Africa: A Dark Continent

 “European colonial powers described the people of Asia and Africa as uncivilised, ignorant and lazy in order to justify establishing colonies in these regions and legitimise their political domination.”

While delivering lectures on the philosophy of history, the German philosopher Hegel (d. 1831) argued that only Europe had a history, while the rest of the world was deprived of history, and Africa, in particular, was a dark continent. Other European historians also endorsed this view, including British historian Hugh Trevor-Roper, who repeated Hegel’s theory.

This raises the question of whether European historians were simply ignorant about Africa and, unable to acquire sufficient knowledge of the continent, concealed their own ignorance by describing it as “dark”. A second question concerns what European historians actually meant by history. Did they define history in terms of military conquests, occupying other countries, plundering their wealth and resources, and enslaving or killing defeated populations? If that is their definition of history, then Africa certainly does not fit the model. Does participating in the historical process require adopting the European model? As the African leader Marcus Garvey once suggested, the African continent could become great and powerful only if it became imperialist it conquered other countries and exercised its strength and power.

This so-called Dark Continent became the centre of attention for European imperial powers when they developed an interest in exploiting its natural resources. European explorers, adventurers, politicians and intellectuals then set out to “discover” Africa and bring it out of darkness into the light. Consequently, Portugal, France, Britain, Germany and Belgium sent their armies to occupy different parts of the continent, ushering in an era of exploitation and plunder.

The process initially began with the slave trade. As colonial powers gradually expanded their control, they seized land, displaced local populations and brought settlers from their own countries to occupy the confiscated territories, providing them with the full support of their imperial governments. Subsequently, research and exploration began in almost every field. Mineral deposits were discovered, and the discovery of gold, silver and diamonds enabled major European trading companies to establish monopolies over these resources.

When labour shortages emerged in the colonies, the British government sent poor and unemployed workers from India to its African possessions as indentured labourers. This was essentially a form of slavery. These workers were not allowed to form trade unions, their working hours were extremely harsh, and they were required to live in the same places where they worked. Indian labourers toiled in British colonies such as Kenya, Nigeria, Uganda and Ghana. They had virtually no fundamental rights. Although they were subjects of the British Crown, Britain provided them with no meaningful protection.

France controlled several colonies in Africa, while Belgium possessed the Congo. Portugal held colonies in Mozambique and Guinea-Bissau. The Germans had occupied Tanzania and Namibia, while the Dutch had established settlements in South Africa. Britain particularly sent engineers, technicians and administrative officials from India to Africa. Christian missionary groups also arrived from Europe to spread their religion. As a result, European imperialists did bring an end to what they described as Africa's darkness, but the light they introduced was not that of African culture.

European colonial policies led to the decline of Africa's indigenous civilisation and culture. Local religions were displaced or transformed, while English, French, Portuguese and German became the languages of power and administration. African history was ignored, and local customs and traditions were treated with contempt. These policies were intended to prevent any sense of nationalism from taking root among the indigenous populations. The tragedy, therefore, was that the so-called Dark Continent enriched European powers with its wealth and resources, while Africa itself remained underdeveloped.

After the colonial era ended and African countries gained independence, they faced the challenge of rediscovering their identities. African historians and intellectuals began reconstructing their history, while new forms of literature and art emerged. According to Frantz Fanon (d. 1961), Africa needed to erase all traces of colonialism in order to lay the foundations of a new culture. Although African countries achieved political independence, colonialism had already created new states and drawn their borders according to the political interests of the imperial powers. Consequently, African countries have continued to experience mutual conflicts and border disputes.

Following independence, many African countries rejected European civilisation and adopted socialist ideology. However, they encountered political difficulties because their own institutions had been dismantled during the colonial period. They had little experience of self-government, as colonial administrations regarded local political movements as acts of rebellion and suppressed them harshly. Africa is now facing a critical challenge. Its countries need to acquire modern education and training, replace outdated cultural practices with new foundations for cultural development, and reconstruct their histories. They must promote and standardize their indigenous languages. Most importantly, ordinary people must be included in nation-building, given equal social status and treated with the dignity and respect they deserve.