A popular nationalist demand can be dropped with almost no opposition once conditions change
Evidence
The demand for the union of Egypt and the Sudan—the unity of the Nile valley—was one of the basic demands of Egyptian patriots for seventy years. King Farouk actually went so far as to proclaim himself King of Egypt and the Sudan, thus putting himself into a position from which he could not retreat on this subject. Yet the overthrow of the monarchy and the establishment of a new re´gime freed the Egyptian government from this embarrassing title and claim and made it possible to accept and recognise the independent nation which had meanwhile emerged in the Sudan. The long standing Egyptian demand for the union of Egypt and the Sudan was dropped—and the astonishing thing was that there was practically no objection in Egypt! — Bernard Lewis, From Babel to Dragomans, 1271
Categorization
Category: Contrarian or Surprising Claims
- QUESTION: What general conditions make a seventy-year sacred demand evaporate overnight? Worth probing for parallels in other post-colonial settings.