Life Lessons
Divide and Rule
A Strategy Used By Colonial Powers
Divide and conquer
Divide and rule is a political strategy and tactic that involves gaining and maintaining power by breaking up larger concentrations of power into pieces that individually have less power than the one implementing the strategy. This tactic is commonly employed to effectively control democratic opposition and dissident elements.
Throughout history, many colonial powers have used the divide-and-rule strategy quite successfully to maintain control over subjected populations in their colonies. This article examines how and why colonial powers used to divide and rule, and its consequences.
Historical Use of Divide and Rule
One of the earliest and most famous usages of divide and rule was by the Roman Empire to govern conquered territories and populations.
The Romans would deliberately create and foster ethnic, racial, political, religious, and social divisions between different groups within subject populations to ensure that these groups remained divided and could not unite against imperial rule. This helped the Romans maintain control with relatively small numbers of troops.
During the colonial era from the 16th century onwards, European colonial powers extensively employed divide-and-rule tactics across Asia, Africa, and other colonized regions. The British were particularly adept at implementing divide and rule.
In India, they purposefully empowered some dominant indigenous communities over others by favoring them with authority and privileges. They also played off religious divisions, further deepening historic fault lines between Hindus and Muslims for example.
In Africa, the Belgians notoriously used divide and rule in Rwanda and Burundi to favor the minority Tutsi community over the majority Hutu community, giving the Tutsis far greater powers and access to opportunities.
This directly led to deep-seated ethnic tensions and violence after independence. Elsewhere in Africa too, colonial powers encouraged some ethnic groups to dominate others both politically and economically to more easily control overall populations.
Why It Was Effective
There were several key reasons why divide and rule proved to be an extremely effective strategy for colonial powers:
- It prevented united resistance: By keeping different ethnic, religious, or social groups divided and in competition/conflict with each other, colonial regimes ensured these populations could not present a united front against imperial domination.
- It reduced demands for self-rule: When groups were battling one another, they had less time and energy to focus on demanding independence from colonial masters.
- It facilitated indirect rule: Colonial administrators did not have large numbers of troops. But by favoring some groups, they could rely on their collaboration for security and governance roles more informally.
- It weakened national identity: Sectarian cleavages were accentuated at the cost of developing a strong overarching national identity, which is important for any freedom struggle.
- Pre-existing divisions were inflamed: Colonizers usually found existing minority/majority, caste/religious fractures in societies and deliberately exacerbated them for political benefit.
- Divide and rule complemented other exploitative policies: Resource extraction, cultural subjugation, and economic exploitation were reinforced when populations lacked unity due to internal fissures.
Consequences of Divide and Rule
The consequences of prolonged divide-and-rule strategies were heavily damaging for formerly colonized societies.
Lasting ethnic/religious conflicts: Divisions heightened under colonialism festered on and led to serious violence post-independence in places like Rwanda, DR Congo, South Sudan, etc.
Weak states: Sectional interests were promoted over national unity, undermining the building of cohesive, multi-ethnic nations after freedom.
Social stratification: The economic and social privileges bestowed on some created entrenched inequalities and tensions among communities.
Suppressed development: Sectarianism prevented collaborative problem-solving, while predatory colonial economies also stunted indigenous progress.
Authoritarian legacies: When groups saw politics as a zero-sum game due to colonial prejudices, this encouraged strongman, exclusionary tendencies in independent states.
External interference: Outside powers often found it easier to sow discord for geostrategic ends in nascent nations already lacking durable national cohesion.
In short, divide and rule was one of the most cunning but injurious strategies deployed by colonial masters to govern foreign territories and populations.
While it delivered imperial control in the short term, the long-term consequences have been disastrous — from civil wars to weakened governance to suppressed development in the erstwhile colonies.
Lasting ethnic suspicions and social injustice remain scars of this exploitative policy of colonial governance through divide and rule. There are continuing efforts to heal historical wounds and foster lasting reconciliation and multicultural cohesion.