End Of The Game
05 November, 2017
Media coverage of last month’s meeting of the Islamic Movement (IM) in terms of reporting and columnists’ writings ended up with almost a unanimous conclusion that the IM is already dead. That is a scathing verdict for a movement that has developed in four decades from mere student organization, to a lobby group, into the third largest parliamentary bloc during the third multi-party, parliamentary system 1986-1989 and towering that into a regime that took power and continue to hold on it.
The story goes by that in the early 1990s, when the Ingaz regime consolidated its grip on the state, the leader and ideologue of the regime then Dr. Hasan El-Turabi invited the elders of the IM for a farewell party, where each was handed a copy of the Quran and were thanked for their efforts over the years. Now that the IM is controlling the state, it was said, there is no need for the movement and the younger generation taking over should concentrate its efforts in building and defending the state that it is controlling.
In fact and ironically enough the IM and its party then, the National Islamic Front (NIF), was the only party to head the Ingaz coup first resolution that dissolved all political parties. Others went underground but continue their activities one way or another, while NIF headed the dissolution decision on the assumption that it is, in effect, controlling the state, the very target of every political party.
However, the IM continued its disappearance during the first decade of the Ingaz regime when all members were joining hand to build and defend the new state. Only after the great break up of 1999 between President Omar Al-Bashir and El-Turabi, that the IM was revived to prove that the new centers of powers still commit to the same constituency of Islamists.
But soon the quick fix and reviving of the IM came to a dead end as it was faced with an identity crisis on one hand and an issue of relevance on the other. These became legitimate questions given the fact that there is the political party, the National Congress, which provides the political backing and enough people to staff the executive branches of government. Interesting also to note the political party does not carry the word of Islam in its official title.
Whether the IM will be dissolved officially in its yet to be determined annual general meeting next year or not, and whether that will take place as a response to regional and international pressures that are determined to finish up with the political Islam seems to be an irrelevant issue given the fact that as a body the IM is becoming irrelevant in the Sudanese political scene both in terms of formality and substance.
It is interesting to note that disbanding the IM was a one man decision. The movement itself did not even meet formally to discuss the issue, let aside deciding on it. That is clearly unprecedented given the general practice that parties need to keep on their active and independent character away from the government.
On the substance side of the issue what happened prove yet again that the executive branch usually has the upper hand and can score easily against politicians even if they are ideologues and founders of a movement. Al-Bashir backed by the state apparatus and specifically the army managed easily to strip El-Turabi despite his central role in building the movement and enabling it to grasp the power.
But more important and despite more than quarter a century and full authority in controlling power, the experience has shown clearly that the IM has no practical plans on how to run the state. And the salient feature is the trial and error approach to handle the country’s problems over the years.
The IM movement experience is the last of the ones Sudan has been testing in particular for more than half a century. Back in 1964 Sudan broke new grounds by removing a military regime through peaceful means by exercising civil disobedience. That popular uprising brought in various ideologies from left and right and new leadership faces. All have tried their luck one way or another, but eventually reached a dead ends in terms of both policies and leadership.
And that leaves the country for something new, but the question is which way?
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