Neocolonialism

Neocolonialism refers to the continuation of a colonial system in spite of formal recognition of independence of the formerly colonized nation. After World War II, when the European colonial system collapsed, the international community recognized the right to self-determination of peoples living under colonial rule. This right was [Page 2003]used to justify and promote the transition of former colonies to sovereign states, causing a rapid emergence of newly independent countries through the transfer of power from empire to nation-state. As a result, the total number of independent countries increased considerably from the late 1940s to the mid 1970s.

Despite their newly recognized sovereignty, however, these decolonized countries became subject to de facto control by Western powers, mostly by the same former empires that had once formally colonized them. Under this arrangement, the emerging countries were subjugated by indirect and subtle forms of domination by political, economic, social, military, and technological forces. In this context, neocolonialism differs from colonialism in the sense that colonialism is a formal and openly exercised system of domination of one country by another. Although neocolonialism is not a formal system, it continues as a practice in which Western powers retain economic but not formal control over the former colonies. Therefore, under neocolonial rule, the relations of power between the former colony and the former colonizer remained virtually intact.

Economically, the newly independent countries continued to be dependent on the Western powers. Facing development problems (i.e., unequal land distribution, inadequate infrastructure, insufficient capital investment, urbanization without industrialization, insufficient housing, and unskilled labor), many former colonies had to confront independence in detrimental conditions. In addition, the territorial integrity of many of those emerging countries was challenged by secessionist ethnic groups and the internal wars that resulted from the artificial boundaries inherited from their colonial times. All these conditions located most former colonies in a very disadvantageous position in the global economy. This disadvantageous position essentially relegated them to the status of producers and exporters of cheap raw materials as well as sources of cheap unskilled labor, while manufactured consumer goods were imported from the Western powers. This internationally imposed division of labor created the necessary conditions for the perpetuation of economic control and domination of the former colonies by Western powers even in the absence of direct and formal political authority. As these conditions defined the economic situation of these emerging countries, unequal trade became another constitutive element of neocolonialism.

The de facto domination of the former colonies by Western powers did not rest solely on their economic muscle. Neocolonialism also restructured class relations by embracing, and sometimes creating, local elites who in return worked hand in hand with the Western powers. These alliances with local groups made the consolidation of neo-colonial rule possible in these countries. As was the case under colonial rule, during neocolonialism the cooperation of small local elites with the Western powers had facilitated the West's ability to maintain a dominant position over the local population without any apparent direct involvement. In this way, foreign rule was disguised with a local face that legitimatized the national independence and the sovereignty of the newly emerging countries.

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