British Imperialism and the Crisis in the Sudan Essay

Sudan also known as the Republic of Sudan is located in the Northern part of Africa, in the Nile Vally. Sudan is the third largest country in the African continent. The Nile River which runs from the North to South in the middle of the country divides it in half. Imperialism had an important role in Sudan’s history. The reasons Britain controlled Sudan are numerous, but the main reasons were because they wanted to control the Nile River that flowed through Sudan, Britain wanted to expand their territory, and because of Sudan's resources.

Since the beginning of modern civilization, man has had a burning desire for land. European nations in particular are well known for being those of imperialists, the act of extending a nation’s power or economy through the process of acquiring land. The strive for power in Africa can be seen dating back to the late 18th century, and continued throughout the early 20th. Europeans practiced imperialism in Africa for several centuries for reasons including economic opportunities, national pride, and the interpreted moral responsibilities.

After these two genocides, one may look at the past and ask, how could this death and destruction possibly happen again? The bad part is that it is happening again in the Darfur region of Sudan. This region is “about the size of Texas” (DarfurScores, par. 1) and “five thousand die every month”

Darfur is the western region of the African country of Sudan. Currently, the people of Darfur have been continually attacked by the Sudanese army and by proxy-militia controlled by the Sudanese government. Families are being uprooted and starved, children tormented and murdered by the thousands and women raped without punishment. Innocent civilians in Darfur continue to be victims of unthinkable brutality. Many people have become homeless and seek protection in refugee camps in Chad. Yet despite its outward appearance, Darfur has a vast ethnic diversity and a complex, ancient system of resolving conflict. Genocide has occurred in several places around the world, but in Darfur there are certain reasons why it

‘The war in Darfur” is an armed conflict in the Sudan Darfur region that began in 2003 and is still ongoing, and in 2005 it was later declared as a civil war against Chad and Central African Republic.

Ever since the start of the civil war (December 2013) in South Sudan, tensions have been running high between two opposing groups. Those who support the President, Salva Kiir, and those who support his fired deputy, Rick Machar. This conflict has caused food shortages and disease for many people. The one thing the parties have in common is the brutal violence especially towards women. According to the article,

Fighting between the Muslim government in Khartoumand Christian rebel forces located in southern Sudan has long been ignored.This struggle has caused nothing but devastation and depravation for in theregion. More than two millionpeople have died as a result of the conflict, including many innocent civilians. In addition, extremely valuableresources that would surely benefit the entire global economy, are beingneglected and the with the minimized benefits only helping a few . As is the case in most if not all civilwars power is what each side is struggling over. .The north and south werejoined for no good

The ongoing genocide in Darfur is in desperate need of help. As the first genocide of the 20th century it impacts us directly. The men, women and children of Darfur are being exposed to death, rape and even water contamination.The Janjaweed is the root of the destruction in Darfur has motivated economic power, political power and a plain simple rivalry over the non- Muslim and the non-Arab. The Janjaweed translates to devils on horseback they got there name for a reason they ride around horseback armed with assault rifles and intentions of destruction.

In recent times, the media has highlighted the genocide that has been occurring in Darfur, Sudan. Darfur, Sudan is a country roughly the size of the state of Texas (Darfur Scores, n.d.). Genocide is the systematic killing of an entire ethnic group of people from a national, ethnic, or religious group, or an attempt to do away with them all (Darfur Scores, n.d.). Beginning around 2003, according to Darfur Scores (n.d.), “the Sudanese government in Khartoum and the government-sponsored Janjaweed militia have used rape, displacement, organized starvation, threats against aid workers and mass murder. Violence, disease, and displacement continue to kill thousands of innocent Darfurians every month.”

How would it make you feel if your parents left you on the side of the road at a young age? Essentially that’s what Britain did to Sudan. During the stage of imperialism, Britain indirectly governed Sudan from 1899 to 1956. After being governed by Britain for 57 years, Sudan found it difficult to build a stable and effective government. Sudan didn’t have a government for years, which lead to difficulty trying to survive. They have lacked and are still lacking human rights, economy, and the quality of living of their people. When the British left, Sudan was at a huge disadvantage.

The origin of the war between these two regions goes back to the 1950s when the country, which was previously two separate nations, was made one after World War II by the west. Shortly after this union, Sudan was emancipated from England. 1983 marks the beginning of the violent relations between the North and South Sudan. The initiation of this conflict was brought forth by the Islamic Sudanese of the North, invading with military force the Southern Sudanese Christians . From 1983, it is estimated that at least two million people have been killed in the violent duration of this genocide, most of whom are of the Christian faith and lead non-violent civilian lives. Attention on human trafficking was brought into the international community’s scope with close proximity to the beginning of the violence as two professors from the University of Khartoum shed light on the subject. Ushari Ahmad Mahumud and Suleyman Ali Baldo learned about the genocide and enslavement being practiced on the Dinka people, a tribal group in the southern Sudan, and upon this discovery they dicided to investigate it further. What they found was that raiders from the north were killing the Southern Christian men and kidnapping the women and children to be sold into slavery. The most disturbing part of this discovery was the newfound knowledge that this had been going on for over two years. Professors Mahumud and Baldo

South Sudan is a land that has been dominated by external powers throughout the past two centuries. These external powers have contributed greatly to the South’s feelings of oppression and lack of development in the region throughout the years. South Sudan began the struggle for freedom during the early nineteenth century, when the Ottoman-Egyptian forces of Muhammad Ali made excursions south of Egypt to the land known as “Bilad Al-Sudan” or “land of the blacks”. Ali was in search of slaves in order to produce an army and successfully annexed the land by 1821. This excursion led to a fierce and firm rule right through the region. Although efforts were made to prevent the practice and trade of slaves along with the rule of the Egyptians, the attempts were largely unsuccessful all throughout the majority of the 1800’s.

With the Black Lives Matter movement at an all-time high, Dream Kardashian being born, and protests about Trump becoming president many people have forgotten about South Sudan. South Sudan in the world’s youngest nation located in East-central Africa. It is a country that is rich in oil, but it is also one of the least developed countries in the world since it has been in decades of civil war. South Sudan gained its independence from Sudan in 2011. The country has fought numerous civil wars, the most recent being due to the collapse of a peace deal, signed by the two opposing factions, President Salva Kirr, and Riek

From 1972 onwards, the government “usually ran Darfur through officials brought in from other parts of Sudan, mainly from Khartoum” (Darfur: Origins). What Britain did basically doomed Non-Arab Darfur to “a future as an underdeveloped colony of Sudan’s Arab-speaking Nile Valley heartland” (Darfur: Origins).

According to Amnesty International (2012), “throughout Sudan, the government routinely represses human rights defenders, political opponents, and ordinary civilians subjecting many to torture and other forms of ill-treatment.” Since the Darfur conflict erupted in February 2003, systematic human rights abuses have occurred. These abuses include killing, torture, rape, looting and destroying property. All parties have been involved, but these abuses have mostly been committed by the Sudanese government and government-backed Janjawid militia. These attacks have led to the death of hundreds of thousands of people in Darfur, with an estimated two million internally displaced people and another 250,000 refugees