Alright, my Good people, please lets keep this civil and no name calling and insults. I know what Slavery and Colonialism has done to Africa, but we can not really use this two aspects of our history as an excuse over and over again to explain why Africa is in the shape it is in today. Honestly I think it is time we start facing our mistakes and inability head on and address them right on. It really pains me to see the rest of the World progress whereas Africa at times seems to be moving backwards. In my honest opinion, many Countries in Africa have the potential to be as advance as Taiwan, South Korea, Japan, Singapore, Germany, France,United Kingdom and even Canada. The question then remains, how come we are not at the levels I listed? Lets look at some examples at how other Countries did it and why it is possible any Country has the potential to be like Singapore and France. I picked these countries below because they all had corrupt rulers but despite this; these corrupt and dictatorial rulers had a vision which many or our leaders in Africa seem to lack.

South Korea
Korea was a peninsula that has been occupied by outside forces for most of its 2000 year history. Japan occupied Korea from 1905 until 1945. After the Korean war of of 1950-1953 the Peninsula was divide into two, North Korea ( Democratic Peoples Republic of Korea/Communist Korea) and South Korea (Republic of Korea).. In April of 1960,Major General Park Chung-hee led a military coup and overthrew President Syngman Rhee . General Park was assassinated in 1979 and a powerful group of military officers led by Leutanant General Chun Doo Hwan, declared martial law and took power. Since the early 1960s, South Korea has achieved an incredible record of growth and integration into the high-tech modern world economy under the military regime. Four decades ago, GDP per capita was comparable with levels in the poorer countries of Africa and Asia. In 2004, South Korea joined the trillion dollar club of world economies. Today its GDP per capita is equal to the lesser economies of the EU. This success through the late 1980s was achieved by a system of close government/business ties, including directed credit, import restrictions, sponsorship of specific industries, and a strong labor effort. The government promoted the import of raw materials and technology at the expense of consumer goods and encouraged savings and investment over consumption.

Taiwan
Lets now look at Taiwan, a Country with a population of 22.7 million. Taiwan was occupied and Colonized by Japan from 1895-1945. After the expulsion of Japan, Taiwan reverted back to Chinese Rule under the Nationalist Chinese KMT adminstration. Through nearly five decades of hard work and sound economic management, Taiwan has transformed itself from an underdeveloped, agricultural island to an economic power that is a leading producer of high-technology goods. In the 1960s, foreign investment in Taiwan helped introduce modern, labor-intensive technology to the island, and Taiwan became a major exporter of labor-intensive products. In the 1980s, focus shifted toward increasingly sophisticated, capital-intensive and technology-intensive products for export and toward developing the service sector.

Taiwan has transformed itself from a recipient of U.S. aid in the 1950s and early 1960s to an aid donor and major foreign investor, especially in Asia. Taiwan is now a creditor economy, holding the world's third largest stock of foreign exchange reserves ($253 billion as of December 2005). Taiwan firms are the world's largest supplier of computer monitors and leaders in PC manufacturing. Textile production, though of declining importance as Taiwan loses its competitive advantage in labor-intensive markets, is another major industrial export sector. Imports are dominated by raw materials and capital goods, which account for more than 90% of the total. Taiwan imports coal, oil and gas to meet most of its energy needs.

Brazil
On March 31, 1964 the Brazialian armed forces launched a coup led by President Humberto Castello Branco, followed by Arthur da Costa e Silva (1967-69), Emilio Garrastazu Medici (1969-74), and Ernesto Geisel (1974-79), all of whom were senior army officers. Geisel began a democratic opening that was continued by his successor, Gen. Joao Baptista de Oliveira Figueiredo (1979-85). The military regimes developed a plan that made Brazil one of the most advanced industrial sectors in Latin America. One of the most important aspects the military put in place was the development of renewable fuel and today Brazil does not import fuel; instead the Country now uses Ethanol from Sugar cain to power its economy. Accounting for one-third of GDP, Brazil's diverse industries range from automobiles and parts, other machinery and equipment, steel, textiles, shoes, cement, lumber, iron ore, tin, and petrochemicals, to computers, aircraft, and consumer durables. Most major automobile producers have established production facilities in Brazil.

Characterized by large and well-developed agricultural, mining, manufacturing, and service sectors, Brazil's economy outweighs that of all other South American countries and is expanding its presence in world markets. From 2001-03 real wages fell and Brazil's economy grew, on average only 2.2% per year, as the country absorbed a series of domestic and international economic shocks. That Brazil absorbed these shocks without financial collapse is a tribute to the resiliency of the Brazilian economy and the economic program put in place by former President CARDOSO and strengthened by President LULA DA SILVA. In 2004, Brazil enjoyed more robust growth that yielded increases in employment and real wages.

Malaysia
Malysia is a country with a population of 25.6 million. Malaysia was occupied from 1511 by the Portuguese, the Dutch and the British until 1945. During the 1960s Ghana was well off than Malaysia. Today Malaysia is a leader in the Semiconductor industry and the economic growth of Malaysia is due to the government allowing Foreign Direct Investment. Malaysia today is way advance than all African Countries with the exception of South Africa by developing its Electronic and Semi Conductor industries. The Government of Malaysia has taken an active role in guiding the nation's economic development. Malaysia's New Economic Policy (NEP), first established in 1971, sought to eradicate poverty and end the identification of economic function with ethnicity. In particular, it was designed to enhance the economic standing of ethnic Malays and other indigenous peoples (collectively known as "bumiputeras" in Bahasa Malaysia).

Malaysia successfully developed from a commodity-based economy to one focused on manufacturing. Today the Government of Malaysia seeks to make the leap to a knowledge-based economy. At independence, Malaysia inherited an economy dominated by two commodities--rubber and tin. In the 40 years thereafter, Malaysia's economic record had been one of Asia's best. From the early 1980s through the mid-1990s, the economy experienced a period of broad diversification and sustained rapid growth averaging almost 8% annually. New foreign and domestic investment played a significant role in the transformation of Malaysia's economy.

Cuba
Do I really have to say anything on Cuba. Look at the progress Castro has achieved in the field of Education and Literacy despite US Foreign Policy. Today Cuba manufactures all the vaccines and medicines it needs.

References from the State Department and other Sources.

Taking one specific example, did Patrice Lumumba lack "Vision And Common Sense"?

I think the biggest problem was the creation of nations from a patchwork of ethnicities and tribes etc. Since the scramble for Africa europeans created these states not for the benefit of the people but to make administering them easier - divide and rule.

Nigeria was created in this fashion, with distinct ethinicities, who didn't really want to be together, bundled into one country.

The whites who did this knew full well that these states would never work. For a nation to succeed its people must have a common bond like religion or race or ethnicity -- In the newly carved African states non of these factors were true, and this was a deliberate act by europeans to cause future mayhem.

When Biafrans attempted to breakaway from Nigeria to form their own homogenous state, guess who backed the status quo i.e. the corrupt nigerian dictatorship? Britain and America, of course

So now you have leaders who are supposed to identify with 120 million people accross multiple ethnic divides. Is that some sort of sick joke by europeans? Hmmm what do you think!

If western states didn't meddle in African affairs, maybe countries would have been born from united tribes rather than tribes forced together.

Historically, when peoples have been forced to live together its always been a recipe for disaster (check Bosnia/Yugoslavia conflict).

The countries you mention, Vubunda, are peoples united against a common foreign aggressor, not a patchwork of ethnicities bundled together, therefore your examples are invalid.

MarcusGarveyLives wrote: ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Unfortunately Patrice Lumumba was murdered before his real potential apart from leading the independence movementwas realized. He was a good man and leader butwas notnever given the chance todevelop and lead this nation because he wasoverthrown shortly right after independence ten (10) weeks later.

[align=left]Vubundada_Kandaba wrote: [/align]

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[align=left]Now there's a surprise!
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[align=left]Did Marcus Mosiah Garvey lack "Vision And Common Sense"?[/align]
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Vubundada_Kandaba wrote:

http://www.blackchat.co.uk/theblackf...m34/23359.html