Exportekonomisk Etablering, Klass och Demokratisk Utveckling i Nord- & Sydrhodesia. En prövning av Rueschemeyer, Stephens & Stephens marxistiska teori om kapitalistisk utveckling och demokrati

Sammanfattning: This is a comparative case study with a most-similar design of Northern Rhodesia (Zambia) and Southern Rhodesia’s (Zimbabwe) political development prior to the colonies’ first democratic experiences, which coincide with their independence. A historical analysis of Southern Rhodesia’s agricultural export economy shows that it shapes structures that hinder the democratic development. The same analysis on Northern Rhodesia shows that the colonies export economy, based on mineral, creates structures that facilitate democratization. The theory by Rueschemeyer et al., on capitalist development and democracy is applied on the historical analyses. This helps us obtain answers about how the socioeconomic consequences, originating from the differences in the export economies, based on either agriculture or mining, can somewhat explain the colonies’ political development, especially regarding democratization. These results are compared with the result from the study made on democratization in Latin America, another Late Developed region, done by Rueschemeyer et al. The comparison shows that the regions seems structurally different and identifies elements particularly important for analyzing societies in southern Africa. The study also demonstrates the overall strength of the theory when used in an African context, even though is has difficulties to explain democratization provoked by international pressure.