Is this slogan true, ‘one nation one army?’ Are you sure that we are one nation with one national army? This slogan needs to be revisited; we need to understand it in a better manner. Is Sudan one nation? Or is it composed of myriads of nations? I strongly believe that those who chant this slogan are not honest with themselves or their communities. Sudan has never been one nation and has never had one army. Those who chant that slogan should stop paying lip service to it. Sudan is fed up with such hypocritical slogans, as it comprises over 500 diverse ethnic nations scattered across the country. Those who have been in positions of leadership in Sudan have failed to transform these diverse ethnic nations into one nation; hence, there is no one nation but rather many nations. The discriminatory and exclusionary ‘Law of Strange Faces’, which is currently practised, is not a new phenomenon. Its roots go back to 1994, when the notorious Sudanization Process started. Many ethnic groups were denied access to the posts in the Sudanization process based on the unwritten “law of strange faces” at that time. The notorious law lurked insidiously in the background from that time until now.
A true nation shares one history, one culture, one vision, one mission, one identity, one direction, one destiny, and shared values. Furthermore, a cohesive nation is one where its diverse cultures are truly reflected in public media. A true nation is one where its members feel at home wherever they go in the country. Sudan lacks the characteristics of a true nation. Hate speech and the Law of Strange Faces have made matters worse. Good people in Sudan are standing aloof; they don’t want to play any positive role in reforming the mess. It is the Sudanese idiots leading the Sudanese people to the abyss.
Is it true that there is a national army in Sudan? And is it true that all Sudanese people are rallying behind it? Does Sudan have a loyal and committed army that has one creed and one mission? What about the dozens of Sudanese revolutionary armed movements and forces that are scattered across the country? Are they not national armies? Don’t they have national creeds? Don’t they have national agendas? What do their goals and visions say? Do their goals and visions contradict the interests and values of the Sudanese people? Who has the authority to determine which army is considered national and which is not? Those armies in the bush are national armies with national creeds and agendas, and the same is true for those in the caves and mountains. Honestly, I’m not sure if those armies in the capital are national or if they have national creeds and agendas. Fortunately, history doesn’t lie. The historical record shows that the Sudanese Armed Forces have a notorious record of violence against their citizens. The barrels of their guns have been directed at the chests of the Sudanese people since independence.
I conclude by stating that the ‘one nation, one army’ slogan in Sudan is illusory. We must acknowledge that the country is composed of diverse ethnic nations that have not yet been integrated or mainstreamed into a single, unified state. Let us confess that the Sudanese political sector is the main source of our tragedy and that it must be restructured and reformed. Politics is not a dirty game; dirty politicians make politics dirty. Let us rid politics of the remaining vestiges of dirty politicians and corrupt figures. Only then do nations get transformed into a nation. It must be acknowledged that Sudanese civil society organizations suffer from fragility and a lack of capacity, limiting their ability to effect meaningful change. The National Military Establishment is the real source of the Sudan crisis; it must literally be dismantled and structurally reformed. Sudanese Revolutionary Armed Movements must be integrated into the National Military Establishment. Only then can we say, “One nation, one army, one army, one nation.”
Stop Paying Lip Service and Hypocritical Slogans
Mahjoub S. G.
Kampala – Uganda
May 13, 2026
