Cloud of colonialism hangs over Queen Elizabeth’s legacy in Africa. It is all about the gold, the diamonds, the oil, and the diamond mines, the slave labour, and the exploitation of the African people to sustain the economies of the British empire.
We are told that the legacy is a strength of the British Empire. But for many in Africa this legacy is a double-edged sword.
Queen Elizabeth II is Queen of the United Kingdom. But on her official visit to Mauritius, she will also be the Head of The Commonwealth.
She represents The Commonwealth – a group of 53 sovereign nations with common interests, where Britain’s interests may no longer be considered paramount.
Many of the people of African descent in The United Kingdom will no doubt find the prospect of a non-white queen in The Commonwealth, who could conceivably be a threat to their rights, their welfare and their country’s future, particularly in terms of their own development.
Queen Elizabeth II has often been a voice for The Commonwealth, as the first black prime minister of The United Kingdom, she has worked with them. She has been the first to say that The Commonwealth is the United Kingdom. She did so in 1969, a year after The United Kingdom and The Commonwealth were both formed.
The Commonwealth is not a charity. It is a political grouping, a union of 51 of the world’s most powerful countries. Many of the governments in them are multi-racial and multi-cultural, so they would not necessarily be the best representatives for Africans who are looking for a country that would work for them, which would be in tune with their culture and be a good place to live and be.
They would in fact be a more likely option for The Commonwealth if they were to create their own nation, as they have in New Zealand.
New Zealand is a nation of immigrants, with a population that is largely white, largely Maori, and largely of European descent.
However, the New Zealand government recognises the right of Maori to have their own nation. The majority of New Zealand’s people are Maori who were first brought here by Māori (the indigenous peoples) to form the first nation on the North Island’s South Island in the 1840
