The Justice and Equality Movement (JEM; , ') is an opposition group in
Sudan
Sudan, officially the Republic of the Sudan, is a country in Northeast Africa. It borders the Central African Republic to the southwest, Chad to the west, Libya to the northwest, Egypt to the north, the Red Sea to the east, Eritrea and Ethiopi ...
founded by
Khalil Ibrahim.
Gibril Ibrahim has led the group since January 2012 after the death of Khalil, his brother, in December 2011. The JEM supported the removal of President of Sudan,
Omar al-Bashir
Omar Hassan Ahmad al-Bashir (born 1 January 1944) is a Sudanese former military officer and politician who served as Head of state of Sudan, Sudan's head of state under various titles from 1989 until 2019, when he was deposed in 2019 Sudanese c ...
and nation-wide government reform.
Formation and organization
The Justice and Equality Movement trace their origin to the writers of ''
The Black Book: Imbalance of Power and Wealth in the Sudan'', a manuscript published in 2000 that details what it views as the
structural inequality
Structural inequality occurs when the fabric of organizations, institutions, governments or social networks contains an embedded cultural, linguistic, economic, religious/belief, physical or identity based bias which provides advantages for som ...
in the country; the JEM's founder, Khalil Ibrahim, was one of the authors.
The JEM claims to number around 35,000 with an ethnically diverse membership.
According to critics it is not the "rainbow of tribes" it claims to be, as most JEM members, including its leader, are from the
Zaghawa tribe.
The JEM is part of the
Sudan Revolutionary Front (SRF), an alliance of groups opposed to the Government of Sudan.
History of attacks
Raids on Haskanita
In the September and October 2007
raids on Haskanita JEM units attacked the
African Union Mission in Sudan
The African Union Mission in Sudan (AMIS) was an African Union (AU) peacekeeping force operating primarily in the country's western region of Darfur to perform peacekeeping operations related to the Darfur conflict. It was founded in 2004, with ...
. Three JEM leaders,
Bahr Idriss Abu Garda,
Abdallah Banda Abakaer Nourain and
Saleh Mohammed Jerbo Jamus, were charged by the
International Criminal Court
The International Criminal Court (ICC) is an intergovernmental organization and International court, international tribunal seated in The Hague, Netherlands. It is the first and only permanent international court with jurisdiction to prosecute ...
(ICC) of
war crimes
A war crime is a violation of the laws of war that gives rise to individual criminal responsibility for actions by combatants in action, such as intentionally killing civilians or intentionally killing prisoners of war, torture, taking hos ...
.
The case against Garda was dropped due to lack of evidence
and the case against Jerbo was dropped after his presumed death on 19 April 2013.
, Banda was considered a fugitive by the ICC.
Oilfield attacks and anti-government operations
In October 2007, the JEM attacked the Defra oilfield in the
Kordofan
Kordofan ( ') is a former province of central Sudan. In 1994 it was divided into three new federal states: North Kordofan, South Kordofan and West Kordofan. In August 2005, West Kordofan State was abolished and its territory divided between N ...
region of Sudan. The
Greater Nile Petroleum Operating Company, a
Chinese-led consortium, controls the field. The next month, a group of 135 Chinese engineers arrived in Darfur to work on the Defra field. Ibrahim told reporters, "We oppose them coming because the Chinese are not interested in human rights.
hey are
Hey, HEY, or Hey! may refer to:
Music
* Hey (band), a Polish rock band
Albums
* ''Hey'' (Andreas Bourani album) or the title song (see below), 2014
* ''Hey!'' (Julio Iglesias album) or the title song, 1980
* ''Hey!'' (Jullie album) or the ...
just interested in Sudan's resources." The JEM claims that the revenue from oil sold to China funds the Sudanese government and the
Janjaweed militia.
On the morning of December 11, 2007, Khalil Ibrahim claimed that JEM forces fought and defeated Sudanese government troops guarding a Chinese-run oilfield in the
Kordofan
Kordofan ( ') is a former province of central Sudan. In 1994 it was divided into three new federal states: North Kordofan, South Kordofan and West Kordofan. In August 2005, West Kordofan State was abolished and its territory divided between N ...
region.
Khartoum
Khartoum or Khartum is the capital city of Sudan as well as Khartoum State. With an estimated population of 7.1 million people, Greater Khartoum is the largest urban area in Sudan.
Khartoum is located at the confluence of the White Nile – flo ...
officials, however, denied that any oil fields had come under attack. Ibrahim said that the attack was part of a JEM campaign to rid Sudan of Chinese-run oilfields and stated that "
he JEMwant all Chinese companies to leave. They have been warned many times. They should not be there."
2008–2013 Khartoum attack and continued battles
In May 2008, JEM engaged in its most famous operation against the Sudanese government when it
attacked the Sudanese capital of Khartoum. JEM's advance recorded many impressive gains which included temporarily controlling the city of
Omdurman
Omdurman () is a major city in Sudan. It is the second most populous city in the country, located in the State of Khartoum. Omdurman lies on the west bank of the River Nile, opposite and northwest of the capital city of Khartoum. The city acts ...
, the airport at the Wadi Sayedna military base, north of Khartoum, and three bridges leading into the capital.
[Steve Bloomfield, The Independent, Darfur rebels poised to take Khartoum, 11 May 2008] The operation ended with heavy battles in the western part of the Sudanese capital that included the government's use of army helicopters to repel the JEM advance.
Following this battle,
Eltahir Elfaki, the General Secretary of JEM's legislative council, vowed that the war would henceforth be fought across the country, saying that "We haven't changed our tactics. From the beginning, Jem is a national movement and it has a national agenda."
Khalil Ibrahim declared that "This is just the start of a process and the end is the termination of this regime".
In April 2013, JEM and its allies in the
Sudan Revolutionary Front engaged in many successful attacks against Sudanese government forces. In a raid coordinated between all the parties of the SRF that included the use of 20 vehicles, the opposition forces briefly held the strategic city of Um Rawaba in
North Kordofan, located south of Khartoum. As part of the offensive, JEM and the SRF also gained control of Abu Korshola, a strategic town of 40,000 in
South Kordofan
South Kordofan ( ') is one of the 18 States of Sudan, wilayat or states of Sudan. It has an area of 158,355 km2 and an estimated population of approximately 2,107,623 people (2018 est). Kaduqli is the capital of the state. It is centered on t ...
. In its bid to retake control, the Sudanese Armed Forces engaged in indiscriminate air raid campaigns. On May 27, the opposition forces withdrew in order to allow humanitarian aid to be delivered to the area's residents. During 2013, opposition forces continued to engage in offensive operations, leading to dozens of casualties for Sudanese forces around Abu Korshola.
August 2020 peace agreement
The Justice and Equality Movement signed a peace agreement with the
Transitional Government of Sudan on 31 August 2020 and will now participate in the
transition to democracy in Sudan through peaceful means. Under the terms of the agreement, the factions that signed will be entitled to three seats on the
sovereignty council, a total of five ministers in the
transitional cabinet and a quarter of seats in the
transitional legislature. At a regional level, signatories will be entitled between 30 and 40% of the seats on transitional legislatures of their home states or regions.
Notes and references
External links
Justice and Equality Movement (JEM Sudan)The JEM's English Language homepage
Photojournalist's Account- Images of the Justice and Equality Movement and Darfur's displaced
Greater Nile Petroleum Operating Company's website
{{Authority control
Factions of the South Sudanese Civil War
Guerrilla organizations
Politics of Sudan
War in Darfur
Islamic organisations based in Sudan
Rebel groups in Sudan
Rebel groups in Chad
Sudan Revolutionary Front