“The rape of Africa” - The 1884 Berlin Conference

In her first major article,  OBV’s Nilay Tuncok investigates European control of Africa of the past and present. First the shocking 1884 Berlin Conference in which a small number of European countries ‘scrambled’  to claim ownership of 90% of the continent. Tuncok  also comments on today’s discussion of that event, some 130 years later, which still focuses not on Africa or its people but Europe's winners and losers.

Last week marked the end of this year’s celebrations of Black History Month in the U.K., which is held to raise awareness on key figures and events that have shaped the culture. Perhaps in concert with the end of the month, and nearing its November  anniversary  the BBC series, In Our Time, recently focused on the 1884 Berlin Conference, with professors of imperial and African history serving as guests.

The outcome of the Berlin Conference has had a tremendous role in the continent's  history, with its impacts still felt in large parts of Africa to this day.

Delegates from the world’s 14 superpowers gathered on November 15th, 1884 to discuss future trade and colonial control in Africa. Sitting in a room with a large map of Africa, the European powers ruthlessly began carving out the continent like children splitting a decorated cake at a birthday party. The three month long debates marked the origins of the “Scramble for Africa”, which unapologetically increased European influence in the continent. 

Dr. Saul David explained that before the conference only 10% of the continent was under direct European control. By the end of the 19th century, 90% of the land was in their hands. 

Sadly though, the BBC discussion disappointingly weighed towards European economic interests and what colonizers hoped to gain from the invasion. The professors addressed Europeans’ concerns about competition to access goods and trading posts and how these nations hoped to recreate a balance of power with the weakening of the Ottoman Empire.

The presenter, Melvyn Bragg, asked about the European winners and losers of the conference, but only the last few minutes of the 40 minute conversation focused on the real victims of colonization, the Africans. It is of course imperative to discuss and understand the roots of European imperialism, such as Belgium’s King Leopold greed for territory and his devious tactics to gain it. However, equal time should be given to consider how the decisions of the conference had lasting impacts on those targeted.  

Richard Rathbone, Professor at the University of London, explained that paternalism was the dominant feeling in the 19th century among Europeans. The myth of the time was that, 

“Africans were going to be saved from themselves, saved from the darkness by the combination of Christianity, commerce and civilization.”  

Despite less time being allocated to the African perspective, guests contributed some notable information to enlighten the discourse.  

Joanna Lewis, Assistant Professor at the London School of Economics, spoke on the legacy of colonization.  She remarked,

“Africa gets divided up by countries who produce states that are too greedy, too rushed and too racist to live up to any of the humanitarian ideals that were on the books.”

Europeans claimed African land without considering how it would damage the local culture and communities. There were no Africans involved in the summit and only two leaders had even visited the continent, according to the programme.

Rathbone argues that although Ethiopia was not part of the African scramble, it was under military rule and only had a form of modernization. However, it’s crucial to bear in mind that because countries were interdependent, a large colonial power had the ability to control access to trade in the region and dictate over fragile states.  

A Professor at King’s College London, Richard Drayton said,

“The forms of modernity which emerged in Ethiopia...were forms which were encompassed by a world dominated by European norms and in which Europeans had acquired this kind of disproportionate violent command of the world’s resources.”

He added that decolonization was difficult because of the kinds of structures set in place. The unjust division of territory led to weak states and dependent economies, which were difficult systems to alter.   

Although the 1926 International Slavery Convention outlawed slavery, David explained,

“Under all the colonial powers, forced labour of one kind or another remained in place into the 1940s, and the imposition of taxes forced people into low-paid mining, industry or agribusiness jobs when they might otherwise have remained farmers.”

Understanding the causes and consequences of the Berlin Conference unravels how Europe dominated a continent for decades and left deep scars in many of the countries. A greater discourse on the impact of “The Scramble for Africa” can shed light into its current implications and help prevent future exploitations.   

To view the programme - visit  BBC Programmes

Nilay Tuncok