Bonds of Egyptian Revolution with the regime in Sudan: Pros and Cons
By Mahmoud A. Suleiman
April 21, 2011 — The intense bonds of affection and the close ties between the 25th January Egyptian Revolution and the despotic National Congress Party (NCP) regime in Sudan calls into question and bewilderment, political observers say. This apparently intimate unexpected relationship between a popular revolution that overthrew the autocratic ruler Hosni Mubarak and his 30-year regime and the Fundamentalist NCP government led by the dictator Omar Hassan Ahmed al-Bashir who is required by the International Criminal Court (ICC) for war crimes, crimes against humanity and the genocide against the people Sudan in the region of Darfur is something baffling, disgraceful and disgusting.
The indicators of this unholy relationship started by the unanticipated visit paid by the Egyptian Prime Minister Dr. Essam Sharaf to Sudan at the helm of a high-level delegation that consists of seven ministers which some political analysts thought it was expected to boost Egypt’s ties in the African Continent. This may be particularly crucial with regard to the Nile water shares, in the wake of the Nile source countries who decided to review the previous agreements. On the other hand, the Egyptian Premier’s visit may be considered reciprocation to the earlier visit made by President Omer al- Bashir to Egypt. He was also reported to have said that the visit was conducted to boost Egyptian stances towards Africa, pointing out that number of crucial files was linking Sudan and Egypt. Nevertheless, what is absurd and adding insult on injury was the visit paid by the Twenty-fifth January Egyptian Revolution Youth group to the autocratic ruling National Congress Party (NCP) Youth Organisation in Khartoum on the same period. That visit can not be logically explained its appropriateness to be paid exclusively to the NCP Youth Organisation, in Isolation from the rest of the rebellious Sudanese Youth who is seeking to overthrow the tyrannical government of the autocratic regime of Omar Hassan Ahmed al-Bashir, the worst than the deposed former Egyptian President Hosni Mubarak The Sudanese Facebook Youth are yearning to stage an uprise revolt against the NCP regime regarded the behaviour of their Egyptian counterpart as demeaning and causing severe loss of the dignity of the 25th January Tahrir Square Revolution. But some experts indicated that the group of young Egyptians who visited the National Congress Party (NCP) youth Organisation are ruminants of the Egyptian Muslim Brotherhood Organisation who came to Khartoum to offer support to the dwindling remnants of the infamous and notorious National Islamic Front (NIF), now naming itself National Congress Party (NCP). Many observers, however, have said that the visit is a fatal stab and a betrayal of the Sudanese revolution, which teamed the country as a whole and waiting for a spark at any time and a moment to rise up.
This was followed by the ‘third of the andirons’ reflected as a clear hostility towards the cause of the people of Sudan in Darfur by the position taken by Egyptian government in the meetings of Washington’s debt relief for Sudan, which was held on the sidelines of the Spring Meetings of the World Bank and International Monetary Fund last Friday and Saturday when the Egyptian representative objected the inclusion of the Darfur issue within the terms of debt relief after the conferees made the resolution of the Darfur issue along with the implementation of the Comprehensive Peace Agreement (CPA) as a conditions to exempt Sudan from its foreign debts. Political analyst were reported to have been unable to know and differentiate whether it was the representative of Egypt or that of the government of Sudan who said: (it is acceptable that the creditor countries to focus on enforcement of the Naivasha Agreement as a condition for debt relief, but not Darfur which is ‘Hard’). The people of Sudan are asking the Egyptian representative as to what was ‘Hard’ or difficult about laying down lifting the misery off the people of Sudan in Darfur as one of the conditions for cancelling the 40 billion Dollars owed by the government of Sudan? The Egyptian bloke may mean that, in his callous insensitive opinion, the people of Darfur should not be given their legitimate rights and continue to suffer the ordeal; the opinion firmly held by the Génocidaires of the National Congress Party (NCP) autocratic regime in Khartoum. Other questions which logically pose themselves include:
(1) Isn’t it the right of Darfur to live in peace, security and stability?
(2) Why did Egypt adhere to that outrageous position?
(3) Why did the post revolution Egypt side with the oppressive autocratic regime at the expense of the oppressed?
Possible answers to those mind boggling questions lie in the following:
The representative of Egypt’s heavy-handed treatment of the people of Darfur by objecting the inclusion of the Darfur issue within the terms of debt relief comes from within the same shameful attitudes and conspiracy against the people of Sudan in Darfur held by the Egyptian regime under Hosni Mubarak presidency over the past 8 years. Furthermore, the position corresponds in nature and tallies political positions of the government of Egypt, the Arab and Islamic countries, the Arab League and Organization of Islamic States (OIC) who considered the issue of the people of Sudan in Darfur as an international intervention, Zionist conspiracy, American interests and Western nations’ ambitions in the wealth of Sudan. This is in addition to the so-called joint national security theme peg which Egypt has been orchestrating it over the years which had negative effect on the international resolutions and blatant interference in the decisions of international support for the interests of the Sudanese people. Effectively, the Big Brother Egypt has taken it for granted that Sudan as its southern backyard and gateway whether the Sudanese people liked it or not.
A great disaster loomed in the recent remarks of the former crony of the deposed Egyptian regime of Hosni Mubarak, Dr. Mustafa al-Fagih who tries to play a role similar to that of the National Congress Party (NCP) presidential maternal uncle, the bigot El-Tayeb Mustafa the owner of the Arabic daily newspaper al-Intibaha when he justifies corruption in the Sudanese government institutions and corruption among the (NCP) officials by saying that corruption is rife all over the globe especially among those in the close circle of the rulers. Mustafa al-Fagih in his quest to woe the support of the Sudanese regime for his nomination as Secretary General of the League of Arab States al-Fagih has been quoted as giving an answer to a question relating to the ICC indictment of Omer Hassan Ahmed al-Bashir: (President Omar al-Bashir is characterized by purity of the tongue, and whatever emotional troubles he gets he would not make a mistake and saying any bad word about Egypt), al-Fagih added an extra sentence saying: (I do not think ever that there is a dispute about my passion for Sudan; I was one of the staunchest defender of Sudan’s sovereignty and dignity, with regard to the fabrications of the International Criminal Court, and as far as me, if I assumed the League of Arab States in the post of secretary General I would be dealing with full objectivity).
What is more hurting is that this Mustafa Fagih is going to be the candidate of Egypt for the post of the next Secretary General of the League of Arab States. If he succeeds he will then subject the government of Sudan under pressure and blackmail from the outset. Arab League needs more stronger and integrated person to lead and not individuals of the kind of al-Fagih or Amr Moussa who ironically have become part of the constellation of the 25th January Egyptian Revolution willy-nilly but will remain subservient to the dictators in the Arab World and biased against the interests and the rights of the peoples and citizens of Arab nations which includes the grieving failed and a corrupt remaining part of Sudan, which will be called the State of North Sudan, after the 9th of July 2011 when the south will, sadly, become a separate country.
Dr. Mahmoud A. Suleiman is the Deputy Chairman of the General Congress for the Justice and Equality Movement (JEM). He can be reached at [email protected]