How gold became a “curse” for Sudan (and what does it have to do with skirmishes that left more than 180 civilians dead)

Sudan, a vast country in East Africa, experienced a turbulent weekend with more than 180 dead and at least 1,100 injured.

According to several international organizations, the deaths were due to clashes between members of the military and the paramilitary militias known as the Rapid Support Forces (RSF, for its English acronym).

So far, most of the attacks between the two sides have taken place in the country’s capital, Khartoum.

But this confrontation on the ground is the result of a long series of events, tensions, crises and political struggles that have not allowed the country to stabilize since the fall of Omar al Bashir’s regime in April 2019.

One of the reasons for the resurgence of violence is the lack of dialogue between the two main military leaders who continued to lead the country to lead the nation towards civilian democracy: Mohamed Hamdan Dagalo, head of the RSF and better known as Hemedtiand Abdel Fattah al Burhan, head of the army and president of the country.

But among all the factors contributing to Sudan’s internal tension, there is a key element: the African country has one of the continent’s largest gold reserves.

Only in 2022, according to the government, Sudan will achieve exports of almost USD 2.5 billion, equivalent to the sale of 41.8 tons of gold.

Most of the country’s most profitable mines are under the control of Hemedti and the RSF militias, who finance their operation by selling the precious metal not only to the Khartoum government, but also to other buyers from neighboring countries.

“Gold mines have become the main source of income for a country with many economic problems. And in these moments of tension, they become a strategic targetShewit Woldemichael, an expert on Sudan issues from the Crisis Group, explained to BBC Mundo.

“And above all, it was one of the sources of funding for the RSF and one that the military views with some suspicion,” he added.

At the same time, the rampant extraction has caused a series of devastating effects in the areas surrounding the mines, with a very high number of people not only dying from the mines collapsing, but becoming ill from the mercury and arsenic used. in the extraction of this metal.

But how did gold become this strategic element in the violence Sudan is experiencing today?

Sudan and its “golden curse”

Following the independence of the areas now known as Sudan from British rule, a laborious process of reorganization began in 1956, full of ups and downs.

Along this path, the country found the main form of financing in oil production.

In the mid-1980s, however, an independence process began in the south of the country, which ended in 2011, after fierce conflicts and political decision-making, with the establishment of the Republic of South Sudan.

With that independence, Sudan lost two-thirds of its money from crude oil exports.

The decrease in resources exacerbated internal tensions between different ethnic groups, militias and armed groups that coexist in the country.

In 2012, it was revealed that an area called Jebel Amir, in the north of the country, could contain enough gold reserves to alleviate the country’s difficult economic situation.

“This was clearly seen as a godsend given what they had lost with South Sudan,” Tufts University Sudan analyst Alex de Waal told the BBC.

“But it quickly became a curse, because what it did was intensify the battle for control of the area between different parties and give rise to an uncontrolled gold rush,” he added.

According to local records and De Waal himself, tens of thousands of young people flocked to that part of the country to try their luck in shallow mines with rudimentary equipment.

Some struck gold and became rich, others were crushed in collapsing pits or sickened by mercury and arsenic poisoning used to process the metal’s nuggets..

In 2021, 31 people died after a disused gold mine collapsed in West Kordofan province. And without going further, another 14 people died on March 31 when another mine collapsed in the north of the country.

According to the Sudan University of Science and Technology, analyzes conducted in watersheds near mining areas in 2020 found mercury concentration levels of 2004 parts per million (ppm) and arsenic of 14.23 ppm.

According to WHO, the allowed levels are 1 ppm for mercury and 10 ppm for arsenic in the water.

“The use of cyanide and mercury will surely lead to an environmental disaster in the country”El Jeili Hamouda Saleh, a professor of environmental law at Bahri University in Khartoum, told local radio.

“There are more than 40,000 gold mining sites in the country. About 60 gold processing companies operate in 13 states of the country, 15 of which are in South Kordofan. That is not going to end well, because they do not meet environmental requirements,” he emphasized.

But it wasn’t the only thing that happened. A tribal leader known as Musa Halil and loyal to Al Bashir took control of the area after an ethnic cleansing that claimed the lives of more than 800 people living in the area.

Halil began to mine and sell the gold, not only to the government in Khartoum but also to other buyers.

However, in 2017 – after Halil, accused of crimes against humanity, was handed over to the international authorities – Hemedti, leader of the RSF and who had armed himself to defend Al Bashir against any military threat, took over the mining operation .

At that time, the revenue from the sale of gold represented about 40% of the country’s exports. Literally a gold mine.

“That gold made Hemedti the country’s most important trader in the metal and with it he also gained control over the border with Chad and Libya,” says De Waal.

A road to democracy

The truth is that, after the fall of Omar al Bashir in 2019 due to a military coup, the country was left to the two men who controlled the armed groups: Hemedti and Al Burhan.

“Thanks in part to its control of gold production, with 70,000 men and more than 10,000 armed trucks, the RSF became the de facto infantry of Sudan, the only fighting force capable of controlling the streets of the capital, Khartoum. other cities,” says De Waal.

In 2021, both leaders promised – in a timid alliance – to start a process that would end in a civil and democratic government for Sudan.

“In that alliance, which was ratified last December, it was clear that gold production would be supplied to the elected civilian government. But it is clear that the growing power of Hemedti it made those around Al Burhan ask for control over the actions of the RSF,” Woldemichael explains.

Although he clarifies that there are many forces that also want to participate in the control of gold in North Sudan

“For that reason, the Al Burham-controlled military tried to take advantage of the security sector reform negotiations [como parte de negociaciones más amplias para la transición política] to check the RSF, under conditions that Hemedti I wasn’t going to accept,” he said.

That was one of many factors that increased tension during the weekend’s violent clashes. Although there are other factors to be added that can destabilize the country.

“As fighting in Libya eases, many more Darfur fighters who fought in Libya are expected to eventually return, furthering the scramble for resources, including gold mines,” he said.

For analysts, that’s the truth peace will mainly depend on the effects of international condemnation of the use of force in the country.

“It is not certain that either side will achieve total victory, so as the number of casualties on both sides unfortunately increases and internal and international condemnation increases as a result, I think they will decide to negotiate,” he concluded.