The Question of Identity in the Sudan: New Dimensions for an Old Problem

Abstract

As the title of this article suggests, the question of identity is an old problem in the Sudan and representes a challenge that has not been settled hitherto. While debates about Sudan’s identity ostensibly started at the dawn of independence, focusing primarily, on the one hand, on whether the Sudan should unite with Egypt or not and, on the other, whether the Sudan should be part of Africa or the Arab world, the challenge is still enormous and difficult choices must be made if the quest is for a peaceful and united Sudan. Most of the discussions that followed independence pursued a political perspective that was mostly macro in perspective. The way the question of identity was tackled left too many issues that were swept under the rug of Arabism and Africanism. One dimension that was not given sufficient attention is how identity is played out at the bottom; how the Sudanese play out their identities at micro levels, and how the deterioration in economic and political conditions in the country contribute to divisive identifications exemplified by what we saw during the civil war in the south and in Darfur at the present time. The way the question of identity was discussed seemed to be an elite affair, bearing little attention to what really matters to people. It is the disregard of what matters to people that underlies the current crisis that is tearing the country apart. A new dimension of identity politics is in the making in the Sudan. This is represented by multiple peripheral insurgencies that employ macro political rhetoric in making claims about marginalization and absence of equity. The new dimension is also represented by the devolution of crisis to the most micro levels of Sudanese society. It is argued in this article that the problem of identity in the Sudan is basically one of lack of justice more than a question of whether the country is Arab, African or something else. In putting this argument forward, the paper provides a critical overview of positions that debate the question of identity in the Sudan. The article emphasizes the contexuality of identification, from an anthropological perspective, and links this to resource use and access. It is suggested that unity in diversity or critical multiculturalism could be a workable modality if the objective is to surpass the riddle of identity conflict in the Sudan.