Sudan: The Rise of Closed Districts' Natives (HC) (2021)

Sudan has been pitted by the most brutal civil wars in Africa, which began just prior to its independence in 1956. The root causes of these wars are too many, notably the forcible Islamisation and Arabisation of diverse peoples by all successive governments. These two contentious policies are always a cloak for racism against the indigenous population of the country, have adversely contributed to schism between secularists and Islamists, fuelled identity crisis and caused unimaginable human rights violations. The book discusses the early signs of conflict in the former Closed Districts and the harbinger of unforeseen crisis, which was predicted by a sagacious politician amid the stubbornness of Northern elites and the leaders of sectarian parties. In spite of the looming crises, these pre- and post-independence politicians were jockeying for power that was left over by the departing colonialists. This work also focuses on the conflict in each region of what was once classified as a Closed District and the brutal crackdown by the Khartoum regimes against defenceless civilians. The ferocity of civil war in every war-torn area caused the loss of lives and property, created thousands of internally displaced persons and drove thousands more into neighbouring countries as refugees eking out a frugal living in refugee camps. The thesis also discusses peace initiatives, the stumbling blocks, their outcomes and failures to materialise into a concrete accord; it proposes how the crisis of governance in Sudan can be settled politically and peacefully once and for all.