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The Social and Political Thought of Amílcar Cabral: a Reassessment

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  11 November 2008

Patrick Chabal
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Amílcar Cabral was primarily a man of action. His political leadership is best understood by looking at what he did rather than at what he said. More importantly, his writings were essentially analyses of the events in which he was involved; they were not theories about, or inquiries into, abstract social or political questions. He did not view himself as a political theorist although his writings obviously have theoretical relevance. He was loath to commit himself to any ideology or theory. The majority of his writings are party documents, and they reflect the very specific purpose and audience for which they were intended.

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The Journal of Modern African Studies , Volume 19 , Issue 1 , March 1981 , pp. 31 - 56
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Copyright © Cambridge University Press 1981

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References

page 31 note 1 On this point, see Clapham, Christopher, ‘The Context of African Political Thought’, in The Journal of Modern African Studies (Cambridge), VIII, 1, 04 1970, pp. 1–13.CrossRefGoogle Scholar Clapham rightly criticises those analysts who have sought to derive social and political theories from the utterances of African political leaders.

page 31 note 2 Among the analysts who have simplified Cabral's thought in this way, see particularly, La Pensée politique d'Amílcar Cabral (n. l., Dossier, SUCO, March 1977), pp. 10 13; Chilcote, Ronald, ‘The Political Thought of Amílcar Cabral’, in The Journal of Modern African Studies, VI, 3, 10 1968, pp. 373–88CrossRefGoogle Scholar; Henry Bienan, ‘State and Revolution: the work of Amílcar Cabral’, in ibid. xv, 4, December 1977, pp. 555–68; and Hubbard, Maryinez L., ‘Culture and History in a Revolutionary Context’, in Ufahamu (Los Angeles), 3, 3, Winter 1973, pp. 69–86.Google Scholar

page 31 note 3 In addition to the articles already cited, a representative selection of commentaries on Cabral's thought would include de Andrade, Mario, ‘A evolução do pensamento político de Amílcar Cabral’, in O Militante (Bissau), 3, 09–10 1977, pp. 45–9Google Scholar; Blackey, Robert, ‘Fanon and Cabral: a contrast in theories of revolution in Africa’, in The Journal of Modern African Studies, XII, 2, 06 1974, pp. 191–209CrossRefGoogle Scholar; McCollester, Charles, ‘The Political Thought of Amílcar Cabral’, in Monthly Review (New York), 24, 10, 03 1973, pp. 10–21Google Scholar; Ferrcira, Eduardo de Sousa, ‘Amílcar Cabral: theory of revolution and background to his assassination’, in Ufahamu, 3, 2, Winter 1973, pp. 49–68Google Scholar; Bernard Magubane, ‘Amílcar Cabral: evolution of revolutionary thought’, in ibid. 2, 2, Fall 1971, pp. 71–87; Bockel, Alain, ‘Amílcar Cabral, marxiste africain’, in Ethiopiques (Dakar), 5, 01 1976, pp. 35–59Google Scholar; and Davidson, Basil, ‘Cabral on the African Revolution’, in Monthly Review, 31, 3, 07 08 1979, pp. 3344.CrossRefGoogle Scholar

page 32 note 1 See Bockel, loc. cit.; La Pensée politique d' Amílcar Cabral; Rudebeck, Lars, Guinta-Bissau: a study of political mobilization (Uppsala, 1974), p. 103Google Scholar; and, of course, Soviet writers like Ignatyev, O. K., Amílcar Cabral: filho de Africa (Lisbon, 1975),Google Scholar and Krautsova, T. I., ‘Amilkar Kabral’, in Narody Azii i Africa (Moscow), 3, 1973, pp. 76–87.Google Scholar

page 32 note 2 For a typical example, see Our People are Our Mountains: Amílcar Cabral on the Guinean Revolution (London, 1971), p. 21.Google Scholar

page 32 note 3 Marx, Karl and Engels, Friedrich, Werke, Vol. xxxv, p. 388,Google Scholar as quoted in McLellan, David, Karl Marx. His Life and Thought (London, 1973), p. 443.Google Scholar

page 32 note 4 On Nyerere's experience, see Pratt, Cranford, The Critical Phase in Tanzania, 1945–1968: Nyerere and the emergence of a socialist strategy (Cambridge, 1976), p. 63.Google Scholar

page 33 note 1 Interview with Luiz Cabral, Amílcar Cabral's half-brother and President of Guinea-Bissau until November 1980.

page 33 note 2 This concern was already evident when Cabral was a student in Lisbon. Interview with Maria Helena Rodrigues, his first wife.

page 33 note 3 What Cabral said in 1971 illustrates his approach: ‘But ideology is important to Guinea. As I've said, never again do we want our people to be exploited. Our desire to develop our country with social justice and power in the hands of our people is our ideological basis. Never again do we want to see a group or a class of people exploiting or dominating the work of our people. That's our basis. If you want to call it Marxism, you may call it Marxism. That's your responsibility.’ Our People are Our Mountains, p. 21.

page 33 note 4 Interview with Luiz Cabral.

page 34 note 1 This is what Cabral said in 1971, for example, in response to a question on the relevance of Marxism–Leninism to his thoughts: ‘We cannot, from our experience, claim that Marxism Leninism must be modified – that would be presumptuous. What we must do is to modify, to radically transform, the political, economic, social and cultural conditions of our people. This does not mean that we have no respect for all that Marxism and Leninism have contributed to the transformation of struggles throughout the world and over the years. But we are absolutely sure that we have to create and develop in our particular situation the solution for our country.’ Our People are Our Mountains, p. 22.

page 34 note 2 See Cabral, Amílcar, ‘Le Rôle de la culture dans la lutte pour l'independance’, in Unite et lutte. Vol. 1, L'arme de la théorie (Paris, 1975), p. 337.Google Scholar

page 34 note 3 This appears in English as ‘The Weapon of Theory’, in Cabral, Amílcar, Revolution in Guinea: an African people's struggle (London, 1969), pp. 73–90,Google Scholar and as ‘The Weapon of Theory: presuppositions and objectives of national liberation in relation to social structure’, in Cabral, Amílcar, Unity and Struggle: speeches and writings (New York, 1979; London, 1980), pp. 119 37.Google Scholar

page 35 note 1 Ibid. pp. 124–5.

page 35 note 2 Ibid. pp. 125–6.

page 36 note 1 Our People are Our Mountains, pp. 21–2.

page 36 note 2 On his appraisal of Lenin's contribution to revolutionary theory, see Cabral, Amílcar, ‘Une Lumière féconde éclaire le chemin de la lutte: Lénine et la lutte de libération nationale’, in Unité et lutte, Vol. I, pp. 305–15.Google Scholar On Cabral's analysis of imperialism, see ‘Intervention du secrétaire général du PAIGC, A. Cabral, à la soirée de solidarité du 20 Octobre’, in Mr. Amílcar Cabral, secrétaire général du PAIGG, a visité la Finlande les 19–22 Octobre 1971 (Helsinki, 1971), pp. 7–16.Google Scholar

page 36 note 3 Cabral, Unity and Struggle, pp. 129–30.

page 37 note 1 Ibid. pp. 128–9.

page 37 note 2 For a comparison with Sékou Touré's thought, see Johnson, R. W., ‘Sékou Touré and the Guinean Revolution’, in African Affairs (London), 69, 277, 10 1977, pp. 350–65.Google Scholar For a comparative study, see Skurnik, W. A. E. (ed), African Political Thought: Lumumba, Nkrumah, and Touré (Denver, 1967).Google Scholar

page 37 note 3 Cabral, , Unity and Struggle, p. 122.Google Scholar

page 37 note 4 Ibid. p. 130.

page 38 note 1 Cabral, Amílcar, ‘Brief Analysis of the Social Structure in Guinea’, in Revolution in Guinea, p. 56,Google Scholar my emphasis.

page 38 note 2 ‘Amílcar Cabral face à l'ultra colonialisme portugais’, in Le Point (Paris), 11 09 1969, p. 18.Google Scholar

page 38 note 3 Cabral, , ‘Brief Analysis of the Social Structure in Guinea’, pp. 47–9.Google Scholar

page 38 note 4 Ibid. p. 48. Throughout my article the terms petite bourgeoisie, déclassés, and lumpenproletariat will be used in the French or German original, as they appear in Cabral's writings.

page 38 note 5 Ibid. p. 46.

page 39 note 1 Ibid. p. 49.

page 39 note 2 Ibid. p. 47. See also Cabral, Amílcar, ‘Le Rôle social de la paysannerie’, in Unité et lutte, Vol. 1, pp. 155–62.Google Scholar

page 39 note 3 Cabral, , ‘Brief Analysis of the Social Structure in Guinea’, p. 53.Google Scholar

page 40 note 1 Ibid. pp. 52–3.

page 40 note 2 Cabral, , ‘Le Rôle de la culture dans la lutte pour l'indépendance’, p. 342.Google Scholar

page 40 note 3 Cabral, , ‘Brief Analysis of the Social Structure in Guinea’, p. 54.Google Scholar

page 41 note 1 Fanon, Frantz, The Wretchod of the Earth (New York, 1968), pp. 60–3.Google Scholar

page 41 note 2 Cabral, , ‘Brief Analysis of the Social Structure in Guinea’, p. 51.Google Scholar

page 41 note 3 Fanon, op. cit. p. 108. On Fanon's ideas, see Gendzier, Irene L., Frantz Fanon: a critical study (New York, 1973)Google Scholar; Caute, David, Fanon (London, 1970)Google Scholar; Bouvier, Pierre, Fanon (Paris, 1971)Google Scholar; Geismar, Peter, Fanon (New York, 1971)Google Scholar; and especially, Zaher, Renate, L'Oeuvre de Frantz Fanon (Paris, 1970).Google Scholar

page 41 note 4 Cabral, , ‘Brief Analysis of the Social Structure in Guinea’, p. 55.Google Scholar

page 41 note 5 Cabral, , ‘The Weapon of Theory’, in Revolution in Guinea, p. 83.Google Scholar

page 42 note 1 Cabral, , ‘Brief Analysis of the Social Structure in Guinea’, p. 50.Google Scholar See also ‘Le Rôle social de la paysannerie’, p. 156.

page 42 note 2 Cabral, , ‘Brief Analysis of the Social Structure in Guinea’, pp. 56–7.Google Scholar

page 43 note 1 For an analysis of the nature of ‘petty bourgeois politics’ in Africa, see Saul, John, ‘The Unsteady State: Uganda, Obote, and General Amin’, in State and Revolution in Eastern Africa: essays (New York and London, 1979), pp. 352–66Google Scholar; Leys, Colin, Underdevelopment in Kenya: the political economy of neo-colonialism, 1964–71 (London, 1975), ch. 6Google Scholar; Shivji, Issa, The Silent Class Struggle (Dar es Salaam, 1975)Google Scholar; Murray, Roger, ‘Second Thoughts on Ghana’, in New Left Review (London), 42, 03–04 1967Google Scholar; and Mamdani, Mahmood, ‘Class Struggles in Uganda’, in Review of African Political Economy (London), 4, 11 1975.Google Scholar More generally, see Law, R., ‘In Search of a Marxist Perspective’, in The Journal of African History (Cambridge), 19, 3, 1978CrossRefGoogle Scholar; and Alavi, Hamza, ‘The State in Post-Colonial Societies – Pakistan and Bangladesh’, in New Left Review, 74, 07–08 1972.Google Scholar See also Ralph Miliband, ‘Poulantzas and the Capitalist State’, in ibid. 82, November–December 1972.

page 43 note 2 Cabral, , ‘Brief Analysis of the Social Structure in Guinea’, p. 58.Google Scholar

page 43 note 3 Cabral, , ‘The Weapon of Theory’, in Revolution in Guinea, p. 89.Google Scholar

page 44 note 1 Ibid. my emphasis.

page 44 note 2 Cabral's candour on such subjects is also well illustrated by his statement on the possible reasons why Nkrumah was overthrown: ‘Just how far would the success of the betrayal of Ghana have been linked or not to the questions of class struggle, contradictions in the social structure, the role of the Party and other institutions, including the armed forces, in the framework of a newly independent state? Just how far, we wonder, would the success of the betrayal of Ghana have been linked or not to the question of a correct definition of… the people, and to their daily action in defence of their conquests in independence? Or then, just how far might not the success of the betrayal be linked to the key question of choice of men in the revolution?’ Cabral, Amílcar, ‘Homage to Kwame Nkrumah’, in Unity and Struggle, p. 116.Google Scholar

page 45 note 1 Cabral, Amílcar, ‘Tout le monde n'appartient pas au parti’, in Unité et lutte, Vol. 1, pp. 234–5.Google Scholar

page 45 note 2 Cabral, , ‘Brief Analysis of the Social Structure in Guinea’, p. 57.Google Scholar

page 45 note 3 Cabral, , ‘The Weapon of Theory’, in Revolution in Guinea, p. 85.Google Scholar

page 45 note 4 See Lenin, V. I., ‘What is to be Done?’, in Selected Works, Vol. I (Moscow, 1970), pp. 119–272.Google Scholar On Lenin's thought, see among others, Harding, Neil, Lenin's Political Thought (London, 1977), pp. 260–73,Google Scholar and Lichtheim, George, Marxism (London, 1961), pp. 325–51.Google Scholar

page 45 note 5 Cabral, Amílcar, ‘Notre parti et la lutte doivent être dirigés par les meilleurs enfants de notre peuple’, in Unité et lutte, Vol. I, pp. 208–22.Google Scholar

page 46 note 1 Cabral, , ‘The Weapon of Theory’, in Revolution in Guinea, p. 89.Google Scholar

page 46 note 2 Cabral, , ‘Brief Analysis of the Social Structure in Guinea’, p. 55.Google Scholar

page 46 note 3 Cabral, , ‘The Weapon of Theory’, in Revolulion in Guinea, pp. 8990.Google Scholar

page 47 note 1 As regards the meaning Cabral attached to the notion of political honesty, see ‘Brief Analysis of the Social Structure in Guinea’, p. 59.

page 47 note 2 For a revealing account of his own views, see Cabral, Amílcar, ‘Resistência cultural’, in Analise de alguns tipos de resistência (Lisbon, 1974), particularly pp. 87–90.Google Scholar

page 47 note 3 For example, see Cabral's explanation of ‘revolution democracy’ to the party cadres: ‘However we must not hide anything from our people, we must not deceive our people. Deceiving our people is to build a foundation for calamity for our Party… This is better than lying, cheating and looking small in the people's eyes, for they, however wretched and suffering, are like any people, and they know the difference between the truth and a lie, justice and injustice, good and evil, and they are wise enough to lose respect for anyone who has lied to them.’ Cabral, Amílcar, ‘Revolutionary Democracy’, in Unity and Struggle, p. 94.Google Scholar

page 47 note 4 See Cabral's interview in Davidson, Basil, The Liberation of Guiné: aspects of an African revolution (Harmondsworth, 1969), p. 137.Google Scholar

page 48 note 1 Cabral, , ‘Brief Analysis of the Social Structure of Guinea’, p. 57,Google Scholar my emphasis.

page 48 note 2 See Rudebeck, op. cit. p. 83.

page 48 note 3 See Davidson, op. cit. p. 137; and also ‘Avslutande samtal med Cabral’, in Amílcar Cabral. Vår Kamp, Er Kamp (Stockholm, 1971), pp. 123–31,Google Scholar where Cabral answered questions about the future of Guinean society.

page 49 note 1 Cabral, , ‘The Weapon of Theory’, in Revolution in Guinea, pp. 74–5, my emphasis.Google Scholar

page 49 note 2 See, for example, Cabral's, position in Return to the Sources: selected speeches of Amílcar Cabral (New York, 1973), p. 83.Google Scholar

page 49 note 3 Letter from Amílcar Cabral to the Finnish social scientist Mikko Pyhälä, quoted in Rudebeck, op. cit. p. 83.

page 50 note 1 Our People are Our Mountains, pp. 17–18. See also, Davidson, op. cit. pp. 135. 9.

page 50 note 2 Cabral said in December 1966: ‘It would be naive to claim that the progress realised in our liberated areas has radically changed the social situation of their populations… Yet nobody goes hungry, nobody is exploited, the standard of living steadily improves. Our populations reveal an enlarged political consciousness day by day; they live and work together in harmony… [they] are proud to follow the party's lead.’ Ibid. p. 135.

page 50 note 3 Our People are Our Mountains, p. 22.

page 50 note 4 Cabral wrote three papers on culture and national liberation: ‘National Liberation and Culture’, in Unity and Struggle, pp. 138–54,Google Scholar, delivered on 20 February 1970 as a lecture at the University of Syracuse, New York, as a tribute to DrMondlane, Eduardo, the assassinated Frelimo leader; ‘Le Rôle de Ia culture dans la lutte pour l'indépendance’, in Unité et lutte, Vol. 1, pp. 336–57,Google Scholar read at a U.N.E.S.C.O. Conference on Race, Identity, and Dignity, held in Paris on 3 7 July 1972; and ‘Identity and Dignity in the Context of the National Liberation Struggle’, in Return to the Sources, pp. 57–69,Google Scholar delivered as a lecture on 15 October 1972 at Lincoln University, Pennsylvania, upon receiving an honorary doctorate. The three papers are substantially similar.

page 51 note 1 For a Marxist discussion of the rôle of ideology, see Poulantzas, Nicos, Pouvoir politique et classes sociales, Vol. II (Paris, 1971),Google Scholar particularly ch. 2; Althusser, Louis, ‘Marxism and Humanism’, in For Marx (New York, 1970),Google Scholar and ‘Ideology and Ideological State Apparatuses’, in Lenin and Philosophy (New York, 1971)Google Scholar; and Laclau, Ernesto, Politics and Ideology in Marxist Theory (London, 1977).Google Scholar

page 51 note 2 See particularly, Gramsci, Antonio, Gli intellettuali e l' organizzazione della cultura (Turin, 1949),Google Scholar and more generally, Quaderni del carcere, Vols. I-IV (Turin, 1975).Google Scholar For an analysis of this aspect of Gramsci's thought see, among others, Buci-Glucksmann, Christine, Gramsci et l'état (Paris, 1975),Google Scholar especially chs. I and II Boggs, Carl, Gramsci's Marxism (London, 1976),Google Scholar chs. 2 and 3; and Portelli, Hugues, Gramsci et le bloc historique (Paris, 1972), chs. III and IV.Google Scholar

page 52 note 1 Cabral, , ‘Libération nationale et culture’, in Unité et lutte, Vol. 1, pp. 319–21.Google Scholar

page 52 note 2 Cabral, , ‘National Liberation and Culture’, pp. 140–1.Google Scholar

page 52 note 3 Cabral, , ‘Libération nationale et culture’, p. 327.Google Scholar

page 52 note 4 Ibid. p. 322.

page 53 note 1 Ibid. p. 330.

page 53 note 2 Ibid. p. 323.

page 53 note 3 Ibid.

page 54 note 1 Cabral, , ‘Le Rôle de la culture dans la lutte pour I'indépendance’, p. 340.Google Scholar

page 54 note 2 Ibid. p. 341.

page 54 note 3 Cabral, , ‘National Liberation and Culture’, p. 49.Google Scholar

page 54 note 4 Cabral, , ‘Le Rôle de la culture dans la lutte pour l'indépendance’, p. 344.Google Scholar

page 55 note 1 Ibid.

page 55 note 2 Cabral, , ‘Libération nationale et culture’, pp. 332–3.Google Scholar

page 55 note 3 Ibid. p. 322.

page 55 note 4 Cabral, Amílcar, ‘Realidade cultural’, in Alguns princípios do partido (Lisbon, 1974), pp. 61–71.Google Scholar

page 56 note 1 On the effects of the Khmer Rouge régime in Cambodia, see Ponchaud, François, Cambodia: year zero (London, 1978)Google Scholar; and Debré, François, Cambodge: la révolution de la forêt (Paris, 1976).Google Scholar

page 56 note 2 Cabral, , ‘Libération nationale et culture’, p. 321.Google Scholar