Political Scene

Umma Party Memorandum to

 IRI & NDI Delegation To SUDAN

JANUARY 2002

The Umma Party welcomes your joint delegation, and deams it a welcome aspect of bi-partisanship in fundamental issues, and values it as most appropriate for the US to champion the causes of Peace, Democracy, Development, Religious understanding, and dialogue between Cultures and Civilizations. Nothing short of such involvement would comply with America’s moral and strategic Global role.

About UMMA Party

The Sudanese Patriots who established  Umma Party in Feb 1945 as the fist Popular Political Party, aimed at attaining the country’s independence from the Condominium Reign. The Umma Party is the Party of Sudanese Independence. It championed that cause until it became the basis for Sudanese consensus in 1955. It bore the brunt of opposition to all the Dictatorial Regimes, which came to power through coup d’etat. It drew the largest electoral votes in all the free General elections, which took place in the Sudan. It masterminded all the initiatives to arrive at a Great Compromise between North and South. It initiated the principle of making citizenship the basis for Constitutional Rights, the recognition of Religious and Cultural plurality in the Sudan, and a program to resolve the issues of Religion and Politics, Religion and State, on a basis which reconciles National unity and Religious loyalties.

Currently the Umma Party is championing the cause of a negotiated Just Peace, and Democratic Transformation and so putting an end to the War and to Totalitarianism.

Democracy in our Belief

It is our firm belief that Democracy constitutes a key to all the other laudable aspirations, namely,

(A)   The pursuit of Peace is basic to National and International survival. However, within National affairs Peace can only be sustained if the terms for Peace are protected by a Democratic Constitution, and so supported by the will of the People. An arbitrary authority could change the Peace terms at will, and bring the whole Peace structure crumbling. Internationally, it is a proven fact that Democracies are loath to go to war, whereas Dictatorship may seek war for all kinds of irrational aims.

(B)   Democracy is key to Development, because dictatorship gives so much priority to Regime security, therefore, the greater slice in the Social Surplus is wasted in institutions and policies designed to suppress the people. This tendency has three results detrimental to development, namely,

·        Neglect of social services, the means for the development of Human Resources.

·        Less funds available for investment, the means for capital accumulation.

·        Engagement in foreign adventures, which lessen International Development cooperation.

(C)   Democracy would encourage and sustain the recognition of Religious Plurality, and peaceful Religious Coexistence.

(D)   It would also encourage and sustain mutual recognition between cultures and civilizations, and the pursuit of cordial relations between them.

Obstacles to Democracy

Unfortunately, Democracy faces many obstacles, which make its realization an up-hill endeavor.  Here are six such obstacles:

First: It goes against the grain of many ascriptive cultural and religious loyalties.

Second: Colonial administrations have transferred power in terms of Democratic institutions. However, towards the very end of their time, they have been developing the institutions of Sate, especially the police and the armed forces as instruments of oppression. They have been suspicious of the institutions of Civil Society: Political Parties, Trade Unions, NGO’s and so on.

Third: A large proportion of the elites in the “Third World” especially in the conditions of the cold war, have been attracted by radical ideologies of Left and Right, and so sought their Utopian programs through non- democratic means.

Fourth: The cold war leaders have encouraged and supported dictatorial Regimes for their own strategic aims.

Fifth: US policy has been in many cases to blame for preferring to deal with dictators because:

-         Democratic leaders give priority to their National Constituencies.

-         They tend to negotiate the basis of relationship with global powers in terms, which do more justice to National interests.

-         Dictators are prepared to toe the line in exchange for support for their questionable Regimes.

Sixth: The Totalitarian Regimes have consistently endeavored to crush the institutions of Civil Society and to soil their image.

Why democracy is inevitable to Sudan?

In spite of these obstacles, there is no alternative to Democracy, but this cannot be taken for granted. It involves very hard work indeed. This is especially so in the Sudan for the following reasons:

·        The Religious, Regional and Cultural balances cannot be outlined and sustained without a democratic context.

·        There is no “Revolution”, which had gained sufficient legitimacy to serve as a starting point, nor is there a dynasty with sufficient consensus to constitute a basis for National Legitimacy.

In the current International concern with terrorism, it must be recognized that dictatorship is, and continues to be, one of the great nests, which hatch Terrorism.

Preconditions for Free Market Economy

It is now generally recognized that the Free Market mechanism is the best engine for Development. However, in the context of the underdeveloped world, the Free Market cannot be taken for granted. Its preconditions are mostly absent. It has to be established. Its establishment requires very hard work. Its establishment in environments, which are so socially and culturally different from Western conditions, requires so much ingenuity to make it sustainable.

.. And for Democracy

The same goes for Democracy. The case for it is overwhelming, but the preconditions for it are wanting. They have got to be fulfilled. Particularly, the necessary institutions: Political Parties, Trade Unions, NGO’s and so on.

Principles of Solution

Sudan has suffered from a fruitless oscillation between unstable Democratic Governments, and oppressive Dictatorial Regimes. Instability, the civil war, and conspiratorial Radical ideologies make coups d’etat and govern oppressively. The failures of dictatorship, the civil- war, and popular resistance overthrow Dictatorship and establish a type of Normative Democracy, and so on. Now, and for the first time in our recent history there is a window of opportunity for mutual recognition between the governing Regime and the other political forces to look for, and possibly find, a way-out through negotiations and a peaceful transfer of power. In theory, the terms for a comprehensive political Agreement are now in place. The Umma Party has put together the attached Principles for a Comprehensive political Agreement, which would, in theory, achieve consensus. However, there are obstacles in the way of realizing this potential. They are:

(a) Some circles within the Regime pay lip service to the above-mentioned principles, but drag their feet about implementation. They drag their feet about:

·        Implementing the necessary Constitutional reform.

·        The elimination of the oppressive laws and institutions.

·        The elimination of the shackles of Totalitarianism, for example, the treatment of the National Congress as the party of the State, the maintenance of partisanship in the leadership of the institutions of the State, and the special status meted to the National congress in the administration of the National Economy.

(b) The Sudanese Peoples Liberation Movement SPLM and Army, are in reality an Army with a political organ, which acts as its public relations organ. Consequently, the SPLM/A is very deficient in terms of ideas and politics. It functions as an army with nothing but command to ensure its cohesiveness. It functions as an army, which is at home in military conflict. Intellectually and politically it is inert.

(c)  The National Political Parties in the opposition show many weaknesses, namely,

·        The political parties, which have developed as satellites of the Regime are no more than show pieces.

·        The New Political Parties, which sprouted in opposition of the Regime have failed to take off. They have broken up as quickly as they have formed.

·        The parties of the National Democratic Alliance (NDA) have mostly lost political momentum and contented themselves with clinging to the wings of the SPLM/A.

·        The Umma Party, which now steers a middle political role between the Regime and the NDA opposition as a moderate opposition Party has done better in terms of developing its political program, and its organization, suffers from years of oppressive denial and engaged in an uphill political struggle.

·        The National Peoples Congress is an organized political force but suffers from being targeted by the Regime, being linked to the totalitarian past, and being consumed by negativism as means of revenge from the Regime.

·        There is a considerable weight of Southern political opinion outside the SPLM/A, but it is highly fragmented.

.. An important weakness in the run up to Democracy in the Sudan is the weakness of the Political Parties.

(d)                                               Trade Unions are even in a worse predicament. There are no free Trade Unions. Trade Unions laws are defective, and the Democratization of Trade Unions is a necessary condition for the run up to Democracy in the Sudan.

(e)                                                The Press has faired better than both the political parties and the Trade Unions. However, the need for a greater Press Freedom in the run up to a Democratic future is imperative.

Towards National Consensus

The Umma Party has built bridges with the Regime, the NDA, the other opposition Parties in the North, and the Southern Political forces. We hope to shepherd the whole process towards a National Consensus around a National Agenda, which would chart the way out of the present predicament and reach an Agreement for just Peace, and a program for Democratic Transformation.

The distrust between many political forces is such that whatever agreement potential there is between the Sudanese, some external catalyst is required.

There are now two serious mediation Initiatives, the IGAD initiative which involves Sudan's Horn of Africa neighbors, and the joint initiative  which involves Egypt and Libya.

There is a necessary role for all six States in the Sudanese Peace and what we hope to achieve is in terms of the following landmarks:

(a)             A Round Table Conference involving all the parties to the conflict, similar to the CONDESA, which resolved the conflict in South Africa.

(b)            A Comprehensive Agenda for the conference which would include all the issues of conflict.

(c)             A facilitation role for our Horn of Africa and North Africa Neighbors.

(d)            An observer role for the International community, which also act as guarantors.

Our neighbors, and our friends in the International Community, would help bridge the confidence gap, as well as help solicit massive aid for the Sudan for Reconstruction and Development when peace and Democratization come.

What can you do to help the Sudanese help themselves into Peace and Democratization?

FIRST: To realize that there is now pervasive war- fatigue in the Sudan in both the North and South.

The war must be stopped immediately and serious negotiations for a just Peace Agreement be sought. The war Agenda must be isolated and discarded.

SECOND: Dictatorship has failed; discarding it through adventurous designs could SOMALIZE  the country. A serious Democratization Program must be established. The totalitarian Agenda must be isolated and defeated.

THIRD: A corollary of the Peace process is a comprehensive Program to eliminate the effects of the civil war and an accompanying reconciliation program.

FOURTH:  The democratization program necessitates a serious program to build up the institutions of civil society, particularly the political Parties, and the free trade unions. This support should extend to all the organizations of civil Society including Thinks-tanks, the Press, and NGO's support, which would strengthen Peace and Democracy.

In the currant International climate, International opinion has an added clout, your moral and political support for the National Agenda in Sudan will be of considerable value.

Specifically, U.S policy must eschew any partisan approach to the problem of the Susan.

Eschew any support for military pressures. Pursue a policy of moral, political and material support for Peace and Demarcation. Carrots and sticks must be meted in terms of Peace and Democratization, which constitute the legitimate aspirations of the Peoples of Sudan.

We hope that your fact-finding mission in Sudan will see how the legitimate aspirations of the Peoples of the Sudan deserve support, and how circumstances make that support viable.

The Umma Party has already engaged in the formation of a Democratic Forum for Africa to be set up by African Democratic Parties. This program should be encouraged, particularly, the Umma Party is prepared to enter into protocols for Democratic cooperation with Western Parties, which give high priority to the cause of Democracy. This would involve capacity building, training, and the exchange of experiences and relevant literature.

Finally, we welcome your visit and wish you a useful and pleasant stay in our country. Your mission would constitute a landmark in Peoples’ Diplomacy. 

Umma Party

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