Page 103 - Begrave Thesis_Neat

The Administration later heeded the advice of the Residency and a public

announcement was made on the appointment of a Commission to investigate the

performance of various government sectors without naming any of its members.

The HEC, in response, issued a statement labelling themselves as ‘the effective

instrument for expressing the wishes of this struggling nation’. The proclamation

rejected the actions taken and it called for a ‘boycott [of] this Commission and

regard anyone cooperating with it as a traitor’. 252

Facing a stalemate, the Political Agent aimed to act as a mediator to defuse

the situation between the local Administration and the HEC. In early December Wall

met personally with Al-Bakir and Kamal-el-Deen who discussed with him their

views about the Government’s proclamation. Wall was informed by the two that

they would boycott the Commission and would be calling for a national strike

starting on Saturday 4December.

The two nationalists demanded from Wall that the Commission be made up

of individuals seen as ‘neutral’ and that it should compromise six members, half of

them to be ‘representatives of the people’ and the other half appointed by HMG and

not the Ruler. But Wall turned down British participation in the affair. Furthermore

he expressed to Al-Bakir and Kamal-el-Deen that it was unfair on their part to object

to the Commission before any members were selected. But to no avail and they

insisted on going ahead with the strike. The strike was later declared by the HEC to

begin at 6.00 am on 4 December and to continue on through 10December. 253

252 TNA, FO 1016/309, Higher Executive Committee Proclamation, December 1954.
253 TNA, FO 371/109813, Wall to Burrows, 2 December 1954.

© Hamad E. Abdulla 82