Dossier Dossier One Nation, Two Cultures New alliances with other countries have sharpened an old conflict between two separate societies in northern and southern Sudan. So says Akolda Tier, a professor at Khartoum University. What is certain is that the government has an effective secret-police network, and enforces the coercive Shari'a law with its terrifying sanctions.
Recent signs indicate that the tensions of Sudan are increasing.
The rebels in southern Sudan who had already been fighting against the regime have allied with groups in Ethiopia and Eritrea, attacking from the east. Nevertheless the conflicting forces continue to grow in strength, so a long and inconclusive civil war is growing into the proportions of an international crisis. That escalation in itself makes it more likely that there will soon be more dramatic changes. The larger scale of the conflict has brought more involvement by international organizations. And so the killing continues.