LABOUR MONTHLY, MAY, 1969 237

the USA which it does not want tosee leave Vietnam. Indeed the newlyappointed Minister of External Affairs,Freeth, a politician not noted for anyfinesse, recently said that Australiashould adopt a policeman's role inSouth East Asia. (Australian, Feb-ruary 14, 1969)

Whitlam, the leader of the Austra-lian Labour Party, is far too Ameri-can-oriented to produce an alternativepolicy but the Communists and strongleft wing in the ALP have been cam-paigning for a policy of freeingAustralia from American economicand military overlordship. The par-ticipation of so many distinguishedAustralian academics in New Direc-tions is an indication that the searchfor a new, independent foreign policyis not confined to the left. While nocontributor fully supports such apolicy, nevertheless the book as awhole is a valuable step in thatdirection. JUDAH WATEN.

Monopoly and Restrictive PracticesG. C. AllenAllen & Vnwin, 184 pp., 36s.THIS BOOK SAYS NOTHING of monopolycapitalism as concentration of powerdominating political, financial andeconomic policies. It is a book aboutthe behaviour of firms or groups offirms that control or seek to controlparticular markets, the limits to theirability to do so and the regulatorymeasures introduced in British andother capitalist administrations. Assuch it is a valuable book written withbrevity and skill and based on first-hand experience and acute observa-tion by a participant in the admini-strative apparatus of the Britishstate. JOHN EATON

The People's RepublicObafemi AwolowoOxford University Press, 356 pp., 90s.THE BIGGEST ISSUE now facing 56

million people in Nigeria is thedisastrous war between the federalarmed forces and Biafra. This waslaunched by General Gowon inJuly 1967. The preface to this bookwas written in May 1968, but there isnot a single word about this tragicconflict. This in itself gives some cluewhy the author fails to face the realissues facing the people of Nigeria.

Despite this, it is an interestingbook. So is the author himself, whohas had a long career as a politicalleader. In 1940 he was secretary of theIbadan Branch of the Nigerian YouthMovement (NYM), was closelyinvolved with Yoruba tribalism in hisearly days (and still to some extent)and founded the Action Group beforeNigeria had its first elections underthe 1951 Macpherson Constitution.

Along with Dr. Azikiwe, leader of theNational Council of Nigerian Citizens(NCNC) and Sir Abubakr Balewa,leading figure in the Northern People'sCongress (NPC), Awolowo becameone of the 'big three', between whomthere were sharp conflicts duringdiscussions in London between 1953and 1958 on the terms of successiveBritish constitutions imposed uponNigeria.

Arising from the 1959 pre-independence elections the NPC andNCNC formed a coalition federalgovernment, with the Action Groupin opposition, giving the appearanceof a more progressive policy and theaim of 'democratic socialism'. Sharppolitical conflicts arose within theAction Group between Chief Akintolaand Awolowo, the Western Assembly(with an Action Group majority) wassuspended by the federal government,and after a period of emergency ruleChief Akintola reassumed his positionas Premier in the western region.

The next step was to concoctframed-up charges against Awolowo,who was sentenced to ten years and

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238 LABOUR MONTHLY, MAY, 1969

was still in prison at the time of thearmed coup in January 1966. WhenGeneral Gowon took over militarycontrol in July 1966 Awolowo wasreleased and is now the Vice-Presidentof the Federal Executive Council.

This background is extremely rele-vant in any judgment of Awolowo'srecent book. Before 1959 the ActionGroup, under his leadership, haddistinct trends towards tribalism andseparatism, with a reactionary andanti-socialist standpoint. This waschanged when the Action Groupbecame the 'opposition' from 1959onwards to the nebulous programmeof 'democratic socialism'.

From this angle there is little newin the book. The first part is historical(up to 1959) and extremely criticalof the northern feudal emirs. Theauthor asserts (rightly in my view) thatBritish strategy gave them the domi-nant political position in Nigeria.But Awolowo does not explain hisalliance with them in the war nowbeing waged against Biafra, which isbattling for its right to self-determination so much advocated bythe author.

The origin and nature of capitalismis described in the most hazy terms.Its germ is greed, which has 'alwaysbeen inherent in man', and is notonly a method of production but'an attitude of mind'. Even more hazyis the concept of 'democraticsocialism', which lags behind eventhe concepts of Utopian socialism ofthe 19th century.

There is a long chapter on theconstitutional future of Nigeria, inwhich it is claimed there are 51'nations'. Ten of these are majornations proposed as separate states.The 41 smaller nations should formseven states between them, making17 states in all, as against the presenttwelve. After all, I suppose it iseasier to argue on paper about the

number of 'nations' in Nigeria andhow many states should exist, thanto make a stand for the right of theexisting state of Biafra to self-determination.

IDRIS COX

Captain SwingE. J. Hobsbawm and George RudeLawrence & Wishart, 384 pp., 70s.THIS BOOK gives a vivid and stimu-lating account of the great movementof protest and revolt by agriculturalworkers in 1830, which in a matter ofmonths swept through 23 countiesfrom Kent to Worcestershire, andfrom Norfolk to Dorset. Marchingfrom village to village, armed withhammers and crowbars, hundreds ofworkers confronted the farmers withtheir demand for a minimum of twoshillings per day, and proceeded tosmash the threshing machines whichdeprived them of the greater part oftheir winter employment. At one andthe same time, they demanded reduc-tions in rents from the landlords, andreductions in tithes from the clergy,so that the farmers could afford theincrease in wages. Whilst ricks burnedat night, threatening letters circulated,signed by the mythical leader 'CaptainSwing'. Yet no violence was done topersons, and the worst that happenedto an unyielding Poor Law Overseerwas a ducking in the village pond. Soforceful were the actions of theworkers that at first oppositioncrumbled and their demands werewidely accepted, with some farmerseven dismantling their own threshingmachines.

The background to this great out-burst was the steadily worsening con-dition of the farmworker since theNapoleonic wars. He had been robbedof his land and grazing rights bygenerations of enclosures, and hiscottage industries had been under-mined by the industrial revolution.

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