Colonialism is the root cause for the majority of present global issues
Posted on December 13th, 2017

Shenali D Waduge

The World Bank says 1.4 billion people in developing countries are living under extreme poverty. All of these are former colonies drained off their wealth. Not many know or are informed of the legacy of colonial crimes committed by European colonial explorers together with the Church. Invasion, occupation, plunder, murder, elimination of everything traditional was their objective. Every Christian/Catholic in Americas, Asia, Africa & Australiasia came to be so as a result of forced/coercive conversions. While all these crimes are still unaccounted, the same perpetrators are using UN and international legal systems & nomenclatures like R2P to militarily invade and occupy, economically entrap to debt & plunder resources while using various insidious methods to depopulate these same third world countries in what is today known as neocolonialism. The world should not turn a blind eye to the perpetrators continuing their corrupt ways while pointing fingers at others. They have no moral authority to do so.

Church-European Explorers use Terra Nullius (Nobody’s Land) to confiscate lands that were nonChristian

The Papal Bull orders of Pope Nicolas V on January 8, 1455 to European explorers to grab lands was clear.

…–invade, search out, capture, vanquish, and subdue all Saracens and pagans whatsoever, and other enemies of Christ where so ever placed and to reduce their persons to perpetual slavery”. Papal Bull Inter caetera divided the Non-Christian world between Spain and Portugal.

How can you ‘discoverland that was already occupied? Columbus never discovered America – people were already living in America.

That was not all that the European invaders ended up doing – they murdered, plundered, destroyed traditional tribes, cultures, value systems, introducing English education to create Western-worshipping locals, forced conversions, replaceable traditional administrative and legal systems with western, non-Christian places of religious sites and on top of these sites erected Churches, they destroyed traditional agriculture and replaced with cash crops thus ruining the soil and these countries are suffering as a result. The virtual same is being done through transnational corporations and privatization and present use of UN’s R2P military interventions and illegal occupations.

Until Canada gives Indigenous people their land back, there can never be reconciliation” so said Arthur Manuel.

Canada is just one of many settler states created by Great Britain having usurped the lands from the indigenous natives. Settler immigrants have taken over all lands that once belonged to the indigenous natives. Modern Canada loves to preach and dictate completely ignoring the racial discrimination, constitutional and legal discrimination, human rights & child rights violations, The name Canada sprang into being only in 16th century with the question ‘are indigenous people Canadians’. What good is Canada ratifying all of the UN’s Conventions when it is denying fundamental rights of the indigenous.

Up until the 15th century North America belonged to indigenous Native Indians. Christopher Columbus voyaged to the Americas in 1492. Americans have been declaring a holiday as Columbus Day completely ignoring the murderous history of this European explorer. The name America derives from Italian explorer Amerigo Vespucci.

Then came the British headed by Sir Walter Raleigh in search of land and gold. Virginia was named in honor of Elizabeth, the Virgin Queen and English immigrants began settling in Jamestown in 1607. The Great Migration (of 50,000 British convicts) between 1620-1640 led to the 13 colonies. By 1800s there were 2m English migrants. By 1910, Eastern & Southern Europeans made up 70% of the immigrants to US.

According to the 1775 Phips Proclamation in Massachusetts, King George II of Britain called for subjects to embrace all opportunities of pursuing, captivating, killing and destroying all and every of the aforesaid Indians.”

An interactive map shows how the white migrants took 1.5billion acres of land belonging to Native Indians in America http://www.slate.com/blogs/the_vault/2014/06/17/interactive_map_loss_of_indian_land.html

https://www.fastcodesign.com/3040647/watch-how-the-us-stole-land-from-native-americans

500 years of genocide has yet to be accounted for http://www.lankaweb.com/news/items/2014/04/29/500-years-of-britishamerican-genocide-of-native-americans/

12million Native Americans before arrival of Europeans came down to 237,000 Native Americans by 1900. The British purposely gave smallpox contaminated blankets to kill people. The Mandan tribe was virtually exterminated through smallpox. The British convicts lived like cannibals – http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/worldnews/northamerica/usa/10031678/British-settlers-in-Jamestown-resorted-to-cannibalism.html

In 1493 Pope Alexander VI issued the bull Inter Cetera giving Spain rights to conquer lands that Columbus had already ‘discovered’.

On the island of Espanola, on orders of Columbus 50,000 native people died within months following the establishment of the first Spanish colony. It took just 50 years to exterminate 95% of natives in Honduras. According to Pedro de Cieza de Leon, the Spanish chronicler of the Inca conquest, Roque Martin kept “the quarters of Indians hanging on his porch to feed his dogs with, as if they were wild beasts.”

European conquests of South America virtually destroyed civilizations of Incas, Mayas & Aztecs.

South America was forcefully evangelized in the 16th century but even after 500years the Church is dependent on US/European support.

The Tupi people inhabited almost all of Brazil’s coast when the Portuguese first arrived and virtually disappeared because of European diseases.

Spanish and Portuguese empires stole from Bolivia, Mexico and Peru the natural riches of silver and gold that became the economic base of all modern industrial economies. United States has sent more than 180 military operations to Latin America since 1890 to protect private American business interests but at the US taxpayers cost.

European exploration of Africa began with the Greeks and Romans, who explored and settled in North Africa. Portuguese explorer Prince Henry, known as the Navigator, was the first European to methodically explore Africa. The Scramble for Africa began in 1880s. Britain, France, Germany, Belgium, Italy, Portugal, and Spain began competing for power and to address the issue German chancellor Otto von Bismarck convened a diplomatic summit of European powers infamously known as the Berlin Conference from November 1884 to February 1885.

Using a PEN and WITHOUT African participation 14 countries drew territory as they liked and divided Africa amongst themselves. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FTjBNppdk-M

Major colonial holdings included:

  • Great Britain desired a Cape-to-Cairo collection of colonies and almost succeeded through their control of Egypt, Sudan (Anglo-Egyptian Sudan), Uganda, Kenya (British East Africa), South Africa, and Zambia, Zimbabwe (Rhodesia), and Botswana. The British also controlled Nigeria and Ghana (Gold Coast).
  • France took much of western Africa, from Mauritania to Chad (French West Africa) and Gabon and the Republic of Congo (French Equatorial Africa).
  • Belgium and King Leopold II controlled the Democratic Republic of Congo (Belgian Congo).
  • Portugal took Mozambique in the east and Angola in the west.
  • Italy’s holdings were Somalia (Italian Somaliland) and a portion of Ethiopia.
  • Germany took Namibia (German Southwest Africa) and Tanzania (German East Africa).
  • Spain claimed the smallest territory – Equatorial Guinea (Rio Muni).

By 1914, 90% of Africa had been divided between seven European countries with only Liberia and Ethiopia remaining independent nations.

How valid were these ‘treaties’ signed? Moreover on what legal basis could illegal occupiers grant ‘independence’ to colonies artificially divided for exploitation & plunder?

Germany ruled South West Africa, now the Republic of Namibia, between 1904 and 1907. Germany also controlled all or part of modern Tanzania, Rwanda, Burundi, Togo and Cameroon.

King Leopold II of Belgium is said to have ordered the deaths of half of the Congo’s population, or up to 10 million people. http://www.walkingbutterfly.com/2010/12/22/when-you-kill-ten-million-africans-you-arent-called-hitler/

Europeans had now created artificial states. The PEN divided families and tribes. Europeans then began establishing colonial administrative systems to facilitate their exploitation. If we were to redraw Africa’s borders to have each ethnic group in their own country, we would have at least 2,000 countries” said Christina Mungal. She goes on to say  Nearly half (44%) of Africa’s borders are straight lines or follow lines of latitude or longitude, splitting at least 177 ethnic groups in two or more countries.” Four in ten Africans today belong to an ethnic group that has kin across borders. A study showed that length of a conflict and its casualty rate is 25% higher in areas where an ethnicity is divided by a national border as opposed to areas where ethnicities have a united homeland. Somali are split between five different countries – northern Kenya, southern Ethiopia, Eritrea and Djibouti. The Malinke of West Africa are split into six different countries – Senegal, Guinea, Guinea-Bissau, Mali, Cote d’Ivoire and The Gambia. http://mgafrica.com/article/2015-01-09-africas-real-borders-are-not-where-you-think

When the Africans after realizing the fraud began resisting the response of the Europeans was to mercilessly murder them. These are the nations today preaching about ‘mutually agreeable solutions’ and drafting conventions against genocide! It was the British that created concentration camps for Boers not Hitler!

The Kingdom of Congo was converted to Christianity in 1495. These are the countries today preaching religious rights & freedoms! Portuguese began the transatlantic slave trade when they exported 235 Africans from present day Senegal in 1444. The British joined the trade with John Hawkins’ expeditions from 1564. It is said that 12 million Africans were forcibly transported from their homes across the Atlantic.

Africa’s kingdoms were powerful & sophisticated with rich cultures but Europeans described them as ‘savages’ ‘uncivilized’ and ‘subhuman’. They called it the ‘white man’s burden’.

The East India Company controlled much of the Indian subcontinent by 1818. Francis Drake, one of the most notorious pirates in history, and Robert Clive, pillaged Bengal. William Dalrymple’s review of The Tears of the Rajas by Ferdinand Mount declares the British empire was erected on the dead bodies of hundreds of thousands of its Indian subjects. However, a YouGov 2014 poll declared almost 60% of Britons were proud of the British Empire and almost 50 % thought it had made the colonies better off. Government of India Act of 1858 led the British crown to assume direct control. By 1890 about 6,000 British officials ruled 250 million Indians. Up to 35 million died unnecessarily in famines. In 1943 nearly four million Bengalis died Churchill said ‘It was their own fault, … for breeding like rabbits”.

Sri Lanka too suffered from not only Indian invaders but 3 colonial European invaders – Portuguese, Dutch & British. None were better than the other. Murder, pilferage, plunder, destruction of non-Christian places of worship, killing of children and women, scorched earth policy, killing elephants as a sport, enjoying breakfast while natives were being hung, stealing lands and growing cash crops, importing labor who are today demanding separate states, creating ethnic and racial tensions and disharmony through administrative systems are just some of the policies adopted by these colonial rulers who have the audacity to preach on subjects that they violated as a policy and which they refuse to account for.

All of the colonial rulers and present day Big Powers have blood on their hands which have not been accounted for. None of these countries can speak of human rights, quote the law or introduce conventions without atoning for their sins.

Their invasions & occupied rule dehumanized people who were living peacefully in their lands. The indigenous natives were forced to adapt foreign cultures, racist ideologies that divided people, they were suppressed & subjugated. These powerful nations have no moral right to speak on any subject having invaded nations and stolen their raw materials and used locals as cheap labor while importing people from other nations and creating migrants now demanding piece of land & autonomy.

There are now more than 150 disputes that involve territory, mostly in Africa, Asia, and the Pacific region, but also in Europe and the Americas – all due to colonial European rulers and their artificial demarcations.

Industrialization in Europe created unemployment, poverty, homelessness, social displacement from rural areas etc as not all could be absorbed into the new capitalist industries. To resolve this Europeans began exporting populations and white settler colonies were created in Algeria, Tunisia, South Africa, Namibia, Angola, Mozambique, Central Africa, Zimbabwe and Zambia.

The colonial rulers through education and indoctrination created sub-groups of locals who would continue to foster the culture of privatization, inequality, racism, divisionary politics birthed by colonials and handed over to elite locals to follow. Any local leader not following norm was quickly removed by assassination – Aung San of Mynmar & Patrice Lumumba of Congo or removed by regime change in lieu of installing puppet leaders – present Sri Lanka.

Colonized nations had to suffer agro-export economies, access to land came under privileged few, income and poverty inequality divided people, natural resources became exploited, environment became destroyed, people became source of cheap labor transported under various incentive schemes,

The worst war crimes & genocide against humanity has been committed by Britain, France, Portugal, Netherlands, Spain, Germany, Belgium, Italy, Denmark, US, Ottoman Empire.

None of these countries can raise a voice or point fingers at any country. None of these countries can speak on human rights when they ignore even compensating for the violations they committed on every nation they illegally invaded & people they murdered.

None of these countries can come forward as conflict resolutionists as every issue the world suffers today has emerged from the seed colonials planted as a policy of divide and rule.

None of these countries have any moral right to demand tribunals against other countries for none of their crimes have been allowed to be brought to a tribunal while it is these very countries that determine the laws & who gets indicted and punished.

None of these countries can point fingers at any nation accusing them of being dictators or murderers when these Christian European nations AS A POLICY and WITH CLEAR ORDERS from the superiors put to death MILLIONS OF INNOCENT PEOPLE who were only defending their land.

Shenali D Waduge

Sources:

British historian Thomas Packenham, in his comprehensive 1991 book The Scramble for Africa, White Man’s Conquest of the Dark Continent from 1876 to 1912
















An art exhibition was held recently titled Resonance of the Massacres 1818-2018 depicting in graphic artwork the crimes committed by the Portuguese, Dutch and British in Sri Lanka – https://web.facebook.com/ResonanceoftheMassacre/




Rhodes Scholarships are named after him!

12 Responses to “Colonialism is the root cause for the majority of present global issues”

  1. sena Says:

    The foreign colonists are not the worst offenders or racists. the local elite (in Sri lanka you can call them kalu suddas or colombians) who conspired with them to betray and exploit their own people are the worst offenders and racists. It is happening even now. For example in Sri lanka they live off the productivity of the rural poor (house maids, farmers, plantations workers etc) without contributing much to the economy (even after getting their education free of charge). they use the dollars these poor people bring in to import luxuries sometimes duty free plunging the country to monumental foreign debts. Unlike foreigners they do not like even to smile or talk with their poor countrymen. As long as these extreme racists exploit there own people for personal gain without contributing anything to the country , sri lanka will never progress.

  2. Nihal Perera Says:

    Wow, well researched facts. Well-done Shenali..!

    You are absolutely correct. The European colonists screwed our countries for centuries, leaving ethnic and social problems behind for generations to perpetuate.

    However, I agree with the above comment by Sena, that biggest problem we have today the country is governed by a bunch of morons and old Kalu Suddhas who still lick the asses of their white masters in the West. They are still going to the West (IMF/WB/ADB) with their begging bowls for hand outs, which will never free our country financially or economically for generations to come.

    Today SL is colonized by the West through their global institutions such as IMF, WB, WTO, and the UN. The present regime is like a prostitute used by the West and India. And, the current American Ambassador is acting like a pimp and a bully who controls the new regime and their agenda. SL needs bold and patriotic leaders who can look after the country first, not the interests of the foreign parasites like US and EU, UN, etc.

  3. L Perera Says:

    If the Colonists were bad , the Lankan rulers after Independence are no better, if not worse. Also, why have thousands of Lankans chosen to to reside and be citizens in the homelands of colonists? Uda balaagana kela gahanna epaa.

  4. Nimal Says:

    As a kalu sudda I am glad the colonials brought back true civilization to many countries and I am thankful, the reason why I am living with them and I will bring back the goodness that I am enjoying here in UK.It is our sincere wish that the developed world take over our countries and re educate our people rejuvenate our people and it’s laid-back culture, so much in evidence in our daily life in the island.
    I could give endless examples of our shortcomings and weaknesses in our country where politicians are greedy, pitilessly rob the country and people are equally ignorant and even subservient to accept very low standards and ignorance of the erect, civilized world outside. With the help of the internet now they have a chance to see for themselves and demand the very standards that we enjoy here.Sadly there are cheer leaders who sing and praise for these scoundrels, who ever they are.
    We need another 1815 revolution to get the country back to normal.
    Global warming is a blessing in disguise and a wake up call to the develop world to intervene in any country which is being neglected by it’s own leaders but before that they have to disassociate with the extremists like Trump,Jehadhists,and even the mad dictators like Kim Jon etc. Already the ball is moving to curb illegal money coming in to the develop countries. I truly grieve for my people and glad that the shipload of goodies have come for them in time for Christmas, though I can’t be there with the heavy work load here.I truly wish the Colonials come back and put the country right and sideline the cheer leaders and back pedlars who keep our people in a everlasting bondage.

  5. Dilrook Says:

    After 70 years of Independence, it is clear colonial rulers were as bad as most local rulers. Not better and not worse.

    Crimes against humanity of Uva/Wellassa, etc. were also committed by local rulers in 1971 and 1989. Exploitation of locals happen today in a worse scale than during colonial rule. Corruption is millions of times worse today than then. Colonials ruined the island, local rulers continue those exploitative industries. On the economic front, colonials left Ceylon rich with an enviable net wealth position. Since 1977 all our leaders left the nation with a net debt position. In short, colonials made Sri Lankans net creditors, local rulers made Sri Lankans net debtors.

  6. Fran Diaz Says:

    Two World Wars came out of Europe.

    Is the answer to help Europe in whatever ways needed, before that area falls into trouble, and do so openly without all the crazy games ??

  7. Christie Says:

    Thanks Shenali.

    Our problem is Indian Colonial Parasites who had a free ride on the British.

    We are not the only people who suffer from Indian Colonial Parasites and the Indian imperialism.

    Bo people of Andaman and Nicobar Islands have disappeared from Earth in less than 70 years. Thanks to the British made India.

    Natives in Mauritius and Guyana are the minority.

    We Sinhalese are the majority but our economy is in the hands of the Indian Colonial Parasites and our Sinhala leaders are lead by India and Indian colonial Parasites.

    Our problem at the moment is India and Indian Parasites.

  8. Susantha Wijesinghe Says:

    I JUST CAME TO KNOW THAT THERE IS A CATHOLIC CHURCH IN THE PRECINTS OF THE WILPATTU WILD LIFE CONSERVATION PARK. IT IS NOT OUT OF THE RESERVE. IT IS ***RIGHT IN THE RESERVE.*** IT HAS BEEN THERE FOR OVER 30 YEARS, IT IS SAID. EVERY YEAR, ABOUT 5000 PILGRIMS COME THERE FOR A CHURCH FESTIVAL. NO MALICE INTENDED.

  9. Fran Diaz Says:

    Thank you Shenali !

    ———-
    Colonised countries have never recovered.
    ‘Divide & Rule’ prevails via the political party systems in Democracies.

    Note also that America, INDIA, and Sri Lanka are all earlier colonised countries.

  10. Christie Says:

    We have not recovered from Indian Colonists.

    We will be taken over soon by these parasites like in Mauritius and Guyana.

    How many European colonists we got left?

    Let us Sinhalese unite and stand up to Indian Parasites.

  11. Fran Diaz Says:

    Lanka was weakened by nearly 500 yrs of Colonisation.
    INDIA too was weakened into poverty by Colonisation.
    The is why INDIA, by attempts to control Lanka, wants to make sure that they are not re-colonised via re-colonisation of Lanka ?
    How will the new Constitution affect Lanka – will it split Lanka up, making Lanka and neighboring countries insecure ?

    The INDIAN External Affairs office has stated ‘that Lanka must make sure that INDIAN Security matters are kept in mind’ (see Daily Mirror, 14 Dec).

  12. Cerberus Says:

    Thank you Shenali for this eye-opener. You are one brave Woman to write under your name. The neo-colonists recipe for Sri Lanka is also going according to their plans.

    1. When a group of young Tamil men who were unemployed decided to attack the Sri Lanka Govt the neo-colonists made sure it was turned in to a Tamil Sinhala conflict. They were taken to India, trained, armed and then released back into Sri Lanka by the Indian Govt, a so-called friend of Sri Lanka.
    When the same thing happened with the JVP where a group of Sinhala young men attacked the Sri Lanka Govt they were decimated with no inquiries no discussions and no compassion. There was no UN or UNHRC to look into the atrocities committed by the UNP party, (party appointed by the IDU (International Democratic Union). It is estimated that during the two uprisings that happened about 80,000 young men were summarily killed. Out of this number at least 15,000 were estimated have been tortured at the Batalanda torture chamber supposed to have been set up by our current Prime Minister Ranil Wickremasinghe. The commission of inquiry set up to study what happened at Batalanda recommended that Ranil’s civic rights be removed. Yet today he has managed to become the PM!

    2. The LTTE were allowed to run riot in Sri Lanka and when they were cornered in Vadamarachi again India (our friend!) stepped in and rescued them and took them to India. RW kept trying to hand over the North and East to appease Prabhakaran. He even stopped a crucial military operation in 2001 where the army knew the exact location of Prabhakaran and was ready to take him out. See https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YZWO5fWDikQ Also See: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Pjmw8kxbMPU
    3. Mrs. Chandrika Bandaranaike (CBK) appointed a group from Norway as mediators. These people were more interested in keeping the conflict going than in promoting peace. Instead of helping the Sinhalese they took the side of the LTTE at every turn. Norwegian mediators prepared a Cease Fire Agreement (CFA) between the LTTE and the GoSL and got Ranil to sign it without showing it to either CBK or the Parliament. This agreement gave LTTE 2/3 of the land and they could go anywhere but the Sri Lanka armed forces were limited to the barracks. Under this so-called agreement container loads of equipment and communications equipment were allowed to the Wanni without inspection by Ranil when he was the PM in 1994.

    4. After President Mahinda Rajapaksa was elected as President, the Sri Lanka forces began gaining ground on the LTTE and in 2009 when they were cornered David Milliband of the UK foreign office and Boucher came on a special mission to request MR to let the leader of the LTTE with his immediate group to be released to the Allies so that they could take him away to the West to live and fight another day. Fortunately for Sri Lanka, MR stood firm and did not allow Prabhakaran to be released. For that act of disobedience to the Colonial powers, they decided to remove MR which was done using the My3, Rani, CBK trio who are traitors to the country.

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