Sudanese in the United Kingdom (also British Sudanese)[1] including Sudanese-born immigrants to the UK and their British-born descendants are an extremely diverse national group, especially in terms of political and religious views. It is thought that the UK is home to the oldest Sudanese diaspora in the Western World, as well as one of the largest.[2] Sudanese migrants to the UK have traditionally included professionals, business people and academics, and more recently have included asylum seekers fleeing Sudan's second civil war. Sudanese people live in many of the UK's largest cities and towns.[2]
History and settlement
Sudanese granted asylum or exceptional leave in the UK by year[3]
Granted
Refused
1989
45
5
1990
15
5
1991
15
10
1992
265
125
1993
1,400
75
1994
50
145
1995
15
60
1996
65
95
1997
75
205
1998
55
65
1999
45
50
2000
180
395
2001
175
595
2002
110
455
2003
155
595
2004
160
1,305
2005
90
900
2006
70
510
2007
80
305
The Sudanese community in the UK is most likely the oldest in the developed world. Despite two civil wars and the war in Darfur, which decimated the Sudanese population by several million,[4] the earliest immigrants from Sudan to the UK were not asylum seekers, but mostly professionals, business people and academics.[2] This migration trend lasted until the late 1980s when the Sudanese government was ousted by a military coup led by Omar al-Bashir, who soon claimed presidency over Sudan.[4]
The nature of Sudanese migration to the UK changed dramatically and has continued through to the 21st century, when several violent struggles between the Janjaweed militia and numerous rebel groups displaced millions of people, and despite an improving economy in Sudan there remains considerable civil and political unrest in the North African nation.[4] Thousands of these displaced persons ultimately fled to the UK, amongst other countries, and claimed asylum.[2]
Asylum applications from Sudan peaked in 1993 and again in 2004. The majority of applications in the early 1990s were accepted, with applicants either granted asylum or exceptional leave to remain, but since 1994, the majority of applications have been refused (see table).[3]
According to the 2011 UK Census, a total of 18,381 people born in Sudan were residing in the UK: 16,578 were recorded in England, 889 in Wales [6]], 749 in Scotland [7] and 165 in Northern Ireland.[8]
The National Association of British Arabs categorises Sudan-born immigrants as Arabs. Based on the 2011 census data, it indicates that they are the eighth largest population of British Arabs by country of birth.[9]
Zeinab Badawi at Nobel Week Dialogue in Stockholm 2016.Mo Ibrahim, Sudanese-born British entrepreneur and billionaire at the 2007 World Economic Forum on Africa in Cape Town.
Notable British-Sudanese or Sudanese residing in the United Kingdom
Javid Abdelmoneim: physician who previously worked with Médecins Sans Frontières and television presenter for Al Jazeera and guest host on BBC's Panorama programme.
Alexander Siddig: (or Siddig El Fadil) actor known for his role in Syriana, Kingdom of Heaven, and Gotham Alexander Siddig at the 2009 Toronto International Film Festival.
Amir Wilson: actor known for his roles as Will Parry in the BBC series His Dark Materials and Tiuri in the Netflix series Letter to the King.
Amira Kheir: Italian-Sudanese singer based in London
Fatima Ahmed Ibrahim: activist who resided in London. Founder of the ‘Sudanese Women Union’ and later a Sudanese parliamentarian
Leila Aboulela: award-winning writer and novelist. Her story collection Elsewhere, Home was the winner of the 2018 Saltire Fiction Book of the Year Award
Zeinab Badawi: Journalist in BBC world (previously ITV and Channel 4 News)
Leila Aboulela, award-winning Sudanese writer who writes in English and lives in Scotland.
Jamal Mahjoub: prolific writer and novelist, known for his crime fiction novels. His characters and storylines incorporates both Sudanese and British cultures, which mirrors parts of Mahjoub's life living between England and Sudan.
Numerous community groups and organisations have been established across the UK that cater for the country's Sudanese community, from political organisations and trade unions to refugee organisations and other social and community groups.[2] Some groups conform to and are generally based around Sudanese political parties and professional bodies such as the Umma Party and the Sudanese Doctors' Union.[2] The Sudan Human Rights Organisation and the Sudan Organisation Against Torture are two national non-political organisations that have been set up by Sudanese in exile in the UK, and there are also refugee groups that have been set up across the UK to help new immigrants and asylum seekers to adapt to the British lifestyle and help with any other problems and issues.[2] Besides these bodies and entities, there are a number of less informal social and culture groups that have been set up by Sudanese in the UK (examples of these are the Sudanese Family in Oxfordshire,[10]Leeds Sudanese Community Association,[11] and the Sudanese Coptic Association).[12] Sudanese nationals in the UK are represented by the Embassy of Sudan on Cleveland Row, London, England.[13]
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