Sudanese Communist Party

(SCP; al-Hizb al-Shuyui al-Sudani), the Communist Party of the Sudan, founded in 1946 and long active as an underground party under the name Sudanese Movement for National Liberation.

The Communists took an active part in founding the first trade unions and other democratic organizations in the Sudan. In February 1956, immediately after the proclamation of Sudanese independence (Jan. 1, 1956), the Third Congress of the SCP met—the First had met in 1950 and the Second in 1951–and adopted a party program, entitled “The Sudan’s Path to the Strengthening of Independence, Democracy, and Peace.” Pursuant to the program, the SCP actively sought to unite the progressive patriotic forces of the Sudan in the struggle against imperialism and for the consolidation of national independence and further development of the national-democratic revolution.

After General Abboud’s military dictatorship was overthrown in October 1964, the SCP emerged from the underground. In December 1965 the reactionary forces that had earlier come to power succeeded in outlawing the SCP. In October 1967 the Fourth (illegal) Congress of the SCP adopted new party rules and a new party program. After the reactionary regime was overthrown on May 25,1969, the SCP again emerged from the underground. The Communists joined the government and took part in the formulation and implementation of progressive domestic and foreign policies. Disagreements within the Sudanese national-democratic movement and the intrigues of the reactionaries, however, brought the situation in the Sudan to a head and put the SCP in a difficult position. After leftist officers made an unsuccessful attempt to overthrow the government by armed force in July 1971, the government accused the SCP of supporting the attempt and subjected it to reprisals. Several SCP leaders were executed, including the general secretary of the party Central Committee, Abd al-Halik Mahjub. The SCP was again forced to go underground.

SCP delegations attended the international conferences of Communist and workers’ parties of 1960 and 1969 in Moscow. The SCP approved the documents adopted at the conferences.