Political Islam Threatens African Unity
by Yasir Arman
February 1, 2013
Africa today is facing a serious threat to its unity from many political Islam basedmovements. Some of them have already taken power in some important Africancountries such as Sudan, Egypt and Tunisia and other political Islam basedmovements are playing a central role in Somalia, Libya and Mali. More politicalIslam based movements are active and spelling out clear political agenda in the bigNigeria, Kenya, and Tanzania. Other political Islam based movements are working clandestinely in other countries as is the case in Ethiopia, South Africa and Malawi.
Why are political Islam based movements threatening African unity?
Political Islam is an ideology exploiting and using the Islam religion, which is atolerant religion especially when it comes to the African context. The politicalIslamic movements are intolerant and do not respect and accept cultural and religious diversity, women’s rights, and democratic systems of rule, although some of them were elected democratically as in the case of Egypt and Tunisia, but yet there are clear indications that they are moving towards totalitarianism and they are taking a similar direction as the Iranian revolution, which was achieved by all the Iranians but it was hijacked by a religious group who eventually established a dictatorial regime in the name of the revolution. Indeed, there is a huge struggle in Egypt and Tunis between the different wider groups who had achieved the uprising and affected change, and yet, the Islamic movements succeeded because they were more organized and they were operating underground for many years. They are almost hijacking the revolutions and taking them in a different direction. We need to distinguish between the uprising and its objective to establish democracy and social justice in replacing the dictatorships and the political Islam movement, whose social and political agenda are no different from the previous government’s agenda that were overthrown by the uprisings. The situation in Egypt remains of significant importance to Sudan, Africa and the Arab world given the importance of Egypt and that the Islamic movement in Egypt, “the Muslim Brotherhood”, is the second oldest political movement in Africa after the National African Congress, which is 100 years old, and the Egyptian Islamic movement, founded in 1928, is 85 years old. There are clear signals that this movement will take Egypt towards an Iranian-style regime that will have a huge impact on Sudan and Africa as a whole.
Why is Sudan’s political Islam experience important to Africa?
Sudan with its huge diversity represents a small African continent, and the big question that faces Sudan since its independence is the same question facing Africa today and yesterday – how to build a modern democratic state in a diverse cultural and religious society. The direct and short answer of the Islamic movement of Sudan has been to totally ignore the diversity of the Sudanese society. Since they took power in a coup d’état in 1989, they imposed a vision of uniformity that seeks to Islamize and Arabize Sudanese regardless of whether they are non-Muslim and non-
Arabs, and they divided the Muslims themselves who do not subscribe to their political ideology and again, they imposed social and political programs that marginalized the massive majority of the Sudanese people and dehumanized women and all those who do not subscribe to their vision. To impose such a fascist vision, the National Congress regime has had to resort to violence and an iron-grip to crush all those who do not fall into their category, which are the majority of the Sudanese people. Logically that vision ends up committing the biggest crimes in modern history of Sudan such as genocide and war crimes and disuniting the country and forcing the South Sudanese to secede. The ruling Islamic movement of Sudan represented by the National Congress has a deep connection and involvement with most of the African political Islam based movements, and many of the cadres and leaders of these movements were indoctrinated by and graduated from the famous African Islamic University in Khartoum. Moreover, there are strong relations between the Sudan government and the Iranian government that is involving Sudan in many situations beyond its borders and jeopardizing Sudan’s national interests and the relations between Sudan and Saudi Arabia and the Gulf countries. Iran is a partner in building the Sudanese military complex and the product of this military complex is being used against the Sudanese civilian populations in the first place and it is part of an African Islamic based movements’ strategy and it has made Sudan a battleground for regional conflicts in Africa andthe Middle East. Given the cultural and religious diversity of the African societies, the outcome of the political Islam experience in Sudan will be the same outcome inother African countries including Egypt. It is important for the Sudan case to be taken seriously by the African intellectuals, governments, political and social movements, and civil societies in responding to the growing political Islam movement in Africa. The price is going to be very expensive as is the case in Sudan and Mali. This issue needs to be an upfront issue to be debated by all those who are concerned about Africa’s future as well as those who are concerned about the tolerant Islam’s future. Indeed historically, Islam has contributed to the unity of the African societies in many parts of the continent.
Yasir Arman
Secretary General,
Sudan Peoples’ Liberation Movement North (SPLM-N)
Secretary of External Affairs,
Sudan Revolutionary Front (SRF)
February 1, 2013