After Bandung Conference: A Wind of Change in the African Continent (1955–1965)

Conveners: Haryo Kunto Wibisono (Tulang Bawang University, Lampung, Indonesia); e-mail: wibisono_kunto@rocketmail.com, Trenggono Pujo Sakti (Jember University, Indonesia); e-mail: trenggono_pujo@yahoo.com

After Bandung Conference (18-24 April 1955), the condition of global politics has been changed rapidly, especially in African continent where the struggle to gained their independence underway. That meeting resulted such as resolution that made many new African countries had established, released themselves from colonial rule and organised to continued ideological framework named Pan-Africa or African Union influenced by W.E.B Du Bois an African- American scholar, Ghana independence in 1957, Kwame Nkrumah leadership, and All-African People Conference in 1958. For African people, Bandung Conference or Asian-African Conference became referred to their struggle and vision of solidarity among ex-colonies. As the result of that conference, many African leaders along with Asian countries emphasised cooperation in economy, political, cultural aspect to develop their countries, recovery from rest colonial rule, identified their character in global society, defended their independence, restore new powers leaded by African people called self-determination politics. On the other side, nuclear competition had threatened world peace and Cold War between the Eastern and Western blocs had stimulated Asian-African people to choose their position in global constellation. At the same time, during 1955-1964 or after Bandung Conference, 35 countries in Africa declared their independence, those situation made Asia-African countries more frontal to United Nations and organised themselves to conduct NEFO’s conception, Afro-Asia People Solidarity Organisation, and Non-Alignment Movement with addition Latin America and Yugoslavia. The focuses of this panel papers would be the patterns of colonialism in Africa before Bandung Conference, Pan- African thought as political, economic, cultural movement, solidarity and cooperation between Asia and Africa as noted in the Final Communiqué of Asian-African Conference 1955.

Furthermore, it is important to answer and explain what was the African condition before that event? What was the main factor of change in Africa in the 1950s–1960s? Why Bandung Conference referred as milestone to gain their independence? Why Africans chose Asian countries as a partner to seek cooperation and eliminated colonial influence in their continents?