Altered paths to Unity

Mostly, yes, but not wholly. The dream of unity of various nationalism(s) and defying Stowe's image of Uncle Tom is one which both of them align on. In places far away from each other, both of them greatly echo each other in describing the complete cultural domination they have faced by the colonial forces, of losing their own culture. Both of them agree that culture needs to be reclaimed, re-found or rediscovered. What this reclamation looks like, may vary.

Centuries of colonial rule eroded away indigenous cultures of the ‘third world.’ Lost their languages, never discovered their icons. Modern icons in the flesh of Cabral and Sukarno are also those that resemble the colonizers and speak their languages and yet they talk so passionately about their old ­ culture, how they are different – and yet they are not.

Sukharno talks about being different but not how but mostly of embracing the differences in each other. This was said in backdrop of various Asian and African countries already aligned with the US or Soviet Russia, already resembling the Uncle Toms that no one wanted to be but alas that is what they/we were. Sukharno, in this reality wanted to embrace it, to be okay with and to move on and be united in our shared experiences of colonialism. These shared experiences of colonialism unite us all, we must take this with us and make for us a new, modern identity – a diverse one.

This is where Cabral diverges, letting go of the European garb and adorning an ‘African outfit,’ he talks about doing away with the current cultural identity and going back to your roots. Cabral finds that successful outcomes are to at the point where we are to abandon the colonial-mix identity given by the colonial powers and going back to the mythical past. It does not matter whether or not the past is accurate or representative, as long as it is successful in putting out the idea that we existed before colonial rule and this is how we must be.

It is ultimately about successfully existing and progressing in a modern post-colonial world, how both leaders envision to achieve success beyond colonial rule, an independent existence. Both of them want to live the dream of unity, but by slightly different visions.