delima francis wrote: > In departing, I would reiterate my my challenge to "anyone with sufficient > knowledge of Zanzibar in colonial times to convince me that the British > administration there was capable to taking any action or institute any > measure that the Sultan objected to!" as I have yet to receive a cogent > response to that.
Francis Delima, The British abandoned Zanzibar 50 years ago. The method used in governing, i.e. with or without the Sultan's objections, led to a revolution the moment they left. This was not a Sultan who was in touch with the populace. Maybe he did not or could not object enough. Anyhow, his actions or in-actions cost him his throne. If the 'Sultanic objected' method used in governing Zanzibar is to be remembered, hopefully it will only be for the purpose of not repeating the same blunders again. Anyone who experienced the objections, or even the graces of the Sultan's influence in Zanzibar, would also remember the political sham that led to independence. Here is part of the Wikipedia entry: "In January 1961, as part of the process of decolonisation, the island's British authorities drew up constituencies and held democratic elections. Both the ASP and the ZNP won 11 of the available 22 seats in Zanzibar's Parliament, so further elections were held in June with the number of seats increased to 23. The ZNP entered into a coalition with the Zanzibar and Pemba People's Party (ZPPP) and this time took 13 seats, while the ASP, despite receiving the most votes, won just 10. Electoral fraud was suspected by the ASP and civil disorder broke out, resulting in 68 deaths. To maintain control, the coalition government banned the more radical opposition parties, filled the civil service with its own appointees, and politicised the police." For those interested in the whole article, here is the link. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Zanzibar_Revolution Sadly, the 'Sultanic objected' government got replaced by one that was infinitely worse. My interest in Zanzibar's governance is more focused on the future or what kind of government comes next. In short, will an East African Federation provide investment opportunities or a worse system of government than the current one? Lastly, I invite you to join the Tanzanite Goan net group. You will definitely find people there who experienced colonial rule in Zanzibar and you may even find people with views more compatible to yours. Mervyn
