Life is change. The cycle of government, and the change brought about in the United States, for example, from one administration to another, illustrates how priorities can change almost over night, when simply depending on an election. When a country moves from depending on a colonial government, to independent self-rule, those changes can end up being extremely drastic in nature, despite the preparations made by everyone involved. How the governments and citizens of these recently liberated nations adapt and the problems caused by the colonial rule in the first place are both focuses of those who study the progress of such countries. This paper will examine and briefly discuss four consequences of colonialism that need to be dealt with after a country attains independence. These four topics will be addressed: the development of the Compradore Class, distortion of economies, over-developed social control, and the question of women's status.
The official definition of compradore is a go-between or intermediary, especially between two business parties. The Compradore Class, however, is an unofficial class of people who, though part of the colonized population, have collaborated with the colonial government to ensure that they procure or retain power over the rest of the population, while still under the auspices of the colonial government. One example can be found in India with certain Hindu families. Those who were headmen or leaders of their people could rule on certain administrative matters, but still had to defer to the colonial government in all things. So, the Compradore Class functions as a layer between the colonial officials and the rest of the populace and helps maintain the status quo of the colonial government. They are considered the elite in their country and typically have privileges that other portions of the population do not. They are generally slowest to fight for independence as they would then lose the...