Although this article overly simplifies the nature of racial/ethnic conflict in the Sudan, it does provide some insight on why the Sudanese government is happy to cooperate with the US. >Delivered-To: brc-news-outgoing@lists.tao.ca >From: Art McGee <radicalnegro@yahoo.com> >Reply-To: nandl@igc.org >Subject: [BRC-NEWS] Sudan and Oil >Sender: worker-brc-news@lists.tao.ca >To: brc-news@lists.tao.ca >X-Sender: Art McGee <radicalnegro@yahoo.com> >List-ID: Black Radical Congress - General News Articles/Reports >List-Unsubscribe: <mailto:majordomo@tao.ca?body=unsubscribe%20brc-news> >List-Subscribe: <mailto:majordomo@tao.ca?body=subscribe%20brc-news> >List-Digest: <mailto:majordomo@tao.ca?body=subscribe%20brc-news-digest> >List-Help: <mailto:worker-brc-news@lists.tao.ca?subject=brc-news> >List-Archive: <brc-news@lists.tao.ca">http://www.mail-archive.com/brc-news@lists.tao.ca>, ><http://groups.yahoo.com/messages/brc-news>, ><http://www.escribe.com/politics/brc-news> >List-Post: <mailto:brc-news@lists.tao.ca> >List-Homepage: <http://www.blackradicalcongress.org> >Date: Sun, 9 Sep 2001 20:19:42 -0400 (EDT) > >http://www.newsandletters.org/1.07_brv.htm > >News & Letters > >July 2001 > >Black/Red View > >Sudan and Oil > >By John Alan > >For over 18 years a brutal civil war has been fought in >Sudan between the ruling Arabic speaking Muslims of the >north and the indigenous Black Sudanese living in the south. >The most recent economic reason for this conflict was the >unilateral decision, of the ruling northern Sudanese >government in Khartoum to sell concessions to Western and >Asian oil corporations to drill for oil in Sudan. > >Nature had placed Sudan's rich crude petroleum areas in >southern Sudan. To validate its agreement with multinational >oil corporations, the Khartoum regime sent in troops to >clear and protect those areas from any opposition by >southern Sudanese. According to a recent Amnesty >International report, the Arabic Khartoum regime has used >ground attacks, helicopter gunships and indiscriminate >high-altitude bombardment to clear the local population from >oil rich areas. > >This massive displacement of the local population was >followed in the last decade by the deployment of additional >weaponry and forces, specifically drafted to protect the oil >fields. The military tactics of the government's security >force destroyed harvests and looted livestock as it occupied >the area to prevent the return of the displaced population. >This scorched earth policy has caused the death of more than >2 million people and has uprooted another 4.4 million, many >of whom may die from famine. > >There is a long list of multinational oil corporations now >holding oil drilling concessions in Sudan. Among the major >ones we find the Great Nile Petroleum and Oil Corporation >(GNPOC) with a concession to drill for oil in two areas. >GNPOC's main partner is the China National Petroleum >Corporation (CNPC), owned by the People's Republic of China. >The CNPC owns a 40% share in this project. Other major >shareholders are the Malaysian state-owned Petronas which >has a 30% stake in Canada's Talisman Energy, and Sudapet, >the national petroleum company of Sudan, which has a 5% >stake. > >The above is only a small list of corporations now >benefiting from drilling for oil in Sudan. More information >about their interlocking share holdings and the selling of >their stock on Wall Street can be found in the Amnesty >International On-Line Report (June 23, 2001.) > >It is also public knowledge that Khartoum's take from oil >concessions is $500 million annually. This will climb >steeply, once the oil corporations have recovered their >risk. This will undoubtedly tip the war in the favor of the >Khartoum government. It has given that government the >ability to garrison the main roads and the oil fields armed >to the teeth with tanks and helicopters to fight the >People's Liberation Army in Southern Sudan. > >Another appalling thing about Sudan's war, is its racist >dimension. This can't be ignored. On one side is Arab >authoritarian power and on the other side are sub-Saharan >African masses fighting for freedom. > >Eric Reeves, in an article for the June issue of THE NATION, >put this race division on the table when he wrote: "The >National Islamic Front looks to the Islamic and Arabic world >for culture and racial identity. Moreover its view of the >Nilotic and Equatorian peoples of the south is animated by a >vicious racism. The most common term of designation in >Arabic is ABID, which translates almost exactly as 'n----r.' >Such attitudes do much to explain why Khartoum has actively >abetted a modern slave trade, directed against racially >'African' people of the South." > >The above depiction of Arabs in Sudan as racist in no way >means that Arabs are inherently racist, but, like the racist >European, they become racist in the process of exploitation >of African labor and natural resources. What Sudan tells us >today is that the inherent drive of capitalism to accumulate >an infinite amount of capital, if left unchecked, can lead >to genocide. In other words, racism is a manifestation of >the utter subordination and the alienation of labor in the >process of capital accumulation. > >Sudan also tells us, as Raya Dunayevskaya wrote in 1973, >"that political independence does not mean economic >dependence has ended, but on the contrary, the ugly head of >neo-imperialism then first appears. Yet equally crucial were >the new divisions that arose between the leaders and the led >once national independence was achieved. At the same time >new divisions also arose between Arab leadership and the >'uneducated masses.' Whether we look at Zanzibar, which did >succeed in overthrowing its Arab rulers, or to the southern >Sudan, which had not, the need remained the same: a second >revolution." > >Today, oil and more oil is the "ugly head" of >neo-imperialism. To get new sources of oil animates a large >part of the planning and the politics of the George W. Bush >administration. Overcoming that retrogression is the task >for revolutionaries in this country as we confront our own >unfinished revolution and new forms of exploitation and >racism. > >Copyright (c) 2001 News & Letters. All Rights Reserved. > > >[IMPORTANT NOTE: The views and opinions expressed on this >list are solely those of the authors and/or publications, >and do not necessarily represent or reflect the official >political positions of the Black Radical Congress (BRC). >Official BRC statements, position papers, press releases, >action alerts, and announcements are distributed exclusively >via the BRC-PRESS list. As a subscriber to this list, you >have been added to the BRC-PRESS list automatically.] > >[Articles on BRC-NEWS may be forwarded and posted on other >mailing lists, as long as the wording/attribution is not altered >in any way. In particular, if there is a reference to a web site >where an article was originally located, do *not* remove that. > >Unless stated otherwise, do *not* publish or post the entire >text of any articles on web sites or in print, without getting >*explicit* permission from the article author or copyright holder. >Check the fair use provisions of the copyright law in your country >for details on what you can and can't do. > >As a courtesy, we'd appreciate it if you let folks know how to >subscribe to BRC-NEWS, by leaving in the first seven lines of the >signature below.] > >-------------------------------------------------------------------------- >BRC-NEWS: Black Radical Congress - General News Articles/Reports >-------------------------------------------------------------------------- >Unsubscribe: <mailto:majordomo@tao.ca?body=unsubscribe%20brc-news> >-------------------------------------------------------------------------- >Subscribe: <mailto:majordomo@tao.ca?body=subscribe%20brc-news> >-------------------------------------------------------------------------- >Digest: <mailto:majordomo@tao.ca?body=subscribe%20brc-news-digest> >-------------------------------------------------------------------------- >Help: <mailto:worker-brc-news@lists.tao.ca?subject=brc-news> >-------------------------------------------------------------------------- >Archive: <brc-news@lists.tao.ca">http://www.mail-archive.com/brc-news@lists.tao.ca> >-------------------------------------------------------------------------- >Archive: <http://groups.yahoo.com/messages/brc-news> >-------------------------------------------------------------------------- >Archive: <http://www.escribe.com/politics/brc-news> >-------------------------------------------------------------------------- >Post: <mailto:brc-news@lists.tao.ca> >-------------------------------------------------------------------------- ><www.blackradicalcongress.org> | BRC | <blackradicalcongress@visto.com> >--------------------------------------------------------------------------
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