La interacción entre pares en la infancia

In a number of Commonwealth A f r i c a n countries the Independence Constitution was amended and in some cases repealed altogether to achieve

one or a combination of the following! zivj the abolition of regions and

regional assemblies, to establish a republican form of goverenrtent, where

that was not granted at independence, to adopt an autochthonous constitution,

that is, a constitution without any legal links with any external authority, and, the introduction of a one-party system. This Section is concerned w i t h constitutional changes intended to establish a one-party system. Only brief references will be made to constitutional changes in West, East and Central

Africa before considering constitutional changes which brought about UNIP's central role in Zambia.

It is pertinent to point out that while Independence Constitutions of French West African states contained provisions recognizing political

parties or formations which were required to operate in accordance w i t h the law, respect the principles of democracy, sovereignty and national unity,^ Independence Constitutions of Commonwealth African States did not contain

similar provisions. The existence and role of political parties was left to

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be regulated by special statutory provisions and the common law.

Consequently, the mode of adopting a one-party system in the Commonwealth African states meant the insertion of provisions in the Constitution on the

lines of Eastern European or French West A f r i c a n states. The amendment o r the adoption of a new Constitution providing for a one-party system, was

not intended to guarantee respect the principles of democracy, e.g. freedom of assembly and expression, but to restrict all political organization

1. Reyntjens, F., "Recent Development in the Public Law of Francophone

African States", J A L , Autumn, 1986, Vol. 30, No. 2, p. 75.

only through the political pa r t y designated in and by the Constitution. The establishment of a de jure one-party system was said to

be intended to achieve national unity, more freedom of expression and

less opposition. These were secondary objects, the primary objectives were to eliminate contemporary political parties and to frustrate future political opposition. Above all, a de j ure one-party system protects the

ruling party from disintegration through spj-iting into smaller political p a r t i e s .

(a) West Africa.

Ghana was the first among the West African Commonwealth

countries to formally adopt a de jure one party system in January, 1964; that was before Zambia became independent. UNIP had strong links with Kwame Nkrumah's CPP in that it h a d stationed some of its leading cadres, including General Secretary Munukayumbwa Sipalo, in the Bureau of African Affairs in Accra from 1960 to 1962. Ghana's establishment of a one-party system came about following a referendum organized in accordance wit h the Constitution of Ghana, 1960,^which, inter a l i a , established the Republic,

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adopted by a Constituent Assembly. UNIP leadership closely monitored

political developments in Ghana, including the overwhelming vote for the 3

introduction of the one-party system. The legislation establishing the

one-party system clearly shows that the system was intended to eliminate contemporary and future opposition to the CPP:

1A. (1) In conformity with the interests, welfare and aspiration of the people, and in order to develop the organisation and initiative and the political activity of the people, there shall be one national p a r t y which shall be the vanguard of the people in their struggle to b u i l d a socialist society and which shall be the leading core of all organisations of the people.

(2) The National Party shall be the Convention

People's Party.^

1. Ghana: Constitution of Ghana Act, 1960, No. C A 1.

2. Constituent Assembly and Plebiscite Act, 1960, No.

3. Rubin, L., The Constitution a n d Government of G h a n a ; Sweet & Maxwell, 1964, pp. 9-9A for the voting result.

4. Ghana: Constitution Act, 1960, Art. 1A as amended b y the

The language of this provision was obviously borrowed

from the Eastern European constitutions, but, the CPP was not a

vanguard but mass organization. The Independence Constitution of Ghana,^

and the Republican constitution adopted in 1960, aforementioned, unlike

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the Independence Constitution of Zambia, did not contain Fundamental

rights and freedoms of the Individual (Bill of Rights) provisions

guaranteeing, inter a l i a , freedom to assembly and association and in

particular to form and/or belong to political parties. Instead, a person

upon assuming the office of President of Ghana was required to undertake his responsiblity to the people by making a solemn declaration 'before

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the p e o p l e 1'. The declaration was not a limitation on the powers of the President or Parliament wh i c h consisted of the President and the National Assembly. Accordingly, the Supreme Court of Ghana held in In re Bafour

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Osei A k o t o , that the President's declaration affirming his adherence to

certain fundamental principles, imposed merely moral obligations on the President and did not restrict his (detention)powers or the legislature' legal powers.

In the absence of a Bill of Rights, and opposition political parties, the President of Ghana, through the only allowed political party, the CPP "gathered to himself the supreme p ower in the state, erecting himself ahove the legislature and the party, and had then proce e d e d to use this absolute power to tyrannize and oppress people by

a systematic desecration of their civil liberties."^ Alt h o u g h it might b e said that it was partly due to the absence of adequate constitutional

and other safeguards on the resultant po w e r structure under the One^Party

1. UK: Ghana (Constitution) Order in Council, 1957, S.I.1957/277

2. Zambia Independence Order, 1964, S.I. 1964/1652

3. Ghana: Constitution of Ghana Act, 1960, Art. 13(1).

4. (1961) GL R 523.

5. Nwabueze, B.O., Presidential ism in C o m m o n w e a l t h Africa; C. Hurst & Co. London, 1974, p. 92.

Constitution of 1964 that accounted <for the rule of terror and oppression

in Ghana, though in those situations w here there are safeguards, the

dominant position of the presi d e n t under a one-party rule could result in abuse of power particularly in d etention matters. The dominant role of both the CPP and the President in G h a n a ended when the Constitution

was suspended,'*’ and was declared that "the party known as the 'Convention People's Party' is dissolved and the membership of that party is

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prohibited." A subsequent m u l t i p a r t y Constitution was also suspended by the armed forces w ho have c ontinued to rule the country.

(b) East Africa.

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Tanzania's TANU a nd letter C C M have had close links \

w i t h UNIPj the latter's leading cadres were also stationed in Tanganyika