Chronology of Events December 1955 - March 1993

GLOSSARY

DUP        Democratic Unionist Party

NANS    National Alliance for National Salvation

NDA       National Democratic Association (or Forum)

NIF         National Islamic Front

NUP        National Unionist Party

OAU       Organization of African Unity

PDF        Popular Defence Force

PMLS     Popular Movement for the Liberation of Sudan

RCC        Revolutionary Command Council

RCCNS   Revolutionary Command Council for National Salvation

SBA        Sudan Bar Association

SPLA      Sudan People's Liberation Army

SPLM     Sudan People's Liberation Movement

SSLM     Southern Sudan Liberation Movement

SSU        Sudanese Socialist Union

TMC       Transitional Military Council

UP           Umma Party

CHRONOLOGY

1955

19 December

Sudan's parliament, first elected in 1954 under the terms of the Anglo-Egyptian Agreement of 1953, and under the supervision of an international commission, unanimously declares the country an independent republic. Britain and Egypt, which began administering the Sudan in 1898, accept the declaration as a fait accompli, and the country becomes independent on 1 January 1956. One of the features of the new administration is that far fewer southerners have been advanced to replace departing British and Egyptian civil servants than the region's size had led southerners to expect. As a result of southern fears of northern domination of an independent Sudan, a mutiny of southern troops against northern officers five months before independence quickly escalates into Sudan's first civil war. Beginning in 1956 Sudan is ruled by a number of different coalition governments, and the country spends a total of 27 of the next 37 years under military rule. The first civil war ends in 1972; the second begins 11 years later in 1983. (Africa South of the Sahara 1990 1989, 953; Deng 1992, 40-41; Middle East Report Sept.-Oct. 1991a, 4-6; Woodward 1990, 89)

1958

17 November

In the face of growing parliamentary division and deteriorating economic conditions, the military, under the leadership of Major-General Ibrahim Abboud, assumes power from the civilian administration. Abboud dissolves political parties and institutes a state of emergency. (Africa South of the Sahara 1990 1989, 953; Holt and Daly 1988, 170-71)

1964

October

Abboud is forced to surrender political power to a transitional civilian government when a general strike brings the country to a halt. Growing frustration in the south with the government's perceived suppression of southern identity, coupled with the rise of the loosely knit guerrilla army Anya Nya, have indirectly led to the fall of the regime. Military action before the fall has forced thousands of southerners to seek asylum in neighbouring countries. The transitional government lasts until June 1965, when elections bring to power a coalition government composed of the Umma Party (UP) and the National Unionist Party (NUP). (Holt and Daly 1988, 178-80; Africa South of the Sahara 1990 1989, 953-54)

1969

May

A group of officers under the leadership of Colonel Gaafar Mohammed Nimeiri seize political power. All existing political institutions and organizations are abolished and the "Democratic Republic of Sudan" is proclaimed, with supreme authority vested in the Revolutionary Command Council (RCC). (Europa 1992 1992, 2544)

1971

19 July

An attempted coup by officers allied to the Sudanese Communist Party fails, leading to severe reprisals and a purge of leftists from the army and the government. One of the long-term effects of the failed coup is a deterioration in relations with the East Bloc, which Nimeiri accuses of complicity. (Holt and Daly 1988, 198-99)

October

A referendum confirms Nimeiri's nomination as president of the republic. The RCC is dissolved and a new government is formed. (Europa 1992 1992, 2544)

1972

March

In recognition of Anya Nya's growing strength and the realization that a degree of southern autonomy and not further military action will end the civil war, the government pursues secret meetings with southern leaders in exile. An agreement with representatives of the South Sudan Liberation Movement (SSLM) is reached at a conference in Addis Ababa. The agreement groups Sudan's three southern provinces--Bahr al-Ghazal, Equatoria and Upper Nile--into a self-governing region with a People's Regional Assembly and a High Executive Council or cabinet. The agreement stipulates that there will be no discrimination on the basis of religion, ethnic background, place of birth, tribe or sex. Another important provision stipulates that the armed forces in the south will be under a Southern Command consisting of 6,000 officers from the north and 6,000 from the south. The agreement brings the first civil war to an end and removes an important source of tension in the Nuba mountains. Elections to the newly created People's Regional Assembly take place in November 1973. (News From Africa Watch 10 Dec. 1991, 4; The Economist Intelligence Unit 1988, 4; Europa 1992 1992, 2544; Holt and Daly 1988, 201-02)

1973

April

Sudan's permanent constitution is adopted, confirming the president as the head of state and head of government. In addition to making the president commander of the armed forces and head of the public service, the judiciary is made directly responsible to the president for its functions and performance. The Sudanese Socialist Union (SSU) is recognized as the sole legal political organization in the country. (Halasa et al 1986, 36)

The State Security Act is adopted. It creates numerous political offences and gives broad powers of search and arrest to the state security services. (Ibid.)

1978

April

Oil is discovered in southern Sudan in an area near Bentiu in the province of Upper Nile. The discovery ignites a debate over who controls the resource and how it is to be developed. (Gurdon 1984, 76-77)

1983

May

Faced with an escalation in the north-south conflict, Nimeiri divides the south into three separate regions, abrogating the 1972 agreement that ended the first civil war. The move is resisted by southerners, who fear a reimposition of northern political dominance. Many southerners further believe the north is trying to divert southern natural resources, particularly oil and water, for its own benefit. (The Economist Intelligence Unit 1988, 6; Europa 1992 1992, 2544; Middle East Report Sept.-Oct. 1991a, 5)

June

Following an order by the army high command to rotate to the north the southern garrisons at Bor, Pibor and Pachella, a number of troops mutiny. John Garang de Mabior, a lieutenant-colonel in the Sudanese army and a Christian Dinka from the south, is sent by the government to investigate the mutiny. Instead Garang joins the growing rebellion, which he helps transform into the Sudan People's Liberation Army (SPLA), with a political wing known as the Sudan People's Liberation Movement (SPLM). Although committed to a unified Sudan, the SPLA's struggle is fueled by a perceived unequal distribution of political power between the dominant north and the marginalized southern, western and eastern regions, as well as by the resultant uneven economic development of these regions. (The Economist Intelligence Unit 1988, 7; Middle East Report Sept.-Oct. 1991a, 5-6)

September

The government issues a series of decrees bringing Sudanese law into line with Islamic law or Sharia. The imposition of Sharia is seen as a desperate measure to gather support from northern Muslims in order to counterbalance growing southern political opposition to the regime. Known as the "September laws," the decrees revise or repeal much of the country's existing legislation. The new Islamic laws are condemned by opposition leaders and by various segments of Sudanese society. Coupled with Nimeiri's division of the south, these laws lead to an intensification of conflict that marks the beginning of Sudan's second civil war. (An-Na'im 1992, 28; Halasa et al 1986, 39-40; Middle East Report Sept.-Oct. 1991a, 5)

1985

6 April

After a series of widespread strikes and demonstrations largely provoked by rises in the price of food, Nimeiri is deposed in a bloodless coup while visiting the United States. The country's new leader, armed forces chief of staff General Abdel-Rahman Swar al-Dahab, appoints a Transitional Military Council (TMC) to govern Sudan, and pledges to return the country to civilian rule after one year. Under the provisions of the TMC's transitional constitution of October 1985, numerous political groupings begin to emerge in preparation for the forthcoming general election. (Africa South of the Sahara 1990 1989, 957; Europa 1992 1992, 2544; Halasa et al 1986, 43-47)

1986

11 March

Sudan becomes a signatory to the African Charter on Human and People's Rights. The following week, on March 18, it signs the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights. (Africa Watch Mar. 1990, 28)

24 March

The Koka Dam Declaration is signed between the National Alliance for National Salvation (NANS), the civilian leadership within the TMC, and the SPLA. The declaration calls for the repeal of Islamic law, but the TMC does not implement the measure before the April 1986 election. (Africa South of the Sahara 1990 1989, 957; Holt and Daly 1988, 218-21; Lavergné 1989, 624)

April

Keeping to its promise, the TMC holds elections to a constituent assembly and parliamentary government is restored. Although no party wins a clear majority, Sadiq al-Mahdi's Umma Party, the Democratic Unionist Party (DUP) and the National Islamic Front (NIF) together win over 70 per cent of the seats in parliament. In a major surprise, the NIF captures 18.4 per cent of the popular vote. Significantly, voting was suspended in 37 of 68 southern constituencies on grounds of political unrest. The UP forms a coalition government with the DUP and several smaller parties, and al-Mahdi becomes prime minister and minister of defence. Dr. Hassan al-Turabi's NIF, a political coalition of Sudan's Islamists calling for an Islamic state in Sudan and full implementation of Sharia, becomes the official opposition. (Africa South of the Sahara 1990 1989, 958; The Economist Intelligence Unit 1988, 9-10; Holt and Daly 1990, 220-21; Middle East Report Sept.-Oct. 1991a, 6; Woodward 1990, 207)

4 June

Sudan signs the Convention Against Torture and Other Cruel, Inhuman, or Degrading Treatment or Punishment. (Africa Watch Mar. 1990, 28)

13 September

Tensions in Sudan's economically neglected western region escalate and violent demonstrations leave two dead and dozens injured. According to reports from Khartoum, thousands of student-led protesters ransack government offices and shops in the main town of Nyala in southern Darfur. Nyala has earned a reputation for particularly violent protests against food shortages and harsh living conditions. The SPLA is also criticized for its incursions into southern Darfur and southern Kordofan. (Africa Confidential 17 Sept. 1986)

1987

26 March

Several hundred Ngok Dinka are massacred by members of the Rezigat tribe in the town of Ed Da'ein in the Darfur region, about 900 kilometres southwest of Khartoum. The attack is reportedly carried out in retaliation for an earlier SPLA assault in the town of Safaha, on a government-backed militia composed of Rezigat. Since the mid-1980s the government has been arming and organizing local tribal militias into the Murahaleen militia, a pro-government force to be used against the SPLA. (Africa Confidential 29 Apr. 1987, 2; Africa Watch Mar. 1990, 81; Mahmud and Baldo July 1987)

April

Concerned about the massive influx of southerners into the capital region, the Sadiq government begins a campaign of forced expulsions or "kasha." Thousands of people displaced by the war in the south are expelled from Khartoum, and whatever documents they have are confiscated. (USCR Aug. 1990, 10-11)

July

The issue of slavery among the Baggara of southern Kordofan and southern Darfur first comes to prominence with the publication of The Dhein Massacre: Slavery in the Sudan. The report gives detailed accounts of the enslavement of Dinka women and children. According to the report, the kidnapping of Dinka women and children is part of a larger pattern of raiding, pillaging and killing by the Murahaleen militia in northern Bahr al-Gazal. (News From Africa Watch 10 Dec. 1991; Africa Watch Mar. 1990, 139; Mahmud and Baldo July 1987, 29-30)

1988

January

The government and 17 political parties sign a "transitional charter." The charter stresses Sudan's commitment to multiparty democracy, stipulates that the south will be governed in accordance with the 1972 Addis Ababa agreement, and states that the government replace Sharia law with an alternative legal system. (Africa South of the Sahara 1990 1989, 958)

15 May

A new coalition government of "national unity" is formed, uniting Prime Minister Sadiq el-Madhdi's Umma Party, the DUP, the NIF and an alliance called the South Sudan Unity Parties. The Communist Party and the United Sudan African Parties remain in opposition in parliament. (Ibid., 959; Amnesty International July 1988, 1)

December

An estimated 250,000 southerners have died of starvation and its related diseases during 1988, and the famine has existed since 1986. Shilluk, Dinka and Nuer by the thousands have made their way from the Upper Nile region into Kosti and Khartoum. By March 1989 a reported two million Sudanese southerners--one out of every five or six persons--are displaced. Of these, over one million are living in and around Khartoum. Although drought, floods and infestations of insects are given as reasons for the famine, observers point out that the primary cause is the deliberate policies--such as the "scorched earth" strategies and denial of relief--of the government, including militias and paramilitary forces, and the SPLA. (Africa Watch Mar. 1990, 103; Middle East Report Sept.-Oct. 1991b, 12; USCR Aug. 1990, 14-16)

1989

February

The NIF's position in government is strengthened when Hassan al-Turabi is appointed deputy prime minister. (Europa 1992 1992, 2545)

May

A cease-fire is reached between the SPLA and the government. Negotiations culminate in an agreement that suspends Islamic laws and promises to establish a secular constitution. The NIF refuses to endorse the agreement. (Ibid.)

30 June

Lieutenant-General Omar Hassan Ahmad al-Bashir seizes power in a bloodless coup and establishes the Revolutionary Command Council for National Salvation (RCCNS). The 15-member military council suspends the transitional constitution of 1985 and initiates rule by decree. Constitutional Decree No. 2 establishes a state of emergency in the whole of Sudan. Political parties, trade unions, non-religious associations and the press are banned, and hundreds of the government's political opponents are imprisoned. It is soon apparent that Hassan al-Turabi and the NIF are in favour of the new regime, when several leading NIF members are appointed to senior cabinet positions. A new security agency, originating in the NIF's pre-coup security apparatus, is created and staffed by NIF members. The new agency is referred to as "Islamic Security" or the "Security of the Revolution," and is the principal agency responsible for the mass arrests and torture following the coup. (Africa Watch Mar. 1990, 27-28, 37; Amnesty International 19 Feb. 1993, 5; Article 19 Apr. 1991, 1; Jeune Afrique 4-10 Feb. 1993, 25; Middle East Report Sept.-Oct. 1991a, 6)

July

The new military government and the SPLA extend the cease-fire. Various meetings are held between the two. (Amnesty International Dec. 1989, 1)

September

The government issues a decree to appoint "steering committees" to manage the assets of trade unions and professional associations dissolved when the government took power. One of these is the Sudan Bar Association (SBA), an organization that had been active in human rights issues. (News From Africa Watch 4 Nov. 1991, 3-4)

October

The cease-fire between the government and the SPLA breaks down when the regime embarks on an offensive to recapture SPLA-held territory. The unsuccessful offensive eventually leaves the rebel group in complete control of Sudanese territory bordering Uganda and parts of Zaire. (Middle East Report Sept.-Oct. 1991b, 13)

21 October

Eleven political parties and 51 trade unions adopt the charter of the National Democratic Association (NDA), a coalition of northern and southern Sudanese forces, including the UP, DUP and the SPLM, opposed to the military regime. Their goals are to organize popular opposition and non-violent civil disobedience to the military government, and to resume democratic rule in Sudan. (Amnesty International Aug. 1990, 3; Middle East Report Sept.-Oct. 1991a, 7)

27 October

The Murahaleen militia attacks the village of Kamda in the Nuba mountains, killing seven villagers. Although an army unit tries to intervene, over the next ten days 20 villages are burned and looted, 98 Nuba villagers are killed, 21 are seriously injured and 3,000 are left homeless. Similar attacks over the next several weeks demonstrate collaboration between the militia and the army against the Nuba. (News From Africa Watch 10 Dec. 1991, 8)

November

The Special Courts Act is passed by the RCCNS. It provides for special security courts to try persons accused of a wide range of violations, including violations of constitutional decrees, emergency regulations and certain sections of the penal code, and those accused of drug and currency violations. These courts are to be composed of three military officers or three "competent" persons, and defendants may be advised by attorneys who can attend trials as "friends of the court," but cannot normally address the court on behalf of the defendants. In 1991 most "security" cases are tried in these special courts. Sentences are severe and are implemented almost immediately. (Country Reports 1991 1992, 380)

In a move interpreted by some observers as a further example of the Islamization of the country's education system, Dr. Farouk Ibrahim el Nur, a lecturer in the Faculty of Social Science at the University of Khartoum, is detained in a "ghost house" or secret detention centre, questioned about his teachings of the Darwinian theory of evolution, and tortured. (News From Africa Watch 7 Nov. 1992, 5)

5 November

The RCCNS promulgates the Popular Defense Act and establishes the Popular Defense Force (PDF), a paramilitary organization charged with training members of the public in civil and military tasks, in order that they may assist the armed forces on demand. The PDF's field of operations is to include the south and west of the country. (AFP 6 Nov. 1989; Africa Watch Mar. 1990, 94-95; Omdurman Domestic Service 6 Nov. 1989)

28 December

Several hundred southerners, mostly Shilluk farmhands, are massacred by a militia force composed of Sabaha Arabs at el Jebelein, on the east bank of the White Nile. There is speculation that the Sabaha, given arms by the Sadiq government in 1986, may have been waiting for an excuse to purge the Shilluk, with whom they had been competing for scarce labouring jobs. (Africa Watch Mar. 1990, 93)

1990

March

Al-Beshir and Libya's Colonel Muhammar Gaddafi agree to "unite" their two countries within the next four years, and to sign a joint protocol for trade. (New African Yearbook 1991-92 1992, 334)

May

The RCCNS bans four privately-owned newspapers that registered after the June 1989 ban on the media was relaxed. Those targeted are "non-political" trade and lifestyle papers. It is reported that the main reason for banning newspapers not officially geared to political commentary is that they could serve as vehicles for dissent. (Article 19 Apr. 1991, 11)

July

For the first time since the military junta took power, in a case involving the editor of a banned business journal, a group of lawyers is allowed to address a special court directly and cross-examine the prosecution witnesses. Until now lawyers had been allowed to attend court proceedings only as "friends" of the defendants, and had been unable to address the court. (Ibid. 1991, 394)

September

Dozens of army officers, most of them lower-ranking officers from Darfur in the west or from southern Sudan, are reportedly arrested in Khartoum and accused of conspiring to overthrow the government. Unconfirmed reports suggest that some of them are tried shortly after arrest and executed after being sentenced to death. (Amnesty International June 1991, 4)

Military intelligence begins detaining educated Nuba men in a crack-down, ostensibly against the SPLA, that intensifies in early 1991. Many of the detainees eventually disappear. (News From Africa Watch 10 Dec. 1991, 9)

November

Following peaceful demonstrations against government policy in various parts of Sudan, including Atbara, Wad Medani, al-Obeid and Khartoum, a number of people are arrested. Many are trade union activists and members of banned political parties. Although most of those arrested are later released, some remain in detention. (Amnesty International June 1991, 5)

At least 170 Gezira University students in Wad Medani are briefly detained following peaceful demonstrations against the dismissal of university lecturers and in support of various student demands. Many are beaten and abused by members of the security forces, and without a trial or sentencing by a court, are then publicly flogged. (Ibid., 10)

December

There is mounting evidence that Sudan will likely suffer a catastrophic famine, and the UN appeals for 1.3 million tonnes of food to prevent the deaths of up to five million people. Although the Sudanese government is increasingly prepared to discuss the need for massive food aid, it continues to refer to the problem as a "food gap" rather than a "crisis of starvation." Factors cited as reasons for the famine include drought, a major shortfall of wheat and grain production in the winter of 1989, the civil war in the south, and an inadequate response from donor countries due to the Sudanese government's reluctance to appeal publicly for assistance. (Arab Organization for Human Rights 3 Dec. 1990; Article 19 Apr. 1991, 23; USCR 7 Mar. 1991)

31 December

Lieutenant-General Omar Hassan al-Bashir announces that Sharia law is to be implemented with immediate effect in northern Sudan. (Amnesty International June 1991, 2)

1991

January

The Bashir regime declares Sudan a federal country with nine states corresponding to the provinces in existence at independence. Despite the regime's claim to exempt the south from Islamic law, the measure is interpreted by at least one source as moving one step closer to the institutionalization of a "Federal Islamic Republic of Sudan." (Middle East Report Sept.-Oct. 1991b, 12)

15 February

The government submits its first periodic report on implementation of the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights. The report claims that Sudanese legislation "remains in harmony with the provisions of the Covenant." Following submission of this report, the International League for Human Rights releases a memorandum stating that Sudan is responsible for violations of a number of guarantees under the covenant. The violations enumerated in the memorandum include extrajudicial executions, arbitrary arrest and imprisonment, torture and ill-treatment of detainees, lack of due process and minimal fair trial rights, and abridgement of the rights to freedom of expression, association, religion and equality before the law. (The International League for Human Rights July 1991, 1)

March

A new penal code based on RCCNS interpretation of Sharia law is introduced. Applicable to northern Sudan only, the code reintroduces various forms of cruel, inhuman or degrading punishment, including judicial amputations, floggings and execution by stoning or by hanging followed by public crucifixion. Apostasy, the renunciation by Muslims of Islam, becomes a capital offence. Provisions in the code that discriminate against non-Muslims allegedly are part of a campaign to compel Sudan's Coptic community to leave the country. (News From Africa Watch 10 Feb. 1993, 1-9; Amnesty International 1992, 241; Human Rights Watch Dec. 1992, 59)

In the town of Mundri in southern Sudan, troops reportedly extrajudicially execute a number of civilians--over 300 according to unconfirmed reports--for refusing to act as human shields to deter SPLA attacks on the military. (Amnesty International 1992, 243)

April

Dr. Hassan al Turabi is elected secretary general of the first Popular Arab Islamic Conference in Khartoum on 27 April. (News From Africa Watch 27 Apr. 1992, 1)

The government announces a general amnesty for all political prisoners. Those freed include 300 prisoners of conscience, a number of whom had been held since 1989. Despite government promises to release all political prisoners, at least 60 prisoners of conscience are not released, and many of those who are released have their movements restricted and are forced to sign documents promising they will not oppose the government. (Amnesty International June 1991, 1)

Army soldiers shoot and kill 17 people of the Zaghawa ethnic group in the courtyard of a mosque in Khazan Jadid. (Ibid. 1992, 243)

22 April

The government announces that it will forcibly remove 800,000 people, mostly southern Sudanese, from Khartoum by the end of the year. However, only a small percentage of that number are ever relocated, a fact largely attributed to the civil war between the military government and the SPLA. (USCR 1992, 52)

May

At least four people, including two medical doctors, a trader and an engineer, are arrested in the town of Port Sudan. All are suspected of supporting the NDF. Two cousins of an Iman--a religious scholar--and a supporter of the banned Democratic Unionist Party (DUP) are arrested later in the month. One of them reportedly dies after being tortured by the security service in Port Sudan. (Amnesty International June 1991, 3)

Approximately 300,000 southern Sudanese are forced to return to Sudan from border areas in Ethiopia. This exodus is in response to the fall of Ethiopia's Mengistu Haile Mariam and his replacement with a regime sympathetic to the government in Khartoum. These returnees are reportedly attacked on the Ethiopian side of the border, and once inside Sudan, are bombed by the Sudanese air force. (Jeune Afrique 30 Apr.-13 May 1992, 59-60; USCR 1992, 53-54)

June

The National Security Act is amended to permit detention for up to 72 hours, and for up to one month with "justification." Precautionary detention, to "preserve the general security" of the state, is also permitted with RCCNS authorization. Persons thus detained must be notified within "suitable time" of the reasons for their detention, although detention may be extended for another three months with notification, and may be subject to judicial review. Prior to the amendment detention had been indefinite and not subject to periodic review. According to Amnesty International, however, the new safeguards do nothing to prevent arbitrary incommunicado detention and torture. (Amnesty International 19 Feb. 1993, 4; Country Reports 1991 1992, 379)

July

Members of the Security of the Revolution police open fire on demonstrators at Khartoum University, killing one. Dozens of students are arrested, and twelve student leaders are detained and reportedly beaten during questioning. Nine of the twelve are released after two weeks; the other three are held until August. There are further arrests at the university following disturbances in September. (Amnesty International 1992, 242)

The government sets up the "Sudan Human Rights Organization," not to be confused with the non-governmental organization of the same name which was banned on 30 June 1989. The stated aims of the new organization include protection of the reputation of Sudan, particularly from perceived attacks on the government and the Sudanese way of life by the western media and organizations. The banned NGO eventually relaunches its activities from its new headquarters in London. (News From Africa Watch 4 Nov. 1991, 5-6; Sudan Human Rights Organization Oct. 1991, 1-2)

August

The SPLA splits along ethnic lines following an attempt by SPLA commanders in Upper Nile to oust SPLA founder and leader Colonel John Garang de Mabior. Garang, with support from the Dinka, wants Sudan to be a unified secular state. Many Nuer align themselves with the splinter faction, the "Nasir" group, and call for the secession of southern Sudan, believing Garang is too authoritarian and lacking in political direction. During the ensuing conflict at least 30 Dinka are killed at Akobo town in October, and 1,000--some estimates put this figure between 2,000 and 5,000--are killed in and around the town of Bor in November. A cease-fire is agreed to on 27 November, after approximately 250,000 people have been displaced by the conflict. The SPLA split reportedly allows the government to recapture several towns taken by the rebels during the nine-year war. (Africa News 23 Nov.-6 Dec. 1992, 1; Africa Report Nov.-Dec. 1992, 67; Amnesty International 1992, 243; Ibid. 19 Feb. 1993, 9; Jeune Afrique 30 Apr.-13 May 1992, 60; Middle East Report Jan.-Feb. 1992, 30-31; USCR 1992, 53).

The government announces that a new coup attempt has been thwarted, and 81 supporters of banned political parties, as well as serving and former military officers, are detained. Of these, 53 are eventually tried, in camera and without legal representation, before a military tribunal. In total, 46 are convicted; 11 receive death sentences which are commuted to life imprisonment, and 35 receive prison terms ranging from six months to 20 years. At least 15 of those not tried are eventually released, while seven others remain in "ghost houses." A number of those detained are reportedly tortured and mistreated. (Amnesty International 1992, 242)

September

The UN estimates that 8.7 million people, including asylum seekers and returnees, still require food aid. UN agencies attempt to assist 4.5 million of them. By the end of the year it is reported that the high rate of malnutrition in the western region of Darfur has caused people to die by the tens of thousands, and has put many more at risk. (USCR 1992, 53)

October

The army seals off the Nuba Mountains and begins a large military operation there. The aim of this activity is to destroy SPLA strength in the area by driving out the Nuba themselves. (News From Africa Watch 10 Dec. 1991, 1; Amnesty International 19 Feb. 1993, 6)

10 December

Africa Watch and Survival International issue a press release calling attention to the "secret" war against the Nuba people. The press release points to the recent growth in the number of "disappearances" and states that thousands of men, women and children have been killed in raids and massacres conducted by the Sudanese army and government-backed Arab militias. It also notes that the SPLA's battalion in the Nuba mountains has been responsible for abuses against the civilian population, including forcibly recruiting youths for military service and assassinating community leaders. (Africa Watch 10 Dec. 1991, 1-2)

22 December

At least 47 people are killed in renewed government attempts to evict squatters from displacement camps around Khartoum. Most are internal migrants from southern and western Sudan. (Sudan Monitor Jan. 1992, 1-2)

1992

The US Committee for Refugees estimates that 4.75 million Sudanese, mostly southerners, are internally displaced. As many as 1.8 million are reported to be living in and around Khartoum, with the remainder primarily located in the south and in the so-called transitional zone between the north and south. The number of foreign asylum seekers in Sudan increases to over one million by the end of the year. They have been arriving for years--primarily as a result of political conflict and drought at home--from countries such as Somalia, Eritrea, Ethiopia, Chad and Uganda. (AFP 20 Dec. 1992; USCR 1992, 52)

January

The governor of Kordofan declares a "Jihad" or holy war in the Nuba mountains, while the military commander vows to "cleanse" every area "sullied by the outlaws." According to Human Rights Watch, the size of the military forces assembled suggests the government has planned an undertaking far beyond what is required to combat SPLA forces in the area. (Human Rights Watch Dec. 1992, 57)

Forces loyal to the Nasir group reportedly kill 87 civilians in a raid on the town of Paragau in Bahr al-Ghazal. (Amnesty International 19 Feb. 1993, 9)

2 February

Forty army and airforce officers are arrested in Khartoum and Omdurman after another alleged plot to overthrow the government is foiled. (Sudan Monitor Mar. 1992, 4).

March

The government launches its largest offensive yet against the SPLA, in an attempt to cut off sources of relief supplies to civilians in SPLA-held areas. The offensive produces numerous human rights abuses, and over 100,000 people are displaced in the process. By July a number of SPLA-held towns on the east bank of the Nile, including Bor, Torit and Kapoeta, have fallen to government attack. (Human Rights Watch Dec. 1992, 54-55)

April

After staging a peaceful demonstration in commemoration of the 28 military officers executed in April 1990, 23 women and one child are imprisoned in Omdurman. Although most of the women are eventually released, some remain in detention. Many are severely beaten while in prison. (The Fund for Peace 15 May 1992, 9)

Six people, including five senior opposition politicians and a retired judge, are arrested amidst rumours of a coup attempt and held incommunicado at a secret detention centre. (Sudan Monitor May 1992, 1-2)

May

Hassan Abdalla al-Turabi, leader of the NIF, claims before the U.S. Congress that Sudan's government has only a few political prisoners, treats women fairly, receives no arms from Iran, and wants to live in peace with non-Muslims. Sudanese exiles protest his visit and al-Turabi is hospitalized for one month following an incident at the Ottawa airport. (Human Rights Voice July-Aug. 1992, 7; The Ottawa Citizen 21 June 1992)

According to unconfirmed reports, troops loyal to the Garang faction of the SPLA kill over 200 deserters near Tonj in Bahr al-Ghazal. (Amnesty International 19 Feb. 1993, 10)

29 May

An estimated 22,000 Sudanese asylum seekers, including 12,500 unaccompanied minors, stream across the Kenyan border. This movement follows an attack by the government on the SPLA-held town of Kapoeta, 40 miles north of the Kenyan border. (Sudan Monitor June 1992, 1)

June

The government begins the forcible relocation of the Nuba. Some Nuba civilians are moved to "peace villages" within the Nuba mountains. The villages are reportedly displaced persons camps located in northern Kordofan, far from the home areas of the Nuba, or camps attached to mechanized agricultural projects on land previously farmed by Nuba villagers. (Amnesty International 19 Feb. 1993, 6; Human Rights Watch Dec. 1992, 57)

7 June

After the SPLA tightened its hold on the city of Juba in May 1992, SPLA troops infiltrate the city from the south and capture the city's military headquarters. When government forces regain control a few hours later, over 80 individuals suspected of collaboration in the SPLA attack are arrested, including southern Sudanese soldiers, police officers, prison guards and paramilitary guards attached to the Department of Wildlife. There is concern that many of the detainees are tortured. Seven of the southern Sudanese soldiers are reportedly extrajudicially executed on 23 June. (Amnesty International 23 Sept. 1992, 1-2)

6 July

Another SPLA assault on Juba leads to heavy fighting in and around the densely-populated suburbs of Lalogo, Kator and Rejaf West, and to the shelling of Juba itself. As government forces regain control of the suburbs, at least 200 civilians are killed and hundreds arrested in the search for SPLA members, and tens of thousands more flee to escape the fighting and army reprisals. A few days later, following the army-ordered evacuation of Lalogo and Kator, 100,000 civilians find themselves homeless as soldiers torch these and other areas. Ten days after the attack another group of 40 southern Sudanese soldiers suspected of SPLA collaboration is detained and allegedly extrajudicially executed. (Ibid., 2-3)

August

The government expels all expatriate missionaries from Juba, allegedly to keep foreigners from witnessing any human rights abuses in the city. According to the expelled clergymen, government soldiers have executed hundreds of alleged SPLA sympathizers in the area. (Africa News 23 Nov.-6 Dec. 1992, 2)

Oxfam estimates that 7.2 million people in Sudan require emergency food assistance, and that severe malnutrition is widespread. The civil war and escalating food prices are seen as determining factors in the deterioration of the situation in recent months. (Sudan Monitor Aug. 1992, 2)

September

The UN temporarily suspends the Operation Lifeline aid program in the eastern equatorial region of southern Sudan after three UN workers and a photojournalist are killed by rebels. (Africa News 23 Nov.-6 Dec. 1992, 1)

In a televised statement, President Omar al-Bashir affirms that there is "no place" for political parties in Sudan, and that the government remains committed to constructing a new political system based on Sharia law. (Sudan Monitor Sept. 1992, 1)

Labour minister George Logokwa, who represents southern Sudan, resigns while on a visit to Cairo. In an interview following his resignation, Logokwa affirms that the Sudanese government has set up camps to train "terrorists." Many of these are on the Sudan-Libya border. (AL-MAJALLAH 2-8 Sept. 1992)

The military commander of Kadogle, the principal town in southern Kordofan, claims that government forces have destroyed 13 rebel bases in the area, and that more than 32,000 civilians have left SPLA-controlled regions. (AFP 27 Sept. 1992)

A third SPLA faction--the "Unity" group--is formed when Garang's Torit group splits in two. The new faction is headed by William Nyuon Bany, former deputy commander-in-chief of the Garang group, and begins operations in eastern Equatoria. (Amnesty International 19 Feb. 1993, 9)

2 September

Catholic bishops from rebel-controlled parts of southern Sudan call on Catholic bishops throughout east Africa to urge the UN, the Organization of African Unity (OAU) and foreign governments to consider the plight of the people in southern Sudan with the same concern as those of former Yugoslavia, Somalia and southern Iraq. The bishops accuse government troops of practising genocide in the town of Juba. (AFP 2 Sept. 1992)

17 October

Malakal, 680 kilometres from Khartoum and the principal town in the Upper Nile region, is attacked by a religious group led by a young Nuer prophet, Wut Nyang, and the Anya Nya II militia, quasi-allies of the Nasir faction of the SPLA. After a brief occupation, the town is abandoned and government troops recover it empty of southerners and munitions. In the aftermath of the attack the government detains 135 civil servants, all southern Sudanese, and reportedly tortures them in ghost houses located in the town. (Indian Ocean Newsletter 14 Nov. 1992, 3; Ibid. 31 Oct. 1992, 2; Sudan Democratic Gazette Jan. 1993a, 4)

November

The Nasir faction of the SPLA announces its proposal to settle the country's civil war. The proposal stresses that Sudan should remain unified during a two or three-year transitional period, after which time a decision will be made about the future of southern Sudan. (Indian Ocean Newsletter 28 Nov. 1992, 2)

In the face of international protests and the threat of UN censure, the government establishes a committee to investigate the "incidents" witnessed in Juba in June and July 1992. By the end of the year the government has still not released any information on the whereabouts of the majority of those arrested in Juba. (Amnesty International 19 Feb. 1993, 8)

December

The UN General Assembly passes a resolution condemning the human rights record of Sudan's military regime. Among other things, the resolution calls on the Special Rapporteur on Summary or Arbitrary Executions to address the killing of Sudanese nationals working for foreign government relief organizations, and "invites" the Commission on Human Rights to give urgent attention at its 49th session to the human rights situation in Sudan. (Sudan Democratic Gazette Jan. 1993b, 2, 5)

About a dozen individuals are detained by the Sudanese security forces. Among them are two trade unionists and two former government employees. All are suspected of membership in the Central Committee of the Communist Party. Reportedly, the detainees are subject to torture and ill-treatment. (World Organization Against Torture 7 Jan. 1993)

4 December

After UN-supervised meetings in Nairobi, the Sudanese government and the three factions of the SPLA reach agreement to guarantee the flow of relief supplies to citizens affected by the war in southern Sudan. (Sudan Update 12 Dec. 1992, 1)

5 December

The Popular Movement for the Liberation of Sudan (PMLS), a Sudanese opposition group based in Cairo, claims that there are 10,000 Iranian soldiers and military experts in Sudan. According to the PMLS, the Iranians are participating in the war in the south, training Arab "extremists" and protecting the Islamic Front's regime. The allegations are later denied by the Sudanese government. (AL-WAFD 5 Dec. 1992; Voice of the Islamic Republic of Iran 23 Jan. 1993)

30 December

The Sudanese government allegedly dispatches instructions to its troops in southern Sudan, offering financial rewards to soldiers able to prove they have impregnated at least four southern women in the last year. According to the Sudan Democratic Gazette, rape is actively encouraged by the authorities as part of a plan to undermine southern tribal culture and their African heritage. (Sudan Democratic Gazette Feb. 1993, 2)

1993

January

According to a Sudanese diplomatic source, leaders of the NIF and government authorities have drafted a plan of "staggered" retaliation in response to Egypt's occupation of the region of Hailab, the source of an old territorial dispute between the two countries. Egyptian officials reportedly accuse the Sudanese government of training Islamic fundamentalists to destabilize the Mubarak government, while Sudan charges Egypt with harbouring Sudanese opposition elements. (Indian Ocean Newsletter 16 Jan. 1993, 3; New African Mar. 1993, 21)

9 January

The SPLA claims the government has executed four senior southern Sudanese generals for collaborating with SPLA fighters. Three of the four had been arrested during the SPLA's July 1992 offensive against Juba. (AFP 9 Jan. 1993)

20 January

Sudanese opposition forces in Cairo warn that the government of Iran is lending Sudan several impounded Iraqi military aircraft, reportedly as a prelude to a new offensive against southern Sudanese rebels. (AFP 20 Jan. 1993)

10 February 1993

After a ten-day visit to Benin and Uganda, Pope John Paul II makes a nine-hour stopover in Sudan. In one of three major speeches delivered in Khartoum, the Pope reportedly states that there can never be peace in Sudan without respect for freedom, justice and human rights. (Jeune Afrique 18-24 Feb. 1993, 6-8; Sudan Democratic Gazette Mar. 1993, 2)

24 February

Garang urges the Sudanese government to hold new talks with the SPLA, under the auspices of the UN, in order to demilitarize certain areas of the country. (Xinhua 25 Feb. 1993)

20 March

The government agrees to a cease-fire in combat zones in the southern part of the country. According to a Sudanese government official, the president of Nigeria will meet with the SPLA to fix a date for a new round of peace talks to be held in Abuja, Nigeria. (AFP 20 Mar. 1993)

APPENDIX: MAP

See original

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