The Eastern front and the struggle against marginalization

For years international attention in Sudan focused on he southern civil war, but the conditions of marginalization and resentment which motivated that conflict also existed in the east of the country. While dissidents in the south moved quickly to launch a rebellion and were later joined by western rebels, their counterparts in the east endeavoured to overcome their problems by political means. However, successive dictatorial regimes in Khartoum led Beja Congress (BC) politicians to move to Eritrea, join the National Democratic Alliance, and launch an armed struggle in the early 1990s. In 2005 the BC joined the Rashaida Free Lions to form the Eastern Front but weak leadership, lack of a clear political perogramme, poor organization, and dependence on Eritrea contributed to the failure of the military campaign. The Eastern Sudan Peace Agreement of 14 October 2006 calls for the absorption of the Eastern Front Armed force into the Sudan Armed Forces in exchange for political positions in the national government, the national assembly, and in three eastern states. The agreement, however, largely reflects the broader regional interests of Khartoum and Asmara and is unlikely to end the marginalization that led the Eastern Front to launch its armed struggle.