«Our Homeland on the African Continent». The Provincialization of Guinea and the Sahara through the Documentaries of «Imágenes»

Abstract

This article examines, through the documentaries of the audiovisual magazine Imágenes, the evolution of the Francoist regime’s colonialist discourse through changes in themes, representation (or lack thereof) of the territories and variations in discursive approaches. The dissolution of the protectorate of Morocco (1956) and the changes in the legal status of the colonies to adapt to the new international anti-colonialist order are pointed out as turning points: the provincialization of Guinea (as the Gulf of Guinea province in 1956, divided in two: Fernando Poo and Rio Muni in 1959), the Sahara and Ifni (1958), as well as the autonomy of Guinea (1963) and the presentation of a similar project in the Sahara (1973) that would not materialize. The readjustment of relations between the metropolis and its colonies was reflected in the representation of Africa and Africans, which could no longer be limited to showing the Spanish presence in the territories; it now had to reflect the supposed benefits of the colonizing enterprise, while maintaining the reproduction of racist stereotypes in which the «native» was a perpetual minor.