Abstract
The chapter recognises that the split between the two Sudans has given to political, economic and security challenges, and that these have been insufficiently addressed by the two Sudans in post-separation decade. Separate sections of the chapter focus on border issues between Sudan and Sudan, particularly, contentious issue of the oil-rich sectors. Flashpoints in the borderlands are identified and contemporary factors contributing to long-running disputes are discussed. It is suggested that if left to fester, conflict will not end by itself. Therefore, scholars need to define and identify the ‘borderlands’ as a legitimate space for research on social and economic interactions among diverse peoples and forms of livelihoods, peoples who are marginalised and entangled in crises beyond their power to control. It is also noted that the greatest potential for renewed conflict lies in the alignment of local resource-based disputes with conflicts between political and economic actors at the sub-national and national levels. National and international stakeholders must therefore work to promote resolution of local disputes and resource-sharing agreements to improve the prospects for peaceful, neighbourly relations between the two Sudans
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Notes
- 1.
About the Author Abdalbasit Saeed, the author, is a socio-cultural anthropologist, currently working as Independent Researcher/ Consultant. He graduated from the Faculty of Economic and Social Studies at the University of Khartoum in 1971 and obtained a masters degree in 1978 from the universitys Institute of African and Asian Studies. He earned a PhD (1982) in socio-cultural anthropology at the University of Connecticut Storrs, USA. Abdalbasit Saeed can be reached at saeedabdalbasit4@gmail.com.
- 2.
Andrew Natsios (Sudan Vision, 28 August 2012), the US special envoy to Sudan in 2006–2007, says: “Currently … government is under attack by various rebel armies with an estimated combined strength of 60,000, as well as protests sparked by the withdrawal of gas subsidies, massive budget deficits, failed harvests and steep increases in food prices. Bashir’s days may be numbered. Yet his removal would not end the conflict; it could even trigger a new civil war. The groups challenging Bashir are united by their common hatred of him and his party rather than by a shared vision for Sudan’s future. But were they to topple him, they would soon be at odds with one another over a longstanding, unresolved debate that has haunted Sudan from its founding: the proper relationship between Islam and the Sudanese state … The rebel coalition that is now at war with Khartoum includes pro-democracy groups that advocate a secular state, respect for fundamental freedoms and human rights, a multiparty political system and a secular civil code—principles that are included in the coalition’s manifesto … If they, and their allies in the West, want Bashir out, they should have no illusions about prospects for a democratic, peaceful future for Sudan.”
- 3.
The chapter uses evidence contained in fieldwork notes and the findings of a study on Factors Contributing to Conflict among Pastoralists, Agro-Pastoralists and Settled Farmers, to Mitigate Conflict in Sudan. (Nomadic Peoples: special issue, Vol.13 Issue-1, 2009: 173–176). The study was contracted to the French company Egis Bceom International and financed by the World Bank during 2009–10. The author participated for 18 months as leader of the research team.
- 4.
In 2015 the International Defence Exhibition was held in Abu Dhabi, UAE. Sudan, defined as the third largest weapons producer in Africa, showcased products made by its Military Industry Corporation,displaying a range of weapons and military equipment, including small arms, light weapons and ammunition, six military vehicles, two naval boats, communications and optical equipment, and an electronic firing range simulator. The Small Arms Survey documented launchers among the weapons used by the South Sudan Liberation Movement/Army in Unity state in April 2013. The Human Security Baseline Assessment investigators have also documented many of the weapons on display in countries such as Côte d’Ivoire, the DRC, South Sudan and Somalia.
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Saeed, A. (2017). Borderlands and the Restructuring of Sudan following South Sudan’s Secession. In: Bereketeab, R. (eds) State Building and National Identity Reconstruction in the Horn of Africa . Palgrave Macmillan, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-39892-1_6
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