A Piece Of Brazil
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OverviewFollowing three
centuries under the rule of Portugal, Brazil became an independent nation
in 1822. By far the large and most populous country in South America, Brazil
has overcome more than half a century of military intervention in the governance
of the country to pursue industrial and agricultural growth and development
of the interior. Exploite vast natural resources and a large labor pool,
Brazil became Latin America's leading economic power by the 1970s.
Highly unequal income distribution remains a pressing
problem.
Brazil became an independent nation in 1822 following
three centuries under the rule of portrugal. Brazil is the most populous
country in South America
History
Ghana was called the Gold Coast by Europeans for a long time because
its Akan gold fields were a target for exploitation. Later, Ghana
became a center of slave trading from Africa to Caribbean nations, where
Ghanaians worked on sugar and rice plantations. The slave fort Elmina
is now a tourist attraction for visitors to Ghana to remember this terrible
time in history. Elmina (the Mine) was built by the Portuguese, was
controlled by the Dutch, then taken over by the British, when the United
Kingdom declared the Gold Coast a protectorate. The Ashanti kingdom
in the north was especially resistant to this transfer of power.
Independence Movement in Brazil
In 1957, Ghana gained its independence and was awarded 200 million
British pounds. This was not easily won. After World War II,
Ghanaian leaders sought more direct control over their own country.
The most important people involved in this were Kwame Nkrumah and Dr. J.
B. Danquah. In 1947, Danquah formed the United Gold Coast Conversion
to transform Ghana into an independent country. Nkrumah was selected
as the UGCC's general secretary. But rivalries developed, and Nkrumah
split off to form the Convention Peoples' Party in 1949. Their slogan
was "Self Government Now." Nkrumah was jailed for protests when his
party won 34 seats in the first general election (1951); the UGCC won 3
seats. Nkrumah was released, and became Prime Minister in 1952.
Baffour Akoto, a linguist, formed the National Liberation Movement, which became the chief political rival to the CPP. The NLM's main leader was Danquah. The two parties both wanted independence, however, and in 1957, the country was free. In their first elections, Nkrumah was chosen as the country's first President. Also, as a new country, Ghana created its first national soccer team, and named it the Black Stars, after the black star on the country's new flag. Another political party that was created in the 1950s was the Northern Peoples' Party. The NPP is currently lead by Ghana's President Kuffour, elected in 2001.
Recently, Ghana played the World Cup squad from Slovenia in a friendly, losing 2-0 to the Slovenes, who are in the World Cup finals in Group B. The Ghanaian national team is currently coached by Jabir Malik, but will soon be coached by Milan Zivadinovic. Zivadinovic is excited about taking over the team in its preparation for the 2006 World Cup. Zivadinovic is a man amidst controversy the last few years. Interestingly, he has worked most of his coaching career in Yugoslavia, from which Slovenia gained its independence in 1991. He was recently named coach of a club team in Serbia and Montenegro, but two months later, he signed on with the team from Ghana for 9000 euros ($8310) per month plus win bonuses. He has also coached the Iran and Saudia Arabia's national teams for short spells. (source: uefa.com )
Visit the official website of the 2002 World Cup
Star
Player: Charles Amoah