National Independence Movements Research Articles

Türkiyədə Baş Verən Siyasi-İctimai Hadisələr və Azərbaycan Ziyalıları (1914-1920)

The proclamation of Turkish Republic on the 29th of October 1923 was an important event within the entire Turkic world. The first democratic Republic in the East was the Republic of Azerbaijan, which proclaimed independence on May 28 1918. On April 1920 Azerbaijan Democratic Republic has fallen as a result of Russian Bolsheviks occupation. Later the formation of a new Turkish Republic in the West has become an embodiment of hope for Turkic world to exist independently. Prior to the forming of Azerbaijan Republic, the true sons of Turkey became a great support for a young country and were excited about formation of the republic. Azerbaijanians for their part were supporting Turkey towards independence and also became the closest allies and comrades to Turks in this path. At the begining of 20th century the articles at magazines and papers, such as “Hayat”, “Fuyuzat”, “Teze Hayat”, “Achig soz” and “Caspian”, which were published within the support of Azerbaijan intellectuals, have gathered the society of Azerbaijani public for discussion of current at the moment historical events. The speeches of the eminent public figures (such as Ali bek Huseynzada, Akhmed Agaoglu, Alimardan bek Topchubashev, M.Makhmudbekov and Omar Faik) have played a significant role in national spirit rivival formation of patriotism and unity. Starting from the first decade of 20th century there were articles published, which call all muslim turkic nations for unity against the national opression, and in the movement for national independence during the First World War. The society of Azerbaijan has followed the changes, happening in the country and also abroad, especially in Turkey. The research of important topics, such as relationship and approach of Azerbaijan society to the development in Turkey, especially to Anatolian movement, are still valid and are of particular interest.

Freedom's Course: Hegel's Concept of World History and the Greek War for Independence (1821–1831)

Abstract: A little-remarked aspect of Hegel's lecture courses on the philosophy of world history is that he delivered them five times during a nine-year period (1822–1831) that aligns almost perfectly with the years of the Greek War for Independence. If Hegel was tracking the French and Haitian Revolutions while writing The Phenomenology of Spirit , then he may have been similarly tracking the Greek Revolution when delivering these lectures. What Hegel had done conceptually in 1807 in his Phenomenology of Spirit , he now intended to do historically in this lecture course: namely, to theorize the historical course of human freedom. Since these lectures represent the first text of Hegel's to be translated into English (in 1857), and since they had been translated into Italian even earlier (1840), Hegel's contention that freedom from domination was the moral aim of world history would provide philosophical support for abolitionist and other emancipatory freedom movements in Europe and the Americas. Equating domination by tyrants with slavery would also inspire national independence movements from Greece to Italy and New Spain. Hegel's romantic account of Greece's emancipation from domination, in antiquity and the present, seemed to speak in favor of such nationalist uprisings. At the same time, his concern with the devolution of the French Revolution left him ambivalent about revolution as a political praxis. His lectures would strike both notes as the Greek Revolution unfolded.

Роль республиканских КГБ в создании народных фронтов и движений Прибалтики (на примере Латвийской ССР) в годы перестройки

This article examines the problems of the development of socio-political processes in the Latvian SSR and the possible cooperation of political actors with the republican KGB, both before and during perestroika. The author of the article refers to archival materials that have recently begun to be published on the official website of the National Archives of Latvia. The aim of the article is to determine the role of the KGB in the formation of the People’s Fronts and movements of the Baltic during the years of perestroika (using the example of the Latvian SSR). The author turns to the analysis of personal registration cards, which were started in the KGB of Latvia for both full-time and freelance employees. These cards were filled in completely in Russian. Among the employees were representatives of social and political organizations and groups (Latvian People’s Front, Latvian National Independence Movement, and others), which made a significant contribution to the sovereignization processes in Latvia. The main sources are the registration cards of the Latvian KGB agents, which began to be published on the website of the National Archives of Latvia in late 2018 – early 2019. Also, for a detailed disclosure of the topic, sources of personal origin are used: the memoirs of A. Klauzen, V. Shved; an interview with J. Trubins, the former Deputy Chairman of the KGB of the Latvian SSR; B. Petersone’s testimonies in the collection The Baltic Way to Freedom. The study of the sources made it possible to identify the main participants in the political development of Latvia, who provided certain services to the republican KGB during the years of perestroika. Representatives of the intellectuals took an active part in the formation of new social and political forces in the Baltic republics, including Latvia. Some of them, as it turns out now, went to cooperate with the Latvian KGB. However, in their speeches at the turn of the 1990s, they criticized the activities of the CPSU and the KGB. In his research, the author came to the following conclusions: many representatives of the Latvian People’s Front, despite their anti-Soviet activities at the late stage of perestroika, agreed to cooperate with the Soviet special services and were agents of the republican KGB. In this regard, the political situation in the Baltic republics from the very beginning of perestroika was under the full control of the republican KGB, which through its agents influenced the formation and further activities of mass social and political organizations in the region. The activities of such agents were strictly regulated by the instructions and orders of the relevant department, which received direct instructions from the structures of the Union Center.

Smashing Statues: Re-evaluating Iconoclasm in History

Abstract In 2020, as statues around the world were pulled down, intellectuals scrambled to make sense of the phenomenon. Veteran voices joined new experts from varied disciplines in contributing to the established field of iconoclasm studies, adding to the ongoing debates around history, memory, politics and public monuments. This seemingly global movement was fuelled by, and indeed fuelled, debates among the broader public about the meaning of statues in public life, and whether colonial statues of white men with dubious political and moral histories should remain in place or be removed from sight. The movement also met with a certain amount of backlash from conservative commentators who positioned themselves as the champions of Empire and a particular version of history in Britain, and from right-wing groups attempting to defend what they saw as an attack on white culture. The debate around statues, in other words, quickly became politically fraught. The authors ask what four recent works on iconoclasm add to an already extensive literature. What do they bring to the debates around history, memory, politics and public monuments? Two of the books (Thompson and Tunzelmann) are aimed at a broader readership, while the other two (Freedberg and Tugendhaft) are more specialised in their approach. We conclude that what is missing from these works is a global and comparative approach to the destruction of racist statues that also considers struggles against colonialism in national independence and Indigenous resistance movements throughout the modern and early modern periods.

Nationalism in Globalization

This paper, following the method of systematic balanced thinking, studies nationalism and nation-states amidst globalization, proposing the following main points: First, moving to the center of the world stage, we should correctly understand nationalism and nation-states, and represent the moral, theoretical and technological commanding heights. Second, nationalism is a double-edged sword, the national liberation movement in history was essentially a movement against imperialism, extreme nationalism is the root of world turmoil, and national self-determination and national independence movement is not a fundamental choice for the healthy development of human society. Third, nation-states have universality and particularity of interests, the essence of nation-states is to concentrate national strength to defend national rights and interests, and to maintain social order and the rule of public life. Fourth, the People’s Republic of China and the United States of America are two nation-states with distinctive characteristics in the world. The United States, as the largest emerging nation-state, highlights Protestant culture in its nationality, adheres to power politics and the rule of survival of the fittest, and pays more respect to modern laws and regulations in national governance. China, as the largest ancient nation-state, highlights farming culture in its nationality, adheres to the philosophy of living in harmony with nature, and is greatly influenced by natural forces or traditions in terms of national governance. The cooperation-competition development with “Bipolar Coexistence” of China and the United States results from the law of human social development. Fifth, to cope with the current complex and sensitive international situation, it is necessary to correctly judge and choose the future trend and power of nation-states in the world. The countries in our world are multi-ethnic and multi-religious. Peaceful coexistence, mutual benefit, free choice of residence and mutual respect are the only correct choices for the survival and development of peoples of all ethnic groups around the world. The action and reaction of universality and nationality promote the development process of the Community of Shared Future for Mankind. Sixth, the key to national equality lies in equality of people, and the key to building the Community of Shared Future for Mankind lies in the consciousness of equality, which requires that we adhere to the unity of universality and particularity.

권오설의 민족혁명운동론 수용과정과 민족해방운동 전술

Kwon Oh-seol, who participated in the national liberation movement led by the communist group in Colonial Joseon in the 1920s, participated in the enlightenment movement before accepting socialism. Previous studies have identified his activities as influenced by the national independence movement in the 1910s, but did not to elaborate on his acceptance of socialism and the development of the national liberation movement centered on the popular movement. this paper tried to clarify the relationship between his activities and the national liberation movement by specifically reviewing his growth background and acceptance of socialism, and the theory of national revolutionary movement. Kwon Oh-seol was able to forming an enlightened consciousness of life improvement and a revolutionary class consciousness and possible to participate in the national liberation movement based on the national revolutionary movement. he planned The 6·10 National Movement in 1926 and tried to embrace the Old faction of Cheondogyo and the student class while attempting to raise the public’s consciousness of national liberation. Kwon Oh-seol’s national liberation movement were formed based on the consciousness of life improvement and Comintern’s theory of the National Revolutionary Movement.

National independence movement and political game of great powers——An analysis of the position of the British Balfour declaration and the reasons for Israel's victory in the second stage of the 1948 war

The Middle East issue has always been a hot and sensitive issue in the world. The Contemporary Middle East issue mainly includes the contradiction between Arab and Israel, and the core of the Middle East issue is the Palestinian issue. In the process of the rise and development of Zionism and the establishment of the state of Israel, in addition to the subjective role of the national will and national power of the Jews, the intervention and interference of big powers played an important and sometimes even decisive role. The interference of external political forces can be traced back to the Balfour Declaration issued by the British government. After the Second World War, the Zionists turned to gain support from the United States and Soviet Union and realized their long cherished wish for the establishment of the state of Israel. This paper first analyzes the motivation of Britain to publish Balfour Declaration, and then analyzes the reasons for Israel's victory in the 1948-1948 war. This is the process of Israeli Zionism development and the result of mediation game among political forces.

The Study on the Vulnerability and Countermeasures of Pakistan’s Nation-state Construction

The independence of Pakistan was an important event of the national independence movement in Asia, Africa and Latin America in the 20th century. Behind the event was the capacity building led by political parties. With the process of building a modern nation state, Pakistani political party’s ability has suffered a major “capacity decline” in reverse, which leads to the negative characteristics of Pakistan’s national construction such as “fragility” and “failed state”. Focusing on strengthening the construction of nation-state with party capacity building as its core, we will put forward corresponding countermeasures from four aspects of party capacity building.There are expression and integration of interests, formulation of program and policy, political mobilization and participation, political selection and employment, so as to effectively improve the core governance ability of political parties in many modern nation-states in Asia, Africa and Latin America.

Movement for Peaceful Use of Atomic Energy and the Practice of Technological Utopia in the Early Cold War

<p indent="0mm">Focusing on the movement for the peaceful use of atomic energy in the 1950s, this study analyzes the process of shaping, developing, and triggering risks. Additionally, it provides a reflection of the atomic utopia. The collation and analysis of archival reports, memoirs of witnesses, news reports, and relevant comments show the extensive implications of early ideas, technological choices, and interest relations in the field of nuclear application. The Cold War promoted superpowers to use the existing nuclear foundation to shape the atomic utopia, and the national independence movement encouraged other countries to enter the abovementioned utopia using nuclear power to achieve their own strategic objectives. The high energy consumption of modern society, unremitting pursuit of technical efficiency and economies of scale, excessive optimism of humans in managing complex systems and natural phenomena, and balance of interests in political and social fields promoted the emergence and strengthening of the atomic utopia, thereby mitigating the inherent vulnerability of large-scale energy systems.

Provisioning Firearms in Latin America: Historical Development and Societal Consequences

For hundreds of years, the systems provisioning firearms to Latin America states, insurgents, markets, and criminals have had important societal consequences. The constant supply of guns has accelerated widespread violence at an individual level that in the aggregate has facilitated colonial rule, brutal institutions of slavery, numerous insurrections and border wars and, in more recent times, drug trafficking and the social disruption of communities. Firearms also have enabled national independence movements, hunting for necessary sustenance, physical protection from animal and human predators, and the enjoyment of shooting sports past and present. This article provides an account of Latin American firearms provisioning from the time of European arrival and conquest into the twenty-first century and considers some of the many ensuing societal effects. Historical research, a key component of the macromarketing domain, provides a broader understanding of firearms and gun cultures in the region.

BIBLİOGRAPHİC REVİEW ABOUT TURKİCNESS AND TURKİSM

In this article briefly provides bibliographic information about the historical development of Turkicness and the Turkism movement.Before proceeding to the information about the studies and authors,who written on the topic, the process of formation of the concepts of Turkishness and Turkism is described.It has been stated that the Turkism movement in the Ottomans was influenced by Western orientalists.Information was given about the books in which Turkists such as Ziya Gökalp and Yusuf Akçura expressed their views.Finally, studies giving information about the Turkestan independence struggle were introduced. More studies are needed on the subject in libraries and archives of Turkey and the world. The archives of the Russian Federation and former Soviet republics are among the most important resource centers on the national independence movements of the Turks under Russian rule and the development of the ideal of Turkish unity. For example, in funds numbered 1, I-1, 1010 and I-47 in the Uzbekistan State Archives, there are very important documents about the activities carried out by the Turkestan Turks for their national independence and the measures taken by the competent Russian authorities against them. Among these documents, there are many reports prepared by the Russian administrators and the papers they presented. There is very important information about the position of Islam in Turkestan, the struggle of the people of Turkestan against Russian rule, the work of Tatar teachers in the Cedit schools and the measures taken by the administration of tsarist Russia against the Jadit schools and Tatar teachers.

Netaji Subbash Chandra Bose and the Japanese Support for National Independence Movement in India and Southeast Asia

In the 20th century, the national liberation movement against imperialism and colonialism became a world-wide movement in many colonial countries (Smith, Anthony. 2010. pp. 9, 25–30). Each country-nation has mirrored in one way or another depending on historical and socio-political conditions, especially the leaders' way (Finlayson, Alan. 2014). Under British colonial rule, the nationalist movement in India was run under the leadership of patriotic and nationalistic leaders such as “a great soul” Mahatma Gandhi (McGregor, Ronald Stuart.1993, p.799) , Rash Behari Bose, Jawaharhlal Nehru, and “a respected leader” Netaji Subhas Chandra Bose (Gordon, Leonard A. 1990, pp. 459–460) ... Among them, Netaji Subhas Chandra Bose has emerged as great leader. The paper consists of an introduction, = three sections and conclusion: 1. Vietnam and India both looked towards Japan in the early 20th century; 2. The support of the Japanese military to INA in struggle for national independence in India and Southeast Asia, and 3. Rethinking about the contributions of Netaji Subhas Chandra Bose to India. The author tries to acknowledge the role of the military leader Netaji Subhas Chandra and his way of armed struggle through the Japanese military's support to INA in struggle for national independence in India and Southeast Asia. Received 15th December 2020; Revised 2nd March 2021; Accepted 20th March 2021

익산 남전교회의 만세운동과 순교자들의 정신

익산 남전교회의 만세운동과 순교자들의 정신

Why Ireland and Irish Studies in South America?

When Declan Kiberd rightly asks “who invented Ireland?” in the introduction of his renowned Inventing Ireland (1995), he points out three possibilities: the Irish themselves, embodied in the words Sinn Féin (ourselves alone) which refer to the movement for national independence; the English fictional construction in response to a specific moment in British history, whose

A Study on the Global Spread and Support of the Gwangju Student Independence Movement in Japan

The purpose of this study was to examine how the Gwangju Student Independence Movement, which occurred on November 3, 1929, global spread and spread throughout Japan. The research results are as follows. First, the Gwangju Student Independence Movement in Japan showed positive responses from the Korean labor unions in Tokyo and Osaka. Second, in the case of Koreans in Japan, the most enthusiastic reaction to the Gwangju Student Independence Movement was the Tokyo Korean Workers Union. Third, it was pointed out that the Japanese response to the Gwangju Student Independence Movement was caused by an institutional defect in the governance method. However, the reaction of the leftist in Japan dealt with the initiation of the Gwangju Student Independence Movement and the development of the independence movement in comparative detail from the general situation of Chosun. Fourth, in May 1943, at Gwangju Seo Middle School, the ‘Second Gwangju Student Independence Movement’, an alliance closing struggle against the student volunteers system, the use of Japanese, and the conscription system. In conclusion, the Gwangju Student Independence Movement that took place in November 1929 was influenced by the March 1 Independence Movement in 1919 and the June 10 National independence movement in 1926, and it occurred in the Gwangju area. Still, today it is inherited by the May 18 Democratization Movement and the Honam Spirit.

Preconditions of the Baltic states’ foreign policy priorities formation in the period of their struggle for independence (1989–1991)

The foundations of many future policy directions, either domestic or foreign, were laid during the period, when Lithuania, Latvia and Estonia struggled for restoration of their national independence. As the factors that had the greatest impact on the formation of these states’ main foreign policy priorities, the article analyzes, firstly, the structure of movements for their national independence (on the basis of which the political elites of the Baltic states were formed), and, secondly, the role of external influence in the formation of their ideology of foreign policy. The author traces the transformation of the main political powers that formed the national independence movements of the three republics into system political parties of the Baltic states, reveals the gradual consolidation of the leadership of right­wing political forces in the field of national ideology and foreign policy, as well as the special activity of the diaspora in establishing international relations of the independence movements of Lithuanian, Latvia and Estonia and in the formation of ideas and concepts that determined the main goals of future foreign policy of the three states. In addition, the article highlights the stages of the independence movements’ of Lithuania, Latvia and Estonia international relations development in 1989–1991.

Offline: COVID-19—what we can expect to come

The verdicts are now coming in. In Mark Honigsbaum's updated edition of The Pandemic Century, he has included a new chapter on COVID-19. As a historian of epidemics, he offers his judgments about how countries have responded to what he calls “China's Chernobyl moment”. His critique is sharp. For decades, we have known that the world is intrinsically and increasingly vulnerable to pandemics—and yet, “we failed to heed the warnings about Covid-19 and act when our actions could have prevented the outbreak from spinning out of control”. Observing China's reaction, Honigsbaum has “a new-found respect” for how the Chinese Government responded so decisively. By contrast, “the British government has…been too slow to follow China's example” He condemns “the hubris of populist politicians”, but also “the complacency of scientific ‘experts’”—“the government's scientific advisors were not listening”, he suggests. The result? Time was “squandered”. And so, “thousands of lives have already been lost, not due to our lack of knowledge—we have had plenty of warnings—but because of our collective failure, abetted by complacent politicians, to take those warnings sufficiently seriously and to prepare for the pandemic that virologists and other experts told us was coming our way”. Yet we need to go beyond verdicts. We need to consider the possible consequences of this pandemic for our societies. Once again, the past may be a useful guide. Laura Spinney has written the definitive history of the 1918 influenza pandemic, Pale Rider: The Spanish Flu of 1918 and How It Changed the World (2017). She argues that this pandemic, which killed as many as 50 million to 100 million people, left humanity transformed—influenza “resculpted human populations…ushered in universal healthcare…accelerated the pace of change…[and] helped shape our modern world”. The vast number of deaths also precipitated new waves of xenophobia—eg, against Germans, Italians, and Chinese. Governments were accused of not doing enough. As were scientists. An intellectual crisis ensued. There was a striking gap between the extravagant claims for 20th-century medicine and “the dismal reality”. The sense of scientific and medical failure led to a growth in alternative medicine, back-to-nature movements, spiritualism, and new prophets for a post-influenza age. Tensions arose over the interests of communities versus individuals. Those born during the pandemic became “a diminished generation”. Smoking rates increased. A new era of research into the control of viral diseases was born. Virology and epidemiology were established as respectable disciplines. Attention was drawn to those who seemed most vulnerable—victims of poverty and inequality, and those who were malnourished and living in poor housing. Public health was embraced with new political energy. Momentum for socialised medicine grew. “Health became political.” Indeed, health became a measure of the modernity of a civilisation. Spinney even suggests the pandemic brought an end to World War 1 and influenced, adversely, the Versailles peace process. National independence movements were strengthened in India, Egypt, and Korea. The pandemic triggered a “psychological shift” towards pessimism, irony, and absurdity. Art turned to the classical and functional. Positively, and paradoxically, societies thrived after the influenza pandemic subsided. The 1920s saw a period of flourishing economic growth. Why? Spinney speculates that the pandemic left behind a smaller but healthier population. Fertility rebounded. COVID-19 isn't influenza and its human consequences, so far at least, have not been as severe. But we can be sure that COVID-19's effects will be profound and long-lasting. How profound and long-lasting will be up to us. One of Honigsbaum's central arguments is that “the tendency of medical researchers to become prisoners of particular paradigms and theories of disease causation…[blinds] them to the threats posed by pathogens both known and unknown”. And, “it would be a mistake to think that simply knowing the identity of a pathogen and the aetiology of a disease is sufficient to bring an epidemic under control”. Despite these pleas for more modesty, he concludes his survey of pandemics with the comment that, “It is to be hoped that, after Covid-19, no one will be foolish enough to make the same mistake again”. But, as his magnificent history proves only too well, it seems to be characteristic of human behaviour that, indeed, we are foolish enough and we will repeat our mistakes.

The neighbor as mirror: Representations of the Korean March First Movement in modern Chinese discourses of nationalism

The outbreak of the Korean March First Movement in 1919 was followed by intensive reporting and commentary in Chinese media, presenting striking images of the brutality of the Japanese colonizers, the resolve for independence among the Korean people, and the concept of national self-determination. The March First Movement provided the Chinese people with a vivid example of the transformation of the abstract concept of “universal principles” into the practice of “national self-determination,” and strengthened consciousness of “national independence” among the Chinese people. Over the ensuing two or three decades, the “March First Movement” gradually seeped into the Chinese nationalist movement and discourses on national liberation, playing the role of “the neighbor as mirror,” and continuing to provide both positive inspiration and negative reference points for the Chinese people following the path of national independence. This linkage and interaction between “weak nations” aids in understanding the modern Chinese nationalist movement, as well as the mechanisms for development of the national independence movements among colonized peoples which swept across the globe in the early 20th century.

Voices from the Sudanese Revolution

24 | International Union Rights | 26/3 TOWARDS UNIVERSAL RATIFICATION OF C87 AND 98 Sudan ratified ILO Convention No. 98 on collective bargaining and protection of the right to organise as far back as 1957, but it has not ratified Convention No. 87, the principle freedom of association instrument. Given recent instability there is little immediate prospect for ratification, but as the country marks its transition to a new political future there is fundamental concern with the country’s trade union structures and with the concepts of freedom of association. Fathi El Fadl is Vice President of ICTUR in Khartoum The beginnings of the trade union movement in Sudan was closely linked with the upsurge of the movement and struggle for national independence in the late 1940s. This stage of building the union movement was characterised by democratic and mass participation. Rank and file members were actively involved in the discussions and consultation that led to the establishment of the first workers’ trade union. At different times trade unions faced repressive measures, detention of leaders, banning of organisations, attempts to create fictitious organisations and assassinations. But governments and regimes come and go; the Sudanese democratic trade unions continued to live and develop. In 1989 the Muslim Brotherhood took power through a military coup, overthrowing the democratically elected government, banning political parties and trade union organisations. The 1990s were the darkest period in the history of Sudan. Thousands of trade unionists, politicians, women, youth and student leaders were jailed. Tens were tortured to death and over 250,000 were dismissed from work. In their attempt to stifle workers’ resistance, the dictatorship embarked on a policy of privatisation, dismantling the public sector and establishing organisations that were part of the regime. Labour laws were reformed to stifle trade union democracy and abolish independent trade union organisations. This practice continued until 11 April 2019. Sudanese democratic trade unions continued to struggle under very difficult conditions, to fight for their rights and against repressions. Thanks to international solidarity and assistance rendered by trade union organisations such as ICTUR, the democratic trade union movement survived the brutal repression and managed to organise even under the most difficult conditions. Professional bodies started to appear and organise independently. Gradually they managed to present an alternative to the government-controlled bodies. Today there is still a long way to go to reach the goals of the mass uprising: Freedom, Peace and Justice. However the Sudanese Professionals’ Association, a pillar of the mass protest movement, is working hard to rebuild democratic, independent and unified trade union organisations. Sara Abdelgali is President of the Sudan Doctors’ Union (UK) Unions in Sudan have always been fighting for democracy, that is part of our history, and professional unions always played a role in democratic change in Sudan in the 1960s and the 1980s. Since the 1940s we had independent unions, but in 1989 these were demolished and went to work underground, while pro-regime unions were formed [under the government-controlled Sudanese Workers’ Trade Union Federation, SWTUF] which was politically affiliated to the NCP [Omar alBashir ’s National Congress Party]. They re-organised the unions to make them more generalised, including different sectors together, and abolished a lot of rights. This was new for Sudan, because even in the two previous dictatorships, the unions were still there, but this regime demolished them. The SWTUF did not serve its members. In Sudan in the last thirty years there have been a lot of proposals and activities, but these activities have not been reflected in the lives of the professionals or citizens of Sudan. Implementation of any change was not done unless it was in the interests of the regime. The SWTUF leadership was not democratically chosen, they were appointed based on their affiliation to the regime. We continued independently and separately, not only the doctors but also other professionals. It took a while for these unions to gather, but there have been several previous attempts at calling for unity. Mostly this was not successful, for different reasons. One of the doctors [Dr. Ali Fadul of the Sudan Doctors’ Union] was tortured and killed in 1990, following a strike. Others have been arrested, expelled from...

Voices from the Sudanese Revolution

24 | International Union Rights | 26/3 TOWARDS UNIVERSAL RATIFICATION OF C87 AND 98 Sudan ratified ILO Convention No. 98 on collective bargaining and protection of the right to organise as far back as 1957, but it has not ratified Convention No. 87, the principle freedom of association instrument. Given recent instability there is little immediate prospect for ratification, but as the country marks its transition to a new political future there is fundamental concern with the country’s trade union structures and with the concepts of freedom of association. Fathi El Fadl is Vice President of ICTUR in Khartoum The beginnings of the trade union movement in Sudan was closely linked with the upsurge of the movement and struggle for national independence in the late 1940s. This stage of building the union movement was characterised by democratic and mass participation. Rank and file members were actively involved in the discussions and consultation that led to the establishment of the first workers’ trade union. At different times trade unions faced repressive measures, detention of leaders, banning of organisations, attempts to create fictitious organisations and assassinations. But governments and regimes come and go; the Sudanese democratic trade unions continued to live and develop. In 1989 the Muslim Brotherhood took power through a military coup, overthrowing the democratically elected government, banning political parties and trade union organisations. The 1990s were the darkest period in the history of Sudan. Thousands of trade unionists, politicians, women, youth and student leaders were jailed. Tens were tortured to death and over 250,000 were dismissed from work. In their attempt to stifle workers’ resistance, the dictatorship embarked on a policy of privatisation, dismantling the public sector and establishing organisations that were part of the regime. Labour laws were reformed to stifle trade union democracy and abolish independent trade union organisations. This practice continued until 11 April 2019. Sudanese democratic trade unions continued to struggle under very difficult conditions, to fight for their rights and against repressions. Thanks to international solidarity and assistance rendered by trade union organisations such as ICTUR, the democratic trade union movement survived the brutal repression and managed to organise even under the most difficult conditions. Professional bodies started to appear and organise independently. Gradually they managed to present an alternative to the government-controlled bodies. Today there is still a long way to go to reach the goals of the mass uprising: Freedom, Peace and Justice. However the Sudanese Professionals’ Association, a pillar of the mass protest movement, is working hard to rebuild democratic, independent and unified trade union organisations. Sara Abdelgali is President of the Sudan Doctors’ Union (UK) Unions in Sudan have always been fighting for democracy, that is part of our history, and professional unions always played a role in democratic change in Sudan in the 1960s and the 1980s. Since the 1940s we had independent unions, but in 1989 these were demolished and went to work underground, while pro-regime unions were formed [under the government-controlled Sudanese Workers’ Trade Union Federation, SWTUF] which was politically affiliated to the NCP [Omar alBashir ’s National Congress Party]. They re-organised the unions to make them more generalised, including different sectors together, and abolished a lot of rights. This was new for Sudan, because even in the two previous dictatorships, the unions were still there, but this regime demolished them. The SWTUF did not serve its members. In Sudan in the last thirty years there have been a lot of proposals and activities, but these activities have not been reflected in the lives of the professionals or citizens of Sudan. Implementation of any change was not done unless it was in the interests of the regime. The SWTUF leadership was not democratically chosen, they were appointed based on their affiliation to the regime. We continued independently and separately, not only the doctors but also other professionals. It took a while for these unions to gather, but there have been several previous attempts at calling for unity. Mostly this was not successful, for different reasons. One of the doctors [Dr. Ali Fadul of the Sudan Doctors’ Union] was tortured and killed in 1990, following a strike. Others have been arrested, expelled from...