By: Professor Hassan Bashir Mohamednour
Introduction;
In recent months, increasing calls have emerged for identifying and recovering the assets and funds allegedly owned by the Sudanese Muslim Brotherhood in banks and financial institutions around the world. While such calls are understandable in principle, addressing them requires a realistic political and legal perspective, particularly in light of the exceptional circumstances Sudan is currently experiencing due to war and institutional breakdown.
The Limits of Asset Recovery Under Current Conditions
In practical terms, demanding the immediate recovery of these assets is highly difficult under present conditions. Sudan is currently facing a deep institutional crisis, and the existing government has been accused by various actors of having links with that organization. Moreover, state institutions suffer from structural corruption and weak governance, while senior economic officials, including the Minister of Finance, are subject to international sanctions.
Under such circumstances, several fundamental questions arise. Who would respond to requests for the recovery of these assets? Which authority would possess the legal and political standing to present such claims before international financial institutions? To which Sudanese institutions would these assets be returned? And how would they be managed once recovered?
The Complications of a War Economy and Questions of Legitimacy;
These challenges become even more complex in the context of a war economy, where transparency and accountability are significantly weakened and the institutional capacity of the state is severely constrained. In such an environment, any attempt to recover assets may face serious questions from the international community regarding the legitimacy and capacity of the authority seeking to manage those funds.
A More Realistic Approach:
Given these considerations, the most realistic approach at this stage is not to demand the immediate recovery of these assets. Instead, the focus should be placed on identifying, auditing, and freezing them within the relevant international financial institutions until political and institutional stability is restored in Sudan.
The emergence of a government that enjoys political maturity, credibility, and both domestic and international trust will be a necessary condition for launching an orderly legal and institutional process to recover these assets and manage them transparently for the benefit of the Sudanese people.
So, calling for the identification and freezing of these assets at the present stage represents a practical approach that balances the need to safeguard these resources with the realities of Sudan’s current institutional crisis. Once stability is restored and legitimate institutions are reestablished, Sudan will be in a far stronger position to pursue the recovery and responsible management of these assets within a clear legal and institutional framework.
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