An increased aerial bombardment campaign, the killing and rape of civilians, and the displacement of people are just some of the atrocities that persist in the border regions between Sudan and South Sudan.
In his latest field dispatch, Enough Project field researcher Nenad Marinkovic reports on recent violence in Sudan’s Blue Nile state, including attacks from Sudanese military forces spanning from September 1 to November 3, which resulted in a prolonged destabilization of the region. Additionally, Marinkovic draws insights from interviews with Malik Agar, the elected governor of Blue Nile, who was overthrown in the offensive. Agar leads the Blue Nile contingent of the SPLM/A-North.
Quoting Agar, Marinkovic writes:
Politically, the problem of Blue Nile is [an] integral part of the Sudanese holistic problem of mismanagement of the diversity and governance, no meaningful share of wealth and powers. (…) Blue Nile does not stand by itself in isolation from the whole.
Citing recent Enough publications, Marinkovic draws parallels linking the recent violence in Sudan. He writes that the conflicts, which now span four areas—Abyei, Blue Nile, Darfur, and South Kordofan—cannot be isolated into singular events, but rather reflect a regional problem that must be solved through a broader process that addresses root causes.
In conclusion, Marinkovic echoes the appeal for a nation-wide approach to conflict resolution in Sudan. He writes, “In the long run, only a comprehensive peace process, fully inclusive of all parties can divert Sudan from the dangerous path on which it is embarked.”
Read the full dispatch “A View from Blue Nile”
Photo: A family displaced by fighting in Blue Nile camps under trees (Enough/Nenad Marinkovic)