The Gandhi Statue Controversies and Its Implications for Ghana-India Relationship

ABSTRACT

Calls for the removal of monuments that represent anti-Black racism and in some instance its disguised “ultra-nationalism” have become common in parts of the world. From the Rhodes Must Fall campaign in Oxford to South Africa to the Charlottesville incidence, through to the Gandhi Must Fall campaign, a public consciousness on such racist representations seems to have been awakened. The #Gandhi Must Fall campaign in which some professors from the University of Ghana galvanized the support of about 1500 online petitioners to call for the removal of Gandhi‟s statue from the university grounds rather informed this study. Through the theoretical lens of international cooperation where the tenets of cooperation among states allows for the execution of the national interest of states, the study adopted the qualitative research design to examine the possible implications that calls for the removal of Gandhi‟s statue from the University of Ghana might have on the diplomatic relations between Ghana and India. The study proceeded on the alternative hypothesis that the long standing harmonious relationship between Ghana and India might be affected by the campaign to remove the statue (especially as the countenance of the statue had suffered some damage). The research findings revealed that there is more to the dominant or single popular story of pacifist, non-violent Gandhi that is not told and that while in South Africa Gandhi‟s attitude towards Black people was condescending and racist. In almost the twenty two years that he lived in South Africa the study found that he was full of disdain for the Black race and casted racial slurs on them by referring to them as Kaffirs or savages. Evidence to this was provided by Gandhi‟s own direct words. The research also found that regardless of the grounds or justification for the removal of Gandhi‟s statue from University of Ghana there is a very strong diplomatic relationship between Ghana and India that could be affected if the controversy surrounding the study is not handled diplomatically. The study found that while the relationship between the countries benefits both it is the interest of Ghana to maintain such relationship as it is most affected if such relationship is severed. More crucial is the fact that India is Ghana‟s second largest foreign investor.