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SUDAN Civil Uprisings in Modern Sudan: The 'Khartoum Springs' of 1964 and 1985, by W. J. Berridge. London: Bloomsbury, 2015. 304 pages. $112.
Reviewed by John O. Voll
The overthrow of an authoritarian military regime by civilian opposition activists is infrequent. The experiences of populist movements during the Arab Spring of 2011 show the difficulties of removing military dictatorships from power. However, in Sudan, in 1964 and 1985, according to W. J. Berridge, "the Sudanese public were able to overhaul two military governments and establish liberal democracies in their place in an era when autocracy was the norm" (p. 215). Sudan since independence has experienced three periods of parliamentary democracy (1956-58, 1964-69, and 1985-89) and three eras of military authoritarianism. In Civil Uprisings in Modern Sudan, Berridge shows how the two civilian revolutions were organized, and how the current Sudanese military regime is a reprise of the old military politics with new strengths. The Sudanese experience becomes an important case study of authoritarianism and popular revolt, relevant for understanding political dynamics in the 21st century as well as in the second half of the 20th.
Following a survey of existing studies, noting the lack of attention given to Sudan by both Africanists and scholars of the Middle East, Berridge provides an analysis of the October Revolution of 1964. One question the author explores is whether the overthrow of the military regime of Ibrahim 'Abbud was planned or spontaneous. He concludes that while groups were organizing opposition to 'Abbud, "it was spontaneous events which precipitated his downfall" (p. 14). The author's conclusion is based...