Abdur-Rahman Sawar Al-Dhahab: The good field marshall One Arab-African statesman who kept his word Profile by Gamal Nkrumah "Some men are born great, some achieve greatness, and some have greatness thrust upon them," Shakespeare, Twelfth Night Born in 1935, Field Marshall Abdur-Rahman Sawar Al-Dhahab is to date the only leader of an Arab country to relinquish power voluntarily. He took power, most reluctantly, in a bloodless coup d'etat that overthrew the dictatorship of Ja'afar Al- Numeiri. "But it was the people, and not me, who overthrew Numeiri," Al-Dhahab protests in characteristic humility. Genial, gentle and mild-mannered, the ex- field marshall does not come across as a military man. Instead he has the dignified bearing of a religious leader. He now heads the Munazamat Al-Da'awah Al-Islamiyya -- the International Da'awah (Call) Organisation, a United Nations-affiliated charity. The Sudan-based non-governmental, non- profit organisation engages in a wide range of social and charitable activities across the African continent and beyond. It focusses on providing humanitarian and disaster relief, and on running educational activities that deal particularly with victims of war, orphans, the displaced and refugees. The organisation is also engaged in building hospitals and in establishing rural clinics in remote areas of Sudan, Africa's largest country. It was in his capacity as head of the Arab- African Non-Governmental Organisations that I first met Al-Dhahab in Tripoli, Libya. Gracious and kindly, he is genuinely pleasant and unassuming. He is not a man of many words, but when he does speak his remarks are studied, precise and thought- provoking. Al-Dhahab is down-to-earth and cheerful -- like a breath of fresh air at stuffy meetings when far less insightful delegates take themselves far too seriously. He usually begins his sentences with his trademark phrase: "I hope you'll bear with me as I explain." He looks you in the eye to make sure you understand what he is trying to tell you. And a toothy grin is never far from his face; he has reason to feel happy with his lot. Every now and again, he makes a sharp, witty riposte to ease tension at international gatherings. Nineteen years ago this April, Al-Dhahab announced on Radio Omdurman in a nationwide broadcast that "the Sudanese armed forces have been observing the deteriorating security situation all over the country and the extremely complex political crisis that has affected the country over the past few days. "In order to reduce bloodshed and to ensure the country's independence and unity the Sudanese armed forces have decided unanimously to stand by the people of Sudan and to respond to their demands by taking over power and transferring it to the people after a specified transitional period." True to his word, just over a year later, the field marshall stepped down to hand over power to a democratically-elected civilian administration. He made the announcement on Saturday 6 April 1985, at 9.35am Khartoum time. Widely welcomed in Sudan and neighbouring Arab countries, his resignation was followed by a second statement in which he announced that Numeiri, his deputies, advisors and ministers were forcibly removed from office. The constitution was suspended and the country's borders closed. Air traffic to and from Sudan was also halted. Those were momentous times for Sudan. The country had experienced people's power, an Intifada -- a popular uprising -- that had forced the army to act. Numeiri was out of the country at the time seeking medical attention in the United States. He was also soliciting assistance for the development of the ailing Sudanese economy. The country was falling apart, the economy in shambles, the coffers emptied and the people angry and hungry. What began as spontaneous protests by students soon spread to involve a broad cross-section of the population -- from unemployed rural newcomers to the shantytowns in the outskirts of the capital, and from the underpaid professionals to the disgruntled elites. Indeed Sudan had not been in a sorrier state since gaining independence from Britain in 1956. Al-Dhahab came to power in the immediate aftermath of the 10 days that shook Sudan. He was ready to work with everyone who wanted a new and better Sudan. The trade unions and professional associations spearheaded the Intifada that ultimately led to the ouster of Numeiri. Sudanese students demonstrated in the streets of Khartoum holding placards that read "We will not be ruled by the World Bank. We will not be ruled by the International Monetary Fund (IMF)." The students were highly politicised and the Sudanese people were livid at the price hikes of essential commodities and foodstuffs. The Sudanese government removed subsidies on certain foodstuffs at the instigation of the IMF. The prices of formerly subsidised foodstuffs rocketed and all hell was let loose. Initially Numeiri blamed the Muslim Brotherhood for fomenting trouble. Later, his wrath turned on the Communists. Sudan at the time had the largest and most organised communist party in Africa and the Arab world. The Baathists and other political groups were also implicated in the "bread riots". Under Numeiri all political parties were banned with the notable exception of the Sudanese Socialist Union. Al-Dhahab readily agrees that it was the people's fury that forced the army to intervene. He was a professional soldier, not a politician. They way he pronounces the word "politician" makes it abundantly clear that he detests the profession. He may not be a politician, but he was a statesman for 15 trying months -- perhaps the most nerve- racking in Sudan's contemporary history. Cool and collected, there could hardly have been a better man for the top job at that time. As Numeiri's Minister of Defence and military Commander-in-Chief, Al-Dhahab headed the newly formed Transitional Military Council (TMC). It is difficult for anyone listening to his soft-spoken and measured tones to imagine that he would ruffle any feathers. But he did. One of his first moves was to lift the ban on political parties and pave the way for the democratic elections. As leader of the ruling military junta Al- Dhahab he had to deal with the southern Sudanese who had taken up arms against the Numeiri regime. The Sudan Peple's Liberation Army (SPLA) was formed in 1983. Some southern leaders like John Garang wanted Sudan to continue to be a united country. Southern sessionists at the time included Riek Machar and Lam Akol. It took Sawar Al-Dhahab some 60 days in assuming power to establish direct contact with the SPLA. The TMC and the SPLA engaged in a dialogue in which many of Sudan's leading political parties participated. The outcome of these exchanges was the Koka Dam Declaration, signed in Ethiopia by a number of north Sudan-based political parties and the SPLA. The now defunct National Islamic Front and the Democratic Unionist Party refused to sign or endorse the Koka Dam Agreement, but other parties including the Umma Party did. The Koka Dam Agreement was concluded on 24 March 1986, while Al-Dhahab was still in office. Three months after the Koka Dam Agreement, the TMC headed by Al-Dhahab handed power over to the democratically-elected government of Sadiq Al-Mahdi, leader of the Umma Party. Al-Dhahab is not easily drawn into discussion about his political affiliations or ideology. He is keenly interested in the political future of his war-torn country, but he stays aloof from what he privately described as a political circus. He is above politics, he laughs. His ready and engaging smile has won him friends in Africa, the Arab world and internationally. Recently he received the International King Faisal Prize for the Service of Islam The military junta would continue to be in charge of legislation and to hold power during the 12-month transitional period while a civilian transitional administration served in an executive capacity. Al-Dhahab staged a coup against Numeiri while the latter was away on an official visit to the US. As for the US reaction to his rule, former President Ronald Reagan expressed "grave concern" at the time about Al-Dhahab's friendly overtures to Libya. He was especially worried about the then recently-concluded SudaneseLibyan military pact. Reagan warned that the pact could only impact adversely. "There is nothing that our friends in the West should worry about," Al- Dhahab was quoted as saying in an interview in The New York Times. daily. "I'm not worried that our relationship with Libya might effect our relationship with America. Because you become friends with somebody, that does not mean you are giving away your friendship with somebody else," he also said. Al-Dhahab inherited a particularly prickly problem from Numeiri. The general had to deal with the scandal of the transfer of several thousand Ethiopian Jews to Israel via Sudan. Al-Dhahab was an astute statesman. Pulling strings he tried to continue strengthening the links with the West. He also sought to cement the ties that Numeiri had cultivated close ties with Egypt's President Anwar El-Sadat, and bilateral relations remained strong after the assassination of Sadat. Pulling more strings, he at the same time cemented ties with Saudi Arabia -- a country with a radically different ideology and political agenda. While Al-Dhahab was appointed by Numeiri to deal with dissenters, in the end it was left to the trusted field marshall to oust his benefactor when it became clear that the latter was losing his grip over power.
