Sudan 101: The Basics
Geographical Area
• Largest African Country at 2.3 million sq. km
• Surrounded by nine other countries:
Egypt, Libya, Chad, Central African Republic, Eritrea
Dem. Rep. of the Congo, Uganda, Kenya, Ethiopia,
• Nile runs through center
– Important to the economics
• Provides means of transportation
through country
• Source of irrigation for all the
agricultural work in middle of country
• Controls the headwaters of the
Blue Nilewhich gives Sudan
power over Ethiopia
Geographical Area
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Desert in the north
Mostly flat plains throughout country
Mountains in west, northeast and far south, more rainfall
39 % of population “Arab”
– live mostly in the North
52 % “Black”
– Christians mostly live in the South
– Genocide cannot be simplified to one of either race or religion
• 70% of population Muslim, 5% Christian
Farming in South/Central regions
– Central: for market cotton, sorghum, groundnuts, sugarcane, wheat,
sesame.
– Southern: subsistence (traditional) sorghum, millet, sesame, groundnuts
– Subsistence fishing along Red Sea
Drought in 1980’s-1990’s hurt economy terribly
– Widespread famine
– Livestock herders from the North were forced South into Agricultural
areas
The Drought
• Terrible and widespread drought during the
1980’s and 90’s
– Famine
Common foods, such as dried
okra and other grains, that
were consumed during the
drought and famine
• Between 1983 and 1998, about 1.5 million
people died as a result of starvation and war
– Animal herders from north were forced
south into agricultural areas
• The genocide is an economic one, and it
started here
• Agriculture remains the largest part of GDP at
39% and employs 80% of workforce
• Drought affected all those in the agriculture industry which was a large
majority of the population
• Fight for land has escalated, and combined with the factors or Arabization, oil
discoveries and a destabilized region, time was right for the genocide to begin
Geopolitical Surroundings
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Kenya/ Uganda have tried to act as mediators in the genocide
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Hypocritical on Uganda’s part, as they have admitted to funding the rebels in Sudan
Kenya is now dealing with massive amounts of Sudanese refugees
Eritrea accused by Sudan of funding rebels
Very porous border with Ethiopia
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Both of these issues are a repercussions from the Ethiopia/Eritrea war
• Eritrea gained its independence from Ethiopia in 1993
• In the next five years fought over currency/trade
• Sudan supported Ethiopia during their war
• Both sides have supported Sudanese rebels
• Ethiopia has left the US sponsored alliance of Uganda, Eritrea, Ethiopia and
Sudanese rebel groups to re-establish friendly relations with the Khartoum regime
• This will only worsen the genocide, and potentially destabilize entire region
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Border almost non-existent with Chad
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Chad has been accused of funding rebels as well, because Sudan supported their rebels
(same situation as Uganda)
Sudanese refugee camps now on Chadian side of border
Violence has followed them, with the Janjaweed now making forays into Chad
New elections in Democratic Republic of Congo
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It remains to be seen how this will affect the African Union, which in turn could change troop
numbers in Sudan
Committers of Genocide: The
Janjaweed
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Janjaweed translates into “Evil Horsemen” or
“Horse and Gun”
They are Arab speaking Black Africans with
Radical Islamic beliefs
Recruited mainly from Baggara (Cattle Herder)
and Abbala (Camel Herder) people.
These forces are backed by the government of
Sudan, though Khartoum denies such a
connection.
Much of the Janjaweed has largely been
immersed into the Sudanese Armed Forces
The Sudanese Armed Forces are the
Sudanese Government, currently lead by
President Bashir
“Don’t you people understand what a tribal
leader does? I answered my government’s
appeal, and I called my people to arms. I didn’t
take up arms personally. A tribal leader doesn’t
take up arms. I am a sheikh. I am not a
soldier.” ~ Musa Hilal
A member of the Janjaweed on
horseback.
The US State Department has
accused Musa Hilal, an Arab tribal
leader, of being a Janjaweed leader
and has openly accused him of
genocide.
Resistant Groups: SLA
• Sudan Liberation Army /Movement
(SLA/M)
• Also known as Haraka Tahrir Sudan
• The SLM is not to be mistaken as the
SPLA/M (The Sudanese Peoples
Liberation Army – the Southern Rebel
Group)
• Loose association of resistance groups
fighting in the Darfur region against the
Sudanese government and the
Janjaweed
• Largest faction led by Minni Minnawi
• Ahmed Abdulshafi Bassey is another of
its leaders
• For a while the group was known as the
Darfur Liberation Front
• Currently the Darfur Liberation Front
faction has a secessionist stance while
the SLM remains dedicated to
overthrowing Bashir in Khartoum
- The acts of genocide are
being committed primarily
against the Fur (Largest NonArab Sedentary Group) the
Masalit (Sedentary Non-Arab),
and the Zaghawa (Nomadic
Tribes – Non-Arab). All of
these tribes have Islamic ties.
The Arabic on the truck reads:
Sudanese Liberation Army
Resistance Groups:
SPLA
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Sudan People’s Liberation Movement
Started in 1983 by John Garang de Mabior, Salva Kiir Mayardit, William
Nyuon Bany and Kerubino Kuanyin Bol
Based in Southern Sudan, they are primarily non-Muslim and non-Arab
They have fought a civil war against three different Sudanese
Presidents, Gaafar Nimeiry, Sadiq al-Mahdi and President Omar
Hasan Ahmad al-Bashir
Their struggle against the government has been based on secessionist,
religious, ethnic and economic (oil) desires.
The Political Party wing of the group is called Al-Harakat Ash-Shaabia
Le Tahreer As-Sudan
The SPLA split into 3 main factions in the 1990s:
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SPLA-Torit led by John Garang
SPLA Bahr-al-Ghazal led by Carabino Kuany Bol
SPLA-United led by Riek Machar and Lam Akol
These factions have hampered SPLA’s efforts to negotiate with the Sudanese
government.
In April 1997 the South Sudan Independence Movement, a faction of the
SPLA-United, created the United Democratic Salvation Front (UDSF), by
signing an agreement with the Sudanese government in Khartoum.
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Resistance Groups: JEM
Justice and Equality Movement (JEM)
Rebel group fighting in the Darfur against the Janjaweed and the
Sudanese government
Has radical Islamic roots.
Founded on the principles written in the Black Book, written in 2000
about the regional, economic, and racial inequality present in Sudan,
including among Islamist groups
The Sudanese government claims that Hassan al-Turabi, (Once allied
with President Bashir) is a leader of the JEM (al-Turabi denies this
claim)
On January 20, 2006 JEM and the Sudan Liberation Movement joined
to create the Alliance of Revolutionary Forces of West Sudan
“There can be no doubt that the current dictatorship has been pernicious for the
human development of the regions outside of the North and Khartoum. There can be
no question that the data support the claims made in the Black Book that the Sudan
has been governed to benefit those regions disproportionately at the expense of all
others.”
-Alex Cobham, a scholar at Oxford University studied the Black Book’s claims and
came to the above conclusion. Click here to see his article: Causes of Conflict in
Sudan: Testing the Black Book
Other Actors
• History
– Colonialism – British and Egyptian influences had an impact on
the North/South divide in Sudan
– The Civil War that has been waged for 20+ years has
devastated the entire region and hindered the acceptance of the
term “Genocide” because political figures choose to call the
conflict a Civil War which infers the rules of sovereignty, use of
the term “Genocide” might require international intervention
• The United States
– Colin Powell visited the region and on September 2004
declared that Genocide was occurring in Darfur
“When we reviewed the evidence compiled by our team, and then put it beside other information
available to the State Department and widely known throughout the international community,
widely reported upon by the media and by others, we concluded, I concluded, that genocide
has been committed in Darfur and that the Government of Sudan and the Jingaweit bear
responsibility -- and that genocide may still be occurring.”
- Colin Powell to the Senate Foreign Relations Committee on September 9, 2004. See the
transcript of his testimony.
– No further official US action has been taken to intervene or
resolve the conflict
Other Actors
• United Nations
– Resolution 1556 - Demands that Sudan disarm the Janjaweed
– Resolution 1706 - Authorized a Peace Keeping Force (nothing has
come of this) (will be discussed in further detail later on)
• African Union
– The AU has troops on the ground in Darfur, but their mandate is weak.
The mandate was set to expire on December 31, 2006 but it has been
extended for 6 additional months.
• Other State Actors
– The Sudanese struggle spills over and effects most of the region.
Ghana, Rwanda, Nigeria, Chad, Uganda, and Eritrea are just a few
countries which are involved in the conflict
– Due to the influence of oil, many non-regional states (China, Russia,
India, and the US) have a lot of interest in Sudan and Darfur specifically
• Non State Actors
– Amnesty, UNICEF, Religious Based Groups, Human Rights Watch,
Media Groups
– Very few media organizations have taken up the cause for peace
Building Tension...
• Beginning in the 1980's the Sudanese
government became run increasingly by
Northern, elite Sudanese Arabs from the Nile
Basin
• People in Darfur felt marginalized by the
“Arabization” that was taking place
– Felt that their region was economically
and politically neglected by the
government in Khartoum
• Due to these feelings of malcontent,
the SLA was formed
An armed member of the SLA.
Building Tension…
• Tension had previously existed between
the “African” and “Arab” groups before...but
these ethnic labels are socially constructed
and their meanings have changed over time
– Africans were traditionally farmers
– Arabs traditionally cattle herders
– Competed for limited land and resources
(water, fertile ground, space, etc.)
– Created the basis for a conflict that would
continue to escalate
Conflict
• The SLA was composed of
“Africans”, blacks, the farmers, who
were fed up with having their issues
ignored by the government.
• The Khartoum government called
upon “Arab” militias to fight the
rebel force after the SLA began
attacking police posts and other
government property
Members of the
government supported
“Arab” militias.
A One Sided War Against
Civilians…
• The “Arab” militias (Janjaweed) began
raiding towns in Darfur and continue to do
so at present.
• They loot and burn the towns, while driving
out the citizens who live there
– Many women are taken captive and raped
repeatedly
– Men are generally murdered
Why? In A Nutshell
• A civil war was taking place however the
government-backed Janjaweed has gone
as far as to displace, rape, and massacre
civilians of the Darfur region in mass
numbers.
• They are attacked because they are
“African”
Some Insights from
Rwanda
• Prior to the Rwandan genocide and throughout
it, the government was engaged in a civil war
with the RPF (Rwandan People’s Front) a group
lead by exiled Tutsis
• Due to their attack, the Hutu Power (in
government) labeled all Tutsis as accomplices to
the RPF and they were therefore targeted and
murdered in mass numbers
• This was not the only reason for the genocide in
Rwanda however it was a legitimization
Targets Compared With Rwanda
• The SLA is labeled as being an “African”
rebel group from the Darfur region.
– Like the Tutsis in Rwanda, the “Africans” in
the Darfur region, even if they are civilians,
are targeted by the opposite side for being
connected to the SLA
– The civilians are of a similar class and
therefore they are believed to support the
rebels and must be dealt with accordingly...
Summary
• Those labeled as “Africans” are targeted
by the Janjaweed
• They are:
– Displaced from homes
– Raped
– Killed
A Sudanese refugee camp
– Forced into refugee camps and left to starve
in these areas
The Role of the UN in the
Genocide
• U.N. has not declared Darfur as a genocide, merely “acts of
genocide” or “ethnic cleansing”
• July and August 2006 – The U.N. approved Resolution 1706
-It was a resolution passed August 31, 2006.
-12 in favor
•France, United Kingdom, United States, Argentina,
Congo, Denmark, Ghana, Greece, Japan, Peru,
Slovakia, Tanzania
-3 abstentions
•China, Qatar, Russia
Resolution 1706
•The resolution concluded that AU forces aren’t enough,
but their mandate has been extended repeatedly through
2006 although the situation continues to escalate
•What does Resolution 1706 do?
AU soldier in Darfur
-Resolution calls for 22,500 UN
troops and police officers to
support the AU force
-Sudan has refused to participate
in the UNSC session and has
strongly rejected the resolution
-22,500 UN troops have never materialized because of
this
The role of the African Union in the
Genocide
Peacekeeping force originally founded in 2004 with a force of 150
troops
•By April 2005, had increased to 7,000
•Problems:
-They do not have the mandate, funds, or adequate amount of
troops to be effective
-The troops come from nations including Rwanda, and are actually
preferred by the genocidal Sudanese government due to their
weaknesses (which is not really their fault)
-Force with less advanced training UN troops posses, insufficient to
effectively contain the violence
• On September 5 2006, the AU announced it will be withdrawing its
forces when its peacekeeping mandate on September 30 when it
expires, this was later postponed to December 31, 2006.
Is the West Responsible for Darfur?
• Historically, no.
• The Darfurian conflict originated in Sudan between the
tribes of Abbala and the non-Bagarra people.
Internationally? Yes.
-The US had capacities to protect civilians in the region
-The US has recognized this as a genocide
-Many feel this recognition is nothing more than filler,
since the U.S. has taken little action to stop the
genocide
How are the Arab Nations
Responsible for the Genocide?
• Traditionally?
– Khartoum's position has usually been backed and the Arab Nations
have harshly spoken out against military intervention in Darfur.
Recently?
– In early 2006 The Arab League backed
Sudanese president Omar al-Bashir’s
refusal of a UN peace keeping force in Darfur
– Recently, however, in October 2006, Arab countries
have launched a new effort to push Sudan toward
a compromise over U.N. peacekeepers in Darfur
– Algeria, Egypt and Mauritania are African-Arab
Omar al-Bashir
nations that already have small contingents
operating in Darfur in coalition with the African Union Peacekeepers.
– Promised to contribute extra food to the region, although food has been
the least of the nations problems in recent time.
How Do These Actions Qualify
Darfur as a Genocide?
• Genocide is...
– The attack on a group of people with the
intent to eradicate them by...
• Killing- The Janjaweed and Sudanese government
have this pretty well covered
• Enforcing conditions that will lead to the
destruction of the group-the forcing of the citizens
into refugee camps where they cannot leave to find
more food, water, or fuel without risking their lives
as the Janjaweed circle and plan to kill
Information Citations
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http://www.sudantribune.com
http://www.pbs.org
http://edition.cnn.com/WORLD/africa/9805/05/sudan.famine/
https://www.cia.gov/cia/publications/factbook/geos/su.html
http://www.chathamhouse.org.uk/pdf/briefing_papers/conflict_in_the
_horn.pdf
http://www.newyorker.com/fact/content/articles/040830fa_fact1?040
830fa_fact1
http://www.janjaweed.com/
http://english.aljazeera.net/news/archive/archive?ArchiveId=327
http://ideas.repec.org/p/qeh/qehwps/qehwps121.html
http://www.state.gov/secretary/former/powell/remarks/36042.htm
Image Citations
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http://www.radionetherlands.nl/images/assets/11448117
http://www.usflags.com/images/products/sudan.gif
http://www.agrnews.org/issues/167/Sudan_Map.GIF
http://www.usaid.gov/locations/subsaharan_africa/sudan/images/northern_gallery/pages/v400_grains.html
http://www.hrw.org/images/maps/sudan.gif
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Image:IMGP0864.jpg
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Image:Seal_of_SPLA-M.gif
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Image:Flag_of_the_United_Nations.svg
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Image:Flag_of_the_African_Union.svg
http://www.alertnet.org/db/crisisprofiles/SD_DAR.htm?v=in_detail
http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/in_pictures/3714877.stm
http://www.rsf.org/rsf/img_rap01/rwanda/rwanda_map.gif
http://www.stjohnwc.org/section/peacejustice/page/162
http://sudanwatch.blogspot.com/2006_03_01_sudanwatch_archive.html