Student Information Sheet: Chronology of Significant Events 1945-1994

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This information is to accompany Unit Four of the Curriculum Guide.

Student Information Sheet: Netherlands: Loss of the East Indies

The Netherlands is a small nation of less than ten million people. Following the Second World War it attempt to re-impose its control over the Dutch East Indies.

• The population of the Dutch East Indies was approximately 10 times greater than the population of The Netherlands.

• At the best of times, it would be difficult for such a small nation to gain and retain effective control over such a large nation.

• The task was made more difficult by the strain the World War had placed on available Dutch economic, political and military resources.

While occupying the Dutch East Indies, the Japanese had actively promoted a form of Asian nationalism. They claimed that their goal was to free Asia from European domination.

• Although the real intentions of the Japanese may have been different, Indonesian nationalists were prepared to resist the return of European rule after the war.

• Led by Ahmed Sukarno, the nationalists resisted the Dutch. The Dutch launched "police actions" attacking the nationalists.

Under American pressure, the Dutch agreed to relinquish control of the East Indies.

• In December 1949, they recognized the independence of Indonesia.

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This information is to accompany Unit Four of the Curriculum Guide.

Student Information Sheet: Kenya and a Violent Path to Independence

The decolonization of the British colonies was not always peaceful and gradual. In Kenya, the drive for independence was violent.

The leader of the Kenyan independence movement was Jomo Kenyatta.

• Kenyatta has been educated at both the University of Moscow and the University of London. He became leader of the Kenyan African National Union in 1947.

When demands for reform remained largely unanswered, some elements in the nationalist movement resorted to violence.

• The Mau Mau society committed itself to driving out the white settlers and initiated a number attacks against Europeans and government installations.

In response to the Mau Mau actions, the British proclaimed a state of emergency and arrested Kenyatta.

• Restoring order took three years and was costly for Britain.

In l961, Kenyatta was released from detention.

• He became Kenya's first prime minister when it became independent in 1963.

A large number of European settlers remained in Kenya following independence.

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This information is to accompany Unit Four of the Curriculum Guide.

Student Information Sheet: Gandhi and the "Non-Violent" Struggle

India was the largest and most prized colony in the British Empire. It was also one of the first colonies to gain independence.

The individual who shaped and led the drive for independence was Mohandas Gandhi.

• Gandhi held the belief that independence could be gained through the use of non-violent tactics. His actions and beliefs served as a model for other independence movements.

The struggle for the independence of India started in the eighteenth century. In 1885, the Indian National Congress was formed. Its goal was to peacefully work towards self-government for India.

• The goal of the Indian National Congress seemed a real possibility when the British, during World

War I, declared that their long-term goal was also self-government for India.

During the period between the two world wars, Mahatma Gandhi assumed leadership of the independence movement. He took nationalism to the people and created a mass movement.

Britain, in an attempt to secure Indian cooperation against the Japanese during the Second World War, promised full independence for India after the war.

• Gandhi did not accept the British guarantee of post-war independence and launched a mass movement of noncooperation. He was among the National Congress leaders who were imprisoned during the war.

Ethnic and Religious Division

Complicating the drive for independence were the differing agendas of the Hindu majority and the Muslim minority. Many Muslims sought an independent Muslim state rather than being part of an independent Hindu-dominated India.

• The Muslim League, that advocated a separate Muslim nation, gained significant support among Muslims during the war.

Despite the protests of Winston Churchill, the postwar British Labour Government was determined to grant Indian independence.

• The British announced that they planned to leave India in 1948.
• As the possibility of independence increased, strife between the Hindu and Muslim populations increased.

The British agreed to divide the subcontinent along religious lines. However, to divide the subcontinent along religious lines was extremely difficult in regions such as the Punjab, where both Muslim and Hindu populations resided.

• The presence of other large ethnic/religious populations, such as the Sikhs, further complicated the political situation.
• Some of these religious groups desired political autonomy.

Lord Mountbatten, the Governor General, proposed a population exchange between Hindu and Muslim areas.

The National Congress leaders realized that the Muslims were not willing to live in a Hindu-dominated nation. They reluctantly agreed to the creation of a Hindu India and Muslim Pakistan.

Violence between the two groups did not end as millions of Muslims still resided in India and the borders between the newly independent states of Pakistan and India were disputed.

On January 30, 1948, Mahatma Gandhi was assassinated. His assassination led to widespread violence between Hindus and Muslims.

Pakistan and India: An Uncomfortable Relationship

The borders established at partition did not go unchallenged. Regions with significant Hindu and Muslim populations such as Kashmir, were contested by both Pakistan and India. Several wars over disputed territory have occurred between the two nations.

• Both nations have or are developing nuclear capabilities that adds more significance to relations between the two nations.