Exploring the unrecognized nations of Africa: A closer look

Hey everyone and welcome back to the second video of countries that don't exist. Just a reminder when I say this I mean regions in the world whose sovereignty isn't recognized or that most people don't know exist. Now last time we talked about countries in Europe and today we're gonna talk about Africa. Starting with Somaliland, which declared its independence twice in 1960 and 1991, claiming the region of the former British Somaliland Protectorate, with a population of 3.5 million people and its capital of Hargeisa. It became free of British occupation in 1960 and was independent for five days, then joining the former Italian regions of Somaliland and creating the Somali Republic. After a civil war in 1991, Somaliland seceded and claimed independence again, in the territory of the former British colony. Next we have Mayotte, an island off the coast of Madagascar, claimed by the Comoros and which declared independence in 1975. It has a population of over 200,000 people. What's interesting is that its independence was not declared by themselves. In 1974 all the islands held a referendum about independence from France. All the islands voted for independence except for Mayotte, which wanted to stay under French rule. However, when Comoros declared independence in 1975 they included all islands of the archipelago. France refused to let Mayotte go and maintained its rule on the island. International pressure caused them to hold another referendum and the people chose to remain French once more. Today they're recognized as an overseas department of France and technically a part of the European Union since 2014, despite being thousands of miles away. Now we go northwest and take a look at Azawad, a Saharan republic which only lasted for one day after declaring its independence in 2012. With a population of 1.3 million, its region is the northern part of Mali. Independence was declared by the Tuaregs in 2012, following their desire to have their own state. After concerns of radicalists taking over the country, the French army intervened and returned the territory to Mali control. An interesting aspect about the Tuaregs is that, despite being Muslim, they have a lot of traditions different to those of Islam. Most of them date back to their origin as a society before they converted to Islam. For instance, they focus on the female figure as the leader of society. Marriages are matrilineal, inheritance follows the female line and it is the men who cover their faces. Going south we have Cabinda, which declared its independence in 1975. Its individual decolonization was recognized by the Organization of African Unity, but it was then annexed by Angola. With a population of close to 700,000 people, they are actually separated from Angola by land, bordering Congo and the Democratic Republic of Congo. This territory is very rich in oil. We also have Ogoniland, an indigenous Ogoni kingdom, whose population of 850,000 declared independence in 2012. Now I couldn't really find out what happened here, because there's really no information, but today the region is back to being a part of Nigeria. Next are Barotseland, a monarchy which declared independence in 2011 and 2012. The territory has a population of around 3.5 million and is located right on the Angolan border inside Zambia. The kingdom itself has existed for over 500 years. During European colonization it was a British protectorate with a higher autonomy status than most colonies. In 1960, when Zambia became independent, the Barotseland king accepted to be a part of the new country with the condition of self-rule. An agreement was made with Zambia in 1964, but it was never kept, so in 2011 they declared independence, something that was considered as treason by the Zambian government. Going way north, we go inside the Portuguese island of Madeira, to a location of only 178 square meters, with a population of 4. Technically on the African coast, the Fort of St. Jose is a former Templar stronghold, which declared its independence in 1903. It was sold by King Charles of Portugal with the condition that its owner would have sovereignty. Today a school teacher owns the fort. Finally we have Sahrawi, better known as West Sahara, right below Morocco. Its population is over 500,000 people. It declared its independence in 1976 after the Spanish colonizers left. Its people have demanded a referendum to choose between independence or Moroccan integration, but this has not yet happened. Today, Morocco controls the region and explores it for its vast resources, while some Sahrawis have fled to Algeria, where they live as refugees. And those are some of the countries that don't exist in the African continent. Thanks for watching and make sure to let me know if you want me to keep doing these because there are still a few countries to talk about in America and Asia. Make sure to subscribe to catch future videos and I'll see you next time.