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'''Migrating (my) overly long page sections.''' Going to use this page to make some adjustments for migrating overly long sections of articles to be their own separate pages. I previously wrote summaries of | '''Migrating (my) overly long page sections.''' Going to use this page to make some adjustments for migrating overly long sections of articles to be their own separate pages. I previously wrote summaries of Nkrumah's ''Neo-Colonialism'' and ''Dark Days in Ghana'' and put them on Nkrumah's page. They are cluttering the page which should contain Nkrumah's biographical info mainly. Now I intend to move them, either into essays or onto their own articles. | ||
There are other pages where I have generated similar problems, potentially I will use this page to fix those up in the future when I determine how to best address them. Anyone else is also of course welcome to address such issues I've caused, whether independently or together with me. | There are other pages where I have generated similar problems, potentially I will use this page to fix those up in the future when I determine how to best address them. Anyone else is also of course welcome to address such issues I've caused, whether independently or together with me. | ||
== Draft | == Draft space == | ||
Problem: How to word a notice on the pages to distinguish them from library pages? | |||
"This page is | "This page is about/describes/is discussing..." etc.? | ||
<blockquote> ''This page '''is about''' [[Kwame Nkrumah]]'s 1965 work. The work itself is available in the library: [[Library:Neocolonialism, the Last Stage of Imperialism|Neocolonialism, the Last Stage of Imperialism]].'' </blockquote> | |||
<blockquote> ''This page '''describes''' [[Kwame Nkrumah]]'s 1965 work. The work itself is available in the library: [[Library:Neocolonialism, the Last Stage of Imperialism|Neocolonialism, the Last Stage of Imperialism]].'' </blockquote> | |||
For a work which is not yet added... | For a work which is not yet added... | ||
<blockquote> ''This page discusses [[Kwame Nkrumah]]'s 1968 work. ''' | <blockquote> ''This page discusses [[Kwame Nkrumah]]'s 1968 work. '''The work itself may be added in the library:''' [[Library:Dark Days in Ghana|Dark Days in Ghana]].''</blockquote> | ||
If I turn these into essays or notes rather than articles, this may be worded differently. | If I turn these into essays or notes rather than articles, this may be worded differently. | ||
= | =''Neo-Colonialism, The Last Stage of Imperialism''= | ||
''This page is about [[Kwame Nkrumah]]'s 1965 work. The work itself is available in the library: [[Library:Neocolonialism, the Last Stage of Imperialism|Neocolonialism, the Last Stage of Imperialism]].'' | |||
'' | |||
'''''Neo-Colonialism, The Last Stage of Imperialism''''' is a 1965 book by [[Kwame Nkrumah]]. | |||
''Neo-Colonialism, The Last Stage of Imperialism'' discusses how [[Neocolonialism|neo-colonialism]] has become the main instrument of [[imperialism]], in place of the overt [[colonialism]] of the past, which Nkrumah explains is in a period of decline. Throughout the work, Nkrumah outlines the mechanisms of neo-colonialism while also listing numerous contemporary points of supporting evidence and providing commentary. In the early chapters of the book, he also sets out an argument for [[Pan-Africanism|African unity]] and its potential for destroying neo-colonialism in Africa, and notes in the book's conclusion that the foreign capitalists who exploit Africa's resources "long ago saw the strength to be gained from acting on a Pan-African scale" and that "the only way to challenge this economic empire and to recover possession of our heritage, is for us also to act on a Pan-African basis, through a Union Government."<ref>Nkrumah, Kwame. [https://archive.org/details/neocolonialismla0000kwam/page/256 Neo-Colonialism, The Last Stage of Imperialism. "Conclusion."] 1965.</ref> | |||
In the work's introduction, Nkrumah describes the essence of neo-colonialism, stating: "The essence of neo-colonialism is that the State which is subject to it is, in theory, independent and has all the outward trappings of international sovereignty. In reality its economic system and thus its political policy is directed from outside." In other words, while a state may appear to have independence in an official sense, it remains under the domination of imperialist power, primarily via imperialist control and supervision of the subjected country's economic system. | In the work's introduction, Nkrumah describes the essence of neo-colonialism, stating: "The essence of neo-colonialism is that the State which is subject to it is, in theory, independent and has all the outward trappings of international sovereignty. In reality its economic system and thus its political policy is directed from outside." In other words, while a state may appear to have independence in an official sense, it remains under the domination of imperialist power, primarily via imperialist control and supervision of the subjected country's economic system. | ||
The work's introduction also describes the result of neo-colonialism, stating that the result of neo-colonialism is that "foreign capital is used for the exploitation rather than for the development of the less developed parts of the world. Investment under neo-colonialism increases rather than decreases the gap between the rich and the poor countries of the world." | The work's introduction also describes the result of neo-colonialism, stating that the result of neo-colonialism is that "foreign capital is used for the exploitation rather than for the development of the less developed parts of the world. Investment under neo-colonialism increases rather than decreases the gap between the rich and the poor countries of the world." | ||
According to Nkrumah, outside direction of the state by imperialist powers can be manifested in various forms:<blockquote>The methods and form of this direction can take various shapes. For example, in an extreme case the troops of the imperial power may garrison the territory of the neo-colonial State and control the government of it. More often, however, neo-colonialist control is exercised through economic or monetary means. The neo-colonial State may be obliged to take the manufactured products of the imperialist power to the exclusion of competing products from elsewhere. Control over government policy in the neo-colonial State may be secured by payments towards the cost of running the State, by the provision of civil servants in positions where they can dictate policy, and by monetary control over foreign exchange through the imposition of a banking system controlled by the imperial power. [...] It is possible that neo-colonial control may be exercised by a consortium of financial interests which are not specifically identifiable with any particular State.<ref | According to Nkrumah, outside direction of the state by imperialist powers can be manifested in various forms:<blockquote>The methods and form of this direction can take various shapes. For example, in an extreme case the troops of the imperial power may garrison the territory of the neo-colonial State and control the government of it. More often, however, neo-colonialist control is exercised through economic or monetary means. The neo-colonial State may be obliged to take the manufactured products of the imperialist power to the exclusion of competing products from elsewhere. Control over government policy in the neo-colonial State may be secured by payments towards the cost of running the State, by the provision of civil servants in positions where they can dictate policy, and by monetary control over foreign exchange through the imposition of a banking system controlled by the imperial power. [...] It is possible that neo-colonial control may be exercised by a consortium of financial interests which are not specifically identifiable with any particular State.<ref>Nkrumah, Kwame. [https://www.marxists.org/subject/africa/nkrumah/neo-colonialism/introduction.htm ''Neo-Colonialism, The Last Stage of Imperialism.'' "Introduction."] Thomas Nelson & Sons, Ltd., London, 1965. Published in the USA by International Publishers Co., Inc., 1966. Marxists.org. [https://web.archive.org/web/20230311051428/https://www.marxists.org/subject/africa/nkrumah/neo-colonialism/introduction.htm Archived] 11-03-2023.</ref></blockquote>Toward the end of the work, Nkrumah lists several advances in the anti-imperial struggle at the time of writing, and asserts his view that neo-colonialism is "''not'' a sign of imperialism’s strength but rather of its last hideous gasp. It testifies to its inability to rule any longer by old methods. Independence is a luxury it can no longer afford to permit its subject peoples, so that even what it claims to have ‘given’ it now seeks to take away." He then states that neo-colonialism "''can'' and ''will''" be defeated, stating that in the face of imperialism's divide-and-conquer strategy, "''unity'' is the first requisite for destroying neo-colonialism." He clarifies this assertion by declaring the need for an all-union government for the continent of Africa, a strengthening of the [[Afro-Asian Solidarity Organisation]], and seeking increasingly formal adherence to said solidarity organization in Latin America. As a final point, Nkrumah adds that "we must encourage and utilise to the full those still all too few yet growing instances of support for liberation and anti-colonialism inside the imperialist world itself." In order to achieve these factors, Nkrumah explains that national development and strengthened independence through political neutrality, or [[Non-Aligned Movement|non-alignment]], is key.<ref name=":0">Nkrumah, Kwame. [https://www.marxists.org/subject/africa/nkrumah/neo-colonialism/ch01.htm ''Neo-Colonialism, The Last Stage of Imperialism.'' "The mechanisms of neo-colonialism."] Thomas Nelson & Sons, Ltd., London, 1965. Published in the USA by International Publishers Co., Inc., 1966. Marxists.org. [https://web.archive.org/web/20230311044919/https://www.marxists.org/subject/africa/nkrumah/neo-colonialism/ch01.htm Archived] 11-03-2023.</ref> | ||
Finally, Nkrumah stresses the importance of political consciousness raising among the masses, stating that "the preconditions for all this, to which lip service is often paid but activity seldom directed, is to develop ideological clarity among the anti-imperialist, anti-colonialist, pro-liberation masses of our continents. They, and they alone, make, maintain or break revolutions." Nkrumah then lists progress made in this regard in Africa at the time of writing, and states: "Bolstered with ideological clarity, these organisations, closely linked with the ruling parties where liberatory forces are in power, will prove that neo-colonialism is the symptom of imperialism’s weakness and that it is defeatable. For, when all is said and done, it is the so-called little man, the bent-backed, exploited, malnourished, blood-covered fighter for independence who decides. And he invariably decides for freedom."<ref name=":0" /> | Finally, Nkrumah stresses the importance of political consciousness raising among the masses, stating that "the preconditions for all this, to which lip service is often paid but activity seldom directed, is to develop ideological clarity among the anti-imperialist, anti-colonialist, pro-liberation masses of our continents. They, and they alone, make, maintain or break revolutions." Nkrumah then lists progress made in this regard in Africa at the time of writing, and states: "Bolstered with ideological clarity, these organisations, closely linked with the ruling parties where liberatory forces are in power, will prove that neo-colonialism is the symptom of imperialism’s weakness and that it is defeatable. For, when all is said and done, it is the so-called little man, the bent-backed, exploited, malnourished, blood-covered fighter for independence who decides. And he invariably decides for freedom."<ref name=":0" /> | ||
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In developing countries, the USIA actively tries to prevent expansion of national media of information so as itself to capture the market-place of ideas. It spends huge sums for publication and distribution of about sixty newspapers and magazines in Africa, Asia and [[Latin America]]. | In developing countries, the USIA actively tries to prevent expansion of national media of information so as itself to capture the market-place of ideas. It spends huge sums for publication and distribution of about sixty newspapers and magazines in Africa, Asia and [[Latin America]]. | ||
The American government backs the USIA through direct pressures on developing nations. To ensure its agency a complete monopoly in propaganda, for instance, many agreements for economic co-operation offered by the U.S. include a demand that Americans be granted preferential rights to disseminate information. At the same time, in trying to close the new nations to other sources of information, it employs other pressures. For instance, after agreeing to set up USIA information centres in their countries, both [[Togolese Republic|Togo]] and [[Congo (disambiguation)|Congo]] (Leopoldville) originally hoped to follow a non-aligned path and permit [[Union of Soviet Socialist Republics (1922–1991)|Russian]] information centres as a balance. But [[Washington, D.C.|Washington]] threatened to stop all aid, thereby forcing these two countries to renounce their plan.<ref name=":0" /></blockquote>Nkrumah also describes the "virtually unlimited" finances of USIA, which results in extensive subversive activities, including the collection of intelligence, recruitment of informers, purchasing of space in local publications to influence their policies, bribing of public figures, and supplying of weapons to anti-neutralist forces in developing countries:<blockquote>Some USIA duties further expose its nature as a top intelligence arm of the U.S. imperialists. In the first place, it is expected to analyse the situation in each country, making recommendations to its Embassy, thereby to its Government, about changes that can tip the local balance in U.S. favour. Secondly, it organises networks of monitors for radio broadcasts and telephone conversations, while recruiting informers from government offices. It also hires people to distribute U.S. propaganda. Thirdly, it collects secret information with special reference to defence and economy, as a means of eliminating its international military and economic competitors. Fourthly, it buys its way into local publications to influence their policies, of which Latin America furnishes numerous examples. It has been active in bribing public figures, for example in Kenya and Tunisia. Finally, it finances, directs and often supplies with arms all anti-neutralist forces in the developing countries, witness Tshombe in Congo (Leopoldville) and | The American government backs the USIA through direct pressures on developing nations. To ensure its agency a complete monopoly in propaganda, for instance, many agreements for economic co-operation offered by the U.S. include a demand that Americans be granted preferential rights to disseminate information. At the same time, in trying to close the new nations to other sources of information, it employs other pressures. For instance, after agreeing to set up USIA information centres in their countries, both [[Togolese Republic|Togo]] and [[Congo (disambiguation)|Congo]] (Leopoldville) originally hoped to follow a non-aligned path and permit [[Union of Soviet Socialist Republics (1922–1991)|Russian]] information centres as a balance. But [[Washington, D.C.|Washington]] threatened to stop all aid, thereby forcing these two countries to renounce their plan.<ref name=":0" /></blockquote>Nkrumah also describes the "virtually unlimited" finances of USIA, which results in extensive subversive activities, including the collection of intelligence, recruitment of informers, purchasing of space in local publications to influence their policies, bribing of public figures, and supplying of weapons to anti-neutralist forces in developing countries:<blockquote>Some USIA duties further expose its nature as a top intelligence arm of the U.S. imperialists. In the first place, it is expected to analyse the situation in each country, making recommendations to its Embassy, thereby to its Government, about changes that can tip the local balance in U.S. favour. Secondly, it organises networks of monitors for radio broadcasts and telephone conversations, while recruiting informers from government offices. It also hires people to distribute U.S. propaganda. Thirdly, it collects secret information with special reference to defence and economy, as a means of eliminating its international military and economic competitors. Fourthly, it buys its way into local publications to influence their policies, of which Latin America furnishes numerous examples. It has been active in bribing public figures, for example in Kenya and Tunisia. Finally, it finances, directs and often supplies with arms all anti-neutralist forces in the developing countries, witness Tshombe in Congo (Leopoldville) and Pak Hung Ji in [[Republic of Korea|South Korea]]. In a word, with virtually unlimited finances, there seems no bounds to its inventiveness in subversion.<ref name=":0" /></blockquote> | ||
= | =''Dark Days in Ghana''= | ||
''This page discusses [[Kwame Nkrumah]]'s 1968 work. The work itself may be added in the library: [[Library:Dark Days in Ghana|Dark Days in Ghana]].'' | |||
'''''Dark Days in Ghana''''' is a 1986 work by [[Kwame Nkrumah]]. This work describes the events of the February 24, 1966 coup d'etat in Ghana, along with Nkrumah's analysis of it. Nkrumah had been Prime Minister of Ghana since 1952, and after independence was elected president in 1960. By the time of the coup, his administration had lasted about 15 years. Nkrumah himself was outside of the country at the time of the coup, and so the account begins from his perspective of finding out about it while in [[Beijing]], followed by a description of the events surrounding the coup as related to him by eyewitness accounts provided to him by others, followed by an examination of what made the coup possible, and who was backing and orchestrating it. His analysis includes both an examination of reactionary elements within Ghana, as well as external interference by imperialist powers. Upon returning to Africa from Asia, Nkrumah initially made his way to Guinea, originally with the intention to promptly return to nearby Ghana, although he was not able to do so and ended up living in exile in Guinea, where he was named honorary co-president, and wrote ''Dark Days in Ghana''. The book also includes an appendix of letters to Nkrumah from various heads of state regarding the coup.<ref name=":4" /> | |||
An author's note at the beginning of the work states Nkrumah's purpose in writing it: "Ghana's experience since 24th February 1966, costly but priceless, must be viewed in the context of the African Revolution as a whole. It is with this in mind that I have written, in Conakry, about Ghana's 'dark days' in the hope that publication of the facts may help to expose similar setbacks in other progressive independent African states." | |||
Regarding the conditions for imperialist-backed coups in Africa, Nkrumah explains:<blockquote>For some years, imperialism has had its back to the wall in Africa. It has been faced with a growing liberation movement which it is powerless to stop but which, if it allows it to go unchecked, will before long end the exploitation on which imperialism’s very existence depends. It has therefore resorted to a co-ordinated strategy in an attempt to preserve, and if possible to extend, its grip on the economic life of our continent. | |||
< | |||
An all-out offensive is being waged against the progressive, independent states. Where the more subtle methods of economic pressure and political subversion have failed to achieve the desired result, there has been resort to violence in order to promote a change of regime and prepare the way for the establishment of a puppet government. | |||
Fragmented into so many separate states, many of them weak and economically non-viable, coup d’états have been relatively easy to arrange in Africa. All that has been needed was a small force of disciplined men to seize the key points of the capital city and to arrest the existing political leadership. In the planning and carrying out of these coups there have always been just sufficient numbers of dissatisfied and ambitious army Officers and politicians willing to co-operate to make the whole operation possible. | |||
It has been one of the tasks of the C.I.A. and other similar organisations to discover these potential quislings and traitors in our midst, and to encourage them, by bribery and the promise of political power, to destroy the constitutional government of their countries. In Ghana the embassies of the United States, Britain, and West Germany were all implicated in the plot to overthrow my government.<ref name=":4" /></blockquote>Regarding Ghana's situation just after independence in 1957, Nkrumah comments in Chapter 4 that the issues Ghana faced at independence "were so gigantic that within every sphere we had to take calculated risks" and that areas of society with reactionary leadership could not be changed overnight despite their obvious problems, because Ghana had no revolutionary war which would have produced and trained those who would have been able to take their place. Problems such as basic literacy due to the neglect of education during colonial times created a scarcity of qualified military, police, civil servants, and other experts and professionals, forcing a situation where many reactionary individuals with qualifications were retained in positions of leadership due to there often being no other viable, immediate replacement. Nkrumah observes in the same chapter that a once-dependent territory emerging from colonialism must try to accomplish in a single generation what it has taken developed nations 300 years or more to achieve if it is to survive in the modern world. | |||
In Chapter 1, "Peking to Conakry" in which Nkrumah describes his reaction to finding about the coup that occurred in his absence, he comments: "What had happened in Ghana was no more than a tactical set-back in the African revolutionary struggle of a type which I had often predicted." He also notes, "The people of Ghana were now being made to suffer for something which was not of their own making. They had been overcome by powerful external forces, and by the plotting and deception of a few selfish and ambitious reactionaries." | In Chapter 1, "Peking to Conakry" in which Nkrumah describes his reaction to finding about the coup that occurred in his absence, he comments: "What had happened in Ghana was no more than a tactical set-back in the African revolutionary struggle of a type which I had often predicted." He also notes, "The people of Ghana were now being made to suffer for something which was not of their own making. They had been overcome by powerful external forces, and by the plotting and deception of a few selfish and ambitious reactionaries." | ||
Nkrumah describes a similar point of view among the Chinese officials who were with him when he learned of the coup. While he was still in Beijing, Nkrumah states that the Chinese officials "made it clear that they regarded the military and police action in Ghana as no more than a temporary obstacle in the long struggle against imperialism, the kind of event to be expected, but which had no effect whatsoever on the final outcome." Nkrumah quotes [[Zhou Enlai]] as telling him, "You are a young man, you have another forty years ahead of you!" and later [[Liu Shaoqi]] stating at an event that day, "however hard the imperialists may whip up revolutionary adverse currents, the anti-imperialist revolutionary struggles of the African peoples can never be suppressed but are bound to win final victory." | Nkrumah describes a similar point of view among the Chinese officials who were with him when he learned of the coup. While he was still in Beijing, Nkrumah states that the Chinese officials "made it clear that they regarded the military and police action in Ghana as no more than a temporary obstacle in the long struggle against imperialism, the kind of event to be expected, but which had no effect whatsoever on the final outcome." Nkrumah quotes [[Zhou Enlai]] as telling him, "You are a young man, you have another forty years ahead of you!" and later [[Liu Shaoqi]] stating at an event that day, "however hard the imperialists may whip up revolutionary adverse currents, the anti-imperialist revolutionary struggles of the African peoples can never be suppressed but are bound to win final victory." | ||
====Events of the coup==== | ====Events of the coup==== | ||
'''''Note:''' Dark Days in Ghana is written from Nkrumah's point of view, and published only two years after the coup, which occurred in his absence. Therefore, certain details, such as U.S. government documents released years later, CIA whistleblower accounts of the events, etc. do not appear in the text, although they are now available.''<ref name=":2" /><ref name=":3" /> ''This section deals primarily with Nkrumah's point of view and analysis of events.'' | '''''Note:''' Dark Days in Ghana is written from Nkrumah's point of view, and published only two years after the coup, which occurred in his absence. Therefore, certain details, such as U.S. government documents released years later, CIA whistleblower accounts of the events, etc. do not appear in the text, although they are now available.''<ref name=":2" /><ref name=":3" /> ''This section deals primarily with Nkrumah's point of view and analysis of events.'' | ||
In Chapter 2, titled "24th February 1966", Nkrumah outlines the general timeline of events of the coup, the process of taking over the presidential palace, and the identity of the main conspirators. He begins with his departure from Ghana on February 21, then describes how the main action of the coup was set into motion on February 23, when a handful of opportunistic military leaders intercepted a 600-strong group of Ghanaian soldiers who were on the move. The leaders lied to the soldiers, saying that Nkrumah had fled the country, stolen £8 million, and was planning to send them to fight in Vietnam, while Russians had secret tunnels under Ghana's capital and were flying planes in, that there was effectively no more government in Ghana and therefore the soldiers were needed to take control of the capital. The soldiers were convinced by this, and so various individuals in positions of power were rounded up, forced to surrender, arrested, or killed. Flagstaff House, the presidential palace of Ghana (now known as Jubilee House), eventually fell under their control as well. Ministers, officials of the Party, and trade unionists were arrested and detained. Nkrumah states, "The rank and file police who had taken no part in the 'coup' were horrified at what was taking place and did their best to restrain the soldiers and this led in some cases to actual fighting between the two forces." | In Chapter 2, titled "24th February 1966", Nkrumah outlines the general timeline of events of the coup, the process of taking over the presidential palace, and the identity of the main conspirators. He begins with his departure from Ghana on February 21, then describes how the main action of the coup was set into motion on February 23, when a handful of opportunistic military leaders intercepted a 600-strong group of Ghanaian soldiers who were on the move. The leaders lied to the soldiers, saying that Nkrumah had fled the country, stolen £8 million, and was planning to send them to fight in Vietnam, while Russians had secret tunnels under Ghana's capital and were flying planes in, that there was effectively no more government in Ghana and therefore the soldiers were needed to take control of the capital. The soldiers were convinced by this, and so various individuals in positions of power were rounded up, forced to surrender, arrested, or killed. Flagstaff House, the presidential palace of Ghana (now known as Jubilee House), eventually fell under their control as well. Ministers, officials of the Party, and trade unionists were arrested and detained. Nkrumah states in ''Dark Days in Ghana'', "The rank and file police who had taken no part in the 'coup' were horrified at what was taking place and did their best to restrain the soldiers and this led in some cases to actual fighting between the two forces." | ||
Nkrumah describes what the troops were told when they were first intercepted by the coup conspirators and the aftermath after the conspirators took control, as follows:<blockquote>The troops were then told that I intended sending them to fight in Vietnam and in Rhodesia, and that I had deserted Ghana taking with me £8 million. There was, they were told, no government left in Ghana, and it was their duty to assume control of the country to maintain law and order. Already, was said, Russian planes were landing on a secret airstrip in northern Ghana. Furthermore a secret tunnel had been made from Flagstaff House, the presidential residence, to Accra airport, and for days Russians had been arriving. The only way to save Ghana, and to avoid being sent to fight in Vietnam, the troops were told, was to take Flagstaff House. | Nkrumah describes what the troops were told when they were first intercepted by the coup conspirators and the aftermath after the conspirators took control, as follows:<blockquote>The troops were then told that I intended sending them to fight in Vietnam and in Rhodesia, and that I had deserted Ghana taking with me £8 million. There was, they were told, no government left in Ghana, and it was their duty to assume control of the country to maintain law and order. Already, was said, Russian planes were landing on a secret airstrip in northern Ghana. Furthermore a secret tunnel had been made from Flagstaff House, the presidential residence, to Accra airport, and for days Russians had been arriving. The only way to save Ghana, and to avoid being sent to fight in Vietnam, the troops were told, was to take Flagstaff House. | ||
Several days after the military seizure of power, Kotoka and Afrifa appeared on Ghana TV congratulating themselves on their easy success. One remark stood out unmistakable and clear: ‘And you know, we didn’t find any Russians at all— not one! Nor could we find any trace of that tunnel.” This was followed by peals of laughter at the poor soldiers who had believed their story.</blockquote>Nkrumah notes in the following chapter of the book that the bulk of the Ghanaian military's infantry came from the north, where education had been almost completely neglected in colonial times, which "made many of the rank and file soldiers easy prey to anyone who wished to mislead them." Meanwhile, some of the higher ranking members of the military espoused colonial values and what Nkrumah refers to as the "[[Royal Military Academy Sandhurst|Sandhurst]] mentality" (referring to the [[United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland|British]] Army's Royal Military Academy Sandhurst) saying "These men trained in various English military establishments prided themselves on being more 'English' than Ghanaian, and tended to frown on everything in our Ghanaian way of life which did not conform with English customs and traditions. They gradually became more British than the British as they slavishly tried to imitate the traditional English army officer." | Several days after the military seizure of power, Kotoka and Afrifa appeared on Ghana TV congratulating themselves on their easy success. One remark stood out unmistakable and clear: ‘And you know, we didn’t find any Russians at all— not one! Nor could we find any trace of that tunnel.” This was followed by peals of laughter at the poor soldiers who had believed their story.<ref name=":4" /></blockquote>Nkrumah notes in the following chapter of the book that the bulk of the Ghanaian military's infantry came from the north, where education had been almost completely neglected in colonial times, which "made many of the rank and file soldiers easy prey to anyone who wished to mislead them." Meanwhile, some of the higher ranking members of the military espoused colonial values and what Nkrumah refers to as the "[[Royal Military Academy Sandhurst|Sandhurst]] mentality" (referring to the [[United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland|British]] Army's Royal Military Academy Sandhurst) saying "These men trained in various English military establishments prided themselves on being more 'English' than Ghanaian, and tended to frown on everything in our Ghanaian way of life which did not conform with English customs and traditions. They gradually became more British than the British as they slavishly tried to imitate the traditional English army officer." | ||
Following the coup, Western imperialist media took to portraying the situation in Ghana as having popular support. Nkrumah comments on demonstrations in the capital, in which "Banners and posters, most of them prepared beforehand in the U.S. Embassy, were pushed into the hands of the unwilling 'demonstrators'. Many of the slogans and words used on them were quite foreign to the Ghanaian people, and in some cases completely incomprehensible" and he describes it as "interesting [...] that even in the Ghanaian papers there were no reports of any such demonstrations in the villages or in the country-side where one would have expected them, if the revolt had been genuinely popular." | Following the coup, Western imperialist media took to portraying the situation in Ghana as having popular support. Nkrumah comments on demonstrations in the capital, in which "Banners and posters, most of them prepared beforehand in the U.S. Embassy, were pushed into the hands of the unwilling 'demonstrators'. Many of the slogans and words used on them were quite foreign to the Ghanaian people, and in some cases completely incomprehensible" and he describes it as "interesting [...] that even in the Ghanaian papers there were no reports of any such demonstrations in the villages or in the country-side where one would have expected them, if the revolt had been genuinely popular." | ||
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=====Seven Year Development Plan===== | =====Seven Year Development Plan===== | ||
Stating that the principles of scientific socialism were being applied to Ghana's particular situation in forming the Plan, Nkrumah explains that Ghana's economy was to remain mixed for the time being, but that it would focus on expanding the public and co-operative sector faster than the private sector:<blockquote>It was decided in the Seven Year Plan that Ghana’s economy would for the time being remain a mixed one, with a vigorous public and co-operative sector operating alongside the private sector. Our socialist objectives demanded, however, that the public and co-operative sectors should expand faster than the private sector, especially those strategic areas of production upon which the economy of the country essentially depended. Various state corporations and enterprises were to be established as a means of securing our economic independence and assisting in the national control of the economy. They were, like all business undertakings, expected to maintain themselves efficiently, and to show profits which could be used for further investment and to help finance public services. A State Management Committee was set up to ensure their efficient and profitable management.</blockquote>Nkrumah also mentions that it would be necessary to distinguish between two types of private enterprise in Ghana, one being "the small businessman who employed his capital in an industry or trade with which he was familiar, and which fulfilled a public need" which was to be encouraged, and the other being "that class of Ghanaian businesses which were modelled on the old colonial pattern of exploitation" which used their capital not to fill a public need, but to buy up commodities to resell at exorbitant prices. In reference to the second type, Nkrumah writes: "This type of business served no social purpose, and steps would be taken to see that the nation’s banking resources were not used to provide credit for them." | Stating that the principles of scientific socialism were being applied to Ghana's particular situation in forming the Plan, Nkrumah explains that Ghana's economy was to remain mixed for the time being, but that it would focus on expanding the public and co-operative sector faster than the private sector:<blockquote>It was decided in the Seven Year Plan that Ghana’s economy would for the time being remain a mixed one, with a vigorous public and co-operative sector operating alongside the private sector. Our socialist objectives demanded, however, that the public and co-operative sectors should expand faster than the private sector, especially those strategic areas of production upon which the economy of the country essentially depended. Various state corporations and enterprises were to be established as a means of securing our economic independence and assisting in the national control of the economy. They were, like all business undertakings, expected to maintain themselves efficiently, and to show profits which could be used for further investment and to help finance public services. A State Management Committee was set up to ensure their efficient and profitable management.<ref name=":4" /></blockquote>Nkrumah also mentions that it would be necessary to distinguish between two types of private enterprise in Ghana, one being "the small businessman who employed his capital in an industry or trade with which he was familiar, and which fulfilled a public need" which was to be encouraged, and the other being "that class of Ghanaian businesses which were modelled on the old colonial pattern of exploitation" which used their capital not to fill a public need, but to buy up commodities to resell at exorbitant prices. In reference to the second type, Nkrumah writes: "This type of business served no social purpose, and steps would be taken to see that the nation’s banking resources were not used to provide credit for them." | ||
One of the projects discussed in this chapter is the Volta River Project and Volta Dam (now also known as the Akosombo Dam), designed to increase Ghana's capacity to generate electricity and thereby increase Ghana's productive capacity. Nkrumah states that it was expected to increase the installed electrical capacity of the country by nearly 600%, and that almost half of this new capacity would be used in aluminum smelting, in order to take advantage of Ghana's plentiful bauxite. In addition, the man-made lake formed as part of the Volta River Project was being stocked with fish, which was expected to improve nutritional deficiencies by increasing the protein content in the average Ghanaian's diet. The lake was also expected to act as a reservoir to improve water supply for villages and as irrigation for agriculture. Finally, the dam was expected to help provide power to Ghana's neighboring countries, in the spirit of Africa's total development. In regard to this, Nkrumah states Ghana was "ready and prepared to supply power to our neighbours in Togo, Dahomey, Ivory Coast and Upper Volta" and that "this project is not for Ghana alone [...] I have already offered to share our power resources with our sister African states." | One of the projects discussed in this chapter is the Volta River Project and Volta Dam (now also known as the Akosombo Dam), designed to increase Ghana's capacity to generate electricity and thereby increase Ghana's productive capacity. Nkrumah states that it was expected to increase the installed electrical capacity of the country by nearly 600%, and that almost half of this new capacity would be used in aluminum smelting, in order to take advantage of Ghana's plentiful bauxite. In addition, the man-made lake formed as part of the Volta River Project was being stocked with fish, which was expected to improve nutritional deficiencies by increasing the protein content in the average Ghanaian's diet. The lake was also expected to act as a reservoir to improve water supply for villages and as irrigation for agriculture. Finally, the dam was expected to help provide power to Ghana's neighboring countries, in the spirit of Africa's total development. In regard to this, Nkrumah states Ghana was "ready and prepared to supply power to our neighbours in Togo, Dahomey, Ivory Coast and Upper Volta" and that "this project is not for Ghana alone [...] I have already offered to share our power resources with our sister African states." | ||
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Nkrumah writes that throughout 1965, the U.S. government exerted various forms of economic pressure on Ghana, such as withholding investment and credit guarantees from potential investors, put pressure on existing providers of credit to the Ghanaian economy, and negated applications for loans made by Ghana to American-dominated financial institutions such as the IMF. Nkrumah points out that this pressure ended after February 24 1966, when the U.S. State Department's political objective had been achieved. Nkrumah writes, "The price of cocoa suddenly rose on the world market, and the I.M.F. rushed to the aid of the ““N.L.C.”." He mentions that within two weeks of the ending of legal government in Ghana, the army and police traitors received an invitation to send a mission to Washington for talks with the International Monetary Fund and World Bank officials, and that supplies of various foodstuffs and other consumer goods were promised to provide the necessary window dressing for the new regime. | Nkrumah writes that throughout 1965, the U.S. government exerted various forms of economic pressure on Ghana, such as withholding investment and credit guarantees from potential investors, put pressure on existing providers of credit to the Ghanaian economy, and negated applications for loans made by Ghana to American-dominated financial institutions such as the IMF. Nkrumah points out that this pressure ended after February 24 1966, when the U.S. State Department's political objective had been achieved. Nkrumah writes, "The price of cocoa suddenly rose on the world market, and the I.M.F. rushed to the aid of the ““N.L.C.”." He mentions that within two weeks of the ending of legal government in Ghana, the army and police traitors received an invitation to send a mission to Washington for talks with the International Monetary Fund and World Bank officials, and that supplies of various foodstuffs and other consumer goods were promised to provide the necessary window dressing for the new regime. | ||
Although not mentioned in ''Dark Days in Ghana'', 1965 U.S. security council memorandums from several months before the coup, not released until years later, show U.S officials discussing among themselves that pro-Western coup plotters in Ghana were keeping U.S. officials "briefed", and a U.S. security council staffer states that "we and other Western countries (including France) have been helping to set up the situation by ignoring Nkrumah's pleas for economic aid" hoping that this would "spark" the coup.<ref name=": | Although not mentioned in ''Dark Days in Ghana'', 1965 U.S. security council memorandums from several months before the coup, not released until years later, show U.S officials discussing among themselves that pro-Western coup plotters in Ghana were keeping U.S. officials "briefed", and a U.S. security council staffer states that "we and other Western countries (including France) have been helping to set up the situation by ignoring Nkrumah's pleas for economic aid" hoping that this would "spark" the coup.<ref name=":5" /> Weeks after the coup, March 12 1966 U.S. internal documents discuss that the new, "almost pathetically pro-Western" regime should be given gifts of surplus grain to "whet their appetite" for further U.S. support.<ref name=":3" /> | ||
In Chapter 6, Nkrumah describes the above tactic as "standard practice" in the then-recent wave of coups in Asia, Latin America and Africa. He states that wherever progressive governments have been replaced by counter-revolutionary forces, imperialist financial organizations have rushed to bolster them up with loans and various forms of so-called "aid". He explains that this practice "is a necessary corollary to the 'big lie' usually employed to justify the overthrow of 'undesirable governments'—the lie of 'economic chaos' and a 'starving' population. But more important, it serves to tighten the stranglehold of foreign economic control over the captive people by creating more indebtedness and a deeper penetration by foreign business interests." | In Chapter 6, Nkrumah describes the above tactic as "standard practice" in the then-recent wave of coups in Asia, Latin America and Africa. He states that wherever progressive governments have been replaced by counter-revolutionary forces, imperialist financial organizations have rushed to bolster them up with loans and various forms of so-called "aid". He explains that this practice "is a necessary corollary to the 'big lie' usually employed to justify the overthrow of 'undesirable governments'—the lie of 'economic chaos' and a 'starving' population. But more important, it serves to tighten the stranglehold of foreign economic control over the captive people by creating more indebtedness and a deeper penetration by foreign business interests." | ||
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#[[Albert Margai]], Prime Minister of [[Sierra Leone]] | #[[Albert Margai]], Prime Minister of [[Sierra Leone]] | ||
#[[Lee Kuan Yew]], Prime Minister of [[Republic of Singapore|Singapore]] | #[[Lee Kuan Yew]], Prime Minister of [[Republic of Singapore|Singapore]] | ||