Black African Students Federation in France
Encyclopedia
The Black African Students Federation in France was an organization of Africa
n students in France
. FEANF was influenced by the French Communist Party
, and saw the struggle against French colonialism
in Africa as part of a wider struggle against Western imperialism
. FEANF played an important role for the formation of communist organizations in Francophone Africa.
, followed by a meeting in Bordeaux
in December 1950. The Bordeaux meeting was attended by cells of African students from Paris
, Toulouse
, Montpellier
and Bordeaux. The Paris group, led by Amadou-Mahtar M'Bow
and Louis Atayi, dominated the debates. The Bordeaux meeting adopted the FEANF statues, which called for the unification of all African student associations in France. The statues also stated that FEANF was independent of any political party. The Lyon cell soon affiliated itself to the organization soon afterwards.
) as President, Amadou-Mahtar M'bow (from Senegal
) as General Secretary, N'ki Traoré (from Guinea
, also the Secretary of the RDA Students Association) as Joint General Secretary and Abdou Moumouni (from Niger
, also the editor of Les étudiants anti-colonialistes) as Treasurer. By the end of 1951 FEANF had around 1,000 members.
Politically, the first FEANF Executive Committee was rapidly seen as very 'moderate'. Its President tried to mobilize a separate structure, GAREP, but failed to gather any sizeable amount of followers from the founding core of FEANF. Compared to FEANF, GAREP was reluctant to have contacts with pro-Soviet structures.
The second FEANF congress was held April 14–15, 1952. At the second congress, the leadership was taken over by members of the African Democratic Rally
(RDA). The organization declared its support for African independence. There was also a notable Senegalese dominance over the new Executive Committee. The medical student Edouard Sankhalé became the new FEANF Chairman. Mamadou Samb became Vice Chairman. Both Sankhalé and Samb were also in the RDA Students Association leadership. Alioune Bâ (law student, later a prominent member of the African Independence Party
, PAI) became General Secretary, Youssoupha Sylla (medical student, activist of the RDA Students Association) First Joint Secretary, Babacar Niang (science student, head of the publication La voix de l'Afrique Noire) whilst Abdou Moumouni retained the position as Treasurer. Except for Moumouni, all of these men were Senegalese. After the change in leadership, FEANF began to have contacts with the Prague
-based International Union of Students
. Eventually, FEANF became an affiliate of IUS.
. FEANF and UGEAO worked closely. Both were oriented towards Marxism
, and opposed the more moderate line adopted by RDA.
In 1956, under the leadership of the Guinean medical student Charles Diané, FEANF adopted a more radical line towards demanding independence. The organization opposed the loi Cadre
, which it considered as a move to Balkanize
Africa. FEANF preferred that rather than creating many separate African states, a federation be created in West Africa
. Gradually FEANF became more vocal in its criticism against the increasingly collaborationist positions of RDA, in spite of the fact that many FEANF leaders had been members of RDA. In May 1958 the FEANF organ L'Étudiant d'Afrique noire expressed sharp criticism against RDA leader Sékou Touré for not having publicly called for a 'No'-vote (i.e. a vote for independence) in the upcoming constitutional referendum
. In June the FEANF leadership decided that the organization would campaign for the 'No'. During the summer vacation, many FEANF cadres travelled to Africa and took part in pro-independence mobilizations there. In August 1958 FEANF took part in forming a united front
for campaigning for independence, together with UGEAO, UGTAN, RDA Students Association, RJDA and the African Youth Council.
The rift between RDA and FEANF brought FEANF closer to the main rival of RDA, the African Regroupment Party
.
In its later phase of existence, FEANF suffered from internal divisions and defections. In 1972 there was a dispute between the Dahomeyan and Cameronian students. In 1975 the Central African students disaffiliated from FEANF, followed by the Gabonese in 1977.
In 1980 the organization was 'dissolved' by the French authorities. This move followed the disbanding of the AED (Dahomey) in 1979 and the closure of the UNEECI in earlier in 1980.
Africa
Africa is the world's second largest and second most populous continent, after Asia. At about 30.2 million km² including adjacent islands, it covers 6% of the Earth's total surface area and 20.4% of the total land area...
n students in France
France
The French Republic , The French Republic , The French Republic , (commonly known as France , is a unitary semi-presidential republic in Western Europe with several overseas territories and islands located on other continents and in the Indian, Pacific, and Atlantic oceans. Metropolitan France...
. FEANF was influenced by the French Communist Party
French Communist Party
The French Communist Party is a political party in France which advocates the principles of communism.Although its electoral support has declined in recent decades, the PCF retains a large membership, behind only that of the Union for a Popular Movement , and considerable influence in French...
, and saw the struggle against French colonialism
Colonialism
Colonialism is the establishment, maintenance, acquisition and expansion of colonies in one territory by people from another territory. It is a process whereby the metropole claims sovereignty over the colony and the social structure, government, and economics of the colony are changed by...
in Africa as part of a wider struggle against Western imperialism
Imperialism
Imperialism, as defined by Dictionary of Human Geography, is "the creation and/or maintenance of an unequal economic, cultural, and territorial relationships, usually between states and often in the form of an empire, based on domination and subordination." The imperialism of the last 500 years,...
. FEANF played an important role for the formation of communist organizations in Francophone Africa.
Founding
FEANF was founded in 1950, when a preliminary congress was held in April 1950 in LyonLyon
Lyon , is a city in east-central France in the Rhône-Alpes region, situated between Paris and Marseille. Lyon is located at from Paris, from Marseille, from Geneva, from Turin, and from Barcelona. The residents of the city are called Lyonnais....
, followed by a meeting in Bordeaux
Bordeaux
Bordeaux is a port city on the Garonne River in the Gironde department in southwestern France.The Bordeaux-Arcachon-Libourne metropolitan area, has a population of 1,010,000 and constitutes the sixth-largest urban area in France. It is the capital of the Aquitaine region, as well as the prefecture...
in December 1950. The Bordeaux meeting was attended by cells of African students from Paris
Paris
Paris is the capital and largest city in France, situated on the river Seine, in northern France, at the heart of the Île-de-France region...
, Toulouse
Toulouse
Toulouse is a city in the Haute-Garonne department in southwestern FranceIt lies on the banks of the River Garonne, 590 km away from Paris and half-way between the Atlantic Ocean and the Mediterranean Sea...
, Montpellier
Montpellier
-Neighbourhoods:Since 2001, Montpellier has been divided into seven official neighbourhoods, themselves divided into sub-neighbourhoods. Each of them possesses a neighbourhood council....
and Bordeaux. The Paris group, led by Amadou-Mahtar M'Bow
Amadou-Mahtar M'Bow
Amadou-Mahtar M'Bow is a Senegalese educator. Born in Dakar, M'bow served in France and North Africa during World War II after volunteering for the French army...
and Louis Atayi, dominated the debates. The Bordeaux meeting adopted the FEANF statues, which called for the unification of all African student associations in France. The statues also stated that FEANF was independent of any political party. The Lyon cell soon affiliated itself to the organization soon afterwards.
First and second congresses
The first federal congress of FEANF was held March 21–22, 1951 in Paris. The congress elected an Executive Committee, which included Solange Faladé (medical student from DahomeyDahomey
Dahomey was a country in west Africa in what is now the Republic of Benin. The Kingdom of Dahomey was a powerful west African state that was founded in the seventeenth century and survived until 1894. From 1894 until 1960 Dahomey was a part of French West Africa. The independent Republic of Dahomey...
) as President, Amadou-Mahtar M'bow (from Senegal
Senegal
Senegal , officially the Republic of Senegal , is a country in western Africa. It owes its name to the Sénégal River that borders it to the east and north...
) as General Secretary, N'ki Traoré (from Guinea
Guinea
Guinea , officially the Republic of Guinea , is a country in West Africa. Formerly known as French Guinea , it is today sometimes called Guinea-Conakry to distinguish it from its neighbour Guinea-Bissau. Guinea is divided into eight administrative regions and subdivided into thirty-three prefectures...
, also the Secretary of the RDA Students Association) as Joint General Secretary and Abdou Moumouni (from Niger
Niger
Niger , officially named the Republic of Niger, is a landlocked country in Western Africa, named after the Niger River. It borders Nigeria and Benin to the south, Burkina Faso and Mali to the west, Algeria and Libya to the north and Chad to the east...
, also the editor of Les étudiants anti-colonialistes) as Treasurer. By the end of 1951 FEANF had around 1,000 members.
Politically, the first FEANF Executive Committee was rapidly seen as very 'moderate'. Its President tried to mobilize a separate structure, GAREP, but failed to gather any sizeable amount of followers from the founding core of FEANF. Compared to FEANF, GAREP was reluctant to have contacts with pro-Soviet structures.
The second FEANF congress was held April 14–15, 1952. At the second congress, the leadership was taken over by members of the African Democratic Rally
African Democratic Rally
The African Democratic Rally was a political party in French West Africa, led by Félix Houphouët-Boigny. Founded in Bamako in 1946, the RDA quickly became one of the most important forces for independence in the region. Initially a Pan-Africanist movement, the RDA ceased to function as a...
(RDA). The organization declared its support for African independence. There was also a notable Senegalese dominance over the new Executive Committee. The medical student Edouard Sankhalé became the new FEANF Chairman. Mamadou Samb became Vice Chairman. Both Sankhalé and Samb were also in the RDA Students Association leadership. Alioune Bâ (law student, later a prominent member of the African Independence Party
African Independence Party
African Independence Party was a communist party in French West Africa . PAI was founded in Thiès, Senegal in 1957...
, PAI) became General Secretary, Youssoupha Sylla (medical student, activist of the RDA Students Association) First Joint Secretary, Babacar Niang (science student, head of the publication La voix de l'Afrique Noire) whilst Abdou Moumouni retained the position as Treasurer. Except for Moumouni, all of these men were Senegalese. After the change in leadership, FEANF began to have contacts with the Prague
Prague
Prague is the capital and largest city of the Czech Republic. Situated in the north-west of the country on the Vltava river, the city is home to about 1.3 million people, while its metropolitan area is estimated to have a population of over 2.3 million...
-based International Union of Students
International Union of Students
The International Union of Students is a worldwide nonpartisan association of university student organizations.The IUS is the umbrella organization for 155 such student organizations across 112 countries and territories representing approximately 25 million students.-Aim and work areas:The aims of...
. Eventually, FEANF became an affiliate of IUS.
Struggle for independence
In 1954 the General Students Union of West Africa (UGEAO) was founded in DakarDakar
Dakar is the capital city and largest city of Senegal. It is located on the Cap-Vert Peninsula on the Atlantic coast and is the westernmost city on the African mainland...
. FEANF and UGEAO worked closely. Both were oriented towards Marxism
Marxism
Marxism is an economic and sociopolitical worldview and method of socioeconomic inquiry that centers upon a materialist interpretation of history, a dialectical view of social change, and an analysis and critique of the development of capitalism. Marxism was pioneered in the early to mid 19th...
, and opposed the more moderate line adopted by RDA.
In 1956, under the leadership of the Guinean medical student Charles Diané, FEANF adopted a more radical line towards demanding independence. The organization opposed the loi Cadre
Loi Cadre
The loi-cadre was a French legal reform passed by the French National Assembly on 23 June 1956. It marked a turning point in relations between France and its overseas empire...
, which it considered as a move to Balkanize
Balkanization
Balkanization, or Balkanisation, is a geopolitical term, originally used to describe the process of fragmentation or division of a region or state into smaller regions or states that are often hostile or non-cooperative with each other, and it is considered pejorative.The term refers to the...
Africa. FEANF preferred that rather than creating many separate African states, a federation be created in West Africa
West Africa
West Africa or Western Africa is the westernmost region of the African continent. Geopolitically, the UN definition of Western Africa includes the following 16 countries and an area of approximately 5 million square km:-Flags of West Africa:...
. Gradually FEANF became more vocal in its criticism against the increasingly collaborationist positions of RDA, in spite of the fact that many FEANF leaders had been members of RDA. In May 1958 the FEANF organ L'Étudiant d'Afrique noire expressed sharp criticism against RDA leader Sékou Touré for not having publicly called for a 'No'-vote (i.e. a vote for independence) in the upcoming constitutional referendum
French constitutional referendum, 1958
A constitutional referendum was held in France on 28 September 1958. Voters were asked whether they approved of the adoption of a constitution for the French Fifth Republic written by Charles de Gaulle. It was overwhelmingly approved, with 82.6% in favour...
. In June the FEANF leadership decided that the organization would campaign for the 'No'. During the summer vacation, many FEANF cadres travelled to Africa and took part in pro-independence mobilizations there. In August 1958 FEANF took part in forming a united front
United front
The united front is a form of struggle that may be pursued by revolutionaries. The basic theory of the united front tactic was first developed by the Comintern, an international communist organisation created by revolutionaries in the wake of the 1917 Bolshevik Revolution.According to the theses of...
for campaigning for independence, together with UGEAO, UGTAN, RDA Students Association, RJDA and the African Youth Council.
The rift between RDA and FEANF brought FEANF closer to the main rival of RDA, the African Regroupment Party
African Regroupment Party
The African Regroupment Party was a political party in the French African colonies.-Formation:The PRA came into being at a meeting in Paris on March 26, 1958, months before the French Community would replace the French Union. The main founding organizations were the African Convention and the...
.
National sections
FEANF included various territorial/national affiliates. Many of them were French sections of students organization based in the respective territories/countries. As of 1957-1958, the following organizations were affiliated to FEANF;- CameroonCameroonCameroon, officially the Republic of Cameroon , is a country in west Central Africa. It is bordered by Nigeria to the west; Chad to the northeast; the Central African Republic to the east; and Equatorial Guinea, Gabon, and the Republic of the Congo to the south. Cameroon's coastline lies on the...
: Kamerunese National Students Union (UNEK) - ChadChadChad , officially known as the Republic of Chad, is a landlocked country in Central Africa. It is bordered by Libya to the north, Sudan to the east, the Central African Republic to the south, Cameroon and Nigeria to the southwest, and Niger to the west...
: Chadian Students Association (AET) - Congo: Congolese Students Association (AEC)
- DahomeyDahomeyDahomey was a country in west Africa in what is now the Republic of Benin. The Kingdom of Dahomey was a powerful west African state that was founded in the seventeenth century and survived until 1894. From 1894 until 1960 Dahomey was a part of French West Africa. The independent Republic of Dahomey...
: Dahomeyan Students Association in France (AEDF, a section of General Union of Students and Pupils of Dahomey based in CotonouCotonou-Demographics:*1979: 320,348 *1992: 536,827 *2002: 665,100 *2005: 690,584 The main languages spoken in Cotonou include the Fon language, Aja language, Yoruba language and French.-Transport:...
) - French Soudan: Soudanese Students Association in France (AESF, a section of Soudanese Scholar Union based in BamakoBamakoBamako is the capital of Mali and its largest city with a population of 1.8 million . Currently, it is estimated to be the fastest growing city in Africa and sixth fastest in the world...
) - GabonGabonGabon , officially the Gabonese Republic is a state in west central Africa sharing borders with Equatorial Guinea to the northwest, Cameroon to the north, and with the Republic of the Congo curving around the east and south. The Gulf of Guinea, an arm of the Atlantic Ocean is to the west...
: Gabonese Students Association (AEG) - GuineaGuineaGuinea , officially the Republic of Guinea , is a country in West Africa. Formerly known as French Guinea , it is today sometimes called Guinea-Conakry to distinguish it from its neighbour Guinea-Bissau. Guinea is divided into eight administrative regions and subdivided into thirty-three prefectures...
: Guinea Students Association in France (AEGF, a section of General Union of Students and Pupils of Guinea based in ConakryConakryConakry is the capital and largest city of Guinea. Conakry is a port city on the Atlantic Ocean and serves as the economic, financial and cultural centre of Guinea with a 2009 population of 1,548,500...
) - Ivory Coast: Association of Students of the Ivory Coast (AECI, a section of the Students Union of the Ivory Coast based in AbidjanAbidjanAbidjan is the economic and former official capital of Côte d'Ivoire, while the current capital is Yamoussoukro. it was the largest city in the nation and the third-largest French-speaking city in the world, after Paris, and Kinshasa but before Montreal...
) - MauritaniaMauritaniaMauritania is a country in the Maghreb and West Africa. It is bordered by the Atlantic Ocean in the west, by Western Sahara in the north, by Algeria in the northeast, by Mali in the east and southeast, and by Senegal in the southwest...
: Association of Students of Mauritania in France (AEMF) - NigerNigerNiger , officially named the Republic of Niger, is a landlocked country in Western Africa, named after the Niger River. It borders Nigeria and Benin to the south, Burkina Faso and Mali to the west, Algeria and Libya to the north and Chad to the east...
: Nigerien Students Association in France (AENF) - Oubangui-ChariOubangui-ChariOubangui-Chari, or Ubangi-Shari, was a French territory in central Africa which later became the independent Central African Republic . French activity in the area began in 1889 with the establishment of an outpost at Bangui, now the capital of CAR. The territory was named in 1894.In 1903, French...
: Oubangui Students Association (AEO) - SenegalSenegalSenegal , officially the Republic of Senegal , is a country in western Africa. It owes its name to the Sénégal River that borders it to the east and north...
: Senegalese Students Association in France (AESF) - TogoTogoTogo, officially the Togolese Republic , is a country in West Africa bordered by Ghana to the west, Benin to the east and Burkina Faso to the north. It extends south to the Gulf of Guinea, on which the capital Lomé is located. Togo covers an area of approximately with a population of approximately...
: Togolese Students Association (AET, more commonly known as Jeune Togo) - Upper VoltaRepublic of Upper VoltaThe Republic of Upper Volta was established on December 11, 1958, as a self-governing colony within the French Community. Before attaining autonomy it had been French Upper Volta and part of the French Union. On August 5, 1960 it attained full independence from France.Thomas Sankara came to power...
: Association of Students of Upper Volta in France (AEVF)
Later phase
In 1966 another student movement, MEOCAM, was launched with the objective to compete with FEANF over the influence in the African students community in France. MEOCAM failed to make any lasting impact, though, as it was torn apart by internal conflicts.In its later phase of existence, FEANF suffered from internal divisions and defections. In 1972 there was a dispute between the Dahomeyan and Cameronian students. In 1975 the Central African students disaffiliated from FEANF, followed by the Gabonese in 1977.
In 1980 the organization was 'dissolved' by the French authorities. This move followed the disbanding of the AED (Dahomey) in 1979 and the closure of the UNEECI in earlier in 1980.