Are the vultures once again circling Omar al-Bashir's Sudan?

Finally rid of the troublesome south which seceded in July after decades of civil war, Sudan President Omar al Bashir could have been forgiven for expecting to breathe easy.

But a succession of alliances are instead opening new fronts in his northern portion of the Sudan, presenting him with fresh unrest to deal with.

Last Wednesday, the Beja Congress, an armed opposition movement from eastern Sudan, declared that it has joined the Sudan Revolutionary Front (SRF).

The SRF was already an alliance, established last week following talks between three Darfur armed groups; the two independent Sudan Liberation Armys- Minni Minnawi (SLA-MM) and the SLA--Abdul Wahid (SLA-AW), the Justice and Equality Movement (JEM) and the outlawed northern party, the Sudan People's Liberation Movement- North (SPLM-N).

"The Sudanese government created this alliance by fighting wars in all areas forcing people to feel that there is no real alternative and a the lack of political and peaceful resolutions," said Mr Ibrahim Ahmed, a member in the political affairs section of the SLA, one of the partners in the alliance.

The alliance stated that it will work towards replacing President Bashir. "The SRF wants to bring democracy to Sudan," said Dr Abu Amna, the head of the Leadership Office of the Beja Congress.

East Sudan has been politically and economically marginalised since independence. The east has had fewer representatives in government positions than any other region, and its citizens have the lowest school enrollment and do not have adequate access to health services.

'Gun-slinger'

"The Beja congress was born in the 1960s when successive Sudanese government marginalised the Beja even after they fought with the rest of Sudan for independence," said Dr Amna.

In 1994, the Beja Congress approached President Bashir to demand more political rights and representation and development in the east. "He told us that 'I only negotiate with a person who carries a gun,'" said Dr Amna. The Congress proceeded to take up arms.

In 2006, the East Sudan Peace Agreement was signed in Eritrea after years of negotiations, but little has changed in the east.

"The peace agreement was mainly between the Eritrean government and the Sudanese government, it did not represent us, they also refused to let the international community take part in it," said Dr Amna, adding that the political positions given to the east had no real power and only a fraction of the amount pledged was delivered.

The decision of the Beja Congress came after lengthy discussions among its leaders and between other Sudanese movements.

The Congress was part of many alliances from the Nuba Mountains and Darfur, regions they feel close in regard to marginalisation from the dominant ethnic groups in Central Sudan.
Mr Latif Joseph Sabag who is a founding member in Sudan's largest opposition parties, the Umma party, stated that the alliance represents the periphery against the dominant centre since the disputes between the two sides have increased recently.

"The big issue is the recent agreement in Doha. Al-Tijani Al Sisi signed the agreement, but other movements from Darfur refrained, even the Qatari negotiators could not convince them to sign," said Mr Sabag.

Marginalised

Non-signatory rebel movements have fought the Khartoum government ever since a conflict broke out in Darfur in 2003. A number of peace agreements were signed between different factions of the rebel movements throughout the years, but this has yet to bring peace to Darfur and the region continues to be marginalised and under-developed.

In Southern Kordofan and Blue Nile, the SPLN-North has been fighting the Sudanese army since June in Southern Kordofan and since September in Blue Nile. The two states are known as the "Protocol States" in the 2005 Comprehensive Peace Agreement with South Sudan.

Before the conflict, Blue Nile was in advanced stages in the popular consultations process where its citizens are asked to state their opinions on the CPA and negotiate with the Khartoum government for more rights and representation.

Popular consultations in Southern Kordofan never started because the elections for governor-ship were postponed for over a year.

The Sudan government said that it will not negotiate with the SPLM-North except inside Sudan and after the two states agree to implement the popular consultations, which is the last remaining process in the CPA.

Failed

In 1993, the National Rally was formed and pledged to overthrow the NCP-led regime through military action, but it failed.

In 2008, the JEM of Darfur invaded Khartoum state attempting to overthrow the government , but the crackdown by government forces was strong and the invasion backfired on IDPs who hail from Darfur living in Khartoum.

In a statement issued by the SRF after its formation , the alliance pointed out that the Sudanese regime is at its weakest "economically, politically and militarily."

The SRF called on Sudanese opposition parties to " reject the path of partial political settlement with the NCP regime and adopt a wholistic approach for changing the regime's seat of power in Khartoum."

"The alliance is not racist since we feel that the periphery includes all Sudanese people except the ones in power, this is why we are reaching out to opposition parties in the north," said Mr Ahmed from SLA who added that everyone whose political and economic rights were taken away is marginalised.

The opposition movements in the north are awaiting developments. "Only time will show how strong or weak this alliance is," said Mr Sabag who stressed that the UMMA party considers negotiations and peace agreements the best options.