The mysterious continent of Africa, dormant for centuries, has awakened suddenly in the 1960s.
Africa can be likened to a mass of powerful yeast, acting not only on politics and economics, but on social, cultural, and religious affairs as well.
Today's Africa is already an important actor on the world stage, important not only to the Western world, but also to China. Not only is its strategic position vital; it also has abundant natural resources and, at the same time, constitutes a major defense line of the West.
It is crucially important to the Republic of China. If there is any place in the world that merits the full play of our diplomatic talents, it is Africa. If there is any area which can greatly affect our international position, that also is Africa. Our African policy is, indeed, the key to the success or failure of all our diplomatic ventures.
At the turn of the century, most of Africa had been colonized by Western European countries. England and France held the largest proportion of land, followed by Portugal, Italy, Belgium, and Spain. Even as late as the end of the Second World War, Africa had only four independent nations: Egypt, Liberia, Ethiopia, and the Union of South Africa. By 1960, however, many national flags had been raised, partly as a result of the continuing advance of nationalist self-determination and partly because of the enlightened colonial policies of England and France. The continent of Africa today boasts 35 newly independent nations, all of which now are appearing on the international stage in leading or supporting roles.
These 35 new national flags were able to spring up like bamboo shoots after a spring rain because of the cold war between the camps of the East and the West. The emergence of these new nations has increased the acuteness of the cold war. Thus the cold war can be said to have been both cause and effect in the emergence of African nations.
Our efforts toward cooperation with Africa have had a twofold purpose:
1. To strengthen our own international position.
2. To destroy the infiltration of the Communist bloc.
As the Washington Post said: "Luckily, there is a nation—the Republic of China—which has been more successful than either the United States or the Soviet Union in stopping Chinese Communist from 18 African nations. The Chinese Communists are recognized by only 10."
That our diplomacy has been able to "take off" in Africa can be attributed in part to the contributions of Vice Foreign Minister Yang Hsi-kun. Also important has been the performance of our agricultural demonstration teams, which have transformed barren land in Africa into a paradise of oases. Within scarcely more than a year, they have helped some African nations reap abundant harvests and move toward solution of their economic difficulties. Liberia, Libya, and eight other nations in Africa have benefited. Not one of these nations has voiced dissatisfaction. All have been willing to establish relations with us and cast a vote in support of our cause at the United Nations.
Coming of New Era
This Chinese "agricultural diplomacy" is a new field of diplomatic activity. It foretells a new era in diplomatic history.
The efforts of the Republic of China in Africa date from 1960, four years later than the Chinese Communists. Our progress has been rapid in the past three years and the end is not yet in sight. The Chinese Communists started out with great ballyhoo, but reached their peak in 1960 and have been steadily regressing since.
Our economy has prospered and we have been able to make the best use of our resources. The Chinese Communists, on the other hand, have met with repeated economic failure. They themselves are at a loss as to what to do.
Rapid Changes
The Republic of China has been able to win the friendly cooperation of most of the new nations in Africa. We have been able to strengthen our position in the United Nations. But the greatest triumph of all is that we have been able to frustrate the aggressive plot of the Communist bloc to harass Europe through Asia and Africa.
The changes in Africa have been extensive. In 1960, for example, 17 nations announced their independence and joined the United Nations. In 1961, two African nations attained independence: Sierra Leone and Tanganyika. In 1962, there were Ruanda, Burundi, Algeria, and Uganda. In 1963, there were Kenya and Zanzibar.
The 35 African nations are among the 113 member states of the United Nations. Should they all unite in voting on any issue, the effect would be immense. The Republic of China has worked steadfastly to maintain its U.N. seat.
In the past five years, the African nations have shown the following trend in voting on the U.N. bona fides of the Republic of China:
The chart shows that the African votes supporting the Republic of China increased by seven in 1961, while support for the Chinese Communists remained at the level of the previous year. In 1962, the Republic of China gained eight African votes to the Communists' five, and in 1963, the Reds actually lost two African votes.
All members of the Brazzaville group supported the Republic of China in 1963. Thus it was able to win more than half of Africa's votes. This can be largely attributed to our agricultural diplomacy in Africa. The strong support of the United States and the Chinese Communist border conflict with India were contributing factors.
The success of our agricultural diplomacy has increased our self-confidence and focused attention of the peoples of Africa and the whole world on the moral integrity and selfless spirit of the Chinese people.
Progress of the farm demonstration teams has persuaded most African nations and peoples of the willingness of the free Chinese to help them. At the same time, there is growing animosity toward the Chinese Communists, who have been revealed as something other than what they pretend and who also have been unveiled as those who do not live up to their promises.
Achievements of the agricultural demonstration team also have mitigated the sense of inferiority that has built up in Chinese minds in recent years.
Green Field Miracle
In the immediate past, we Chinese have looked upon our agricultural skills as a "broken lamp". Today it has turned out to be an "Aladdin's Lamp". Rubbed by 77 farm technicians in faraway Africa, it has produced a miracle—that of transforming deserts into green and productive fields.
Equally dramatic are the Taiwan agricultural training seminars given for African technicians. The first seminar had 25 participants, the second 49, and the third 44. They came from Cameroun, Central African Republic, Congo (Brazzaville), Congo (Leopoldville), Chad, Dahomey, Ethiopia, Gabon, Ivory Coast, Kenya, Liberia, Libya, Madagascar, Mauritania, Niger, Nyasaland, Ruanda, Senegal, Southern Rhodesia, Togo, Upper Volta, and Zanzibar.
Chou En-Lai Fails
The Chinese Communists have been trying to infiltrate Africa ever since they seized the mainland. The Peiping regime has taken advantage of the urgent wish of newly independent countries to hasten economic development by claiming that its brand of socialism is a shortcut. At first it tried to hold up the economic development on the mainland as an example.
But mainland famine has now been exposed and knowledge of it spread throughout the world. The African nations have come to understand the Chinese Communist intrigue of exporting hunger and using promises of money to purchase friendship. The African trip of Chou En-lai and Chen Yi merely has had the effect of closing the stable doors after the horse is gone. Most of the nations of Africa understand that unlike Peiping, the Republic of China offers agricultural cooperation out of a sincere desire to help others.
Vice Minister Yang has pointed out that the Afro-Malagasy Union is one of the major forces in Africa. In 1961, two African groups with opposing political positions emerged: the Casablanca bloc and the Afro-Malagasy Union.
The diplomatic policy of the Casablanca bloc follows that of the Soviet Communists. Its components are the United Arab Republic, Ghana, Guinea, Mali, Morocco, and Algeria.
The Afro-Malagasy Union is composed of 12 French-speaking nations: Cameroun, Central African Republic, Chad, Congo (Brazzaville), Dahomey, Ivory Coast, Gabon, Malagasy, Mauritania, Niger, Senegal, and Upper Volta. Their leaders hold conferences to develop mutual friendship and coordinate external policy. They seek to strengthen their stand in the world scene and increase their voice on weighty international issues.
As Africa steps up efforts to enter its new era, it is feeling acutely its lack of able leaders.
Africa emerged from European rule only in the 1950s. Education in Africa then was far from universal and even fewer persons received training in administration. As African nations began to assert their independence, they immediately discovered an acute need for leadership. Foreigners had given impetus to their organization of politics and economics. However, most African nations had acquired a sensitivity about using foreigners in government. The white people had looked down on them too long in the past.
Infiltration Tactics
The Iron Curtain countries were quick to take advantage of this situation. They introduced flexible tactics of infiltration whenever they saw an opening. That is another reason why the Republic of China has endeavored to lend a helping hand in Africa's development. It was necessary to keep others from stepping in with their intrigues to undermine Africa and extensively damage the free world.
The Republic of China's agricultural diplomacy has stood in the forefront of an idealistic approach to African friendship. We have not stooped to attempts to buy off African nations as have the Chinese Communists. We have used our own skills and technology to develop cooperation. In the past two to three years, we have seen great results. Our sphere of operations has been small, but the results will be long-lasting; the prestige we have gained is great.
New Way of Life
Our main harvest in the African diplomatic field is the recommendation of our own traditional national spirit to give support to the African movement toward self-sufficiency.
National self-sufficiency has brought to Africa a new way of life. The colonialism of former times had sucked the Africans dry of all sense of duty and confidence in themselves. The Europeans had wanted them to believe that theirs was a backward civilization without value. African leaders of today believe their greatest victory is not in winning independence, but in struggling out of the mire into which colonialist rule had sunk them.
The tendency of Africa today is to move away from opposition to colonialism and toward anti-Communism. Africans want to establish relations with nations that offer them real friendship and reciprocal treatment. This is in accord with our own spirit of national reconstruction.
Chow Mei, the outstanding son of the late revolutionary elder. Chow Hai-ping, led a group of 14 experienced agricultural workers to Liberia in 1961. Before that, the United Nations had invited American and European specialists to Liberia to start demonstration farms. Each attempt ended in failure.
Chow Mei and his 14 agricultural ambassadors arrived in a desolate farm area with only their hands, hoes and other simple farm tools to open up a wasteland, build dams, and irrigate the fields. In the sparsely populated countryside, the young men suffered under the hot sun in the daytime and from the sting of insects in the night. With determination to do well and with the thought that our national honor was involved, these young men toiled without rest in order to achieve unprecedented success.
After the first harvest, Chow Mei estimated that Liberia could produce 4,000 kilograms of rice from each hectare of land, two to four times the production of before. The success rocked Liberian officialdom. It erased the previous failure of farm experts from Europe and the United States. The Liberians had regained faith in the agricultural future of their country.
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Sophie M. K. Chang, Mrs. Shao Yuan-chung in private life, is a member of the Examination Yuan. Educated at Columbia University, she has been active in education and politics.