In Sudan little thought was given to the vast tribal, ethnic, and religious distinctions, or even the cultural and social differences, when historical boundaries were geographically redefined by the colonial powers. Muslim Arabs live in the north, and Christian Africans and animist tribes occupy the south. In the west, the Darfur region has more than eighty tribes composed of farmers who are predominantly black Africans with Muslim beliefs, coexisting with nomads who are of Arabic descent--consistently fighting over the same land. Since independence in 1956, Sudan’s irrational borders--deep-rooted ethnic differences--have brought about strife and civil war.
Sudan’s contentious boundaries have scarred the country, its government has been splintered, and the people left with a legacy of tribal and ethnic conflicts. Civil war and military uprisings have destabilized the country, raging on for nearly twenty years in which more than two million people have died. In the 1970’s an agreement was reached offering compromises, and self-rule to the south, that led to a status-quo for ten years.
Sudan’s civil war and strife have caused a debilitating agricultural and economic catastrophe. Food shortages caused by agricultural neglect, lack of education, limited health care, and unemployment have affected both the north and south. In 1982 the Sudanese government attempted to institute Islamic policies toward the south--four million people fled the country. In 1989 the National Islamic Front took control of the government intending to build an Islamic state. The country should have been divided instead, to avert further ethnic violence.
Sudan’s chaotic situation was further exacerbated when al-Qaeda linked radical Islamists were given a safe haven—including Osama bin Laden-- rom1991 until 1996. He could have been captured, but the U.S. refused the offer, instead pressing only for his return to Afghanistan.
Due to inaccurate security concerns the U.S. embassy in Khartoum was closed in 1996, which limited any diplomatic relations. Our embassy was reopened in 2003, however without an accredited ambassador since. Hence with the U.S. policy of not engaging with countries that support terrorism left a limited diplomatic relationship with Sudan. Numerous U.S. Special Envoys have been appointed for intermittent periods, making our presence nominally effective. It was “erratic diplomacy” at best.
Peace negotiations led to the signing of a Peace Accord in 2005, heralded as a historic event. At the time CNN noted that, “After nearly three years of negotiations, Sudan’s government and main rebel group have signed [a] comprehensive peace accord to end more than 21 years of civil war”. A self-determination referendum set for January 2011, by southern Sudan, was to provide peace between the Khartoum government and Juba’s Sudan People’s Liberation Movement. The Republic of South Sudan was born on July 9, 2011, however an important element was left out—a defined border between both countries. The ownership of the oil-rich Abyei region that separates both regions and a lack of ethnic and tribal land considerations will continue to fester.
The oil producing region located in the south has been an economic obstacle which should have been addressed in the Peace Accord. The U. S. was a key broker, allowing for an undefined, irrational border to be the result –an outcome no better than the colonialist legacy of the 1950′s. In essence the U.S. was willing to accept two independent countries--without fixed border-- just to get a deal done.
To further complicate matters, the U.S. has wanted to remove Sudan’s President Omar Hassan Ahmed al-Bashir, by having him arrested and sent to the International Criminal Court to face charges of genocide, crimes against humanity, and war crimes. This has affected the U.S. attempt to be a peace negotiator between the two countries. Fighting and chaos continues between Sudan and South Sudan armies, and rebel militia forces. Recently tribal fighting has increased in the border region, between the dominant Dinka tribe and smaller Nuer tribe.
In 2012, President Obama noted in an Associated Press article, that “Sudan and South Sudan have been drawing closer to a full scale war in recent months over the unresolved issues of sharing oil revenues and a disputed border”. Last week several hundred Dinka and Nuer tribal members were killed fighting in the Jonglei state; thousands of people have fled to UN bases seeking safety. This recent outbreak was brought about by South Sudan’s President Salva Kiir a Dinka, dismissing vice president Riek Machar a Nuer, accusing him of an attempted coup.
Since independence in 2011, South Sudan’s economy had suffered from periods of dispute with Sudan, which control’s the oil pipelines in the land-locked country. The impoverished southern state has suffered as a result. The political tension in South Sudan has also become more pronounced with Mr. Kiir losing public support, for a lack of jobs and the country’s promised development.
Due to the ethnic clashes, last Wednesday President Obama authorized U.S. military personnel to be sent to protect our embassy in Juba. A year earlier in neighboring Libya, a lack of security allowed the U.S. diplomatic mission in Benghazi to be overrun by insurgents who killed the U.S. ambassador and three other Americans--the U.S. wanted to be better prepared this time.
Peace and security cannot be achieved without defined borders. Any solution needs to include in the governing process differing ethnic and tribal cultures. Sending another U.S. Special Envoy will not bring about a peaceful solution. Accredited U.S. ambassadors to both countries may over time help facilitate a diplomatic resolution, which needs to include the western Darfur region. Defined borders would be a good start, as well as an oil-sharing agreement, sustainable development, job creation, education, and health care--the real needs that could lead to peace in the region.