Sudanese Rebels Prepare for War
By <
http://www.ipsnews.net/author/william-lloyd-george/> William
Lloyd-George <
http://www.ipsnews.net/reprinting-articles/> Reprint
ADDIS ABABA , May 5 2013 (IPS) - A rebel coalition in Sudan has declared war
on the government less than a week after it attacked Sudanese forces. "Now
there is a fully-fledged war in the new south of the north," Yasir Arman, a
leader of one of the armed groups in the alliance, told IPS, adding that the
rebels now control a southern stretch of the country.
Rebel activity had previously been restricted to southern and eastern Sudan.
But the Apr. 27 attack by the Sudan Revolutionary Front (SRF) in
<
http://www.ipsnews.net/2011/06/sudan-southern-kordofan-a-state-of-ghost-tow
ns/> North Kordofan, which is 482 km from Sudan's capital Khartoum, was the
first full-on offensive to be launched in central Sudan.
"Now we are fighting under one command, and we have one unified political
leadership," Arman, the secretary general of the
<
http://www.ipsnews.net/2011/09/sudan-new-conflict-displaces-thousands/>
Sudan People's Liberation Front-North (SPLM-N), said in an interview at a
hotel in neighbouring Ethiopia's capital Addis Ababa.
The SRF is made up of insurgent groups from Sudan's western region of
Darfur, including the Justice and Equality Movement (JEM) and the two main
factions of the Sudan Liberation Movement. The SPLM-N, which is also part of
the SRF, is from South Kordofan and
<
http://www.ipsnews.net/2012/03/the-forgotten-emergency-in-sudanrsquos-blue-
nile-state/> Blue Nile states, in south Sudan.
Previously, the groups had fought relatively independently, with the Darfuri
rebels' desire for an Islamist state being a main obstacle to forming an
alliance. When the JEM gave in to the SPLM-N's offer to create a secular
state in Sudan, once President Omar al-Bashir is deposed, the alliance was
formed in November 2011, and it has seemingly grown in strength ever since.
The SRF's core aims are for the formation of a new transitional government
of national unity, the end to the marginalisation of the peripheries, and
the installation of a decentralised federal system based on a secular
constitution. They have also stressed the need for land rights and support
for pastoralists.
On Jan. 5, the SRF reached out to opposition parties and civil society
groups, and signed a "New Dawn Charter" in Kampala, Uganda, which calls for
an inclusive transition.
"We believe that the international community's response should be to look
for a new mechanism to end the wars in Sudan. Not by piecemeal solutions. If
the National Congress Party (Sudan's ruling party) is allowed to continue
its policies, then Sudan will never have stability. Stability lies in having
a new blueprint which will address the core issues of Sudan," Arman said.
Following South Sudan's secession in July 2011, South Kordofan was left as
part of Sudan, but an agreement was reached to allow the residents to vote
for their future.
However, the SPLM-N took up arms in July 2011, following what they deemed to
be a fraudulent election to choose a state governor and state assembly for
South Kordofan in May 2011. They alleged that the Sudanese government rigged
the vote in order to appoint their chosen candidate, Ahmed Haroun, as South
Kordofan's regional leader.
At the time of his interview with IPS, Arman and an SPLM-N negotiating team
were in Addis Ababa for talks between the rebel group and the Sudanese
government, which quickly ended in deadlock. According to Arman, Khartoum is
not interested in finding an overall solution to the conflicts but instead
is looking to co-opt the various groups individually into working under the
regime's system - a system they reject.
"They don't have a strategic plan to find peace, they just want to offer us
jobs and work under this constitution," said Arman. "We don't want this. We
are not job seekers, we want an inclusive transition which includes all
parts of society, for a new constitution."
But a report released in February by the international anti-conflict NGO
International Crisis Group stated: "The SRF's creation is challenging the
international players' inability (or reluctance) to address Sudan's crises
as a whole. Most diplomats continue to pursue piecemeal, localised, quick
(and often still-born) fixes."
The report also argued, however, that the SRF could provide a great
opportunity to broaden local negotiations to the national level and finally
address the root causes of Sudan's conflicts. It explained that if
negotiations only partially address political marginalisation of the
peripheries, calls for self-determination may well increase.
The main obstacle to achieving peace, said Arman, was a lack of will by
Sudan's government to engage all the rebels as a whole and address the real
root causes of the conflicts. Until either side backs down, or a middle
ground is found, it appears that war will continue to rage between the two
sides.
Arman said that SRF troops are still in North Kordofan and are preparing for
more attacks in the area.
"I believe the balance of forces now means that our troops will have more
gain on the ground in the coming two weeks. The government is preparing, and
pulling their troops from all over Sudan; we are also preparing," said
Arman.
"We are bringing reinforcements into North Kordofan and now Khartoum must
know the SRF is the new force to reckon with."
According to James Copnall, Sudan expert and author of "A Poisonous Thorn
in Our Hearts: Sudan and South Sudan's Bitter and Incomplete Divorce", the
location of the recent attack is significant as it took place on the road
between Al Obaid, the capital of North Kordofan state, and Sudan's capital
Khartoum.
"It seems likely it was chosen as a target to send a threatening message to
Khartoum about the rebels' capacities," Copnall told IPS.
"This sort of attack, on the road to the capital, is intended to demonstrate
to many people that the war is not necessarily just confined to the
peripheries."
"The SRF's objective is to broaden the war, and this is clearly the point of
the Northern Kordofan attack. One key question is whether they will be able
to sustain fighting in several areas at once. That goes for the Sudanese
Armed Forces too, which are undoubtedly stretched thin."
Similar sentiments were echoed by Jonah Leff from the Small Arms Survey, a
research project that provides impartial information about all aspects of
small arms.
"I don't doubt that the SRF has the capability to reach Khartoum, but I
doubt very much that they would have the might to sustain a fight against
Khartoum's comparatively strong security apparatus," Leff told IPS.
But with a new front in North Kordofan, NGOs are worried civilian residents
of this state will now bear the brunt of the government's crackdown on the
SRF resistance.
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<
http://www.ipsnews.net/2013/01/african-union-unable-to-bring-peace-to-warri
ng-sudans/> African Union Unable to Bring Peace to Warring Sudans
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<
http://www.ipsnews.net/2012/07/sudan-south-sudan-resume-talks-amid-doubts-f
or-long-term-success/> Sudan, South Sudan Resume Talks Amid Doubts for
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*
<
http://www.ipsnews.net/2012/09/international-community-overselling-sudan-so
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<
http://www.ipsnews.net/2013/02/crisis-group-urges-comprehensive-talks-to-en
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*
<
http://www.ipsnews.net/2011/06/sudan-southern-kordofan-a-state-of-ghost-tow
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*
<
http://www.ipsnews.net/2012/03/the-forgotten-emergency-in-sudanrsquos-blue-
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* SUDAN: Bombing the Homeless
<
http://www.ipsnews.net/2011/10/sudan-bombing-the-homeless/>
* SUDAN: New Conflict Displaces Thousands
<
http://www.ipsnews.net/2011/09/sudan-new-conflict-displaces-thousands/>
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Received on Sun May 05 2013 - 16:06:45 EDT
