Human Security and Democratic Erosion in Sudan (2018 – 2023)

Introduction 

As a high school student, I joined thousands of Sudanese youth in the streets of Wad Madani in December 2018. I became a member of the Wad Madani resistance committee. Wad Madani was located in the State of Al-Gezira, which is 3 hours away from the capital city of Sudan, Khartoum. We were demanding for hurriya, salam, wa ‘adala (freedom, peace, and justice). I remember the chants echoing through the night, the unity that transcended class and ethnicity, and the courage that overcame my fears. Those protests dismantled the thirty-year dictatorship of Omar al-Bashir but gave birth to a fragile and weak democratic transition after an agreement with a joint government with the Sudan Armed Forces. For a short moment, Sudan seemed to reclaim its future. Yet, by April 2023, that promise collapsed into chaos as rival military factions tore the country apart. What began as a revolution for dignity ended in a war that stripped people of safety, food, and hope. The connection between democratic failure and human suffering became painfully clear. Why does failing democracy bring failure in ensuring human security in Sudan? 

Continuing Erosion of Democracy in Sudan 

Searching on democratic backsliding identifies recurring patterns: elites and politicians, polarisation, weak state institutions, erosion of civil freedom, and the capture of the state by unaccountable and undemocratic actors (the military leaders of SAF and RSF – Rapid Support Forces). Sudan’s transition from 2018 to 2023 mirrored these dynamics. Despite initial optimism for the democratic system, the military and the paramilitary, beside the armed movements, retained disproportionate power under the transitional arrangement. Civilian leadership was fragmented and lacked the capacity to assert authority over security forces.  The practice of corruption in Sudan was sustained by patronage networks, and external interference destroyed the political legitimacy. The 2021 coup by General Al-Burhan and the paramilitary leader Muhammad Hamdan Dagalo (known as Hemedti) marked the decisive collapse of the “potential democratic experiment”. As documented in global democratic backsliding frameworks, when armed institutions dominate politics, democratic institutions collapse rapidly. In Sudan this meant the silencing of journalists and arrests of activists and politicians, as well as the dismantling of an already fragile government. By 2023, the country returned back not to reform but to war, as rival militarised elites compete for absolute control of the country’s resources and power. 

Failing Humanity and Declining Human Security in Sudan

Democracy and human security are deeply interconnected. As presented in the report prepared by IDEA in 2006, democratic governance creates accountability mechanisms that protect people from violence, hunger, and displacement. When democracy collapses, so do those protections. In Sudan, the post-April 2023 war has produced one of the worst humanitarian crises According to WFP, approximately half of Sudan’s population (25 million people) is facing extreme levels of hunger, including about five million children and mothers suffering acute malnutrition. , The breakdown of governance has displaced more than eight million people, according to UN OCHA in 2025. Food insecurity has reached catastrophic levels, with millions of people facing famine conditions and famine declared in Zamzam IDP camp in Elfasher due to the RSF siege. Even worse humanitarian catastrophes could be witnessed through ongoing atrocities that can be seen in hospitals in Khartoum, Nyala, and El-Geneina, leaving civilians without access to basic healthcare. Atrocities are currently ongoing.

The absence of transparency and democratic oversight allowed both the Sudanese Armed Forces (SAF) and the Rapid Support Forces (RSF) to operate with impunity. Civilians have become an easy target in this militarized regime Without democratic accountability, the promise of human security, freedom from fear and freedom from want has evaporated in thin air. What began as a movement for human dignity, freedom, peace and justice as the main pillars for human security now reveals how deeply political collapse translates into human suffering. Sudan’s tragedy and genocide underscore that the erosion of democracy is not merely an institutional failure. More than that, it is also a clear sign of the collapse of humanity.

Conclusion 

Democracy in Sudan was never only a political dream; it was a condition for survival. When democratic institutions fell, so did the systems that protected life and dignity. To build Sudanese democracy is not about making elections or a constitution; it is about establishing a political system which enshrines and protects the human security that every Sudanese deserves. Without accountable governance, neither peace nor humanity exists. This could only be done through a legitimate civilian-led rule which valued the notion of freedom, peace, and justice.