SUDAN INSIGHT ALERT: African Arguments – “This Is Not a Coup”: Movements and Politics in Post-Coup Sudan
African Arguments’ anonymous author argues that managing the rift between more radical views and the need to compromise as part of the political process may be a factor in the success of the democratic movement in Sudan, which has faced setbacks explained by how the Sudanese Professionals Association (SPA), “the leading force” of the uprising, was unable to convert its popular support into political power.
While the SPA’s horizontal structure, with little central leadership, protects against arrests or co-optation, it also caused a leadership crisis whereby: arrested members wanted to return to occupied positions and activists returning from abroad seeking senior positions.
A rift then appeared between the SPA’s moderate leadership and the rank-and-file who took a hardline position against partnership with the military. SPA elections in 2019 then saw many leaders replaced by Communist Party supporters, leaving original leaders to create a rival faction.