Dependence after independence: Sudan’s bounded sovereignty 1956–1958

ABSTRACT

This article sheds light on the little discussed democratic period, directly after Sudanese independence in 1956 and preceding the military takeover in 1958. The article uses parliamentary and public discussions around an American aid offer as a lens to understand Sudanese perspectives on decolonisation, independence, dependence, sovereignty, and neo-colonialism in a Cold War context. The article aims to explore how politicians in post-independence Sudan perceived their range of potential political actions and outcomes. It argues that politicians prioritised the protection and strengthening of Sudanese sovereignty, but held strongly differing and at times contradicting views of what that meant; for example, accepting aid from the Americans was understood by the Umma Party as necessary for economic development and thus strengthening domestic sovereignty, while it was seen by the NUP as potentially weakening external sovereignty. The decisions of Sudanese politicians at the time were shaped by their fear of Sudan losing its independence once again. In making this argument, the article serves as a case study deconstructing theoretical conceptions of sovereignty as absolute and indivisible, showing that Sudanese politicians were acutely aware that sovereignty was bounded and dependent on compromises.

KEYWORDS:

• Sudan
• sovereignty
• aid
• decolonisation
• coup d’état

Acknowledgements

I thank the organisers, lecturers and participants of the Washington DC Decolonization Seminar 2011 – especially Wm. Roger Louis and John Darwin – during which the majority of the archival research was conducted, for their input and support. I thank Eveline Buchheim and the two reviewers for their generous comments on the article.

Disclosure statement

No potential conflict of interest was reported by the author(s).

Notes

1 Romero, “Cold War Historiography at the Crossroads,” 695.

2 Holt and Daly, A History of the Sudan, 116.

3 Collins, A History of Modern Sudan, 92.

4 Khalid, The Government They Deserve, 10.

5 Niblock, Class and Power in Sudan, 207–10.

6 Beshir, Revolution and Nationalism in the Sudan, 204–8.

7 Woodward, “Parties and Parliaments,” 57–8.

8 Young, “The Anglo-Egyptian Rivalry, the Cold War and Economic Development in Sudan: 1954–1958.”

9 Krasner, Sovereignty, 4.

10 Westphalian sovereignty is an odd misnomer, considering that Krasner himself has contributed to the deconstruction of the myth that sovereignty somehow originated in the peace agreements of Westphalia.

11 Krasner, Sovereignty, 4.

12 Krasner, 4.

13 The idea of economic sovereignty emerged slowly, first in form of “permanent sovereignty” in the context of natural resources and later as “economic sovereignty” in the New International Economic Order. See: Dietrich, Oil Revolution; Gilman, “The New International Economic Order.”

14 Quoted according to: Dietrich, Oil Revolution, 66–7.

15 For a brief discussion of Nkrumah’s dictum see: Biney, The Political and Social Thought of Kwame Nkrumah, 3.

16 Agnew, Globalization and Sovereignty, chap. 2.

17 Englebert, “Sovereignty as a Resource and Curse in Africa.”

18 Bjerk, Building a Peaceful Nation, 5 & 12.

19 Cooper, Africa in the World, 66–89.

20 See for example: Brennan, “Lowering the Sultan’s Flag.”

21 Beshir, Revolution and Nationalism in the Sudan, 173–5.

22 Niblock, Class and Power in Sudan, 202.

23 Ginat, Egypt and the Struggle for Power in Sudan, 257.

24 Warburg, “The Condominium Revisited”; Taha, “The Sudanese Factor in the 1952–53 Anglo-Egyptian Negotiations.”

25 This view is also shared by: American Embassy (AmEmb) Khartoum. Memo to Department of State (DoS), 4 May 1957. NARA 745W.00/5-457.

26 Minutes of the Sudanese House of Representative, Sitting on 19 November 1957.

27 The US State Department described the Baghdad Pact as ‘a defensive organization for promoting shared political, military and economic goals founded in 1955 by Turkey, Iraq, Great Britain, Pakistan and Iran. Similar to [NATO …], the main purpose […] was to prevent communist incursions and foster peace in the Middle East’. (Quoted according to https://2001-2009.state.gov/r/pa/ho/time/lw/98683.htm, consulted on 1 September 2020.)

28 Minutes of the Sudanese House of Representative, Sitting on 5 December 1957.

29 Young, “The Anglo-Egyptian Rivalry, the Cold War and Economic Development in Sudan: 1954–1958,” 42.

30 Young, 43.

31 Dwight D. Eisenhower. Special Message to the Congress on the Situation in the Middle East, 5 January 1957.

32 Takeyh, The Origins of the Eisenhower Doctrine, 154–5.

33 AmEmb Khartoum. Cable to DoS, 8 January 1957. NARA 745W.5 MSP/1-757.

34 AmEmb Khartoum. Memo to DoS, 17 January 1957. NARA 320-Sudan.

35 AmEmb Khartoum. Cable to DoS, 20 February 1957. NARA 745W.5 MSP/2-2057.

36 The ICA was established in 1955 and coordinated foreign assistance operations and conducted all nonmilitary security programs. It was abolished 1961 and its functions were transferred to US AID.

37 AmEmb Khartoum. Memo to DoS, 13 July 1957. NARA 745W.5 MSP/7-1357.

38 DoS. Memorandum of Conversation, Khartoum, 13 March 1957. FRUS XVIII, 236.

39 American Consulate Asmara. Cable to DoS, 22 April 1957. FRUS XVIII, 237.

40 American Consulate Asmara. Cable to DoS, 22 April 1957. FRUS XVIII, 237.

41 AmEmb Khartoum. Memo to DoS, 4 May 1957. NARA 745W.00/5-457.

42 American Consulate Asmara. Cable to DoS, 22 April 1957. FRUS XVIII, 237. And: AmEmb Khartoum. Memo to DoS, 4 May 1957. NARA 745W.00/5-457.

43 Muschik, “Managing the World,” 122.

44 Muschik, 136.

45 For a discussion of Sudan’s cotton export during this period, see: Young, Transforming Sudan, 100–5.

46 Young, “The Anglo-Egyptian Rivalry, the Cold War and Economic Development in Sudan: 1954–1958,” 43.

47 John S. Hoghland II, Acting Assistant Secretary for Congressional Relations. Memo to Col. Robert Cushman, USMC, Assistant to the Vice President, 4 September 1957. NARA NARA 745W.00/9-457. And: DoS. Memorandum of Conversation, 6 September 1957. NARA 745W.00/9-657.

48 AmEmb Khartoum. Cable to DoS, 2 August 1957. NARA 745W.5 MSP/8-257.

49 AmEmb Khartoum. Cable to DoS, 26 November 1957. NARA 745W.5 MSP/11-2657.

50 AmEmb Khartoum. Memo to DoS, 15 February 1958. NARA 745W.5 MSP/2-158.

51 Al-Ahram, quoted according to Ismael, “The United Arab Republic and the Sudan,” 22.

52 AmEmb Cairo. Memo to DoS, 9 April 1957. NARA 645W.74/4-957.

53 AmEmb Khartoum. Political Report to DoS, 25 May 1957. NARA 745W.00/5-2457.

54 AmEmb Cairo. Memo to DoS, 18 September 1957. NARA 745W.00/9-1857.

55 AmEmb Khartoum. Memo to DoS, 10 January 1958. NARA 745W.00/1-1058.

56 AmEmb Khartoum. Memo to DoS, 8 February 1958. NARA 745W.00/2-858.

57 AmEmb Baghdad. Cable to AmEmb Khartoum, 24 September 1957. NARA 745W.00/9-2457.

58 DoS. Cable to AmEmb Khartoum, 27 September 1958. NARA 745W.00/9-2758.

59 AmEmb Khartoum. Cable to AmEmb Cairo, 17 February 1958. NARA 645W.743/2-1758.

60 AmEmb Khartoum. Cable 636 to DoS, 20 February 1958. NARA 645W.743/2-2058.

61 AmEmb Khartoum. Cable 643 to DoS, 20 February 1958. NARA 645W.743/2-2058.

62 Young, “The Anglo-Egyptian Rivalry, the Cold War and Economic Development in Sudan: 1954-1958,” 45.

63 AmEmb Cairo. Cable 2181 to DoS, 22 February 1958. NARA 645W.743/2-2258.

64 AmEmb Khartoum. Cable 663 to DoS, 23 February 1958. NARA 645W.743/2-2358.

65 AmEmb Khartoum. Political Report to DoS, 8 March 1958. NARA 745W.00/3-858.

66 AmEmb Khartoum. Cable 643 to DoS, 20 February 1958. NARA 645W.743/2-2058.

67 Lefebvre comes to a similar conclusion, see: Lefebvre, “The United States and Egypt,” 334.

68 Lefebvre, 325.

69 DoS. Memo to AmEmb Khartoum, 7 May 1956. FRUS XVIII, 235.

70 The Southern Liberal Party was a new political block representing South Sudanese interests. It was a slightly more coherent and cohesive grouping than the Southern Party had been in the previous election.

71 Howell, “Political Leadership and Organisation in the Southern Sudan.,” 167–9.

72 Rolandsen, “A False Start.”

73 Johnson, The Root Causes of Sudan’s Civil Wars, 27–9.

74 Young, “The Anglo-Egyptian Rivalry, the Cold War and Economic Development in Sudan: 1954–1958,” 49.

75 AmEmb Khartoum. Memo to DoS, 3 March 1958. NARA 745W.5 MSP/3-358.

76 AmEmb Khartoum. Memo to DoS, 1 April 1958. NARA 745W.5 MSP/4-158.

77 AmEmb Khartoum. Cable 832 to DoS, 5 April 1958. NARA 745W.5 MSP/4-558.

78 Minutes of the Sudanese House of Representative, Sitting on 15 May 1958.

79 Minutes of the Sudanese House of Representative, Sitting on 21 May 1958.

80 Ibid

81 The term describes a foreign policy which is neutral, in sense of being non-aligned, but not disinterested. Nasser originally adapted a foreign policy of ‘positive neutrality’ and ‘non-alignment’, after meeting Nehru in 1955. While Nasser used the term, and it appears likely that it came to Sudan from Egypt, Nehru did not like the label. Podeh, “The Drift towards Neutrality,” 171; Alam, “The Concept of Non-Alignment,” 174.

82 Minutes of the Sudanese House of Representative, Sitting on 21 May 1958.

83 AmEmb Khartoum. Memo to DoS, 29 April 1958. NARA 745W.5 MSP/4-2958.

84 AmEmb Khartoum. Cable 1002 to DoS, 24 May 1958. NARA 745W.5 MSP/5-2458.

85 AmEmb Khartoum. Cable 1013 to DoS, 26 May 1958. NARA 745W.5 MSP/5-2658.

86 AmEmb Khartoum. Cable 1006 to DoS, 25 May 1958. NARA 745W.5 MSP/5-2558.

87 AmEmb Khartoum. Cable 1016 to DoS, 27 May 1958. NARA 745W.5 MSP/5-2758.

88 AmEmb Khartoum. Cable 1132 to DoS, 25 June 1958. NARA 745W.5 MSP/6-2558.

89 All quotes in the paragraph: Minutes of the Sudanese House of Representative, Sitting on 25 June 1958.

90 AmEmb Khartoum. Cable 1132 to DoS, 25 June 1958. NARA 745W.5 MSP/6-2558.

91 DoS. Cable to AmEmb Khartoum, 1 July 1958. NARA 745W.5-MSP/7-158.

92 AmEmb Khartoum. Memo to DoS, 5 July 1958. NARA 745W.00/7-158.

93 AmEmb Khartoum. Cable 1139 to DoS, 26 June 1958. NARA 745W.5 MSP/6-2658.

94 AmEmb Khartoum. Cable 1140 to DoS, 26 June 1958. NARA 745W.5 MSP/6-2658.

95 AmEmb Khartoum. Cable 2 to DoS, 1 July 1958. NARA 745W.5 MSP/7-158.

96 Young, Transforming Sudan, 105.

97 AmEmb Khartoum. Cable 693 to DoS, 1 July 1958. NARA 745W.5 MSP/7-158. And: AmEmb Khartoum. Cable 734 to DoS, 1 July 1958. NARA 745W.5 MSP/7-158.

98 According to the state department, the aim of Operation Blue Bat ‘was to support or, if necessary, to reestablish the authority of the Lebanese Government. A subsidiary mission was to protect U.S. and British nationals and national interests.’ (Foreign Relations of the United States. Editorial Note. FRUS XI, 40.)

99 DoS. Memorandum of Conversation, 18 July 1958. NARA 745W.00/7-1858.

100 AmEmb Khartoum. Memo to DoS, 19 July 1958. NARA 350-Sudan.

101 DoS. Memo to AmEmb Cairo, 20 July 1958. NARA 350-Sudan.

102 AmEmb Khartoum. Cable 80 to DoS, 20 July 1958. NARA 745W.5 MSP/7-2058.

103 AmEmb Khartoum. Cable 91 to DoS, 23 July 1958. NARA 745W.00/7-2258.

104 AmEmb Khartoum. Memo to DoS, 18 August 1958. NARA 350-Sudan.

105 AmEmb Khartoum. Cable 581 to DoS, 25 October 1958. NARA 745W.00/10-2558. And: AmEmb Khartoum. Cable 582 to DoS, 25 October 1958. NARA 745W.00/10-2558. And: DoS. Cable 542 to AmEmb Khartoum, 25 October 1958. NARA 745W.00/10-2558.

106 Ismael, “The United Arab Republic and the Sudan,” 23.

107 K.P.T. Sullivan. Memo to Ambassador Moose, 13 June 1958. NARA 350-Sudan.

108 AmEmb Khartoum. Cable 992 to DoS, 21 May 1958. NARA 645W.86/5-2158.

109 AmEmb Cairo. Cable 240 to DoS, 21 July 1958. NARA 645W.86B/7-2158.

110 AmEmb Khartoum. Cable 672 to DoS, 7 November 1958. NARA 745W.00/11-758.

111 DoS. Cable 596 to AmEmb Khartoum, 4 November 1958. NARA 745W.00/11-458.

112 AmEmb Khartoum. Cable 689 to DoS, 8 November 1958. NARA 745W.00/11-858.

113 AmEmb Khartoum. Cable 805 to DoS, 21 November 1958. NARA 745W.00/11-2158.

114 Lefebvre, “The United States and Egypt,” 334.

115 DoS. Memo to AmEmb Khartoum, 7 May 1956. FRUS XVIII, 235.

116 DoS. Memorandum of Conversation, 3 September 1958. NARA 745W.00/9-358.

117 AmEmb Khartoum. Cable 1760 to DoS, 12 June 1959. NARA 745W.00/6-1259.

118 AmEmb Khartoum. Cable 110 to DoS, 31 July 1959. NARA 745W.02/7-3159.

119 AmEmb Khartoum. Cable 1760 to DoS, 12 June 1959. NARA 745W.00/6-1259.

120 Bjerk, Building a Peaceful Nation, 5.