2014, p. 229). As a result of
India's partition, Muslims, Hindus, and Sikhs began fighting each other resulting to an estimated
death toll of between 200,000 to 2, 000,000 people and a mass migration of people to places
they thought would be safe as territorial and religious skirmished continued (Ansari, 2107). As
well, the division of India affected Pakistan’s economic outcomes where despite having 23% of
the land mass, Pakistan received only 17.5% of the government's financial assets (Bates, 2011)
Similarly, in the partition of Africa, Europeans disregarded natural borders among
religious groups and ethnicities. Britain was known to use the “divide and rule policy” in Africa
where ethnic and tribal differences were compounded against them (Ylönen, 2017, p.130). In
Sudan, the British promoted distrust and fear between the Christian south and the Muslim Arabs
in the north and heightened the already existing ethnic and religious tensions. Also, the British
government neglected the South and accorded Arab northerners’ political superiority. During
decolonization, in granting power to the Arabs, Britain did not make any efforts to ensure the
protection of southerners. As a result, Sudan experienced decades of civil war as Southern
Christians fought against the oppressive Arab government culminating to the creation of the
Republic of Southern Sudan (Ylönen, 2017, p. 145)
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During WW2, the British, facing a formidable enemy, Adolf Hitler, Britain began
enlisting soldiers from its colonies as soldiers. The effect of the war was that Britain and other
European nations experienced economic and political weaknesses to continue maintaining their
colonies (Basil, 1994, p. 64). Moreover by fighting alongside the British against the Germans
created a heightened awareness of the need for self-determination among the colonized and their
leaders. As the soldiers fought against the Germans, they realized that the British were fighting
the Germans in the spirit of nationalism after Germany invaded France and Poland. Similarly,
they realized that Britain was fighting against the persecution of the Jews and wanted them to
have the right for self-determination, which contradicted their colonial policy. This realization
made them question Britain’s legitimacy in colonizing their nations. As such the war promoted
the spirit of nationalism among colonial subjects prompting them to demand independence.
Moreover, the German antiwar propaganda also inspired Africans to defy British rule (Basil,
1994, p. 65). This brought about nationalist movements who campaigned for independence
mostly in a peaceful way where leaders such as Mahatma Gandhi pushed for independence
through peaceful protest. However in other areas such as Kenya armed conflict against British
rule emerged as Mau Mau rebellion saw the killing of settlers and pacifist tribes (Richards et al.,
2014, p. 231). While the British eventually defeated the rebellion, it was a major highlight at the
beginning of decolonization because it demonstrated to other Africans that the British could be
fought. Besides the high costs of the costs, the British realized they could no longer maintain
control without risking war and had to leave (Darwin, 2011)
After WW2, the British occupied Palestine and having as homeless Jewish population
from Germany, Britain created the nation Israel from Palestine in 1947 under the UN mandate.
This division was greatly detested by Arabs across the world culmination into the Arab-Jewish
war. With the support of the United States, Israel has grown into a strong power. Some
Muslims, citing the persecution of Arabs in Palestine have taken up arms against Israel and its
allies through terror, a major global concern today. Furthermore, by leaving Palestinians
stateless, the resulting Arab-Jewish conflict over territory has effectively created a refugee
problem in Palestine (Richards et al., 2014, p. 229).
Under pressure, Britain began granting African nations independence. Unsure of their
security under African rule, British settlers began moving back to Britain in a mass exodus.
Similarly, Asians, especially from India who had been brought into Africa as laborers by the
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British, were faced with security concerns as minorities. Case in point in Kenya, the government
actively sought to drive Asians from important economic positions. Some of the Asians were
stateless while others were denied the renewal of work permits. As such, the British government
was prompted to allow minorities from its former colonies to immigrate to Britain (Eley, 2010, p.
311). In these regard decolonization brought about race issues in both Britain and in its former
colonies. In Britain, racism emerged as Britain began restricting Asians with British passports
from entering into Britain in line with the Commonwealth Immigrant Act of 1968 as race
hysteria grew in Britain. As a result, more than 200,000 individuals with only British citizenship
were left stateless. While some Asians and minorities were granted citizenship in British colonies
such as Kenya, they faced they faced race issues and had little social acceptance (Hansen, 1999,
p. 810).
Similarly, colonization saw the exportation of laborers from colonial nations to Britain.
Moreover, British settlers dominated local economies in the colonies thus local relied on them
for income. As such, when the British left, Africans faced economic hardships prompting some
to seek labor in Britain. This and the liberation of British slaves meant that Britain had become a
multiracial society. However, due to racism, minority racial groups did not enjoy the rights and
privileges enjoyed by British Whites. One of the colonial nations where, immigrant black
Africans faced racism, inequality in unemployment and poor social conditions was Britain
(Dean, 1978, p. 311)
Political forces influenced decolonization. For example, the United States, a former
British colony, was against colonialism and pressured for self-determination. By the end of
WW2, the United States had become an outstanding global power as Britain became weak and
increasingly reliant on the United States for protection. As such, the United States' anti-colonial
opinion was influential to the British. In 1941, Britain and the United States signed the Atlantic
Charter that was based on the principle of self-government making decolonization inevitable
(Richards et al. 2014, p. 229).
The emergence of the cold war between the United States and the Soviet Union greatly
influenced decolonization. On the one hand, the United States promoted capitalism while the
Soviet Union subscribed to communist principles. As independence leaders began aligning
themselves with the opposing nations, the United States fared losing allies to the Soviet Union.
This made the United States pressure Britain to decolonize as the best way of maintaining the
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alliance between the West and colonized nations (Richards et al., 2014, p 239). In effect, Britain
began the gradual process of decolonization beginning with the training of future African
administrators since Africans were considered inexperienced in government. The result was the
emergence of western-educated elite such as Jomo Kenyatta, the first president of Kenya and
Robert Mugabe of Zimbabwe (Richards et al., 2014, p 230). Since the transfer of power was not
based on democratic elections, it set precedence where dictatorships and coups have been of
common occurrence in Africa. In India on the other hand, independence was granted through
democratic elections in 1951. As a result, India ended up becoming the world’s largest
democracy (Bates, 2011).
Decolonization saw the gradual reduction in the economic exploitation of other territories
by the British. As a result, Britain became increasingly weaker in comparison to other states and
lost her status as the world's most powerful country to the United States. In effect, until today
Britain remains allied to the United States and partly relied on her for protection against the
Soviet Union. As a result of decolonization, the Commonwealth market lost its position as the
largest to European markets.
The Suez Canal, a strategic shipping route, which provides access to India and to cheap
oil from the Middle East, has contested in the past. After the British granted in independence to
Egypt and left the Suez region, she later wanted to reclaim influence in the region. As such
alongside Israel, and France Britain attacked Egypt after President Nasser nationalized the canal
in 1956. The attempt was a failure and was internationally condemned by other nations including
the United States (Richards et al., p. 229). The effect of the failure illustrated the loss of Britain's
dominance as a global power and illustrated her weakness. In addition after the defeat, Israel
shifter alliance to the United States that further made Britain weaker in maintaining is colonies.
Also, Britain was facing difficulties in paying British administrators in her colonies. This was
caused by the income decrease for the British government as local proletariat created rival
industries while commodity prices fell.
As illustrated, decolonization had a significant impact on both the colonized and the
colonized with issues such as ethic and border conflicts at the center stage. Decolonization also
saw mass immigration of people from different background to form multiethnic communities.
Decolonization had both positive and negative impacts which depend on how it was conducted in
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some areas such as India for instance; it brought about democracy while in Israel it contributed to
the war. In all, decolonization can be said to have led to increased peace.
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REFERENCES

Ansari, S. (2018). How the Partition of India happened – and why its effects are still felt
today. The Conversation. Retrieved from: https://theconversation.com/how-the-partition-
of-india-happened-and-why-its-effects-are-still-felt-today-81766 [Accessed December
11, 2018].
Basil, D. (1994). ‘The Second World War, 1939-1945,’ Modern Africa: A Social and Political
History, (1994): 65
Bates, C. (2011). The Hidden Story of Partition and its Legacies. Retrieved from:
http://www.bbc.co.uk/history/british/modern/partition1947_01.shtml [Accessed 8 Dec.
2018]
Darwin, J. (2011). Britain, the Commonwealth and the End of Empire.Retrieved from:
http://www.bbc.co.uk/history/british/modern/partition1947_01.shtml [Accessed 10 Dec.
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Dean, D.W. (1987). Coping with colonial immigration, the cold war and colonial policy: The
labor government and black communities in Great Britain 1945–51. Immigrants &
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Eley, Geoff. (2010) "The Trouble with “Race”: Migrancy, Cultural Difference, and the
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Geda, A. (2002). Debt Issues in Africa: Thinking beyond the HIPC Initiative to Solving
Structural Problems. UNU/WIDER development conference on Debt Relief, Helsinki,
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Hansen, R. (1999). The Kenyan Asians, British Politics and the Commonwealth Immigrants Act,
Historical Journal, 42, no. 3: pp.809-834
http://www.jstor.org.ezproxy.nottingham.edu.cn/stable/3020922
Michalopoulos, S., & Papaioannou, E. (2011). Divide and rule or the rule of the divided?
evidence from Africa. Discussion Papers (4), pp.561-562.
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Richards, M. & Waibel, Paul, R. (2014). Twentieth-century Europe: a brief history, 1900 to the
present. John Wiley & Sons, Incorporated. Retrieved from:
http://ebookcentral.proquest.com/lib/nottingham/detail.action?docID=1629162.
Roger, L. & Ronald, R. (1982). "The United States and the Liquidation of British Empire in
Tropical Africa, 1941-1951," in The Transfer of Power in Africa: Decolonization, 1940-
1960, eds. Prosser Gifford and Wm. Roger Louis, New Haven and London: Yale
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http://ebookcentral.proquest.com/lib/nottingham/detail.action?docID=1629162.
Ylönen, A. (2017). Confronting the ‘Arab North’: interpretations of slavery and religion in
Southern Sudanese Separatist Resistance. Fluid networks and hegemonic powers in the
Western Indian Ocean, pp.125-151.