Prime Minister
On taking office, Welensky was forced to take sides in the Suez Crisis. The government of the United Kingdom received heavy international criticism for its actions, but Welensky's government, with those of Australia and New Zealand, nonetheless stood behind Britain. It was Welensky's first experience in international politics. In the aftermath of the Suez debacle British colonial policy changed significantly, which would have adverse effects for the federation. It marked the decline of a gradual approach to decolonisation, and a rapid speeding up of the process. Politically, only three years after its founding, the federation began to decline.
International attitudes to the federation were critical, particularly from the Afro-Asian bloc in the United Nations. At a time when most colonial powers were rushing their colonies towards independence, the federation seemed to its opponents to be an unwelcome obstacle. In Britain, Labour grew more critical, and African nationalists in the federation itself became more vocal, unsatisfied with the liberalisation that was taking place, and demanding faster moves towards African advancement. The Governor of Northern Rhodesia, Sir Arthur Benson, wrote a secret letter to his superiors in Britain, highly critical of Welensky and the federation; this letter remained undiscovered until 1958, when Huggins revealed it to Welensky.
Read more about this topic: Roy Welensky
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