On February 10th, Taqaddum, Sudan’s largest anti-war coalition, eventually split.
The disagreement was whether to join a new parallel government, established by the Paramilitary Rapid Support Forces (RSF), one of the belligerent parties in Sudan’s nearly two years of war.
Formed in October 2023, the Taqaddum Coalition includes armed movements, political parties and civil society activists, led by former prime minister Abdallah Hamduk, who was overthrown by the Sudanese Army and RSF in 2021.
Currently, Taqaddum is divided into two parts.
The member who achieved political status in parallel management of the RSF is now known as the Taasis (Foundation). They are primarily an armed move, analysts told Al Jazeera.
“As armed groups don’t have constituencies, they rely on big armed actors. [like the RSF] “We’ve been working hard to get the most out of our lives,” said Kholood Khair, founding director of Confluence Advisory Think Tank.
Traditional political leaders, including Hamduk, who chose not to join the RSF, are trying to form a smaller anti-war coalition called Somoud (resilience), and maintain their neutrality and reputation, she said. .
“No need for political parties [a guarantor] And it’s political suicide for them to form a government with RSF… they don’t want to be seen as forming a government with genocider,” she adds, saying that RSF committed genocide in Darfur, Sudan Regions mentioned US decisions.
Contaminated labels
Taqaddum was originally an anti-war coalition that mediated the end of the conflict that broke out between the RSF and the Army in April 2023, following the conflict over how and when the former could be integrated into the latter.
The conflict has caused the greatest humanitarian crisis through most measures, killing tens of thousands of people in armed conflicts, hunger has been declared in several regions, and about 12 million people have been uprooted from their homes.
Taqaddum already struggled due to its relevance, and many of its private politicians were perceived as too close to the RSF during mediation talks. Ostensibly it aims to end the war and resume the transition to democratic rule, which was derailed by the 2021 coup.
Taqaddum’s reputation was hit much harder when it signed the Declaration of Principles (DOP) with the RSF in January 2024.
The DOP is said to have aimed to restore service regulations in areas under RSF control and ensure that the group respects basic war laws.
However, the deal comes days after RSF captured the Wadma tick, the capital of Sudan’s The Bread Basket Gezilla province.
At the time, Taqaddum was considered by many to whitewash RSF abuse by signing the DOP.
The agreement also sparked “growth of concern that some of Takadam is in harmony with the RSF” among many western diplomats, said Alan Boswell, Sudan expert at the International Crisis Group.
Hamid Kalafara, a Sudanese policy analyst and doctoral candidate at the University of Manchester, agreed that the signature exacerbated Takadam’s legitimacy crisis.
“The RSF keeps saying what Taqaddum wants to hear and the military is so resistant that there was the issue of Taqaddum working with the RSF and being a little along with the RSF. [to peace talks]Karafara told Al Jazeera.
A new start?
Analysts say that in Al Jazeera, the division is a “blessing of disguise” as Somoud members can distance themselves from the RSF, “reform themselves” and have better connections with Sudanese civilians. He said it could be.
Boswell predicts that Somoud is currently less contaminated than Takadam, but is significantly smaller as a coalition, and that he will “wait and see” before deciding whether the West will consider it a neutral actor.
He also believes at best Somoud could be part of a broader private unified government. There, most officials are in line with one of two war parties as part of a power-sharing agreement to end the war.
Khalafallah said Somoud should do more outreach to local organisations and activist groups, ensuring that their rhetoric is not separated from the reality of Sudanese civilians on earth.
“They can admit that people have a better experience. [the army] Kalafara spoke to Al Jazeera, emphasizing that Somaud could maintain its neutrality as such approval is not inconsistent with the Army and RSF’s call to end this war soon, and that Somaud could maintain its neutrality. .
Somoud spokesman Bakley Elmedni is an associate professor in the Faculty of Business, Government and Information Sciences at Long Island University, and Somoud has always been outreached, and criticism that Takadum was too close to RSF was the Army. He says he thinks it is part of the support smear campaign. Against the anti-war alliance.
He claims that the Army helped write the DOP and is invited to sign, but refuses to attend and instead frames it as a coalition that “sympathizes or endorses” Taqaddum.
“We had known the accusations from day one [against Taqaddum] He told Al Jazeera.
“But that influenced the impression of Taqaddum, but frankly, I don’t think there is any evidence to suggest that Taqaddum supports RSF.”
Many civilians across the country are eager to RSF, and welcome the recapture of the Army’s territory, saying that the Army will bring some form of stability.
However, the Army is also accused of committing a wave of retaliatory killings against perceived RSF sympathizers. When human rights groups, UN monitors and activists are on the ground, attacks can take place across ethnic boundaries or against activists and local relief workers.
Army spokesman Nabil Abdullah has repeatedly denied such allegations against Al Jazeera.
Source link
