Francoism against francoists: Equatorial Guinea’s politicians facing the independence process (1967-1969)

Abstract

The analyses on the independence of Equatorial Guinea have tended to focus on the complex struggle between different sectors of the Spanish government, some in favour of yielding to the UN independence pressures and others in favour of maintaining the Spanish presence in the area. These studies tend to make invisible the positions of Guinean politicians. This article aims to put the pro-independence politicians of Equatorial Guinea at the centre of the analysis to find out to what extent Francoism influenced their discourses and positions. Through the analysis of the correspondence of the pro-independence parties with the UN, the minutes of the Constitutional Conference and the speeches of the pro-independence politicians just after independence, it will try to assess the survival of Franco’s legacy in this African territory.