Nyasaland African Congress
Encyclopedia
The Nyasaland African Congress (NAC) was an organization that evolved into a political party in Nyasaland
during the colonial period. The NAC was suppressed in 1959, but was succeeded in 1960 by the Malawi Congress Party
, which went to on decisively win the first universal suffrage elections in 1961, and to lead the country to independence as Malawi
in 1964.
Levi Zililo Mumba
was elected secretary.
Mumba was the architect of many of these associations, which had very similar constitutions, established in the 1920s and early 1930s.
The Nyasaland African Congress (NAC) was organized in 1943 by leaders of the Nyasaland
Native Associations, with Mumba and James Frederick Sangala
of Blantyre
the prime movers.
The NAC was the first organization that attempted to work at a national level.
At first named the Nyasaland Educated African Council, a few months later the Council renamed itself the Nyasaland African Congress (NAC) at the urging of Sangala, who felt the movement should not be restricted to the educated elite.
The NAC was intended to be an umbrella organization that would coordinate the Native Associations and other local organizations of indigenous people in the protectorate of Nyasaland.
Each of these groups had a seat on the executive committee.
However, the organization was weak.
When a special committee recommended acceptance of Dr. Hastings Banda
's proposal that the NAC should have a full-time paid secretary, the proposal was rejected overwhelmingly, perhaps due to suspicion of Banda's motives.
At the inaugural meeting of the Congress held in Blantyre in October 1944, Mumba was elected President-General.
Sangala had recently been transferred to Dedza
in the Central province and was unable to attend, but was elected to the central committee.
As with most members of the Congress, Mumba was privileged to come from a respected family and to have mission education.
The leaders of the Congress included pastors and teachers such as Mumba from the earlier Associations, but tended to now also include civil servants, clerks and businessmen.
Soon after being elected, in January 1945 Mumba died.
He was succeeded by Charles Matinga
. Without the leadership of Mumba and of Isaac Lawrence, who also died around that time, the congress lost momentum.
At an important meeting in August 1950 in Mzimba
, James Chinyama was elected President, with Sangala Vice-President.
Until the early 1950s, Sangala and other leaders such as Doctor Hastings Banda assumed that Nyasaland should evolve towards self-government while remaining under the authority of the British Colonial Office.
However, in 1953 the Colonial Office established the Federation of Rhodesia and Nyasaland
in which Europeans would retain a position of leadership, abandoning the earlier principles of partnership between the races. The NAC leaders saw this as a betrayal.
In January 1954 Sangala was elected President of the Congress. Although he continued to advocate civil disobedience, he also accepted the decision of two NAC members to run for election for the two seats reserved for Nyasas in the Federal Parliament.
This ambiguous position was rejected by some members of the party, who were against any participation in the government. Some resigned or were dismissed. Others who remained in the party attempted a coup towards the end of 1955, calling for resignation of the two MPs and for the NAC to work for immediate secession from the federation and self-rule.
Although the leaders of a coup attempt were forced to resign, they remained politically influential.
Thamar Dillon Thomas Banda
was elected Secretary-General of the Congress on 30 March 1956.
Sangala and TDT Banda were arrested by the colonial authorities and tried for sedition in May 1956.
Sangala was not an accomplished public speaker, while TDT was in his element at rallies.
In January 1957, activists persuaded the veteran Sangala to step down and replaced him by the younger TDT.
In September–October 1957, Congress leaders met government representative to discuss constitutional changes. Shortly after, the government withdrew recognition of Congress as the official representatives of Africans.
TDT Banda attended the celebrations in Ghana in March 1957, where he met Dr. Hastings Banda
(not a relative) and asked him to return to Nyasaland to lead the nationalist movement.
TDT failed to satisfy either the radicals or the conservative old guard in his party.
In July 1958, Hastings Banda did return. TDT had been forced to resign on charges of misappropriating funds, and Hastings Banda was elected President of the NAC in his place.
By February 1959, the situation had become serious enough that Rhodesian troops were flown in to help keep order, a state of emergency was declared and the NAC was banned. On March 3, Banda, along with hundreds of other Africans, was arrested in the course of "Operation Sunrise".
The NAC was succeeded by the Malawi Congress Party
(MCP), led from prison by Hastings Banda. The British came to accept that independence was inevitable. Hastings Banda was released in 1960 and allowed to return to prepare for elections.
In 1961 the MCP overwhelmingly won the first elections held under universal suffrage, and in 1963 the country gained self governance followed by independence the next year with the new name of Malawi.
Nyasaland
Nyasaland or the Nyasaland Protectorate, was a British protectorate located in Africa, which was established in 1907 when the former British Central Africa Protectorate changed its name. Since 1964, it has been known as Malawi....
during the colonial period. The NAC was suppressed in 1959, but was succeeded in 1960 by the Malawi Congress Party
Malawi Congress Party
The Malawi Congress Party is a political party in Malawi.It was the successor to the Nyasaland African Congress , which was banned in 1959.The MCP was founded by Hastings Banda and other NAC leaders in 1960....
, which went to on decisively win the first universal suffrage elections in 1961, and to lead the country to independence as Malawi
Malawi
The Republic of Malawi is a landlocked country in southeast Africa that was formerly known as Nyasaland. It is bordered by Zambia to the northwest, Tanzania to the northeast, and Mozambique on the east, south and west. The country is separated from Tanzania and Mozambique by Lake Malawi. Its size...
in 1964.
Origins
The North Nyasa Native Association when it was formed in 1912, the first of several such associations of educated "natives".Levi Zililo Mumba
Levi Zililo Mumba
Levi Zililo Mumba was a leading local politician and the first President of the Nyasaland African Congress during the period of British colonial rule in Nyasaland, which became the independent state of Malawi in 1964....
was elected secretary.
Mumba was the architect of many of these associations, which had very similar constitutions, established in the 1920s and early 1930s.
The Nyasaland African Congress (NAC) was organized in 1943 by leaders of the Nyasaland
Nyasaland
Nyasaland or the Nyasaland Protectorate, was a British protectorate located in Africa, which was established in 1907 when the former British Central Africa Protectorate changed its name. Since 1964, it has been known as Malawi....
Native Associations, with Mumba and James Frederick Sangala
James Frederick Sangala
James Frederick Sangala was a founding member of the Nyasaland African Congress during the period of British colonial rule.Sangala was given the nickname "Pyagusi", which means "one who perseveres"....
of Blantyre
Blantyre, Malawi
Blantyre or Mandala is Malawi's centre of finance and commerce, the largest city with an estimated 732,518 inhabitants . It is sometimes referred to as the commercial capital of Malawi as opposed to the political capital, Lilongwe...
the prime movers.
The NAC was the first organization that attempted to work at a national level.
At first named the Nyasaland Educated African Council, a few months later the Council renamed itself the Nyasaland African Congress (NAC) at the urging of Sangala, who felt the movement should not be restricted to the educated elite.
The NAC was intended to be an umbrella organization that would coordinate the Native Associations and other local organizations of indigenous people in the protectorate of Nyasaland.
Each of these groups had a seat on the executive committee.
However, the organization was weak.
When a special committee recommended acceptance of Dr. Hastings Banda
Hastings Banda
Hastings Kamuzu Banda was the leader of Malawi and its predecessor state, Nyasaland, from 1961 to 1994. After receiving much of his education overseas, Banda returned to his home country to speak against colonialism and advocate for independence...
's proposal that the NAC should have a full-time paid secretary, the proposal was rejected overwhelmingly, perhaps due to suspicion of Banda's motives.
At the inaugural meeting of the Congress held in Blantyre in October 1944, Mumba was elected President-General.
Sangala had recently been transferred to Dedza
Dedza
Dedza is the main township of Dedza District in the Central Region of Malawi.Dedza is located about 85 km south of Malawi's capital, Lilongwe, off the M1 road to Blantyre at a point where a trans-African highway from Johannesburg enters the country....
in the Central province and was unable to attend, but was elected to the central committee.
As with most members of the Congress, Mumba was privileged to come from a respected family and to have mission education.
The leaders of the Congress included pastors and teachers such as Mumba from the earlier Associations, but tended to now also include civil servants, clerks and businessmen.
Soon after being elected, in January 1945 Mumba died.
He was succeeded by Charles Matinga
Charles Matinga
Charles Jameson Matinga was a politician in Nyasaland before the colony obtained independence from the British.He was elected President-General of the Nyasaland African Congress in 1945, after the death of Levi Zililo Mumba....
. Without the leadership of Mumba and of Isaac Lawrence, who also died around that time, the congress lost momentum.
Cooperation to confrontation
By 1950, interest in the NAC was starting to revive.At an important meeting in August 1950 in Mzimba
Mzimba
Mzimba is a town in the Mzimba District of Malawi. The district comprises descendants of Tumbuka and Ngoni peoples.The district of Mzimba comprises a number of Traditional Authorities from the Ngoni people. The head of these Traditional Authorities, or Paramount Chief , is M'Mbelwa IV.-Demographics:...
, James Chinyama was elected President, with Sangala Vice-President.
Until the early 1950s, Sangala and other leaders such as Doctor Hastings Banda assumed that Nyasaland should evolve towards self-government while remaining under the authority of the British Colonial Office.
However, in 1953 the Colonial Office established the Federation of Rhodesia and Nyasaland
Federation of Rhodesia and Nyasaland
The Federation of Rhodesia and Nyasaland, also known as the Central African Federation , was a semi-independent state in southern Africa that existed from 1953 to the end of 1963, comprising the former self-governing colony of Southern Rhodesia and the British protectorates of Northern Rhodesia,...
in which Europeans would retain a position of leadership, abandoning the earlier principles of partnership between the races. The NAC leaders saw this as a betrayal.
In January 1954 Sangala was elected President of the Congress. Although he continued to advocate civil disobedience, he also accepted the decision of two NAC members to run for election for the two seats reserved for Nyasas in the Federal Parliament.
This ambiguous position was rejected by some members of the party, who were against any participation in the government. Some resigned or were dismissed. Others who remained in the party attempted a coup towards the end of 1955, calling for resignation of the two MPs and for the NAC to work for immediate secession from the federation and self-rule.
Although the leaders of a coup attempt were forced to resign, they remained politically influential.
Thamar Dillon Thomas Banda
Thamar Dillon Thomas Banda
Thamar Dillon Thomas Banda was a politician in Nyasaland in the years prior to independence.He was President-General of the Nyasaland African Congress from 1957 to 1958, and founded the Congress Liberation Party in 1959.-Background:...
was elected Secretary-General of the Congress on 30 March 1956.
Sangala and TDT Banda were arrested by the colonial authorities and tried for sedition in May 1956.
Sangala was not an accomplished public speaker, while TDT was in his element at rallies.
In January 1957, activists persuaded the veteran Sangala to step down and replaced him by the younger TDT.
In September–October 1957, Congress leaders met government representative to discuss constitutional changes. Shortly after, the government withdrew recognition of Congress as the official representatives of Africans.
TDT Banda attended the celebrations in Ghana in March 1957, where he met Dr. Hastings Banda
Hastings Banda
Hastings Kamuzu Banda was the leader of Malawi and its predecessor state, Nyasaland, from 1961 to 1994. After receiving much of his education overseas, Banda returned to his home country to speak against colonialism and advocate for independence...
(not a relative) and asked him to return to Nyasaland to lead the nationalist movement.
TDT failed to satisfy either the radicals or the conservative old guard in his party.
In July 1958, Hastings Banda did return. TDT had been forced to resign on charges of misappropriating funds, and Hastings Banda was elected President of the NAC in his place.
Suppression and aftermath
Hastings Banda embarked on a speaking tour, stirring up unrest.By February 1959, the situation had become serious enough that Rhodesian troops were flown in to help keep order, a state of emergency was declared and the NAC was banned. On March 3, Banda, along with hundreds of other Africans, was arrested in the course of "Operation Sunrise".
The NAC was succeeded by the Malawi Congress Party
Malawi Congress Party
The Malawi Congress Party is a political party in Malawi.It was the successor to the Nyasaland African Congress , which was banned in 1959.The MCP was founded by Hastings Banda and other NAC leaders in 1960....
(MCP), led from prison by Hastings Banda. The British came to accept that independence was inevitable. Hastings Banda was released in 1960 and allowed to return to prepare for elections.
In 1961 the MCP overwhelmingly won the first elections held under universal suffrage, and in 1963 the country gained self governance followed by independence the next year with the new name of Malawi.
Leadership
| Term start | Term end | President-General |
|---|---|---|
| October 1944 | January 1945 | Levi Zililo Mumba Levi Zililo Mumba Levi Zililo Mumba was a leading local politician and the first President of the Nyasaland African Congress during the period of British colonial rule in Nyasaland, which became the independent state of Malawi in 1964.... |
| January 1945 | January 1950 | Charles Matinga Charles Matinga Charles Jameson Matinga was a politician in Nyasaland before the colony obtained independence from the British.He was elected President-General of the Nyasaland African Congress in 1945, after the death of Levi Zililo Mumba.... |
| August 1950 | 1954 | James Chinyama |
| 1954 | January 1957 | James Frederick Sangala James Frederick Sangala James Frederick Sangala was a founding member of the Nyasaland African Congress during the period of British colonial rule.Sangala was given the nickname "Pyagusi", which means "one who perseveres".... |
| January 1957 | July 1958 | Thamar Dillon Thomas Banda Thamar Dillon Thomas Banda Thamar Dillon Thomas Banda was a politician in Nyasaland in the years prior to independence.He was President-General of the Nyasaland African Congress from 1957 to 1958, and founded the Congress Liberation Party in 1959.-Background:... |
| August 1958 | 1959 | Hastings Banda Hastings Banda Hastings Kamuzu Banda was the leader of Malawi and its predecessor state, Nyasaland, from 1961 to 1994. After receiving much of his education overseas, Banda returned to his home country to speak against colonialism and advocate for independence... |