Sudan: Update to SDN6458 of 18 July 1990 on the current activities of the Republican Brothers Party inside and outside of Sudan and on the treatment of its members by the current government
| Publisher | Canada: Immigration and Refugee Board of Canada |
| Author | Research Directorate, Immigration and Refugee Board, Canada |
| Publication Date | 1 February 1999 |
| Citation / Document Symbol | SDN31010.E |
| Cite as | Canada: Immigration and Refugee Board of Canada, Sudan: Update to SDN6458 of 18 July 1990 on the current activities of the Republican Brothers Party inside and outside of Sudan and on the treatment of its members by the current government, 1 February 1999, SDN31010.E, available at: https://www.refworld.org/docid/3ae6ab4e78.html [accessed 17 September 2023] |
| Disclaimer | This is not a UNHCR publication. UNHCR is not responsible for, nor does it necessarily endorse, its content. Any views expressed are solely those of the author or publisher and do not necessarily reflect those of UNHCR, the United Nations or its Member States. |
Both The Europa World Year Book 1998 (1998, 3173), and Political Parties of Africa and the Middle East (1993, 277), state that political organizations were banned in Sudan following the military coup of 30 June 1989. Politcal Parties of Africa and the Middle East adds that "the government in late 1991 restated its intention to maintain the ban" (ibid.).
In a telephone interview with the Research Directorate, a professor of history and director of the Centre for Muslim and Christian Understanding at Georgetown University in Washington, DC, also co-author of The Sudan: Unity and Diversity in a Multicultural State, stated that the Republican Brothers Party (RBP) has been inactive since its leader, Mahmud Mohammed Taha, was executed in 1985 by the Nimeiri regime ( 8 Feb. 1999). He stated that many of its members are still inside Sudan but a few left the country and now live in exile abroad.
In another interview with the Research Directorate, a professor of Law at Emory University in Atlanta, Georgia, who specializes in politics and human rights in Sudan, corroborated the above information (8 Feb. 1999). He added, however, that although the RBP is dormant, old members of the party may still be face harassment and pressure inside Sudan. He explained that because the RBP was a liberal movement calling for islamic reform, its members who took refuge in strictly Muslim countries of the Middle East are likely to experience difficulties (ibid.).
This Response was prepared after researching publicly accessible information currently available to the Research Directorate within time constraints. This Response is not, and does not purport to be, conclusive as to the merit of any particular claim to refugee status or asylum.
References
The Europa World Year Book 1998. 1998. 39th edition. Vol. 2. London: Europa Publications.
Political Parties of Africa and the Middle East. 1993. Edited by Roger East and Tanya Joseph. The High, Harlow, Essex: Longman Group UK.
Professor of history and director of the Centre for Muslim and Christian Understanding at Georgetown University, and co-author of The Sudan: Unity and Diversity in a Multicultural State, Washington, DC. 8 February 1999. Telephone interview.
Professor of Law specializing in politics and human rights in Sudan at Emory University, Atlanta. 8 February 1999. Telephone interview.