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WWII Shattered Myth of Colonial Superiority: African Scholar on Roots of Decolonization
WWII Shattered Myth of Colonial Superiority: African Scholar on Roots of Decolonization
Sputnik Africa
The international conference titled "80th Anniversary of Victory in the Great Patriotic War and World War II" began in Moscow on Tuesday. 22.04.2025, Sputnik Africa
2025-04-22T18:50+0200
2025-04-22T18:50+0200
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African soldiers and porters not only contributed to the war effort but also returned home transformed, questioning colonial dominance. The experience laid the foundation for liberation movements beginning in the late 1950s, Dr. Raymond Nkwenti Fru, Senior Lecturer at Sol Plaatje University, South Africa, told Sputnik Africa.The scholar called for Africans to reclaim their narrative, stressing the importance of documenting and sharing their role in global history.Furthermore, he underscored that during the war, the Soviet Union lost about 13% of its population.Dr. Fru also cautioned that the ideological struggle that began after World War II is far from over.He criticized the systematic undermining of the USSR’s historical role through media, education, and Western-driven narratives.Moreover, the scholar emphasized the need for Russia—like Africa—to reclaim and tell its own story in the face of ongoing global power struggles.
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WWII Shattered Myth of Colonial Superiority: African Scholar on Roots of Decolonization
18:50 22.04.2025 (Updated: 19:28 22.04.2025) Christina Glazkova
Writer / Editor
The international conference titled "80th Anniversary of Victory in the Great Patriotic War and World War II" began in Moscow on Tuesday.
African soldiers and porters not only contributed to the war effort but also returned home transformed, questioning colonial dominance. The experience laid the foundation for liberation movements beginning in the late 1950s, Dr. Raymond Nkwenti Fru, Senior Lecturer at Sol Plaatje University, South Africa, told Sputnik Africa.
“It kind of demystified the power of the colonial master... we fought with them, […] we saw them living as normal human beings, suffering pain, so why should we then continue to be subjected to colonial rule?” he said on the sidelines of the conference.
The scholar called for Africans to reclaim their narrative, stressing the importance of documenting and sharing their role in global history.
Furthermore, he underscored that during the war, the Soviet Union lost about 13% of its population.
“It also tells you the price that the USSR paid in terms of military effort, agency, intentionality with leadership, bravery, but also in terms of the civilian cost to the war, not forgetting infrastructure destruction,” he said.
Dr. Fru also cautioned that the ideological struggle that began after World War II is far from over.
He criticized the systematic undermining of the USSR’s historical role through media, education, and Western-driven narratives.
Moreover, the scholar emphasized the need for Russia—like Africa—to reclaim and tell its own story in the face of ongoing global power struggles.
"You cannot wait for your enemy to write your own story. So, talk about your role in the war... And the US or any other Western country would not do that for Russia," he concluded.
