SUDAN’S NATIONAL UNITY: THE PEACE AND INTEGRATION IN THE TRANSITION

Abstract

Unity and fragmentation are two edges of modern political spectrum of Sudan since it emerged in the 19th century as a result of annexations and diplomacy. As ethnic and religious identity politics have created deep ethnic and religious divisions in the country, several regions in the periphery of Sudan have remained marginalized and disintegrated. On the other hand, there have been always peace initiatives addressing partially or wholly root causes of regional conflicts in order to integrate and unite the country. It seems that Sudan’s peace processes might be considered as integration processes addressing political, economic and social issues either on national or regional levels. The Addis Ababa Peace Agreement in 1972 and the Comprehensive Peace Agreement in 2005 were major attempts in order to save Southern parts of the country and unite Sudan territorially. Today, once again, we witness that transitional government body, which came to power after ouster of former President Omar al-Bashir, designates ending regional conflicts and disputes throughout 2020 Juba Peace Agreement, signed between Khartoum and regional elites in Darfur, South Kordofan, Blue Nile, Northern, Eastern, Central parts and the Third Front-Tamazuj. This paper aims exploring Sudan’s regional disputes and the Juba peace deal from the angle of national integration approach in order to understand whether this time construction of a new Sudan based upon civic values is possible or not.