Senegal - History
Senegal has a rich and colorful history. Archaeological findings throughout the area indicate that Senegal was inhabited in prehistoric times. Many African empires gained prominence in the region, the most important of which was Tekrur, a powerful trading state along the Senegal River that flourished from the 10th through the 12th centuries. In the 13th and 14th centuries, the area came under the influence of the Mandingo empires to the east; the Jolof Empire of Senegal also was founded during this time. Islam first entered the region through these contacts. The groups residing in the region sent slaves and gold north across the desert in exchange for salt and weapons. Islam established itself in the Senegal River valley in the 11th century; 94% of Senegalese today are Muslims.
Europeans began to arrive in the mid-15th century, beginning with the Portuguese and followed later by the French, English, and Dutch. The Europeans competed intensely for Senegal’s lucrative slave trade, and by the end of the 17th century, the French had established forts at Dakar and throughout the Senegal River Valley, while the English had seized the mouth of The Gambia River.
Although they established a colony at this early date, the French needed an additional two centuries to extend their dominion beyond their forts and coastal cities. They faced stiff resistance from African leaders throughout the country, with Islam or traditional kingdoms often becoming a rallying point against French domination. By the end of the 19th century, France controlled most of Senegal north of The Gambia, but groups south of The Gambia continued to resist into the early years of the 20th century.
French colonial rule, as elsewhere in Africa, was primarily a system of political and economic exploitation. The French introduced the peanut to Senegal as a cash crop in the mid-19th century, and soon Senegal was France’s most profitable African colony. France typically ruled peacefully in Senegal until African demands for independence became too strong to ignore in the years following World War II.
In January 1959, Senegal and the French Soudan merged to form the Mali Federation, which became fully independent on 20 June 1960, as a result of the independence and the transfer of power agreement signed with France on 04 April 1960. April 4 remains the date that Senegal annually commemorates its independence. Because of internal political and economic differences, the federation was dissolved when Senegal seceded on 20 August 1960, and Senegal and Mali became separate, independent nations.
Leopold Sedar Senghor, internationally known poet, politician, and statesman, was elected Senegal's first President in August 1960. Senghor was one of the leading figures of the independence movement. He was also a highly respected French-language poet and the only African ever elected to the prestigious and powerful Académie Française. His writings on negritude, a political philosophy that champions the strengths of African ideals, remain important in contemporary African political science.
After the breakup of the Mali Federation, President Senghor and Prime Minister Mamadou Dia governed together under a parliamentary system. In December 1962, their political rivalry led to an attempted coup by Prime Minister Dia. Although this was put down without bloodshed, Dia was arrested and imprisoned, and Senegal adopted a new constitution that consolidated the President’s power. The new Constitution of 1963 organized the government as a representative republic with executive power vested in the president and legislative power vested in a National Assembly elected by universal suffrage. Senghor also instituted the beginnings of local democratic rule in 1972 by establishing a political governance system centered on groups of villages called “rural communities.” This remains the basis of modern Senegalese democracy. In 1976, the Constitution was amended to institutionalize four political parties across the spectrum from right to left.
Senghor, the head of the Socialist Party, was re-elected in 1978 as a moderate socialist, but he resigned on December 31, 1980, passing on the presidency to his handpicked successor, Prime Minister Abdou Diouf.
Abdou Diouf was President from 1981-2000. He encouraged broader political participation, reduced government involvement in the economy, and widened Senegal's diplomatic engagements, particularly with other developing nations. President Diouf removed all restrictions on opposition political parties. Domestic politics on occasion spilled over into street violence, border tensions, and a violent separatist movement in the southern region of the Casamance. Nevertheless, Senegal's commitment to democracy and human rights strengthened. Diouf served four terms as President. An overwhelming majority returned him and the Socialist Party to power in 1983 in the country’s first unrestricted multiparty elections. More than 50 parties are active in Senegal today, with the Socialist Party and the governing Democratic Socialist Party among the most prominent.
As acting president of the Organization of African Unity in 1985 and 1986, Diouf led the international diplomatic battle against South Africa’s apartheid regime. Senegal accorded full diplomatic recognition to both Namibia’s South-West Africa People’s Organization (SWAPO) and South Africa’s African National Congress (ANC).
On November 14, 1981, Senegal and The Gambia signed an agreement proposing to unite the two countries as the Confederation of Senegambia. Various government officials had proposed such a union since the early days of independence. The Gambia, a former English colony, is nearly completely surrounded by Senegal, a former French colony. The two countries share the same ethnic groups and pre-colonial history; the main differences between them are their official languages and colonial traditions.
The agreement was precipitated by an attempted military coup in The Gambia in July 1981, while Gambian President Dawda Jawara was out of the country on a state visit. Fearing regional instability, the Senegalese Army entered the country and suppressed the rebellion. After this aborted coup, the two countries tried to implement a confederation. Political integration was going faster than economic integration when the two governments decided to dismantle the confederation in 1989.
Between 1997 and 1999, Djibo Ka and Moustapha Niasse, both important figures in Diouf’s party and longtime government ministers, quit the government and created their own parties. Although the ruling party minimized the event’s significance, most observers saw it as the beginning of the end of the Socialist Party. On March 19, 2000, President Diouf lost to an opposition coalition led by longtime rival Abdoulaye Wade (pronounced "wahd") in the presidential campaign, in a free and fair election. This was a first in Senegal, as the Socialist Party had won all presidential elections for more than 40 years. Senegal experienced its second peaceful transition of power, and its first from one political party to another. Wade was re-elected in 2007; parliamentary elections were held the same year.
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