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Features: The regime of al-Bashir
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Posted by BBC on November 04, 1997 at 17:11:00:
Features: The regime of al-Bashir
General Omar Hassan Ahmad al-Bashir
General Omar Hassan Ahmad al-Bashir came to power
in Sudan in 1989 when he overthrew the government of
Sadiq al-Mahdi in a bloodless coup.
He became head of state, Chairman of the Revolutionary
Command Council, Prime Minister, Minister of Defence,
and Commander-in-Chief of the armed forces. The
constitution, National Assembly, and all political parties
and trade unions were abolished, and a state of
emergency was declared.
Gen al-Bashir rules through a 15-member Revolutionary
Command Council for National Salvation (RCC) but the
real ideological force behind the Sudanese regime is
thought to come from al-Bashir's ally Dr Hassan
al-Turabi. He leads the National Islamic Front (NIF)
which is not one of the banned organisations.
In January 1991 the Revolutionary Command Council
announced a new federal constitution. This gave the
southern states of Bahr-al-Ghazal, Upper Nile and
Equatoria a non-Shari'a legal system, and also
considerable autonomy in internal affairs. However,
non-Muslims living in the north of the country were still
subject to Shari'a law.
Presidential and parliamentary elections were held in
March 1996 but independent political activity and parties
remained banned under the state of emergency.
Gen al-Bashir was re-elected President and the great
majority of those elected to the 400-seat parliament were
government supporters.
The official turn-out in the poll was 72% and al-Bashir
received a 75% share of the votes cast. His nearest rival
received just under 3% of the vote. Hassan al-Turabi was
elected Speaker of Parliament which is the second most
important position in Sudan after President.
Opposition groups
The south of Sudan is dominated by war between the
Sudan People's Liberation Army (SPLA), led by Colonel
John Garang de Mabio, and government forces.
The SPLA was originally supported by the Mengistu
regime in Ethiopia but the end of this regime led to
increased divisions in the SPLA. A breakaway faction
called the South Sudan Independence Movement (SSIM)
was formed in August 1991, led by Riek Machar
Teny-Dhurgon. This group was also known as SPLA -
United. The two factions of the SPLA fought against
each other as well as the government forces.
The South Sudan Independence Movement / SPLA
United divided again and Riek Machar's group became
known as the Southern Sudan Independence Army
(SSIA).
Colonel Garang's SPLA is committed to a unified,
secular Sudan. Riek Machar's grouping is fighting for the
cause of southern secession. Garang's group is mainly
based on the Dinka tribe, and Machar's group is
predominately Nuer based. These two ethnic groups are
traditional rivals.
The National Democratic Alliance is a coalition of
opposition parties, including the Umma party, the SPLA,
the Democratic Unionist Party and other groups. Its
president is Mohammed Osman al-Mirghani.
In June 1995 the National Democratic Alliance held a
conference in the Eritrean capital, Asmara. This was
attended by the Umma Party (the former governing party
of Sadqi al-Mahdi and the largest opposition party), the
Democratic Unionist Party, the Sudan Communist Party,
Col Garang's SPLA, and a number of northern secular
groups who were united under the coalition 'Modern
Forces.'
Riek Machar's SSIA and the SPLA-United were not
invited to the meeting.
The conference agreed to hold a referendum on
self-determination in certain provinces, to protect human
rights, to prevent the formation of political parties on
religious grounds and to accept the legitimacy of the
armed struggle against the Sudanese regime. The
important issue of whether to abandon Shari'a law was
not addressed.
In April 1996 the government concluded a peace
agreement with the South Sudan Independence Army
(SSIA). In May 1996 the SPLA-United also signed a
peace agreement. The government promised to hold a
referendum on Sudanese unity after peace had been
established.
The opposition was given a boost when in December
1996 the former Prime Minister Sadiq al-Mahdi fled
house arrest to join the alliance at its headquarters in
Eritrea.
During 1996 the opposition National Democratic Alliance
(NDA) began military activity close to the Eritrean
border. In January 1997 the rebels launched a major
offensive from Eritrea, which considerably disconcerted
the government in Khartoum. The rebels captured huge
areas in the south in the early part of 1997, further
threatening the government.
The northern opposition and the southern guerrilla groups
have begun to work together to overthrow the
government.
On April 21, 1997 the Sudanese government signed a
peace agreement with five southern leaders. A
referendum on the self-determination of the south is due
to be held in four years time.
The opposition in Sudan is so divided that some
opposition leaders talk of a complete disintegration of
Sudan - in the manner of Somalia. This would have
serious consequences for Africa as a whole because
Sudan borders nine other countries.
Human rights
Opposition figures are routinely detained without charge,
and torture is widespread. Judicial punishments include
flogging and amputation, although no amputations have
actually been carried out since 1989. Human rights
abuses are carried out by all armed groups in war zones.
The inhabitants of the south-central Nuba Mountains of
Southern Kordofan province have suffered particularly as
a result of their marginal status between north and
south.
In April 1996 the Sudanese government agreed to renew
co-operation with the UN Special Rapporteur on Human
Rights in Sudan, who had been denied access to the
country since writing a critical report in 1994.
Dr Gaspar Biro of Hungary said in October 1994, that
"grave and widespread violations of human rights by
government agents, as well as abuses by members of
different SPLA factions continue to take place, including
extrajudicial killings, systematic torture and widespread
arbitrary arrests of suspected political opponents."
Relations with the international community
The Sudanese famine of 1988 led to the formation of the
UN Operation Lifeline Sudan which continues to operate
in southern Sudan. It is run by Unicef and the World
Food Programme.
The UN Security Council has condemned Sudan's
alleged links with terrorists and Sudan has been listed
by the US as a state sponsoring terrorism since 1993.
The attempted assassination of the President of Egypt,
Hosni Mubarak, at an Organisation of African Unity
summit meeting in Addis Ababa in June 1995 was
allegedly carried out by three men who were given refuge
by Sudan. The Sudanese authorities denied that they
knew of the whereabouts of the suspected terrorists.
The assassination attempt led the UN Security Council
to call on the Sudanese government to extradite to
Ethiopia the suspected terrorists and to end its support
for terrorist activities.
On April 26, 1996 the UN Security Council imposed
limited sanctions against Sudan. An arms embargo was
opposed (according to the journal Africa Confidential) by
Russia, China, Indonesia, Chile and Egypt.
The UN will not intervene in the conflict in Sudan
because it does not have the consent of the warring
parties necessary for the despatch of a peacekeeping
force, and a military intervention under Chapter VII of the
UN Charter is considered to be untenable in military and
logistical terms.
The experience of the UN in Somalia has contributed to
increased scepticism over the role that such a mission
can play.
The EU has imposed an embargo on the supply to
Sudan of weapons, ammunition, spare parts and other
military equipment. China has voted against human
rights resolutions on Sudan and is thought to be likely to
oppose a general arms embargo.
Relations with neighbours
The Sudanese regime is extremely isolated, and has
made enemies of its neighbours who accuse it of
exporting radical Islam to neighbouring states so as to
forge a regional sphere of influence.
The Sudanese government is thought to be backing
armed Ugandan groups carrying out guerrilla raids into
Ugandan territory. The Ugandan government is heavily
backing the SPLA.
Eritrea is a strong backer of the Sudanese opposition
grouping, the National Democratic Alliance, and has
given the organisation the Sudanese Embassy in Eritrea
as its headquarters. In June 1995 a National Democratic
Alliance held a conference in the Eritrean capital,
Asmara.
Ethiopia has a mutual defence pact with Eritrea, which
reduces the likelihood of Sudan taking military reprisals
against Eritrea.
Egypt is concerned about Sudan's stake in the Nile. It
is also concerned about Sudanese encouragement to
Egyptian Islamic groups.
Recent events
A breakthrough in the civil war in Sudan appeared to
have been made when on July 8, 1997 African leaders
announced that the Sudanese government had accepted
a framework for negotiations. On August 11 the
Sudanese government called for a ceasefire with the
rebels.
Peace talks held between the government and the rebels
as part of the Intergovernmental Authority on
Development (IGAD) broke down in September 1994 over
the issue of Shari'a law. Negotiations were due to begin
on August 19, 1997, but on August 15, Mohammed
Osman al-Mirghani, the President of the National
Democratic Alliance, rejected bilateral talks with the
Sudanese government.
IGAD
(IGAD) comprises of seven African countries who are
working on an initiative to end civil war in Sudan. The
countries who participate in IGAD are Kenya, Sudan,
Ethiopia, Eritrea, Uganda, Somalia and Djibouti. |
