Flag description: divided diagonally by a yellow-edged black
band from the lower hoist-side corner; the upper triangle (hoist side)
is green and the lower triangle is blue
Location: Eastern Africa, bordering the Indian Ocean, between
Kenya and Mozambique
Geographic coordinates: 6 00 S, 35 00 E
Climate: varies from tropical along coast to temperate in highlands
Independence: 26 April 1964; Tanganyika became independent 9
December 1961 (from UK-administered UN trusteeship); Zanzibar became independent
19 December 1963 (from UK); Tanganyika united with Zanzibar 26 April 1964
to form the United Republic of Tanganyika and Zanzibar; renamed United
Republic of Tanzania 29 October 1964
Nationality: Tanzanian(s)
Capital City:
Population: 35,306,126
Head of State: President Benjamin William MKAPA
Area: 945,087 sq km
Type of Government: republic
Currency: 1 Tanzanian shilling (TSh) = 100 cents
Major peoples: mainland - native African 99% (of which 95% are
Bantu consisting of more than 130 tribes), other 1% (consisting of Asian,
European, and Arab); Zanzibar - Arab, native African, mixed Arab and native
African
Religion: mainland - Christian 45%, Muslim 35%, indigenous beliefs
20%; Zanzibar - more than 99% Muslim
Official Language: Kiswahili or Swahili, English
Principal Languages: Kiswahili or Swahili (official), Kiunguju
(name for Swahili in Zanzibar), English (official, primary language of
commerce, administration, and higher education), Arabic (widely spoken
in Zanzibar), many local languages
Major Exports: coffee, manufactured goods, cotton, cashew nuts,
minerals, tobacco, sisal (1996)
History: By the Late Stone Age, people lived (c.500 BC) at various
places along the Tanzanian coast. Accounts of the coastal area in
the 1st century AD describe a number of settlements where commerce took
place. For the next millennium Arab traders plied the coast, trading
with Zanzibar and settlements on the Tanzanian mainland.
The principal settlement of Tanzania occurred by migrating waves of
Bantu peoples. Probably originating about 2,000 years ago in eastern
Nigeria, the proto-Bantu seem to have moved along the Congo River system
into the southern portion of present-day Zaire. By the 10th century
the areas around Lake Victoria and Lake Tanganyika had been settled.
Bantu peoples continued to spread east and south in the 12th to the 15th
centuries.
In 1498, Vasco da GAMA became the first European to visit the coast
of Tanzania, and the Portuguese conducted trade along the coast until 1698
when they were expelled by Arabs from Oman. European missionaries and explorers
such as David LIVINGSTONE entered the area in the 1850s. The Anglo-German
Agreements (1886, 1900) divided spheres of influence along the present
Kenya-Tanzania border, giving Germany control of the southern portion (today's
Tanzania).
GERMAN EAST AFRICA was administered by the German East Africa Company.
In 1891 the German government assumed control and the region became a protectorate.
Opposition to foreign rule mounted and the quasi-religious Maji Maji rebellion
lasted from 1905 to 1907. In 1920, as a result of the German defeat
in World War I, the British took over German East Africa. In 1954,
Julius Nyerere was one of the founders of the Tanganyika African National
Union (TANU), which led the nationalist movement. The well-organized
movement won independence for Tanganyika in 1961, and Nyerere became head
of state. Zanzibar, which gained independence in 1963, joined Tanganyika
in 1964; in 1965 the nation was renamed Tanzania.
Nyerere, who became one of Africa's most respected leaders, unified
the country and expanded education and health care. He supported
black liberation movements in Mozambique, Rhodesia (now Zimbabwe), and
South Africa and sent troops to Uganda in 1979 to help depose dictator
Idi AMIN DADA. The last Tanzanian forces withdrew from Uganda in
1981.
Ideological differences led to the closing of the border between
Tanzania and Kenya from 1977 to 1983. Ali Hassan Mwinyi, who had
been president of Zanzibar since 1984, became president when Nyerere retired
from that post in 1985 and won election in his own right in 1990.
Nyerere remained party chairman until August 1990, when he stepped down
to make way for political and economic reform. In 1992, with Nyerere's
support, multiple political parties were legalized. Multiparty elections
were scheduled for 1995.
Tanzania:
How Two States Became One
All
African nations have a long, rich and deep history that dates back
long before people were taking a holiday cruise
to Africa. These histories are of course being continually added
to each and every day. Although not particularly young in comparison
to African states, Tanzania is relatively young compared to countries
world wide. It has only been in existence since 1964 and previous to
that the two countries that made it up, Tanganyika and Zanzibar, had
only gained their independence in 1961 and 1963 respectively. These
two countries have their own histories, but the creation of Tanzania
marked an interesting start to this fledgling nation. Both successful,
and quashed rebellions, political reform, outside intervention and
even massacres all came together to create the nation Tanzania is
today.
One
man who was instrumental in the formation and development of Tanzania
was Julius Kambarage Nyerere, also known as Mwalimu (Swahili for
teacher). He was born on 13 April 1922 in Tanganyika's Mara Region. He
was the son of the Chief of the Zanaki. He went into education and
eventually became one of only two people in Tanganyika to be educated
to a university level after graduating from Makerere University in
Uganda. He eventually returned to Tanganyika to work as a teacher. He
also studied at the University of Edinburgh where he was introduced to
Fabian thinking, which was to have a profound effect on his future
political choices.
In
1953 he was elected president of the Tanganyika African Association, a
civic organization dominated by civil servants. He took the group
through a major transformation and in 1954 it emerged as the
politically orientated Tanganyika African National Union (TANU). Its
main platform was to gain sovereignty for Tanganyika and within a year
it was the leading political organization in the country. Nyerere
toured his country to help gain support and even gave speeches at the
UN. Eventually, with the support of British governor Sir Richard
Turnbull, independence was achieved in 1961 without war or bloodshed.
He was elected as the country's first Prime Minister and then, when it
became a republic a year later, its first President.
http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/0/0b/Zanzibar_%28tanzania%29.jpg
Zanzibar's
route to independence was not too dissimilar. Again it was given by
Britain without any violence. Unfortunately, trouble lay ahead. The
country had been led (with the exception of British governors) by Arab
Sultans since 1698 when it fell under the control of the Sultanate of
Oman. Once the country was given independence in 1963 a constitutional
monarchy was put into place. Despite elections wherein the mainly
African Afro-Shirazi Party (ASP) got 54% of the vote, the Arab
minority still held all of the power. This led to the ASP allying with
the Umma Party. In January 1964, member of the ASP John Okello formed
a group of around 800 revolutionaries set on overthrowing the Arabs.
It wasn't long before the Sultan was overthrown and in the wake of the
revolution, there was mass reprisals against South Asians and Arabs.
The death toll is massively disputed with numbers ranging from several
hundred to 20, 000.
At
this same time Tanganyika also saw a revolt. The Army rose up against
Nyerere and tried to take power through a military coup. He requested
help from Britain who sent 40 commandos. They proceeded to disarm the
military outposts of the rebels. Fears of hard-line communists gaining
influence in Zanzibar were high there and in Tanganyika. This is one
of the reasons for the merging of the two nations. On April 26th
1964 the two countries became the United Republic of Tanganyika and
Zanzibar. This was later changed to the United Republic of Tanzania on
October 29th. Although now one state, Zanzibar still held
on to a fair chunk of its autonomy.
Nyerere
continued to lead the country and started to introduce the idea of African
socialism. This led to mass nationalization of industry and also close
ties with the People's Republic of China. Nyerere kept a tight grip on
the country with the introduction of the Preventive Detention Act that
allowed him to control trade unions and jail opponents. He and his
party worked to keep a one party system all the way up until 1995 when
multi party elections were introduced. Tanzania still retains this
system and continues to carry on into the future as a stable country,
even if it still has a few problems left to work out.
------
Laura
Harding is a freelance travel writer from England. She spent many
months in Africa studying the diverse history of many of the great,
yet young nations there. There is little doubt that this wonderful
continent has a great heritage and a wonderful future.
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