The political situation and developments in Sudan

KHARTOUM

After South Sudan's secession through a referendum, following protracted struggles that were also encouraged and incited by Western powers, an unexpected relief was in fact experienced in Sudan. The thought that the North would be deprived of oil revenues because of the oil remaining in the South seems to have had a positive rather than a negative effect. True, an agreement had been reached on a share to be taken from the transport of the oil produced in the South, but because oil production has almost completely stopped due to the civil war that broke out among tribes in the South after the separation and has never subsided, the small amount of revenue expected from there has also stopped. This has led to a more intense search and effort to secure non-oil revenues.

On the other hand, the matter of launching an internal dialogue process came to the fore in order to find a more lasting solution to the Darfur problem, which gave Sudan so much trouble in the past, and as a result of the long dialogue the People's Congress Party (Hizb el Mutemer el Şabi - HKP), led in particular by Turabi, agreed to put its hand under the stone by taking part in the government, even if symbolically. The contribution of this symbolic participation, realized through a Minister of Industry, a Minister of International Cooperation, a Deputy Minister of Petroleum and a Vice Presidency, to the country's peace, reconstruction process and stability is beyond what was expected. In the 400-seat parliament the HKP has 5 members.

Ibrahim el-Senusi, who took over the chairmanship after Turabi's death last year, has now been appointed Vice President; in his place, at the ordinary Congress held last March, Ali el-Hac, who had to live in Germany during the period when the HKP was kept out of politics, is now conducting the party's chairmanship.

HASAN TURABI'S POLITICAL REALISM

The dialogue process had in fact been started under Turabi's leadership. In response to the games recently played over Sudan, Turabi had begun to put more emphasis on the unity and well-being of Sudan with all its components, and had made clear that for this the party was ready to make every concession if necessary. This responsible and wise approach of Turabi, who has always had an important place in Sudan's political balances since the second half of the sixties, created greater responsibility and prestige in society.

In this respect he strongly resembles Ghannouchi, the leader of Tunisia's Nahda movement. Not only does he resemble him, in fact in terms of political views they run parallel in their emphasis on democracy, on women's social and political participation, and on the open-ended character of Islamic jurisprudence, especially political jurisprudence, rather than its being a closed and fixed package. In addition, they resemble each other in the conciliatory attitude and style they display in favor of stability and national gains in their countries.

Chairman Ali el-Hac and Vice President Ibrahim Senusi hosted us for lunch at the party's headquarters together with the party's senior leadership. At the reception there were also senior-level people from the ruling National Congress Party (UKP). In this visit, el-Hac pointed out that Turabi and his movement are the oldest among contemporary Islamic political movements to combine the experience of power with Islamic political theory.

Indeed, as someone who experienced all forms of both opposition and government from early on, Turabi's views on Islamic politics are realistic and mature thoughts in which theory and practice are shaped by feeding off each other in the best way. It may perhaps be said that modern Islamic political thought up to Turabi was an excessively theoretical and untested desk-and-lectern study. These studies, which were excessively utopian and detached from realities, of course carry meaning not only as a theoretical analysis but also in terms of the political hermeneutics of those who voiced them in the basins in which they flourished. In contrast, the models that Islamic movements have reflected into political theory by knowing, experiencing and getting to know power must by all means be assessed with their errors and their merits.

Today, in the face of the external attacks Sudan is encountering and on securing internal unity, both parties are working together. They are united in view and action that the region must be developed in order to solve the Darfur problem, and they are trying to develop serious projects toward this end.

SUDAN BETWEEN 15 JULY AND ITS OWN COUP ATTEMPT

The expectation that the embargo applied to the country for years will soon be lifted is by now a datum on which all planning is based these days. In fact China and many European countries have already begun to enter Sudan strongly in the post-embargo period. In this process Turkey's slowness compared to other countries is a matter of reproach.

Sudan also holds an important place in the plan of the UAE crown prince Mohammed bin Zayed to design the entire Islamic world through military and various coup regimes diametrically opposed to their own peoples. There are serious data that behind a coup attempt that was discovered early and against which measures were taken recently lies the intervention of him and of Egypt's putschist dictator Sisi.

MAARIF FOUNDATION SCHOOLS

Sudan, which lived through 15 July virtually simultaneously with Turkey and with the same emotion, with its government and its people, has through this coup attempt aimed at themselves come closer to seeing themselves as having a common destiny with Turkey. Indeed, on 15 July the first target of the Sudanese people, who came down to the streets together with the people of Turkey, was the FETÖ schools here. Thus the transfer of the FETÖ school in Sudan took place that night through the direct intervention of the Sudanese people. After a year of Sudanese administration, these schools were recently transferred to the Maarif Foundation. We visited. The Maarif Foundation has taken over the work here with a new, young and dynamic group. With the newly appointed staff, most of whom know Arabic, the Maarif Foundation schools give every sign that they will function as a real channel of communication between Turkey and Sudan.