Sudanese Sovereignty Council

The Third Sudanese Sovereignty Council was Sudan's collective head-of-state institution between 10 June 1965 and 25 May 1969. It emerged after general parliamentary elections held in 1965 and replaced the Second Sudanese Sovereignty Council, which had administered the country during the transitional period following the overthrow of Lieutenant General Ibrahim Abboud's government. The council represented Sudan's constitutional arrangement in which executive authority at the national level was vested in a multi-member body rather than in a single president. The council initially had five members drawn from Sudan's principal political forces and from the southern political movement. Ismail al-Azhari, a leading figure of the Democratic Unionist Party, served as chairman. Khader Hamad also represented the Democratic Unionist Party, while Abdullah al-Fadil al-Mahdi and Abdel Halim Mohamed represented the National Umma Party. Luigi Adwok Bong Gicomeho represented the Southern Front but resigned shortly after the council took office, on 14 June 1965. The membership was subsequently revised during July 1965. A second line-up included al-Azhari and Khader Hamad, together with Daoud Al-Khalifa Abdullah, Philemon Majok and Abdul Rahman Abdoun. The available account records Philemon Majok as joining on 5 July 1965, while the second line-up is dated from 18 July 1965. This change reflected the unstable political environment of the period and the effort to maintain a representative collective leadership after the parliamentary elections. A third membership arrangement followed when Philemon Majok and Abdul Rahman Abdoun left the council. The remaining body consisted of Ismail al-Azhari, Khader Hamad, Daoud Al-Khalifa Abdullah, Jarvis Yak and Fadil al-Mahdi Bushra. This final composition remained in place until the council was overthrown and dissolved on 25 May 1969. The institution's existence was ended by the military coup led by Lieutenant General Jaafar al-Numeiri. The coup displaced the parliamentary order and replaced the Sovereignty Council with the Revolutionary Command Council. As a result, the Third Sudanese Sovereignty Council belongs to Sudan's post-Abboud parliamentary period and should be distinguished from both the earlier Sovereignty Councils and later institutions bearing similar names. It was a historical state institution, not a commercial brand, product line or private organization.

The Third Sudanese Sovereignty Council governed Sudan from 10 June 1965 to 25 May 1969. It followed the Second Sudanese Sovereignty Council, which had overseen the country during the transition after Lieutenant General Ibrahim Abboud was overthrown. The council's creation followed Sudan's 1965 general parliamentary elections and represented the country's collective executive model during the post-Abboud parliamentary period. The first composition had five members: Ismail al-Azhari, Khader Hamad, Abdullah al-Fadil al-Mahdi, Abdel Halim Mohamed and Luigi Adwok Bong Gicomeho. Al-Azhari chaired the body. The Democratic Unionist Party was represented by al-Azhari and Khader Hamad; the National Umma Party by Abdullah al-Fadil al-Mahdi and Abdel Halim Mohamed; and the Southern Front by Luigi Adwok Bong Gicomeho. Gicomeho resigned on 14 June 1965, only days after the council began its term. The membership was amended in July 1965. The subsequent line-up included al-Azhari, Khader Hamad, Daoud Al-Khalifa Abdullah, Philemon Majok and Abdul Rahman Abdoun. The available historical account places this arrangement from 18 July 1965 and records Majok as joining on 5 July. Later, Majok and Abdoun left the council, producing a third and final composition of al-Azhari, Khader Hamad, Daoud Al-Khalifa Abdullah, Jarvis Yak and Fadil al-Mahdi Bushra. This final group remained in office until the 1969 coup. The council's political life ended when Lieutenant General Jaafar al-Numeiri seized power on 25 May 1969. The new military government dissolved the Sovereignty Council and established the Revolutionary Command Council in its place. The Third Sudanese Sovereignty Council therefore represents a discrete period in Sudanese constitutional and political history, rather than a continuing institution. Its collective structure, successive membership revisions and eventual replacement by a military governing body illustrate the instability of Sudan's parliamentary system during the years between the Abboud regime and the Numeiri government.

• 1969

  Council is dissolved after military coup

  [1]Sudanese Sovereignty Council (1965–1969)en.wikipedia.org

  Jaafar al-Numeiri's coup on 25 May 1969 ended the council and led to its replacement by the Revolutionary Command Council.

• 1965

  Third Sovereignty Council begins its term

  [1]Sudanese Sovereignty Council (1965–1969)en.wikipedia.org

  The council took office on 10 June 1965 after parliamentary elections and replaced the transitional Second Sovereignty Council.

• 1965

  Luigi Adwok Bong Gicomeho resigns

  [1]Sudanese Sovereignty Council (1965–1969)en.wikipedia.org

  The Southern Front representative resigned from the initial five-member council on 14 June 1965.

• 1965

  Membership is amended

  [1]Sudanese Sovereignty Council (1965–1969)en.wikipedia.org

  A revised line-up was established during July 1965, adding or substituting several members.

A collective constitutional leadership institution representing Sudan's post-1965 parliamentary government.

• 1969

  Replacement by the Revolutionary Command CouncilOther

  Background

  The Sovereignty Council was operating within Sudan's post-1965 parliamentary order when a military coup led by Jaafar al-Numeiri seized power.

  Action taken

  The coup dissolved the Sovereignty Council and established the Revolutionary Command Council as the new governing body.

  Aftermath

  The Third Sudanese Sovereignty Council ceased to exist on 25 May 1969.

  Source

• 1969

  Jaafar al-Numeiri's coup dissolves the Sovereignty Council[1]Sudanese Sovereignty Council (1965–1969)en.wikipedia.org

  Leadership change · Other

  A military coup led by Lieutenant General Jaafar al-Numeiri ended the council's term on 25 May 1969 and replaced it with the Revolutionary Command Council.

• 1965

  Third Sudanese Sovereignty Council takes office after parliamentary elections[1]Sudanese Sovereignty Council (1965–1969)en.wikipedia.org

  Leadership change · Other

  The Third Sudanese Sovereignty Council began its term on 10 June 1965, replacing the transitional council that had governed after the fall of Ibrahim Abboud.

• 1965

  Council membership is revised during July 1965[1]Sudanese Sovereignty Council (1965–1969)en.wikipedia.org

  Leadership change · Other

  The council's membership was amended shortly after its formation, producing a second line-up that included Daoud Al-Khalifa Abdullah, Philemon Majok and Abdul Rahman Abdoun.

1. 1Sudanese Sovereignty Council (1965–1969)en.wikipedia.org