The Republic of Sudan has often found itself the subject of much controversy and great debate. Covering more land than any other country in Africa it is the 10th largest nation in the world and home to over 30 different peoples extending from the Nubian Desert down the Nile River to the beginnings of the African Rainforests in the south.  In more recent years however it has not been the beautiful geography, remarkable ecosystems or diverse cultures of Sudan which have captured the attention of the world, but rather the coup d’etat’s, civil wars, and claims of genocide.

Perhaps the most well-known issue at hand in Sudan today is the humanitarian crisis in Darfur, the western most region of Sudan. Darfur was for several hundred years an independent sultanate until it fell to the English and Egyptian forces which occupied and governed the lands of Sudan from 1899 until 1955. Today Darfur remains in the public’s eye due to allegations of genocide being conducted under government orders.

What follows is an introduction to the history of the Sudanese Republic, information which rationalizes the claim that the Sudan is in fact a “fractured nation.”

Sudan Before Bashir

Sudan received independence on the 1st of January, 1956 but despite this great achievement by 1958, only two years after Sudan achieved independence, the elected government was overthrown in a military coup d’etat lead by General Ibrahim Abboud. By 1962 the Southern Sudanese Separatist army known as the Anya Nya was engaged in the First Sudanese Civil War with the Abboud government in Khartoum. By 1964 Abboud had been overthrown during what is known as the “October Revolution”. By 1969 another military coup known as the “May Revolution” would bring  Jafar Numayri. Once again, in 1971 a short lived coup placed the Communist Party of Sudan in power, however before the end of the year Numayri would return to power.Despite these changes in Khartoum the Civil War would continue from 1962 until 1972, and claim the lives of half a million people.

In 1972 a peace agreement is signed in Addis Ababa between Khartoum and the Anya Nya which brings an end to the destructive First Civil War and makes Southern Sudan a self-governing region within Sudan. However, this peace would last little more than a decade and by 1983 the Second Sudanese Civil War would break out between government forces in the north and the Sudan People’s Liberation Movement (SPLM) in the south. This war would last until 2005 and claim the lives of almost 2 million people, many of which were civilian casualties.

During that same year, 1983, President Numayri declared the introduction of Sharia, or Islamic Law to the Sudanese Legal  System but only two years later in 1985 yet another coup d’etat would dispose Numayri and in 1986 general elections would be held with Sadiq al-Mahdi elected as Prime Minister, this would not last long and in 1989 another military coup known as the National Salvation Revolution would take power declaring Omar al-Bashir the president in 1993, a position that Bashir retains to this day.

Sudan Under Bashir

In 1999 Bashir declared a state of emergency and dissolved the National Assembly following what was described as a power-struggle with Parliamentary Speaker Hassan al-Turabi. 1999 would also be the year Sudan began exporting oil, which is the largest export of Sudan today.

Bashir met with leaders of the opposition National Democratic Alliance for the first time in 2000 following the passing of a new constitution calling for elections in 1998, but the opposition parties would end up boycotting the 2000 elections which would result in the re-election of Bashir. In 2001 Turabi and his party the Popular National Congress (PNC) signed a memorandum of understanding with the SPLM rebel group in the south, Turabi would be arrested the following day and many prominent members of the PNC would be arrested in the following months, Turabi wouldn’t be released until October 2003 when the ban on his party was finally lifted.

In 2002, after many years of unrest it appeared that peace was close when Khartoum and the SPLM signed a ceasefire agreement in the Nuba Mountains, and further talks in Kenya would lead to more breakthroughs which lead to the Machakos Protocols, a peace deal which would provide for South Sudan to seek ’self-determination’ after six years. Finally, in January 2005 a peace treaty that outlined power-sharing protocols was signed putting to end the Second Civil War.

On July 9th, 2005 — John Garang, the ex-leader of the SPLM is officially sworn in as the first Vice-President of the Republic of Sudan as agreed to under the peace treaty, this is accompanied by the signing of a new constitution which creates a considerable amount of autonomy for Southern Sudan. Garang’s time in office will be short however, as on August 1st Vice-President Garang dies in a plane crash and is suceeded by Salva Kiir, a founding member of the SPLM and a close associate of Garang, nevertheless, Garang’s death sparks riots in the capital city of Khartoum between Southerners and Northerners.

The Darfur Crisis Begins

Despite all of the progress that had been made by February of 2003 and armed uprising had begun in Darfur, which shares a border with the South but lies in North Sudanese territory. The rebels claimed Khartoum was neglecting the needs of the Darfur region. By 2004 the Sudanese military had moved into the region, millions of refugees had fled into neighboring Chad, and UN officials had begun releasing reports of the systematic killings being conducted in villages by the notorious Janjaweed militia.

The conflict pitted the Sudan Liberation Movement (SLM) and the Justice and Equality Movement (JEM) against various militia organizations such as the Janjaweed as well as the Sudanese military.

By March of 2004 Turbani, along with other opposition leaders had once again been imprisoned over an alleged plot to coup the government, Turbani wouldn’t be released this time until June 2005

By  May 2006, a few peace treaties had been signed but all had ultimately fallen through. During this same month the Sudanese Government had rejected a UN resolution calling for the deployment of peacekeepers into the Darfur region claiming it would “compromise sovereignty”. However by April 2007 a partial UN peacekeeping force is permitted to enter the country, but not a full 20,000 strong force like suggested.

The United Nations estimates that around 300,000 people have been killed and 2.7 million displaced in Darfur since this crisis began and many have accused Omar al-Bashir of genocide against the Fur, Masalit, and Zaghawa peoples of the Darfur region.

Bashir — An International Criminal

On July 14th, 2008 Luis Moreno-Ocampo, the Chief Prosecutor of the United Nations International Criminal Court (ICC) alleged that Bashir was guilty of multiple crimes against humanity, war crimes and even accused Bashir of genocide. The ICC responded on March 4th, 2009 by for the first time in its history issuing an arrest warrant for a presently sitting head-of-state: Omar Hassan Ahmad al-Bashir.

Bashir is charged with five crimes against humanity (murder, extermination, forcible transfer, rape, and torture) as well as two war crimes (intentionally directing attacks against civilians, and pillaging), however the ICC decided that there was not enough evidence to charge Bashir for genocide.

Bashir has remained defiant on his arrest warrant, attending rallies in his support including one held in the capital of Darfur, El Fasher-Turbani, the leader of the opposition in Sudan still has however condemed Bashir’s defiance and has publicly asked for Bashir to turn himself into the ICC.

While Bashir cannot be arrested within the borders of Sudan he is expected to attend an international meeting in Qatar at the end of the month.

The futures of Bashir and Turbani as well as the fates of Darfur, and Southern Sudan; who in 2011 will hold a referendum for independence, remain unknown, if only one thing can be said about Sudan with certainty — it’s that it remains, at least for today, a fractured nation.

 Print This   Email This