34 Agriculture and Environments of Sudan in the mid 1970’s
34 Agriculture and Environments of Sudan in the mid 1970’s
The Sudanese people are some the most genteel people on earth. As a white foreigner, I was given great respect and kindness. (Being white, I was given undeserved preferential treatment.) I was welcomed into their homes and given tours of their towns and farms. I felt that I was treated with kindness that exceeded what they gave their own people. Being in Sudan was one of the joys of my life. I arrived with my family late in the summer of 1974 and enjoyed three years teaching and research at the University of Khartoum Geography Department.
Most of the Sudanese are practicing Muslims and I became quite comfortable being around their devout practices. Six times per day, we would stop for a few minutes so the devout could pray toward Mecca. The Sudanese Muslims are very loving people and do not judge others who are not Islamic. They did condemn those who used Islam as a cover to justify violence. There was a small Coptic community in Khartoum, a majority of Christian sects in the far south as well as tribal religions in remote areas of the country.
Friday prayers outside of Wad Madanī. Sudan. Photo by Rick Bein 1974.
The lives of the Sudanese were not easy as they endured many hardships: floods, droughts, dust storms, food shortages and periodic military coups. Prior to my arrival the most recent coup was led by Jaafar Muhammad al-Nimeiry who took over the government in 1969 to be dictator for 16 years.
Map of Nile up to Khartoum by Chris Lett, July 2019, Creative Commons Licensing Chris Lett. Dust storm approaching Khartoum. Photo by Rick Bein 1976.
In 1955 the British colonial masters left the Sudanese with a democratic self-rule system that lasted for three years, enough time for the people to become appreciative of the democratic process and were distressed when a military coup occurred 1958. This autocratic rule lasted 6 years with much resistance until another attempt at democracy began in 1965. Four years later Numeri took over and was in place when I arrived.
During my three year stay in Sudan (1974-77), I served as a lecturer at the University of Khartoum Geography Department where I heard a lot of discussion about their hopes of reinstating democracy. This expression was allowed on the campus where the free thinking mission of the University was permitted. It was considered somewhat safe expression as long as it stayed on campus. Although dissident Sudanese still sent their sons and daughters to the University of Khartoum with the idea they might instigate a revolution.
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Several military coup attempts occurred while I was there, but none of them were instigated at the University. Even then, when the attempts happened elsewhere in the country the University was barricaded by the army because of its pro-democracy sentiment.
Keeping up with these coup attempts was no easy task. Once while I was driving to the campus with my wife and three y