Compare and contrast how independence was achieved in Tanganyika and South-West Africa.

The question requires that candidates give an account of the similarities and differences between the achievement of independence in Tanganyika and South-West Africa, referring to both countries throughout. For comparison, candidates may note the dominance of a single nationalist movement in each country (TANU and SWAPO respectively), which provided a focal point for opposition. Similarly, the two movements were dominated by a single charismatic leader, Julius Nyerere in Tanganyika and Sam Nujoma in South-West Africa. Candidates may also note pressures for independence in both colonies resulting from their special status as UN Trust Territories. For contrast, they may highlight the differences between Tanganyika’s peaceful achievement of independence and South-West Africa’s prolonged armed struggle. They may also argue that the struggle in South-West Africa was complicated by the presence of South Africa as a racist occupying power, a factor that contributed to the later achievement of Namibian independence.

This question on Tanganyika and South-West Africa produced some competent responses. Candidates almost always adopted the proper format for a compare and contrast which aided in the production of good responses. Weaker candidates were somewhat short on detail compared to the best responses but overall this was a question that showed effective work.