User talk:Jonathanrtm
Aden
[edit]Today, Aden is a part of Yemen. Some will be happy with this and some not, but it was not always the case. Untill 1967 Aden and the surrounding protectorate were seperate to the North Yemen, but under British rule. The following gives those initial steps towards the situation of today.
It was in the year nineteen sixty six, following the success of Prime Minister Harold Wilson's Labour government in the British General Election, that the new Foreign Secretary, George Brown, announced the governments policy to not only give to the Aden Protectorate its independence in nineteen sixty eight, but also to withdraw all British troops, leaving in the same year of independence. (This decision was going to be amended later, however. The South Arabian Federation would be given its full independence at the same time as pulling the troops out in the month of November nineteen sixty seven, with the British Union Jack being lowered at midnight on the twenty ninth of November.) This was, it seems, advancement on the previously declared policy, in the early nineteen sixties, of Harold Macmillan’s Conservative government of granting the Aden Protectorate its independence, but retaining the right to keep British troops garrisoned in Aden following the establishment of independence, for the purposes of security.
Officially, this announcement would have been presented as part of a wider foreign policy of reducing the British presence east of the Suez Canal, though there would have been those who would harbour the suspicion that perhaps there were other reasons for the decision. Aden, which was under British rule since eighteen thirty nine, had always had a significant strategic position of influence that appeared to go a long way beyond that of the benefits of natural resources in the locality. For so long, the Suez Canal had been a significant trade route between the east and the west. At the entrance to the Red Sea, which of course led up to the opening of the Suez, Aden was in a crucial position of being able to have some influence upon the communication and travel through out the world. Short of taking the far longer, and more arduous and demanding sea route around South Africa, all long distance sea travel, including oil tankers, passed this way under the watchful eye of those garrisoned in Aden. Positioned just north of Somalia in Africa, shipping traveling on that route had no choice but to travel in the narrow stretch of water through the Gulf of Aden as they made their way north.
However, during the nineteen sixties concerns would have arisen about the future of such a route due to the regular tension that would arise between the army’s of the Israeli’s and the Arabs This was compounded in nineteen sixty seven as a result of what later became known as “the six day war” between the Arabs and Israelis which then resulted in the Suez canal immediately losing its importance, along with the consequential importance of the role of Aden itself. The Suez was now closed, clogged up with all of the remains of warfare and the ships sunk, or abandoned, and all operations there ceased until the mid nineteen seventies.
Some had hoped that the promise of the withdrawal of British troops would encourage the terrorists to reduce their activities, or even bring them to a halt, confident in the hope that they would no longer see any benefit in causing a nuisance to troops that were already planned to leave very soon. After all, the terrorists had enough risks to themselves just in terms of the dangers that were evident merely in the making of the bombs.
In reality, the reaction to the decision turned out to be completely opposite to the expectation of the British, as terrorist activities increased even more, despite the pledge that was given. Why? Had they not already got the assurance of all that they wished to attain? Why continue the struggle if the campaign had effectively been won and the prize was delivered? The treasure of independence was now in sight for them, it was a certainty that they could be confident in. What could they hope to gain from continuing in this conflict?
The rebels, and their supporters, however, had understood the British announcement to be a sign of British weakness, and in the following weeks and months the British troops and installations everywhere in the region were repeatedly attacked. There were two “political” factions that seemed to be in the forefront in those days. The one, headed up by Abdul Qawee Mackawee, was The Federation for the Liberation of South Yemen, sometimes referred to as the Front for the liberation of South Yemen, but more often known by its initials as “F.L.O.S.Y.”, or “flossy”. They were made up of Aden townspeople, who had the initial goal of setting up an independent Socialist Republic. The other was The National Liberation Front, likewise known by its initials as “N.L.F”. They were made up of Yemeni tribe’s people from the hills. Each of these groups would have names easily remembered, as their initials would be clearly painted on some of the walls. They were not the high quality murals that were later to be established in Ulster during the Irish troubles, but in like manner to Ireland, this was a means of stamping their seal within the community. It was a means of declaring their territorial claim upon the community. It was a reminder, lest it be forgotten, who the people should be looking to.
Each of them had high hopes with ambitions that went beyond the removal of the British troops and the winning of independence for the people. As their national independence grew closer, so they recognized that they needed to give themselves more substantial importance in the eyes of their constituents, above any other, if they were to realize the hope of their own grouping taking prominence and distinction in the period that would be following independence. Each group yearned to be able to present themselves as the foremost influence for “the liberation of the people", and the more that they were able to attack the British interests, the more strikes and subsequent damage they could make, the more it seemed that they would be able to prove the case that they were the undisputed champions for the people. In addition to that, fighting also took place between the two groups, FLOSY and NLF, as they each sought to undermine the other. It did not matter; therefore, what was your race or religion or creed, all people were at risk as the fighting escalated.
What was the history of Aden prior to this?
The city of Aden is located at the tip of the Arabian Peninsula on two small peninsulas of volcanic origin that rise to more than 1,000 ft (300 m) in height. The eastern peninsula is known as Aden and the western peninsula as Little Aden. The Port of Aden consists of the city of Aden and its harbor, as well as a number of small towns around the harbor and two large suburbs -- Khormaksar and Sheikh Othman. It currently has a population of about 590,000.
Economy
Its position near the entrance to the Red Sea has made the city one of the busiest fueling stations in the world, servicing most of the ships that pass through the Suez Canal. It is also a transshipment center for the region. A large oil refinery is located at Little Aden. The principal sources of employment are the refinery and the port complex. International air service is provided at the Aden International Airport, located at nearby Khormaksar.
History
An ancient trade center, the city of Aden was under Egyptian control from the 3rd century BC until it became a Roman colony in 24 BC. It fell successively under Ethiopian and Persian control and became associated with Yemen about the 7th century AD. It fell to the Turks in 1538 and was incorporated into the Sultanate of Lahej in 1728.
Aden Settlement
In 1838, Sultan Muhsin bin Fadl ceded 75 square miles (194 square kilometers), including Aden, to the British. On January 19, 1839, the British East India Company landed Royal Marines at Aden to occupy the territory. Until 1937, Aden was ruled as part of the Bombay Presidency of British India and was known as Aden Settlement. Its original territory was enlarged in 1857 by the island of Perim, in 1868 by the Khuriya Muriya Islands, and in 1915 by the island of Kamaran.
Aden Colony
In 1937, Aden Settlement was detached from India and became the Colony of Aden, a British crown colony. The hinterlands of Aden and Hadhramaut were also loosely tied to Britain as the Aden Protectorate, of which the city of Aden became the capital.the flag of Aden Colony
State of Aden
In order to stabilize Aden and the surrounding Aden Protectorate from attacks by North Yemen, the British decided to unite the several states of the region in preparation for eventual independence. On January 18, 1963, Aden Colony was incorporated into the Federation of Arab Emirates of the South as the State of Aden and the Federation was renamed the Federation of South Arabia. In 1964, Britain announced its intention to grant independence to the Federation of South Arabia in 1968, but increasing violence prompted Britain to speed up the process.
Capital of Yemen
When the Federation of South Arabia won its independence on November 30, 1967, Aden became the capital of the People's Democratic Republic of South Yemen, which became the People's Democratic Republic of Yemen in 1970.
Aden Governorate and Aden Free Zone
With the unification of Northern and Southern Yemen into the Republic of Yemen in 1990, Aden became the capital of Aden Governorate, which covered an area similar to that of the Aden Colony. In 1991, Resolution No. 209 was issued, establishing the Aden Free Zone, within which the import and export of goods can be conducted without imposition of duties or tariffs on those goods.
References are also taken fom the Book From barren rocks to living stones.