Stopping internecine in Sudan

That the government has at last taken necessary steps to rescue Bangladeshis trapped in the war-torn Sudan is definitely a commendable move. But it should have come earlier. Of some 1,500 Bangladeshis in that country, about 700 have, it is learnt, expressed their willingness to return home. Bangladesh's diplomatic office in Sudan is doing its job well as it has arranged buses to move Bangladeshis stranded there first to port Sudan, about 850 kilometres away from Khartoum. From there they will be taken to Jeddah in Saudi Arabia before they would be flown home. In fact, Sudan is one of the world's poorest countries situated in northeast Africa. It is not exactly a destination of migrant workers from Bangladesh or any other country. Even so, it is used as a conduit by international gangs for trafficking overseas jobseekers illegally through neighboring Libya to other countries including Europe. It is a dangerous journey using ramshackle vessels to cross the Mediterranean Sea to the European coast.
The present situation in Sudan is not safe either for the local people or foreigners. Both local civilian population and non-locals are fleeing the country. Meanwhile, caught in the crossfire, more than 400 people have died, while thousands have been injured. Worse yet, essential services including water supply, power and health service have been severely disrupted. Hundreds of thousands of people as a result have been fleeing Sudan and seeking refuge in the neighbouring countries. Such a situation has arisen because of the ongoing battle for supremacy in Sudan between the country's army chief Abdel Fattah Burhan, the de facto ruler of the country and his deputy, General Mohammed Hamdan Dagalo, also known as Hemedti, the chief of the country's paramilitary force,the Rapid Support Forces (RSF). The battle has taken such a nasty turn that the army has resorted to airstrikes against the RSF fighters, who have taken positions in populated areas of the country's capital, Khartoum and nearby cities including Bahri and Ombdurman. On the face of it, the disagreement between the two generals seems to be over the process of the country's transition to a civilian rule and incorporation of 100,000-strong RSF into the army. But basically, it is yet another spell of bloody face-off involving power-hungry generals that began since the country got its freedom from colonial rule in 1956. The transitional government that was formed following the overthrow of the three decades long military rule of Omar al-Bashir in 2019 was again toppled in a military coup in 2021 by the present army chief, Burhan. The RSF head, Hemedti, had been his close associate in running the affairs of the country since. General Burhan took power from the long-time military ruler Omar Bashir when the people of Sudan were engaged in street battles against the dictator. Obviously, General Burhan justified his takeover with a promise of ultimately handing over power to an elected civilian government. But to all intents and purposes that is not going to happen.
It is said that the military acted when the RSF deployed its men at different points in the country in its (RSF's) bid to take control of the country's economic assets including gold mines. This clearly points to the fact that Sudan has remained a poor country because its people could never exercise their right over the nation's resources. Why should a country be poor when it has gold mines? Apart from gold, it has also other mineral resources like zinc, nickel, aluminum, lead, cobalt, gypsum, chromite, phosphates and more.
Unfortunately, no African country rich in mineral resources could ever see political stability since they got their political freedom from their erstwhile colonial rulers. Sudan is no exception. The post-colonial indigenous rulers, be they army men or politicians have in most cases been self-serving, power-hungry and corrupt people. In collusion with strong business lobbies of the countries that once ruled them, these post-colonial rulers never allowed the common people to have their say in the affairs of their own country. So, they remained poor. Many of these post-colonial rulers were great nationalists and revolutionaries during the time of anti-colonial struggles. But once in power, they forgot the promise they earlier made to their people. Perhaps with the exception of Nelson Mandela of South Africa, most other liberation heroes of Africa failed their people. Consider the state of post-Mandela South Africa, or Zimbabwe or the Democratic Republic of Congo where fifty per cent of the world's gold reserves lie. Not only gold, Africa is also home to most other precious minerals including platinum, uranium, diamond, copper, cobalt, and, not to mention oil. The continent also has large tracts of agricultural land and sources of freshwater. But extreme poverty, social strife and military coups seem to be synonymous with Africa.
At the moment, Sudan is perhaps going through its worst moment in history. In the words of its former prime minister, Abdalla Hamdok, the present clash in Sudan is not just between the army and a rebel group. On the contrary, it is more like between two armies, well-trained and well-armed. The country risks degenerating into a condition now prevailing in Syria, Libya, Ethiopia and Somalia.So, before Sudan turns into another Ethiopia or, worse, Somalia, the world must act and act fast.

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