Page 53 - EVOLUTION OF THE SUDAN PEOPLE’S LIBERATION MOVEMENT(SPLM),

of SPLM, acquired the diplomatic and political support from Derg regime of Mengistu Haile
Mariam and thereby rejecting the Anyanya (II)manifestos, which called for the secession of
Southern Sudan (Nyaba, 2000; Akol, 2001).Mengistu Haile Mariam could not support Anyanya

(II)with a separatist ideology just because of his commitment to Soviet Leninist-Marxist ideology
like his political opponents, in Eritrea and Tigria. Thus SPLM was largely conveniently formed
to support Mengistu national interests(SAD.887/9/15)

The New Sudan advocated in the SPLM manifesto was never a popular idea among the people of

South Sudan. Since its formation, two schools of thought have defined SPLM politics throughout
the history of the armed struggled against Khartoum regime-separation versus New Sudan. The
matter was later conclusively settled through a referendum in favor of the independence of South
Sudan, on 9th January 2011. What is clear however is that, SPLM was founded as a nationalist

project to reform the Old Sudan and create a New Sudan. In his Koka speech in 1986, John
Garang observed that the future of North and South Sudan was inseparable (Garang, 1994).
However, the struggle for the liberation of South Sudan was defined by struggle between forces
of separation and union. SPLM came into prominence in 1983 after the collapse of the 1972 Addis

Ababa Agreement and fall out with Anyanya over secession of South Sudan, a principle that was
established by Anyanya (I) and the new vision by the manifesto and constitution of SPLM/A
of 1983 claiming one united Sudan otherwise referred to as new Sudan. The struggle over the
two contending visions is what has come to define the SPLM/A factions until the death of John

Garang in 2005. Studies on SPLM can be undertaken within three phases of the struggle from
1983-2005 and this chapter will discuss each phase of its evolution separately(SAD.887/9/15/123).

4.3 SPLM Formidable Years-1983 to 1991

With the support of Col. Mengistu Haile Mariam of Ethiopia, the SPLM power struggle with
Anyanya (II) was militarily settled in favor of John Garang’s SPLM and the founder of the
movement. The latter argued that SPLM needed to overcome the weaknesses of Anyanya(I).

Anyanya’s weaknesses included peasant based armies and militias confined to their home areas
without a central command. Others are a clear lack of political direction and ideology.

That ultimately weakened the vision of independence and forced a compromise and signing of
the Addis Ababa peace agreement in 1972. Thus the formation of the SPLM/A was assumed to

be a modern military force capable of waging modern warfare and as such the movement had
to modernize and acquire fighting capacity. The power struggle between the forces of Anyanya,
the secessionists and the SPLM/A, the unionists led into open conflict and war with the result
that SPLM/A supported by the Ethiopian military defeated Anyanya (II) and integrated them

into the movements. The war between Anyanya and SPLM was brutal and had higher civilian
casualties. It planted seeds of disunity, mistrust and factionalism within the movement that
has kept resurfacing in the course of war of national liberation. In support of this narrative, one
respondent stated;

“Many Civilians perished in this conflict. Intergrating Anyanya soldiers into the movement was

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