John Gillman
Since April 2023, Sudan’s civil war has unleashed an unrelenting nightmare, especially for the poor and working class, showing the complete incapacity of capitalism to take society forward. None of the different wings of the capitalist class, whether it be the generals, the paramilitary leaders or the past civilian rulers, has a way of ending the war to bring in a ‘stable government’.
The conflict has brought widespread suffering, with carpet bombing, dreadful sexual violence, even the poisoning of food with raw fertiliser – no wonder there has been over 150,000 civilian casualties and a staggering displacement of over 12 million people from a population of 50 million.
Disease is spreading rapidly, and famine which the war has brought has been called the “the world’s largest humanitarian catastrophe… and the world’s largest hunger crisis” by the United Nations, with over 25 million – half the population – suffering acute food shortages.
This tragic situation stems from a counter-revolution against the falsely promised July 2023 elections and the mass protests led by neighbourhood resistance committees calling for full civilian rule. The 2019 revolution, which toppled the long-standing dictator Omar al-Bashir, resulted only in a fragile power-sharing agreement between a capitalist civilian government including the ‘Forces of Freedom and Change’ and the military, falling short of what could have been achieved given the masses coming onto the scene of history and a powerful two-day general strike. If a party had been in existence that had been built among the working class and poor, then the movement five years ago could have had a more insurrectionary character, sweeping aside capitalism and its corrupt hangers-on.
Many of the big international and regional powers have been involved backing one side or another.
The Rapid Support Forces (RSF), led by General Mohamed Hamdan Dagalo, also known as Hemeti, was formed in 2013 from the Janjaweed militia, infamous for horrific crimes in Darfur. The RSF had since been deployed to suppress uprisings and demonstrations when the army was deemed unreliable. In 2013, after IMF-mandated fuel subsidy cuts triggered mass protests in Sudan, the RSF killed 100 protesters after arriving with machine guns on the back of their pickup trucks. During the mass movement in 2019, it massacred 128 people in Khartoum and threw many in the Nile for the crocodiles to eat. That doesn’t stop the RSF being backed by other elites including the United Arab Emirates – which has been buying gold after the RSF took over gold mines – Libyan warlords, and, at times, Russia, though Russian support may be shifting under pressure from Iran and its other allies.
Meanwhile, the Sudanese Armed Forces (SAF), led by General Abdel Fattah al-Burhan, has its own backing from Egypt and is apparently being supplied by Turkey and Iran, and has also committed atrocities, including bombing civilian areas in Khartoum and elsewhere.
Both the RSF and the army have shown little concern for the interests of the working class and poor, focusing instead on enriching themselves, their elite allies, and their foreign backers.
Western imperialism has also been courted and has attempted to organise peace talks, and would probably happily deal with whichever gangster general wins. But these talks have collapsed as both sides in Sudan still believe they can win outright.
Workers and youth movements
Beyond the recent uprisings and revolution, Sudan’s working class and poor have a long and proud history of struggle. The Sudanese Communist Party was once the second largest in Africa, galvanising support among young people and workers, particularly on the railways and in other key sectors. However, this momentum was squandered. Instead of arming the masses with a clear socialist programme, the party focused on a ‘Sudan-first’ strategy, seeking progressive capitalists that are no more than a mirage in reality. Yet the masses have stepped into history many times including during the ‘Khartoum Spring’ in 1964 and the revolution of 1985 removing General Nimeiry. But each time they end dictatorship, when the ruling class feels confident it won’t be challenged, another coup takes place to keep the masses from going too far. Any idea of even capitalist democracy would pose a threat to the corrupt ruling elites. There has been little political stability since independence in 1956 with 17 coups taking place.
Neighbourhood committees
The neighbourhood committees had the potential to become a mass force during the 2019 revolution when they met and discussed the next steps, organising protests. This was kept up, even against the military coup in 2021. However, not being armed with a socialist programme, they fell short in taking the revolution forward, coat-tailing the movement looking for progress in the capitalist nightmare, despite their bravery, being targeted by the state and some of their leaders being assassinated.
They now play a role of anti-war and humanitarian activity. A new movement in the any part of the Middle East such as Egypt or Iran could have a powerful echo in Sudan itself. If they learn the lessons of the struggles, revolutions and the Arab Spring arm themselves with a socialist internationalist programme, then the Sudanese working class, youth and poor can once again rise, end the civil war and sweep away the rule of the gangster generals and the whole rotten, corrupt capitalist system.
