The Kanaabi Congress joins the Sudanese Revolutionary Front. Since the issue of "kanaabi" gets very little attention (especially in English among the diaspora), I'll use this is an opportunity to provide some background...

(a thread)
#SudanUprising https://twitter.com/ArkoMinawi/status/1266692117931397120

Kanaabi (singular: "kambo," from English "camp") are settlements for Western Sudanese agricultural laborers, established in colonial Sudan to accommodate workers whose labor was essential for the expanding agricultural projects in the country...

...the bulk of kanaabi are located in el-Gezira, where kanaabi residents make up 39% of the population (according to Kanaabi Congress estimates). According to the Gezira and Managil Farmers' Alliance, kanaabi residents are responsible for 60% of agricultural work...

...but only receive 14% of the returns.

Aside from this, it's widely reported that the kanaabi are atrociously un-developed and lacking services. In the KC Secretary-General's words, the kanaabi "have gone 100 years without being given attention or services."

This neglect is justified, both by state authorities and many Geziran landowners, by:
1) The kanaabi residents' (usually) seasonal status
2) Beliefs that kanaabi residents aren't Sudanese, but rather "displaced people...from Chad, Niger, and Nigeria."

90% of kanaabi residents are from ethnic groups found in both Chad and Sudan, and many Gezirans view these ethnic groups as, in essence, foreign. What this means is that legally and socially there's a perception that kanaabi residents have no right to the land of el-Gezira...

...and the govt acts on this perception, sometimes by destroying kanaabi like it did with Kambo Aftas in 2018. Other times, residents will act, like in March of 2020, when residents of el-Mi'eylig burnt 17 houses belonging to kanaabi residents, accusing them...

...of randomly extending the boundaries of their kambo.

From my experience as a Geziran, when it comes to the issue of the kanaabi, many see it as an issue of land rights: to them, the people of the kanaabi want to infringe on their ancestral lands...

...they don't believe the conflict is ethnic, and argue that the lack of development in al-kanaabi is an issue found throughout el-Gezira. Here's a Facebook comment that I think summarizes your average Geziran's views quite well (Arabic):
https://www.facebook.com/groups/214584458714073/permalink/896680300504482/

On the other hand, kanaabi residents and organizations like the Kanaabi Congress and Darfuri rebel groups view the kanaabi issue as one of the many manifestations of ethnic discrimination in Sudan. Some even liken it to slavery: https://southsudannewsagency.org/index.php/2012/10/12/the-kambo-and-jongo-business-in-the-sudanese-relationships/

And this is without mentioning the fact that kanaabi residents face a ton of racism in interactions with Geziran locals.

While the kanaabi issue doesn't get a lot of attention, it led to actual violence only two months ago, and there were many anxieties among Geziran residents about a potential escalation. Hopefully the KC's joining the SRF means it can be brought to the Juba Negotiations...

...because the status quo is not just or sustainable. As a remedy, the Kanaabi Congress has proposed putting govt funds towards building villages for workers, permanently settling them in the area with more favorable conditions, as happened with the Fallata of el-Gezira.

Tweet with citations coming soon.