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Zanzibar Revolution

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Zanzibar Revolution

Unguja and Pemba, the two main islands of Zanzibar
Date12 January 1964
Location
Zanzibar
Result Revolutionary victory
Belligerents
Mainly African revolutionaries The government of Zanzibar
Commanders and leaders
John Okello Jamshid bin Abdullah
Strength
600–800 men[1][2] Zanzibar Police Force
Casualties and losses

At least 80 killed and 200 injured during revolution (the majority were Arabs)[3]

Up to 20,000 civilians killed in the aftermath[4]

The Zanzibar Revolution was the 1964 overthrow of the Sultan of Zanzibar and his mainly Arab government. Its key leader was Ugandan John Okello who commanded 600–800 men, largely members of the African Afro-Shirazi Party (ASP). The ASP was frustrated by their lack of representation in Parliament, despite winning 54% of the vote in the July 1963 election. The revolution occurred early on the morning of 12 January 1964 when Okello's men overran the country's police force and took their weaponry before proceeding to Zanzibar Town and overthrowing the Sultan and government. The revolutionaries then attacked the Arab and South Asian civilians in the country. The death toll is disputed, with estimates ranging from several hundred to 20,000. The ASP worked in collaboration with the left-wing Umma Party, which led to a poor reception from the Western Powers then engaged in the Cold War. Abeid Karume became the country's new president and head of state.

As Zanzibar lay within the British sphere of influence, several plans were drawn up for military intervention but these were not put into action. Instead, the communist powers of China, East Germany and the USSR opened friendly relations by recognising the country and sending advisors to its government. In an attempt to maintain stability in East Africa, which had seen several army riots sparked by the revolution, Karume entered Zanzibar into a merger with Tanganyika to form the new nation of Tanzania. The event ended 200 years of Arab dominance in Zanzibar and is commemorated on the island each year with anniversary celebrations and a public holiday.

Origins

Zanzibar was a country lying in the Indian Ocean off the coast of Tanganyika. It consisted of the main southern island of Unguja (informally known as Zanzibar), the smaller northern island of Pemba, and numerous minor islands. Zanzibar had a long history of Arab rule and had been an overseas territory of Oman from 1698 until independence under its own Sultancy in 1858.[5] Since 1911 it had been ruled as a constitutional monarchy under Sultan Jamshid bin Abdullah.[6] According to one source the majority of the population approved of Sultan Jamshid, particularly as the Sultan's family had become ethnically diverse.[6] At the time of the revolution the country contained around 230,000 African and Persian people, the latter known locally as Shirazis.[7] There were also significant minorities, with 50,000 Arabs and also 20,000 South Asians who were prominent in business and trade.[7] By 1964 these ethnic groups were becoming mixed and the distinctions between them blurred.[6] However, the major political parties were organised largely along ethnic lines with Arabs dominating the Zanzibar Nationalist Party (ZNP) and Africans the Afro-Shirazi Party (ASP).[6]

The Arabs on the island were the major landowners and were generally paid much more than the Africans.[8] Although never under formal direct rule Zanzibar was controlled by the British government since 1890 and, as part of the process of decolonisation, British authorities drew up constituencies and held elections in January 1961.[8] This resulted in both the ASP and the ZNP winning 11 seats of the 22 in Parliament.[6] Further elections were held in June with the number of seats increased to 23 and the ZNP entering into a coalition with the Zanzibar and Pemba People's Party (ZPPP). The ZNP/ZPPP coalition took 13 seats and the ASP just 10, despite the ASP receiving the most votes.[6] The ASP suspected electoral fraud and civil disorder broke out, causing 68 deaths.[6] To maintain control the coalition government banned the more radical opposition parties, filled the civil service with their own supporters and politicised the police.[8]

The Umma Party was formed in 1963 from disaffected radical Arab socialist supporters of the ZNP.[9] Elections held later that year, with the number of seats increased to 31, saw a repeat of the 1961 elections. The ASP, led by Abeid Amani Karume, won 54% of the vote but only gained 13 seats.[10] The ZNP/ZPPP won the rest of the seats and set about strengthening their power.[8] The Umma Party, which had fielded no candidates, was banned and all policemen who were originally from the African mainland were fired.[11][10] This latter move removed a large portion of the only security force on the island, and left an angry group of ex-policemen with paramilitary training and knowledge of police buildings, equipment and procedures.[12] Complete independence from British rule as a constitutional monarchy was granted on 10 December 1963, with the ZNP/ZPPP coalition as the governing body.

The ZNP-led government requested a defence agreement from the United Kingdom and asked for a battalion of British troops to be stationed on the island for internal security duties.[2] This was turned down by the British government as it was considered inappropriate for British troops to be involved in the maintenance of law and order so soon after independence.[2] The British government also knew that a civil disturbance in the near future was likely, and thought that the deployment of troops might inflame the situation further.[2] Despite the transition to self rule, many foreign nationals still worked on the island, including 130 Britons who were direct employees of the Zanzibar government.[13]

Revolution

File:Zanzibar revolution troops.jpg
Some of Okello's revolutionaries

Around 3 am on 12 January 1964 600–800 poorly armed, mainly African revolutionaries, aided by some of the recently dismissed police, attacked Unguja's police stations, both of the police armouries and the radio station.[1][2] The new Arab police had received almost no training and, despite sending a mobile police force, were soon overcome.[1][14] The revolutionaries armed themselves with hundreds of captured automatic rifles, submachine guns and bren guns and took control of the strategic buildings in Zanzibar Town, the capital.[15][16] Within six hours of the outbreak of hostilities the town's telegraph office and main government buildings were under revolutionary control and the island's only airstrip was captured at 2:18 pm.[16][17] The Sultan, Prime Minister Muhammad Shamte Hamadi, and members of the cabinet fled the island onboard the royal yacht Seyyid Khalifa.[18][16] The Sultan's palace and other property was seized by the revolutionary government.[3]

At least 80 people were killed and 200 injured during the 12 hours of street fighting following the revolution; the majority of these casualties were Arabs.[3] 61 American citizens, including the 16 men staffing a NASA satellite tracking station on the island, fled to the English Club in Zanzibar Town for safety, four US journalists were detained by the new government.[16][19]

The Zanzibari government's history of the revolution claims that Karume was its leader.[2] However, at the time of the revolution Karume was on the African mainland, as was Abdulrahman Muhammad Babu, the leader of the Umma Party.[18] The leader was actually John Okello and his revolutionaries were mainly unemployed members of the Afro-Shirazi Youth League.[2][11] Okello was a Ugandan who had arrived in Zanzibar from Kenya in 1959 and had served as a branch secretary for the ASP on Pemba.[6][1] He claimed to have been a Field Marshal for the Kenyan rebels during the Mau Mau Uprising but actually had no military experience.[1] He also claimed to have heard a voice that commanded him, as a Christian, to free the Zanzibari people from the Arabs.[6] It was Okello that removed Karume to the mainland for safekeeping.[18]

Aftermath

To temporarily govern post-revolution Zanzibar the ASP and Umma party established the Revolutionary Council. Karume headed the council as President and Babu served as Minister of External Affairs.[18] The country was then renamed the People's Republic of Zanzibar and Pemba.[1] The first act of the new government was to permanently banish the Sultan and to ban the ZNP and ZPPP.[3] Okello appeared to be too unstable to play any role in the government of the new country and was quietly sidelined from the political scene by Karume, although he allowed Okello to retain the title of Field Marshal.[1][18]

File:Zanzibar grave.jpg
A mass grave of Arabs killed following the revolution as captured by the Africa Addio film crew

Following the revolution Okello's men began reprisals against the Arab and Asian people on the island, which included beatings, rapes, murder and attacks on property.[1][18] Okello claimed in radio speeches to have killed or imprisoned tens of thousands of his "enemies and stooges".[1] Estimates for the number of deaths in the post-revolution violence vary greatly from "hundreds" to 20,000; though the higher estimates may be inflated by Okello's own radio broadcasts and the Western and Arab press.[1][4][20] Some Western newspapers used figures of 2,000–4,000 deaths.[19][21] The killings of Arab prisoners and their burial in mass graves was documented by an Italian film crew, filming from a helicopter, in the film Africa Addio.[22] The victims of the attacks were mainly Arabs and, by Okello's order, no Europeans were harmed.[18] Many surviving Arabs fled to safety in Oman.[4] The post-revolution violence was confined to Unguja and there was no trouble on Pemba.[20]

By 3 February Zanzibar was finally returning to normality and Karume had been widely accepted by the people as their president.[23] A police presence was on the streets, looted shops were re-opening and unlicensed arms were being surrendered by the civilian populace.[23] The revolutionary government also announced that political prisoners, who numbered 500, would be tried by special courts.

However Okello formed a paramilitary unit, known as the Freedom Military Force (FMF), from his own supporters which is known to have patrolled the streets and become involved with looting.[24][25] In addition Okello's violent rhetoric, Ugandan accent and Christian beliefs alienated many in the largely moderate, Zanzibari and Muslim ASP.[26] By March many of his FMF had been disarmed by Karume's supporters and the Umma Party militia and on 11 March he was officially stripped of his rank of Field Marshal.[26][25][27] Okello was denied access to the country when he tried to return from a trip to the mainland and deported to Tanganyika and then to Kenya before returning, destitute, to his native Uganda.[26]

The People's Liberation Army (PLA) was formed by the government in April and completed the disarmament of Okello's remaining FMF troops.[26] On 26 April Karume announced that he had negotiated to enter into a union with Tanganyika to form the new country of Tanzania.[28] Karume, a moderate socialist, may have agreed to the merger to reduce the influence of the radically left wing Umma Party or to prevent subversion by a foreign communist entity.[24][29][28] Despite this, many of the Umma Party's socialist policies on health, education and social welfare were adopted by the government.[20]

Foreign reaction

British military forces in Kenya were made aware of the revolution at 4:45 am on 12 January and, following a request from the Sultan, were put on 15 minute standby to conduct an assault on Zanzibar's airfield.[30][1] However, British High Commissioner to Zanzibar Timothy Crosthwait reported no instances of British nationals being attacked and advised against intervention — as a result the troops in Kenya were reduced to four hours readiness by the evening. Crosthwait decided not to authorise an evacuation of British citizens immediately, as many of them held key government positions and their sudden removal would further damage the economy and government of Zanzibar.[30] The British agreed a timetable with Karume for an organised evacuation in order to avoid possible bloodshed. The American ambassador authorised an evacuation within hours of the revolution and a US Navy destroyer, the USS Manley, arrived on 13 January for this purpose. [31] The Manley docked at Zanzibar Town harbour to begin the evacuation but was met there by a group of armed men on behalf of the Revolutionary Council.[31] This was due to the fact that the US had not sought the Council's permission to begin the withdrawal of US citizens. This permission was granted on 15 January and Manley completed the remainder of its mission without further event. The British authorities considered this armed confrontation to have caused much ill will against the Western powers in Zanzibar.[32]

Western intelligence agencies believed that the revolution had been organised by communists supplied with weapons by the Warsaw Pact. This suspicion was strengthened by the appointment of Babu as Minister for External Affairs and Abdullah Kassim Hanga as Prime Minister, both known leftists with possible communist ties.[1] Britain also believed that these two men were close associates of Oscar Kambona, the Foreign Affairs Minister of Tanganyika, and that former members of the Tanganyika Rifles had been made available to assist with the revolution.[1] There was evidence that Zanzibar was aligning itself closely with the Communist powers in that it was the first African country to recognise the German Democratic Republic and also recognised North Korea.[25] In addition some members of the Umma Party had received training in Cuba and wore Cuban military fatigues and beards in the style of Fidel Castro.[18] Just six days after the revolution the New York Times stated that Zanzibar was "on the verge of becoming the Cuba of Africa", but on 26 January denied that there was active communist involvement.[19][33] Despite this by February Zanzibar was known to be receiving advisers from the USSR, East Germany and China and by July 1964 just one Briton, a dentist, remained in the employ of the Zanzibari government.[34][13]

File:Karume and chinese.jpg
Karume with advisors, including some from the People's Republic of China

The Sultan appealed to Kenya and Tanganyika for military assistance but was turned down.[30] Tanganyika responded to a request from the new government for support and sent 100 paramilitary police officers to Zanzibar to contain rioting.[1] The police, with the Tanganyika Rifles, were the only armed force in Tanganyika and the transfer of the police officers sparked a mutiny of the entire regiment on 20 January.[1] This mutiny was caused by the soldiers' dissatisfaction with their low rate of pay and the slow progress of the replacement of their British officers with Africans.[35] The mutiny in Tanganyika inspired similar events in Uganda and Kenya. All three riots were quelled without serious incident by the British Army and Royal Marines.[36]

The Western Powers were still concerned by the possibility of a communist state emerging. In February the British Defence and Overseas Policy Committee said that whilst British commercial interests in Zanzibar were "minute" and the revolution by itself was "not important" the possibility of intervention must be maintained.[37] The committee was concerned that Zanzibar could become a centre for the promotion of communism in Africa much like Cuba had in the Americas.[37] Britain, most of the Commonwealth and the USA withheld recognition of the new regime until 23 February, by which time it had already been recognised by much of the communist bloc.[38] In Crosthwait's opinion this contributed to Zanzibar aligning itself with the USSR. Indeed Crosthwait and his staff were expelled from the country on 20 February and were only allowed to return once recognition had been agreed.[38]

British military response

File:RFA Hebe .1972.jpg
RFA Hebe

Following the evacuation of its citizens on 13 January, the US government stated that it would recognise that Zanzibar lay within Britain's sphere of influence and that it would not intervene.[39] The US did, however, urge that Britain cooperate with the other East African countries to restore order.[39] The first British military vessel on the scene was HMS Owen, a survey ship diverted from the Kenyan coast, which arrived on the evening of 12 January.[32] Owen was joined on 15 January by the frigate HMS Rhyl and Royal Fleet Auxiliary ship RFA Hebe. The lightly armed Owen proved able to demonstrate the Royal Navy's power without acting as a threat to the revolutionaries but the Hebe and Rhyl were different matters.[32] The Rhyl had embarked a company of troops of the first battalion of the Staffordshire Regiment from Kenya due to inaccurate reports that the situation in Zanzibar was deteriorating, whilst the Hebe had just finished removing stores from the naval depot at Mombassa and was loaded with weapons and explosives. The latter fact was not known to the Revolutionary Council but the Royal Navy's refusal to allow a search of the Hebe created suspicion ashore and there were rumours that she was an amphibious assault ship.[32] The embarkation of the troops aboard Rhyl had, however, been widely reported in the Kenyan media and hindered British negotiations with Zanzibar.[32]

HMS Centaur

The British forces completed a partial evacuation of British citizens on 17 January.[40] The army riots in East Africa prompted the dispatch of Rhyl and the company from the Staffordshire Regiment to Tanzania to assist with the quelling of the mutiny. A company of the Gordon Highlanders was loaded aboard Owen so that an intervention could still be made if necessary.[41] The aircraft carriers HMS Centaur and HMS Victorious were also transferred to the region as part of Operation Parthenon.[38] This operation would have been enacted if Okello or the Umma party radicals attempted to seize power from the ASP moderates.[26] In addition to the two carriers the plan involved three destroyers, Owen, 13 helicopters, 21 transport and reconnaissance aircraft, the second battalion of the Scots Guards, 45 Commando of the Royal Marines and one company of the second battalion of the Parachute Regiment. Operation Parthenon would have involved troops landing by parachute and helicopter to take the island of Unguja, and its airport, before occupying Pemba. If implemented it would have been the largest British airborne and amphibious operation since the Suez Crisis.[26]

With the revelation that the revolutionaries may have had training from communist forces Operation Parthenon was replaced by Operation Boris. Boris would have made use of airfields in Kenya to launch a parachute assault on Unguja. The plan was later abandoned due to poor security in Kenya and the opposition of the Kenyan government to the use of its airfields.[42] Boris was replaced by Operation Finery which called for a helicopter assault by Royal Marines from HMS Bulwark, a commando carrier then stationed in the Middle East.[29] As Bulwark would need to transfer from the Middle East 14 days notice would be required before Finery could be launched. In the event that a more immediate response was required suitable forces were kept on 24 hours notice to launch a smaller scale operation to protect British citizens.[29] Following the merger of Tanganyika and Zanzibar on 23 April there were concerns that the Umma Party would stage a coup, Operation Shed was drawn up to provide forces to intervene in such a case.[29] Shed would have required a battalion of troops, with scout cars, to be airlifted to the island to seize the airfield and protect Karume's government.[43] The danger of a revolt over the merger soon passed and the troops required were stood down to 24 hours notice on 29 April, the same day that Finery was cancelled.[43] Around 23 September however Shed was replaced with Plan Giralda a plan involving British troops from Aden and the Far East to be used if the Umma Party attempted a coup against President Julius Nyerere of Tanzania.[44] An infantry battalion, tactical headquarters unit and elements of the Royal Marines would have been shipped to Zanzibar to launch an amphibious assault supported by follow-on troops from British bases in Kenya or Aden to maintain law and order.[45] Giralda was scrapped in December, ending British plans for military intervention in the country.[46]

Legacy

A parade held to mark the 40th anniversary of the revolution

The revolution was a turning point in Zanzibar's history that ended 200 years of Arab dominance in the country.[47] In addition to causing the Western countries to fear the spread of communism to East Africa and inspiring the mutinies in Tanganyika, Uganda and Kenya, the revolution lead to the creation of Tanzania. The revolution remains a part of Zanzibar's culture and was marked by the release of 545 prisoners on its tenth anniversary and by a military parade on its 40th.[48] In addition 12 January each year is designated as a public holiday, known as Zanzibar Revolution Day, by the government of Tanzania.[49]

References

  1. ^ a b c d e f g h i j k l m n o Parsons 2003, p. 107
  2. ^ a b c d e f g Speller 2007, p. 6
  3. ^ a b c d Conley, Robert (14 January 1964), "Regime Banishes Sultan", New York Times, pp. p. 4, retrieved 16 November 2008 {{citation}}: |pages= has extra text (help).
  4. ^ a b c Plekhanov 2004, p. 91
  5. ^ Hernon 2003, p. 397.
  6. ^ a b c d e f g h i Shillington 2005, p. 1716
  7. ^ a b Speller 2007, p. 4
  8. ^ a b c d Parsons 2003, p. 106
  9. ^ Bakari 2001, p. 204
  10. ^ a b Speller 2007, p. 5
  11. ^ a b Sheriff & Ferguson 1991, p. 239
  12. ^ Speller 2007, pp. 5–6
  13. ^ a b Speller 2007, pp. 27–28
  14. ^ Clayton 1999, p. 109
  15. ^ Speller 2007, pp. 6–7
  16. ^ a b c d Conley, Robert (13 January 1964), "African Revolt Overturns Arab Regime in Zanzibar", New York Times, pp. p. 1, retrieved 16 November 2008 {{citation}}: |pages= has extra text (help).
  17. ^ Speller 2007, pp. 6–7
  18. ^ a b c d e f g h Speller 2007, p. 7
  19. ^ a b c Conley, Robert (19 January 1964), "Nationalism Is Viewed as Camouflage for Reds", New York Times, pp. p. 1, retrieved 16 November 2008 {{citation}}: |pages= has extra text (help).
  20. ^ a b c Sheriff & Ferguson 1991, p. 241
  21. ^ Los Angeles Times (20 January 1964), "Slaughter in Zanzibar of Asians, Arabs Told", Los Angeles Times, pp. p. 4 {{citation}}: |pages= has extra text (help)
  22. ^ Jacopetti, Gualtiero (Director). (1970). Africa Addio [Video in English]. Retrieved on 16 November 2008.
  23. ^ a b Dispatch of The Times London (4 February 1964), "Zanzibar Quiet, With New Regime Firmly Seated", New York Times, pp. p. 9, retrieved 16 November 2008 {{citation}}: |pages= has extra text (help).
  24. ^ a b Speller 2007, p. 15
  25. ^ a b c Sheriff & Ferguson 1991, p. 242
  26. ^ a b c d e f Speller 2007, p. 17
  27. ^ Conley, Robert (March 12, 1964), "Zanzibar Regime Expels Okello", New York Times, pp. p. 11, retrieved 16 November 2008 {{citation}}: |pages= has extra text (help).
  28. ^ a b Conley, Robert (27 April 1964), "Tanganyika gets new rule today", New York Times, pp. p.11, retrieved 16 November 2008 {{citation}}: |pages= has extra text (help).
  29. ^ a b c d Speller 2007, p. 19
  30. ^ a b c Speller 2007, p. 8
  31. ^ a b Speller 2007, pp. 8–9
  32. ^ a b c d e Speller 2007, p. 9
  33. ^ Franck, Thomas M. (26 January 1964), "Zanzibar Reassessed", New York Times, pp. p. E10, retrieved 16 November 2008 {{citation}}: |pages= has extra text (help).
  34. ^ Speller 2007, p. 18
  35. ^ Speller 2007, p. 10
  36. ^ Parsons 2003, pp. 109–110
  37. ^ a b Speller 2007, p. 12
  38. ^ a b c Speller 2007, p. 13
  39. ^ a b Speller 2007, pp. 13–14
  40. ^ Speller 2007, pp. 9–10
  41. ^ Speller 2007, p. 11
  42. ^ Speller 2007, pp. 18–19
  43. ^ a b Speller 2007, p. 20
  44. ^ Speller 2007, p. 24
  45. ^ Speller 2007, p. 25
  46. ^ Speller 2007, p. 26
  47. ^ Speller 2007, p. 1
  48. ^ Kalley, Schoeman & Andor 1999, p. 611
  49. ^ Commonwealth Secretariat (2005), Tanzania, retrieved 2009-02-10

Bibliography

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