Jackson advocate. [volume] (Jackson, Miss.) 1939-current, 1959-07-11
Ghana Divided
Continued from Page One)

ly. The opponents could not ge.
themselves to argue that the state
might be more important than the
individual. Instead, they pleaded
the case of the community" AMI
majority" as opposed to single,
selfish person.
Only one student, speaking from
the floor and not a member of
either team, defended totalitarian-
ism.
The absence Of authoritarian
thought is general among Ghana's
young intellectuals, resident OBJ
servers say. But it is not general
among politicians of both the Gov.
eminent and the Opposition.
New Repressive Moves
The Government of Prime Min
lister Kwame Nkrumah is moving
in great strides toward authori
tartan rule, and the Opposition also
is relying on other than democrat
ic means.
At the end of this week the
Government will announce the last
in series of strongly repressive
bills. New treason and sedition
laws are such that even norma,
political activities might be con-
sidered crimes against the state
especially since DR.. Nkrumah re-
Gently proclaimed that "the (rul-
ing) party is Ghana."
Anybody who disseminates by
any means any information deem
ed to discredit Ghana or that he
has reason to believe is false may
be sentenced to fifteen years in
prison. 1t will be no defense to
say he believed the information
true, unless he can prove that he
took proper action to check it with
the authorities.
Asked whether this will apply to
private conversations, an author
of the legislation replied blandly,
"That is up to the courts"
Personality Cult
A personality cult is being built
up around the Prime Minister. His
portrait is on all new coins. Streets
and squares are being renamed for
/ him and monuments are being
built.
Three weeks ago, DIR. Nkrumah
made a speech in which he spoke
of democratic centralism" and an
nounced that the "habit" of "self-
criticism" would be instituted in
his party.
Ministers and parliamentary sec
retaries, like other members, will
have to attend weekend seminars
on party theology, he said. He
announced that vanguard activ-
ists," a new group, would "become
educators of broad masses"
This trend toward authoritarian
ism is recognized by all independ-
ent observers here. But most of
these observers warn that it would
be a gross injustice to judge Cha
mas internal politics on the basis
of Western democratic standards
and out of an African context.
They assert that it was essen
tial for DR.. Nkrumah to obtain
symbols of authority as we'll as au-
thority itself when the country
became independent in 1857.
No Democratic Tradition
If he had not done so, he could
not have convinced the people that
the British regime had in fact
been replaced by local African rule
they say.
Ghana has no solid democratic
tradition. Not long ago a minis
ter could not go into certain parts
of the country without being ston-
ed, the observers say. Tribal pat
terms still exist, they insist, and if
Dr.. Nkrumah has praised himself
as "Kwame the Conqueror," he is
aware of folklore and chants about
great warriors.
Most observers are convinced
that the Opposition, which now
cries dictatorship" would not be
more democratic if it won power.
Opposition newspapers and speak
ers in Parliament are vehement
far beyond the practice in West
ern democracy.
AS for authoritarian terminol-
ogy in his recent speech, the con-
sensus of foreign opinion here is
that DIR. Nkrumah is not a Marx
list nor a Stalinist, but that he
has been striving successfully to
keep Soviet influence out of Cha
pa.
Most foreign observers here are
convinced that Ghana's form of