Historical Background: Try to understand why the colonial background of a country
is important. Colonial rule usually has a large influence on the pre-existing
institutions and culture of a colonized country. Some of these influences were good
but some were very harmful. Once the colonial rule ended, it took a long time for the
newly independent countries to find its own foot hold. Therefore, it is very important
to know when a country has become independent or whether at any point of time it
was under colonial rule or not.