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| H.E. Joaquim Alberto Chissano |
LECTURE DELIVERED AT THE 3rd EDITION OF
THE AFRICAN LEADERSHP LECTURE SERIES
BY
HIS EXCELLENCY DR JOAQUIM ALBERTO CHISSANO,
FORMER PRESIDENT OF MOZAMBIQUE
AT THE UNIVERSITY FOR DEVELOPMENT STUDIES (UDS)
TAMALE
Professor
Haruna Yakubu, Vice-Chancellor of UDS,
Faculty
Members of the UDS,
Dear
Students,
Distinguished
Guests,
Ladies
and Gentlemen,
It is indeed my pleasure and privilege to
me to deliver this lecture at this prestigious
university, as part of the 3rd Edition of the African
Leadership Lecture series at the University for Development Studies (UDS) of Tamale,
Ghana.
The Republic of Ghana constitutes the first
shining independent country in Africa, which inspired other countries to fight
for their freedom against colonialism and apartheid. I also would like to pay
deserved tribute to the leadership of the UDS for its creativity in
establishing the much needed discourse on African leadership series with the
view to stimulating discussion and action on African Leadership and Governance,
by sharing ideas in a University setting.
I recognize the aspiration of the lecture
series as part of University responsibility to contribute to the national and transnational discourse on
productive leadership to create a platform to inspire positive and innovative
leadership and stimulate action for constructive leadership in Ghana and Africa
in general.
It is with this in mind that I would like
to share my views on the strong and visionary leadership of the Frontline
States (FLS) during the Liberation struggle in
Southern Africa, an issue that was also very
close to the leadership in Ghana within the concept of Pan- Africanism and the
Liberation struggles in Africa.
I have chosen the topic of the evolution of
the strong visionary leadership of the Frontline States and its contribution to
the Liberation struggles in Southern Africa because it
gives me the opportunity to share with the future leaders of Africa some
inspirational insights of the past, which, hopefully, will bring more
confidence for our young leaders to take Africa to its rightful place, thus
giving continuity to the efforts started by their forefathers.
I would like to share with you how first
the national liberation struggle and later the independent Mozambique, led by FRELIMO
benefited from this visionary leadership, particularly of Mwalimu Julius Nyerere, the late
President of the United Republic of Tanzania and Dr Kenneth Kaunda, the former
President of the Republic of Zambia, who provided strong and visionary
leadership, through actions that led to the creation of what became known as the
Frontline States. I stand here before you as testimony to that visionary and
strong leadership that championed the liberation struggle in Southern Africa.
My argument is that these were
revolutionary and committed leaders who, by implementing innovative ideas to
support the struggle for liberation in Africa, in particular in Southern
Africa, ended up with the concept of Frontline States as a platform to provide
leadership in the collective and individual efforts of the liberation struggle.
Distinguished Guests;
Ladies and Gentlemen;
Let me turn now to the inception of the
Frontline States. It all started with the considerate conviction by Presidents
Nyerere and Kaunda that their countries could not be effectively free and independent
while a single country in the continent remained under colonialism or any other
form of oppression, discrimination or subjugation, such as apartheid or racist
minority regimes. Tanzania and Zambia were newly independent countries (respectively
in 1961 and 1965) confronted with many economic problems to solve.
Zambia was a landlocked country, dependent
on the seaports of Mozambique, then under Portuguese colonialism, and South
Africa, then under apartheid. These leaders were confronted with the formidable
challenge of how their poor countries, vulnerable to pressures due to their
dependency to oppressive regimes on transport networks, could at the same time
support struggles against the same very oppressive regimes.
These leaders showed the necessary
visionary leadership not to bow to pressure, but stand to what was right: the
struggle to free Southern Africa from the colonial yoke, apartheid and minority
regimes.
The other belief they had was that unity of
effort, courage and the mobilization of their people to be part of the struggle
was a strong force to drive them to success. These leaders mobilized their people
to make the necessary sacrifices and support the liberation struggles in
Southern Africa. They also mobilized the international community to support
these struggles. The peoples of those countries because they had the
enlightened leadership, voluntarily consented these sacrifices with the
certainty that after the liberation of the continent they would tread speedily
towards progress and better life.
To address the dependency challenge, these
leaders came up with the innovative solution of courageously building
alternative transport routes. They first established an air bridge between
Tanzania and Zambia, using airplanes to transport goods. Then they tarmacked a
long highway of more than one thousand miles, linking Dar es Salam and Lusaka,
followed by the building of a long railway, named Tazara, and an oil pipeline,
called Tazama.
As the building of the alternative
transport route was underway, we in FRELIMO were requested to suspend the armed
operations in the zones neighboring the most vulnerable countries, such as
Zambia and Malawi, to give chance to this construction of the alternative
routes.
Malawi, a country also landlocked and
dependent on the ports of Mozambique and on trade links with apartheid South
Africa was invited to join in this liberation exercise. But, unfortunately, due
to lack of a long-term and visionary leadership, Dr. Hastings Kamuzu Banda, the
then President of Malawi, refused to join this initiative and preferred to
continue his close collaboration with colonialism and apartheid. For these
reasons I consider the actions of Presidents Nyerere and Kaunda as pioneers of
what we term today as the economic integration of Africa.
Already in those days, Presidents Nyerere
and Kaunda, due to their visionary leadership and foresight, had thought about
the roles that independent Mozambique and Angola could play, not only for the
liberation of South Africa, Namibia and Zimbabwe, but also in the concerted
efforts for the development of the Central and Southern regions of Africa.
The two leaders argued that it was not
proper to implement their strategy without involving the peoples whom they were
supporting. To this end, Samora Moises Machel, the leader of FRELIMO
(Mozambique Liberation Front) and Dr Agostinho Neto, the leader of the MPLA
(Popular Movement for the Liberation of Angola), were invited, from 1973, to
participate in the restricted meetings of the two leaders, even before they won
the independence of their countries.
They were considering Samora Machel and
Agostinho Neto as the potential leaders of independent Mozambique and Angola,
respectively. The gathering of these leaders constitutes what I consider the
birth of what was later known as the Frontline States. In fact, this
designation only came about after the independence of Mozambique in 1975.
It is worth mentioning that Sir Seretse
Khama, Leader of Botswana, was approached by the two leaders and invited to
join the efforts to support the liberation struggle and, in spite of the
geographical closeness of his country and heavy dependence on the apartheid
South Africa, he accepted to cooperate.
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| H.E. Chissano during a courtesy call on Prez John Dramani Mahama |
As far as I recall, one of the steps taken
was to look for an improvement of the crossing of Zambezi River between Zambia
and Botswana, at Kazungula. From these discussions, a first decision taken was
to acquire a new ferryboat, with a bigger capacity. In pursuit of this
long-term vision, the two countries have recently launched the building of a
modern bridge, to be completed by 2018, financed by the two governments, with
the financial support of the African Development Bank and the Government of
Japan.
Anyway, Botswana, since the beginning of
the 60’s, even before it was proclaimed a Republic, through Sir Seretse Khama,
was giving shelter to refugees from Mozambique and South Africa, crossing
Botswana on their way to Zambia and later to Tanzania, to join their respective
liberation movements.
Once my country became independent, Zambia,
Tanzania, Angola, Botswana and Mozambique continued to coordinate their efforts
to support the liberation struggles of Zimbabwe, Namibia and South Africa. It
was in the course of these interactions that Sir Seretse Khama came up with some
ideas for economic cooperation among the countries of the Frontline
States.
This led to the convening in 1980 of a
meeting that launched the Southern African Development Coordination Conference
(SADCC), composed by the Frontline States, plus Lesotho, Malawi and Swaziland. President
Seretse Khama was elected SADCC Chairperson, while President Nyerere remained
Chairperson of the Frontline States.
SADCC was essentially created to promote
economic cooperation amongst its members, with the ultimate goal of reducing
their dependency to Apartheid South Africa. The liberation movements of
Namibia, South Africa and Zimbabwe also attended this conference, in
anticipation of their countries joining the organization once independent.
The establishment of SADCC represented
another step in the regional integration vision outlined by the leadership of
the Frontline States. The economic cooperation amongst SADCC Member States was
so successful that it demanded further steps to deepen it.
This, together with the independence of Zimbabwe
ad Namibia, led to the establishment in 1990, of the Southern Africa
Development Community (SADC) as a higher step in regional cooperation, towards
regional integration that is still being pursued in Southern Africa.
The leadership of the Frontline States was
internationally recognized and the organization was seen as a key and
unavoidable interlocutor in efforts to solve the various conflicts in Southern
Africa. For instance, within the framework of the Organization of African Unity
(OAU), the Frontline States was regarded as the reference point for addressing
issues related to the liberation of Southern Africa.
Moreover, in the case of Zimbabwe, there
was an Anglo-American initiative through which the United Kingdom and the
United States were engaging the Frontline States in efforts to achieve the
independence of that country. With regard to Namibia, an international contact
group comprised of the 5 Permanent Members of the United Nations Security
Council, the UN Special Representative, Marti Athisari and the 5 Frontline
States was established to spearhead efforts for the independence of Namibia.
Excellencies;
Distinguished Guests;
Ladies and Gentlemen;
In my particular case, I greatly
benefitted from the vision, leadership and vast experience of the leaders of
the Frontline States. Indeed, during our struggle for Independence, President
Samora Machel was invited to the meetings of the Frontline States, which was
actually a tete-a-tete meeting of the leaders, and I had to assist him with interpretation
from English to Portuguese and vice-versa.
Thus, my exposure to the
vision and experiences of these leaders started earlier than many of my
colleagues. Therefore I’m a witness of the rock solid commitment of those
leaders to the liberation of Southern Africa, and indeed of the entire African
Continent.
Each one of these sons of
Africa had to lead their peoples through very difficult circumstances, facing
and defeating mighty enemies. This happened because those leaders had a vision
of their countries liberated from colonialism, apartheid and racism, associated
to a strong commitment to reach that goal, through their individual and
collective participation.
Therefore, it is absolutely
correct to say that Africa did have strong and visionary leaders during that
period, and, that many of them, were no doubt product of the individual and
collective leadership learning from the Frontline States. Significantly, in
1976 Nigeria identified herself as a long distance member of the Frontline
States, and was invited to participate in its meetings. I am indeed privileged
to stand here today as a product of practical or empirical leadership mentoring
from the Frontline States.
As we take part in this 3rd
African leadership series it is important to seize the opportunity to pay
special tribute to Mwalimu Nyerere and the people of Tanzania for their commitment to the liberation struggles in
Southern Africa. President Nyerere not only took upon himself the leadership of
an international campaign for the liberation of Southern Africa, but also spearheaded
through popular marches, rallies and fundraising, a strong national campaign
for the support of liberation struggles of the region.
All the Southern African
liberation movements, including FRELIMO, MPLA, the ANC, PAC, ZANU, ZAPU and
SWAPO had their bases or representations in Tanzania. Almost every liberation
movement cadre went through Dar es Salaam to Algeria, Egypt, Israel, Soviet
Union, Eastern Europe, People’s Republic of China, People’s Democratic Republic
of Korea, and Cuba, either for military training or for academic studies.
Besides, the Government of
Tanzania also made available land for: (i) building camps for political and
military training; (ii) building schools and health care facilities, to provide
relevant services to cadres; and, (iii) land for agricultural production.
The Government of Zambia
established a liberation centre providing offices for all liberation movements,
besides providing land for building camps for the transit of cadres and logistic
support, as well as for agricultural production to feed combatants in transit
and those in the frontline. Frelimo was able to cultivate in Zambia, 120
hectares of maize and vegetables, to feed its combatants.
Strong national and
international mobilization for the support of the liberation struggles was also
undertaken by Presidents Kaunda and Sir Seretse Khama, and later on by other
leaders of Southern African countries as they became independent.
Excellencies;
Ladies and Gentlemen;
Allow me to share with you
the leadership role played by Mozambique during the liberation struggles in Southern
Africa.
The First Leader of
FRELIMO, Dr. Eduardo Mondlane had the leadership challenge of uniting the
divided people of Mozambique on the common goal of freeing the country from the
colonial yoke. With the support of Presidents Kwame Nkrumah and Julius Nyerere,
he started this by uniting in 1962, three liberation groups, namely MANU,
UDENAMO and UNAMI, into a single and stronger liberation movement: FRELIMO.
This was critical because
these three movements happened to have been formed along regional lines, which
was risking to divide Mozambique along these regions. President Mondlane as an
internationally respected leader, has successfully mobilized international support
to the Mozambican liberation cause, particularly in Europe and the United
States.
President Mondlane was
tragically killed in 1969 in Dar es Salaam in a bomb attack. He was replaced by
Samora Machel who led Mozambique into independence in 1975. President Samora
Machel was a great leader who successfully mobilized the Mozambican people to consolidate
national unity and intensify the liberation struggle in Mozambique. He was a
charismatic leader who identified himself with the Mozambican people, mobilizing
them to face the challenges of the destabilization attacks perpetrated by the
apartheid regime of South Africa and the minority regime of the then Southern
Rhodesia.
Immediately after
independence, President Samora Machel led the country to economic growth and
social development, and conducted a relentless campaign against corruption. These
positive socio-economic achievements were halted by the emergence of a war of
destabilization orchestrated by the apartheid regime of South Africa and the
minority regime of Southern Rhodesia.
Due to his sound
leadership skills, President Samora Machel, gained the admiration and respect
of fellow African Leaders and from elsewhere in the world, in recognition of
his experience in leading the liberation struggle in all its aspects notably political,
diplomatic and military, as well as his strategic vision of Southern Africa,
Africa and the world.
President Samora Machel
also mobilized the Mozambican people to support liberation struggles in Africa
and elsewhere in the world. In this regard, Mozambique harboured ZANU bases and
provided support in weapons, logistics and troops to the liberation struggle in
Zimbabwe. Mozambique also provided military training to Ugandan freedom
fighters, as well as, logistical support and troops to fight the brutal
dictatorship of Idi Amin in Uganda.
Another example of the
Mozambican solidarity for liberation struggles around the world, was the
establishment of a national solidarity fund, through which Mozambicans were
encouraged to give their regular financial contribution of one day salary per
month to these endeavours. This solidarity fund was used to support African liberation
movements as well as refugees from around the world, particularly from East
Timor, Chile and Brazil. President Samora Machel also played a leading role in
mobilizing the international community to fight colonialism and apartheid.
Distinguished Guests
Ladies and Gentlemen
As a conclusion I would
like to make some specific comments on the nature of the revolutionary and
visionary leadership that characterized the Frontline States decision-making
and leadership style.
The Leaders of the
Frontline States were not self-fish and they considered the support to the
liberation struggles in Southern Africa as part of a visionary, responsible and
accountable leadership. Solidarity was their guiding principle. President
Nyerere used to tell Tanzanians, “Their struggle is our struggle. We should
therefore give even the little we have. Let us fasten our belts to support the
liberation struggle”.
This meant that Tanzanians
learned that to die a little for the liberation struggle and going hungry in
order to support the struggle was the ultimate sacrifice for every Tanzanian. They
learned that Africa was not free until the entire continent was liberated from
colonialism and apartheid.
For the Leaders of the
Frontline States, the struggle for the liberation of the Southern African was
part of national struggles; and, sacrificing for the liberation struggle was
considered as a common cause, essential for the development of their own
countries. These leaders demonstrated a sense of patriotism and placed the
liberation of the continent before self-interest and the interests of their
individual and collective countries.
They shall therefore
remain in the annals of history as thoughtful and visionary leaders. So glory is
to the Leaders of the Frontline States for demonstrating in their engagements and
actions that leadership matters as it is all about freedom.
The Leaders of the Frontline
States had a clear notion of common purpose and destiny. This leadership value,
I would suggest, has its inspiration from the notion of Pan-Africanism, which
has been clearly championed by the historical leadership of Ghana in African
politics and leadership style.
Dr Kwame Nkrumah was among
such visionary leaders. As an influential 20th-century advocate of
Pan-Africanism, he shall remain in the annals of Africa leadership history as
an icon of the liberation struggles in Africa. Under the leadership of Dr.
Nkrumah, Ghana provided multiforme support to the liberation movements
of the continent, which no doubt has greatly inspired and influenced their fight
against oppressive regimes in Africa.
For instance, I have to
mention here that some Mozambican freedom fighters were trained in Ghana those
days. The training of these cadres was just one way Ghana has contributed for
the liberation struggle of Mozambique. Thanks again, Ghana; your contribution
was not in vain.
Coming back to our main
topic, I find it appropriate and indeed desirable to argue that Nkrumah,
Nyerere and Kaunda meet the common definition of a visionary as “a leader of
excellence who sees what others do not see, who achieves for now and plans for
the future, which positively impacts different generations and rises up other
visionaries.”
This to me is what
characterized the visionary and strong leadership of the Frontline States,
built solidly on commitment and accountability to the people and the struggle
for the liberation of the continent from the colonial yoke, minority rule and
apartheid regime.
The Leaders of the Frontline
States had a sound sense of commitment to the cause of liberation of Southern
Africa, as well as accountability to their peoples and international partners.
In fact, the Leaders of the Frontline States always conducted themselves in an exemplary
manner, leading by example, taking collective decisions and committing
themselves to their implementation.
The Leaders of the Frontline
States also had a sense of shared responsibility in the quest for the
liberation of Africa. Thus, with regard to the liberation struggles in Southern
Africa, the Frontline States remained the focal point for action and
coordinated their efforts with the OAU Coordinating Committee for the liberation
of Africa.
Within this framework of
synergy and collaboration with the OAU policy organs and the Coordinating
Committee for the Liberation of Africa, the Frontline States was able to
interface with the rest of the Continent on issues of liberation struggles in other
parts of Africa.
Against this background, I
would, therefore, argue that the Frontline States developed a leadership
architecture that had several value propositions including commitment,
accountability and shared responsibility, all manifested in the visionary
leadership of Presidents Nyerere, Kaunda, Machel, Neto, Khama and others. We in Mozambique are counted as beneficiaries
of the wise, strong and visionary leadership of the Frontline States.
However, We in Africa despite
being proud of our rich history have so far failed to conduct our own research
and publish our version of events related to our history, in particular of the
liberation struggles. President Mugabe rightly emphasized this point by arguing
that “we have not done much by way of paying tribute to our founding fathers.
Yes, something has been
done for Kwame Nkrumah at the AU, and recently a hall was named after Nelson
Mandela. But we forget perhaps as a new generation of leaders that through the
visionary and strong leadership, the Frontline States carried the burden of
freeing Africa and most of it was borne by one country-Tanzania.”
In Southern Africa there
was a worthy attempt made in that regard, with the Hashim Mbita project
publication, that documents the history of the Liberation struggles in Southern
Africa. Gen. Hashim Mbita was the third and last Executive Secretary of the OAU
Coordinating Committee for the Liberation of Africa.
My appeal to all is that
let us recognize and celebrate the strong and visionary leadership of our forefathers
who provided the required leadership for the liberation of the continent,
particularly in Southern Africa.
The Hashim Mbita project
is just one example of what needs to be done. I therefore encourage African
Universities to research and publish on positive African leadership, in
particular on the remarkable achievements of African Leaders such as Nyerere, Nkrumah,
Machel, Neto, Khama, Kaunda and others, who demonstrated continuous courage and
commitment to liberate the continent from colonial domination, minority rule
and the oppressive apartheid regime in South Africa, as well as for
Pan-Africanism.
It is important to learn
from the past, to build a better future for all of us.
A luta continua!
I thank you very much for
your kind attention.
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