Race and Nationalism

The African leaders did not want Federation. They were opposed to it in principle, they were frightened by the way in which it was negotiated, and they rejected the terms in which it was, at last, brought about.

In view of the vehemence of this opposition, and its bitterness, it is very unlikely that any federal government could have been popular with the Africans during its first decade. No matter how well disposed a federal government might have been to African interests, the very fact that it was the embodiment of a despised constitutional innovation would probably have condemned it to unpopularity.

It must also be remembered, that much of the opposition to federation, at least among Africans in Northern Rhodesia and Nyasaland was, and is, based largely on the policy towards natives followed by the Government of Southern Rhodesia--a matter over which the Federal authorities, no matter how anxious they may be to bring about reform, have no direct control.

To this must be added the fact that most matters close to African interests are, by the Constitution, assigned to the Territorial Governments. Consequently, even the most beneficent of federal governments would find it difficult to make its influence felt and appreciated in the daily lives of the native population.

Yet there are some areas in which Federal jurisdiction does touch the lives of Africans. Two, higher education and health, have already been discussed. In both some progress has been made and some initiatives

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