History South Africa’s and Nigeria’s histories have been dominated by the integration and conflict of several diverse ethnic groups. Looking at each nation’s history there was colonization by the Europeans, suffering of their people, assassinations of leaders and corruption in their governments. Today both nations are attempting overcome past wrong doings and improve the standard of life for their people. The earliest inhabitants of South Africa were the San and Khoekhoe peoples, known individually as the Bushmen and Hottentots or Khoikhoi; collectively called the Khoisan. Both were resident in the southern tip of the continent for thousands of years before the arrival of the European immigrants (Southafrica.info). In 1652, Jan van Riebeeck and ninety men landed at the Cape of Good Hope, under orders by the Dutch East India Company to erect a fort and build a vegetable garden for the benefit of ships on the Eastern trade route. The white colonists in South Africa, the Khoisan, and slaves from elsewhere in Africa and the East, formed the basis of the mixed-race group now known as coloured. The slaves from the East brought a powerful new element to South Africa's racial and cultural mix, especially with their religion of Islam. By the end of the 18th century the colonies population reached about 15,000. Known as Boers or Afrikaners, and speaking a Dutch dialect known as Afrikaans, the settlers as early as 1795 tried to establish an independent republic. South Africa was colonized under different European nations through its history. As a result of developments in Europe, the British took the Cape over from the Dutch in 1795. "Seven years later, the colony was returned to the Dutch government, only to come under British rule again in 1806, recaptured because of the alliance between Holland and Napoleon" (Southafrica.info). Britain took permanent control in the Cape Colony at the end of the Napoleonic Wars in 1815, bringing roughly 5,000 settlers. Anglicization of government and the freeing of slaves in 1833 drove about 12,000 Boers to make the "great trek" north and east into African tribal territory. These people were determined to live independently of colonial rule and what they saw as unacceptable racial egalitarianism. They established the republics of the Transvaal and the Orange Free State (Infoplease). The detection of diamonds in 1867 and gold nine years later brought an abundance of "outlanders" into the republics and spurred Cape Colony Prime Minister, Cecil Rhodes, to plot annexation. His scheme of starting an "outlander" rebellion, to which an armed party under Leander Starr Jameson would come to the rescue, misfired in 1895, forcing Rhodes to resign. What British expansionists called the "inevitable" war with the Boers broke out on Oct. 11, 1899. The defeat of the Boers in 1902 led to Independence Day in 1910, otherwise known as the Union of South Africa, composed of four provinces, the two former republics, and the old Cape and Natal colonies. Louis Botha, a Boer, became the first prime minister. Organized political activity among Africans started with the establishment of the African National Congress in 1912. In the process the Boers had multiple battles with various black or Bantu peoples who settled in the northern part of the country. "After their defeat by Britain in the Anglo-Boer War of 1899-1902 both Boer Republics were ruled from Westminster for eight years until 1910 when, together with the Cape and Natal colonies, they received independence as part of the union of South Africa" (De Villiers, p. 344). South Africa declared itself a republic in 1961 and severed its ties with the Commonwealth, which strongly objected to the country's racist policies. The white governments who supported and implemented segregation, had first come to power in 1948, would continue its rule until 1994. Black voters were removed from the voter rolls in 1936. Over the next half-century, the nonwhite population of South Africa was forced out of designated white areas. The Group Areas Acts of 1950 and 1986 forced about 1.5 million Africans to move from cities to rural townships, where they lived in abject poverty under repressive laws. The African National Congress (ANC), the principal antiapartheid organization, protested apartheid, and in 1964 its leader, Nelson Mandela, was sentenced to life imprisonment. Apartheid's grip on South Africa began to give way when F. W. de Klerk replaced P. W. Botha as president in 1989. De Klerk removed the ban on the ANC and released its leader, Nelson Mandela, after 27 years of imprisonment. He removed apartheid and negotiated a new South Africa with Mandela, where the first free elections were held in 1994 (De Villiers, p. 344). Mandela and de Klerk were jointly awarded the Nobel Peace Prize in 1993 for their transformation of South Africa into a democracy. Nelson Mandela was victorious and became president until 1999 when, Deputy President Thabo Mbeki led the ANC. Mbeki won another victory in 2004 but wouldn’t seek out his full term. In December 2007, ANC chose Jacob Zuma as in a bid for the presidency instead of Mbeki, who had ruled for the last ten years but was known for corruption. "Zuma was acquitted of rape charges in 2006. In late December, prosecutors reopened corruption charges against Zuma and ordered him to face trial for various counts of racketeering, money laundering, corruption, and fraud" (Infoplease). In 2008, the Supreme Court dismissed charges against Zuma, due to political corruption and sabotage by Mbeki. Mbeki announced he would step down just days after Zuma was cleared.
Kgalema Motlanthe, served as Acting President until the 2009 election where Zuma represented the ANC and became president. Nigeria’s history has some similarities to South Africa, such as the variety of ethnic groups over the centuries, it was a colony of Britain, and violent uprisings within the nation. Ever nation also has it’s own unique story, this is Nigeria’s dating back to the beginning. The first natives of Nigeria were believed to have been the Nok people (500 BC –c. AD 200). The Kanuri, Hausa, and Fulani peoples subsequently migrated there. Nigeria became a colony of Britain in 1914. On Oct. 1, 1960, Nigeria gained independence, becoming a member of the Commonwealth of Nations and joining the United Nations. Organized as a loose federation of self-governing states, the independent nation faced the overwhelming task of unifying a country with 250 ethnic and linguistic groups. "On January 15, 1966, a small group of army officers, mostly southeastern Igbos, overthrew the government and assassinated the federal Prime Minister and the premiers of the northern and western regions. The federal military government that assumed power was unable to address ethnic tensions or produce a constitution acceptable to all sections of the country" (State.gov). There were a series of coups and a major civil war, the Biafra War. The ensuing civil war was bitter and bloody, ending in Jan. 1970, after 31 months of civil war, Biafra surrendered to the federal government. After the civil war, reconciliation was rapid and effective, and the country focused on the task of economic development. The nations went through more coups and the military regained control. There was an attempt in installing a democrtically-elected government in 1993, General Sani Abacha took power. "Corruption and notorious governmental inefficiency as well as a harshly repressive military regime characterized Abacha's reign over this oil-rich country, turning it into an international pariah" (Infoplease). In 1995 Nigeria executed nine political prisoners who protested against the government; most notable was writer Ken Saro-Wiwa. Nigeria was suspended from the Commonwealth for its actions (State.gov). Abacha death in 1998 sparked four separate elections culminated in the establishment of local, state and federal governments, where Olusegun Obasanjo was sworn in as president in 1999. He served two terms and most Nigerians began to see an improvement in human rights in the country. Violence and riots became an overwhelming problem and President Obasanjo addressed it by announced the formation of a National Security Commission. Umaru Musa Yar’Adua became president after Obasanjo in the 2007 elections. YarAdua was terminaly ill and in his absence his Vice President, Goodluck Jonathan stood in his place. After his passing in 2010, Goodluck was sworn in as president.

www.infoplease.com/ipa/A0107983.html#ixzz1mSusk8G2 www.southafrica.info/about/history/history.htm#ixzz1mSg95HRb http://www.state.gov/r/pa/ei/bgn/2898.htm