Essay on the national liberation struggle in mozambique

Résumé du document

Mozambique is, in the early 20th century, a very heterogeneous country. Without any linguistic, cultural or ethnic harmony, the only point that is common all over this southern African country turns out to be the Portuguese colonial power. However, after an intense liberation struggle, Mozambique became independent in June of 1975; the processes of gaining independence has been induced by, as well as has induced, nationalist movements in this diverse country. Therefore, what central aspects constitute the Mozambican nationalist movements? What is the historical background on which they are based? Moreover, what impact could the socialist discourse have had on the nationalist movements? My analysis will attempt to show that if the Mozambican nationalist movement appears as an isolated case within African decolonization it is due to the fact that it draws heavily from Socialist-Marxist discourses deeply eager to create a "new society".

Extraits

[...] It is important to notice that in the late 19th century, the colonial presence, as well as the Portuguese investments, in Mozambique was relatively weak. Many foreign companies, for example, had a complete economic monopoly in certain regions of Mozambique, where they could act as legitimate sovereigns. Furthermore, the Portuguese weakness increased from the 1860s onward, [when] colonial Mozambique's biggest export [became] people[2]. Indeed, several conventions were signed between South Africa and Mozambique so as the Southern part of Mozambique rapidly became the principal provider of labour for the mining industries in the Rand region. [...]

[...] Mozambique a Nation in Crisis. Claridge Press. London Jens Erik Torp. (1989) Mozambique. Marxist Regimes Collection. Pinter Publishers (London) Joseph Hanlon. (1990). Mozambique: the Revolution under Fire. British Library. London In The break-up of Britain : crisis and nationalism. Chapter 9. Nairn, Tom (1977) 2In Mozambique : Revolution. Chapter 4. [...]

[...] III) The significance of Marxist theories within the Mozambican nationalist movement a. The long way to reach and adopt Marxists theories In this part, I will try to assess FRELIMO's Marxist policies in order to understand why and how the nationalist discourse has been influenced. Eduardo Mondlane acknowledges that Marxist theories were rather less envisaged at the beginning of the liberation struggle: La base commune que nous avions au moment de la formation du FRELIMO résultait du colonialisme et de la conviction que nous avions qu'il fallait détruire la structure coloniale et établir une nouvelle structure sociale. [...]

[...] From this point onward and due to the intensification of the liberation struggle, an important change occurred in FRELIMO's discourses. Many observers describe this particular trend as a radicalization within the party. This radicalization is a corollary to the increasing influence obtained by the military section of FRELIMO. As FRELIMO effectively defeated several times the Portuguese army, the military branch of FRELIMO aspired to a greater role within the organisation. Nevertheless, some cadres of the party as Lazaro Nkavandame were still strong enough to impose a strict separation between political and military actions. [...]

[...] I will also pay particular attention to the different discourses or theories that the actors of the liberation struggle have adopted. Considering the intense diversity of Mozambique in the early 20th century, it appears as a very difficult task to unify the country over the idea of “Nation”. Indeed, various languages are spoken all over the country among many different tribes. Moreover, these tribes have their own cultures based on centuries-old traditions that vary from one tribe to another. It is also important to note that due to their geographical repartition, many of these tribes have few or no contact amongst themselves. [...]