Showing posts with label Sudan Transitional Agreement. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Sudan Transitional Agreement. Show all posts

Saturday, November 27, 2021

Sudan: Mudawi Ibrahim says Sovereign Council appointment of the Chief Justice is unconstitutional

Here is a copy of a report at and by Sudan Telegraph.com

Dated and published Friday 26 November 2021


Dr. Mudawi Ibrahim: The appointment of the Chief Justice is unconstitutional

Yesterday [Thur 25 Nov], the Transitional Sovereignty Council appointed Abdul Aziz Fath al-Rahman Abdeen Muhammad as chief justice, while postponing the decision on the appointment of the attorney general.

In its new composition, the council held a meeting chaired by Abdel-Fattah Al-Burhan, the first in which a decision was taken.

Council member and spokeswoman Salma Abdul-Jabbar said in a press statement that the council appointed Abdul Aziz Fath al-Rahman as head of the judiciary, within the framework of complementing the state’s judicial and human rights structures.

Fateh al-Rahman was appointed as the head of the judiciary during the last period.

Dr. Mudawi Ibrahim, a member of the Whole Initiative Committee, rejected the appointment of the chief justice by the Sovereign Council and considered it unconstitutional, because the framework agreement clearly indicated that the Sovereign Council is discussed by the political forces and is formed with their consent. As long as this did not happen, the current council has no right to take any decision, as it is only a supervisor of the executive body, according to Al-Jarida newspaper.

View original: https://sudantelegraph.com/news/dr-mudawi-ibrahim-the-appointment-of-the-chief-justice-is-unconstitutional/

Thursday, November 25, 2021

Sudan's Hamdok says investigation launched into violations against protesters

Here is a full copy of a report by Reuters

Reporting by Lilian Wagdy and Nayera Abdallah; Editing by Chris Reese and Aurora Ellis

Published at au.finance.yahoo.com

Tuesday, 23 November 2021, 10:36 pm

Sudan's Hamdok says investigation launched into violations against protesters


CAIRO (Reuters) - An investigation has been launched into violations committed against protesters since the military power grab on Oct. 25, Sudan's newly reinstated Prime Minister Abdalla Hamdok said, according to a statement from his office.

Hamdok's comments came during a meeting on Tuesday evening with a group from the Forces of Freedom and Change (FFC), the main civilian coalition opposing military rule. FFC had previously said on Sunday that it does not recognize any political agreement with the military leadership.

The group stressed during the meeting the importance of laying out a roadmap to implementing the political agreement, reversing all political appointments that took place after the military takeover and reinstating all those who were fired during that period, according to the statement.

Last week, protesters and a Reuters witness said they saw security forces chase protesters into neighbourhoods and homes to carry out arrests. At least 15 people were shot dead during the anti-coup protests, according to medics.

Hamdok and the group called for political prisoners to be released as soon as possible and for the right to peacefully protest to be respected.

Under the agreement signed with military leader General Abdel Fattah al-Burhan, Hamdok, first appointed after the overthrow of former President Omar al-Bashir in a 2019 uprising, will lead a civilian government of technocrats for a transitional period.

The deal faces opposition from pro-democracy groups that have demanded full civilian rule since Bashir's ouster and have been angered by the deaths of dozens of protesters since the Oct. 25 coup.

FILE PHOTO: Sudan's then-Prime Minister, Abdalla Hamdok, speaks during a Reuters interview in Khartoum


View original: https://au.finance.yahoo.com/news/sudans-hamdok-says-investigation-launched-223629020.html

Wednesday, November 24, 2021

VIDEO CNN EXCLUSIVE: Newly-freed Sudan PM Hamdok made deal to avoid bloodshed and a civil war

NOTE from Sudan Watch Editor: In this excellent exclusive video interview with CNN, the newly-freed Sudan Prime Minister Hamdok explains why he compromised in a deal with Sudan's military. 

The video interview can be viewed in the original (see link below) of the following report. The interviewer asked good questions and received good answers from Mr Hamdok. 

It’s heartwarming to see that he looks strong, fit and well, proving that some news reports saying he looked 'frail' and 'haggard' are not true at all. Naturally, he must have been under a great deal of strain and exhausted from working non-stop ever since his shocking arrest with his wife at their home on Oct 25.

Ever since Mr Hamdok has been at home, there has been a stream of high level international visitors meeting with him in person throughout the time he was under house arrest with guards outside his home. 


Fortunately, he has a wonderful wife. They were arrested together and taken to the home of the military coup leader, Gen. Burhan, after which they were taken home and received high level contacts. More later. 


CNN EXCLUSIVE VIDEO INTERVIEW REPORT

  • By Becky Anderson, Eoin McSweeney, Zeena Saifi and Noon Salih, CNN
  • Yassir Abdullah and Eyad Kourdi contributed to this report
  • Updated 1710 GMT (0110 HKT) Tuesday November 23, 2021
  • Newly-freed Sudanese PM tells CNN why he took military deal
  • (CNN) Sudan's newly reinstated prime minister told CNN on Tuesday [Nov 23] that he compromised in a deal with the country's military in order to "avoid bloodshed" and a civil war.
  • Prime Minister Abdalla Hamdok and other ministers were detained during a military coup last month that saw the country's power-sharing government dissolved; more than 40 people have since been killed in protests.
  • But the country's military chief, General Abdel Fattah Al-Burhan, reinstated Hamdok on Sunday as part of a deal between the military and civilian leadership in the country,
  • In an interview with CNN on Tuesday [Nov 23], Hamdok said he "regretted the bloodshed" that had followed the October 25 coup; he said the agreement had been signed in order to "avoid further killing."
  • "This a not a personal interest for me," he said. "There is a motto that says you will die for country. I took the right decision."

  • Under the deal agreed by Hamdok and Al-Burhan, Hamdok again becomes leader of the transitional government, which was first established after strongman President Omar al-Bashir was ousted in 2019.

  • The Council of Ministers, which was dissolved on October 25, will be restored and the civilian and military leadership will share power. The constitution will be amended to outline the partnership between civilians and the military in the transitional government.

  • But the agreement also includes as yet unspecified restructuring, according to Mudawi Ibrahim, a prominent official in the National Forces Initiative (NFI) which helped mediate the talks, and it has been met with resistance in Sudan.

  • Police fired tear gas at a large group of protesters near the presidential palace in Khartoum on Sunday, according to eyewitnesses on the ground.

  • The deal was rejected by Sudan's Forces of Freedom and Change coalition (FCC), which insisted there was "no negotiation, no partnership, nor legitimacy for the coup plotters."

  • On Monday, Ibrahim told CNN that the agreement was "very humiliating for the Prime Minister," adding that it had been accepted "for the sake of the country."

  • "There are so many people dying on the streets ... so the Prime Minister had to take this step and accept the humiliation," he said.
  • But Hamdok, who had been held under house arrest until Sunday, refuted the idea he had been humiliated and insisted he had made the right choice.

  • He called the agreement with the military imperfect and deficient, but said the decision to sign it was taken in order to avoid a catastrophe.

  • "There is a perfect agreement and there is a workable agreement. If you wait for a perfect agreement, you will be waiting too long and it will be too late," he said.

  • He said he was confident in the military and pledged to work with them to "establish a fair roadmap" for the future of Sudan.

  • The deal, signed on live television, calls for the release of all political prisoners arrested by security forces following the coup.
  • Only nine prisoners out of 31 have been released so far, Hamdok said; he called for the immediate release of those still in detention.

  • "This is the number one agenda item," he added. "I will not rest until all of them are released."

  • Yassir Abdullah and Eyad Kourdi contributed to this report.
  • View original and the video interview here: https://edition.cnn.com/2021/11/23/africa/sudan-abdalla-hamdok-interview-ctw-intl/index.html

Wednesday, July 31, 2019

Sudan's TMC Hemeti, AFC FFC, SPLM/A North (Al-Helou), Sudan Call, attend meetings in Juba S. Sudan

Article from Radio Tamazuj.org
Date: Saturday, 27 July 2019 - Juba, South Sudan

Sudan's deputy head of military council visits Juba
Photo: General Mohamed Hamdan Dagalo speaking to reporters in Juba on Saturday, 27 July, 2019 (Radio Tamazuj)

The deputy head of Sudan's ruling military council arrived Saturday [27 July] in Juba, where he is to meet President Salva Kiir and Sudan rebels.

General Mohamed Hamdan Dagalo, known by his nickname Hemeti, is on his first trip to South Sudan since his appointment as deputy head of Sudan's military council following the April ouster of Omar al-Bashir after months of protests.

His visit comes after members of Sudan's opposition coalition reached what they call a "political deal" in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia.

Hemeti, who also commands a paramilitary group known as the Rapid Support Forces, told reporters that he visited Juba to meet with President Kiir and Sudanese rebel groups.

“We have come to Juba to brief the president on the situation in Sudan. Also, we want to meet with our brother Abdel-Aziz al-Hilu and leaders of armed movements,” Hemeti said.

“I hope that we will find solutions as soon as possible,” he added.

Hemeti was a close ally of Omar al-Bashir, but as anti-government protests escalated in December 2018, his loyalty soon wavered.

Hemeti is the one at the forefront of peace talks with opposition groups.

- - -

Copy of 27 July 2019 by Eric Reeves
(yellow highlighting is his)
- - -

Article from Middle East Monitor.com
Date: 28 June 2019 at 4:11 pm
Sudan’s Alliance for Freedom and Change to visits Juba

The Sudanese opposition alliance Sudan Call announced yesterday [27 June] that a delegation from the Alliance for Freedom and Change will travel to South Sudan to meet with the head of the Sudan People’s Liberation Movement (SPLM) Abdel Aziz Al-Helou tomorrow.

A spokesman for Sudan Call Khaled Bahr told the Anadolu Agency that the Alliance for Freedom and Change met to arrange the delegation’s visit to Juba.

He pointed out that Sudan Call also met to select its representatives to the delegation that will travel to Juba.

Since June 2011, SPLM has been fighting the Sudanese government in the states of South Kordofan and the Blue Nile.

Saturday, July 20, 2019

Sudan economy collapse if deal not reached soon

ECONOMIC concerns were among the initial sparks for the protests, which broke out in December when the government announced it would triple the price of bread. Everyone is alert and waiting. If this state of tension and uncertainty continues, the economy will collapse. Full story here below.

Sudan in economic turmoil in absence of a working government
Article by AFP Agency Staff
Thursday, 18 July 2019 - 15:32

Mall operators, waiting for the transition to civilian rule, say sales are down as much as 40%, with investors and consumers playing a waiting game
Photo: Haj Abul Fadel, a Sudanese millionaire businessman, is pictured at his shopping centre in Khartoum on July 17, 2019. Picture: AFP/EBRAHIM HAMID

Khartoum — Sales have tumbled at Haj Abul Fadel’s shopping centres in Sudan, where he and fellow business owners fear that months of political turmoil could bring on a full-scale economic collapse.

Sudan’s ruling generals and protesters inked a deal on Wednesday aimed at installing a civilian administration and breaking months of political deadlock. But the country’s fragile economy has already been hard hit by months of mass protests, which led to the military council’s toppling of long-time president Omar al-Bashir in April.

Demonstrators have continued to demand a transition to civilian rule, keeping up their campaign despite a June 3 crackdown on a protest sit-in that left dozens dead.

Abul Fadel said the unrest had slashed his overall sales by 20% to 25% — and as much as 40% for some items. “The government has yet to announce its economic policies, and as an investor, I can’t take any decisions in the current climate.” 

The millionaire businessman depends heavily on imports to stock his five Khartoum malls, but he said many firms have stopped bringing in goods due to the uncertainty.

Fellow entrepreneur Mohammad Hussein Madwi, who owns a string of agricultural and manufacturing firms, echoed his concerns. “Sales are down by at least 30% because of the lack of demand and the collapse of the Sudanese pound,” he said. “The state of political uncertainty makes me hesitant to invest or import goods, so things have pretty much come to a standstill.”

Since the last devaluation of the pound in October by the then Sudanese authorities, the currency has plunged by a further 70% against the dollar on the black market.

Inflation has meanwhile fallen from a high of 70% in December to below 50%, according to the country’s central statistics bureau.

Mother of seven Hanadi Mohammad, shopping at one of Abul Fadel’s malls in northern Khartoum, said the lack of liquidity was stopping her spending. “I don’t know how long we can live like this,” she said, walking past household appliances which, despite heavy discounts, were sitting unsold on the shelves.

‘Rock bottom’

Economic concerns were among the initial sparks for the protests, which broke out in December when the government announced it would triple the price of bread.

Months later, the army and protest leaders have agreed on the form of the country’s governing institutions, but further talks will be needed to settle other contentious issues. This means political uncertainty — and economic woes — are likely to haunt the country for some time to come.

Decades of US sanctions had already devastated Sudan’s economy before the protests broke out in December. The demonstrations quickly grew into a nationwide movement against Bashir, and the resulting unrest, along with persistent power cuts, soon hit the economy.

“Trade activity has been at rock bottom since January,” said Khaled al-Tijani, a prominent business journalist. “The economy is suffering from a lack of confidence because of the lack of a government to oversee it.”

In April, Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates announced a joint $3bn package of economic aid for Sudan, including a $500m deposit in Khartoum’s central bank to strengthen the currency. The remainder is allocated for food, medicine and petrochemicals purchases.

Agriculture is a major sector and a key source of income for most of Sudan’s 40-million inhabitants. The latest crisis has hit farmers hard, particularly as the collapsing pound has stopped them importing agricultural chemicals.

On Sunday, Riyadh and Abu Dhabi sent Sudan an emergency batch of more than 50,000 tonnes of fertilisers and other agricultural supplies, according to the official Saudi Press Agency.

Faisal Mohammad, an importer of agricultural supplies, said the lack of foreign currency has hit imports hard. “Even if they are available, we’re hit by the weakness of the pound and the rising price of goods, as well as a lack of confidence among buyers, all of which negatively impacts farming operations.” 

Tijani warned that damage to such a vital sector could harm Sudan’s economy more broadly — bad news for entrepreneurs such as Abul Fadel.

“Everyone is alert and waiting,” Abul Fadel said. “If this state of tension and uncertainty continues, the economy will collapse.” For the tycoon, there is only one way forward. A political deal between the military council and [protest leaders] is the only way out of the current economic situation.” 

SOURCE: AFP

Friday, July 12, 2019

Sudan's ruling militia says it's survived coup attempt

TOP general says plotters were trying to disrupt recent truce between army and protesters. “Officers and soldiers from the army and national intelligence and security service, some of them retired, were trying to carry out a coup,” Gen Jamal Omar of the ruling military council said in a statement broadcast live on state television. 

“The regular forces were able to foil the attempt.”  He did not say when the attempt was made.

Full story:  The Guardian UK by AFP in Khartoum, Thu 11 Jul 2019 23.04 BST
Last modified on Thu 11 Jul 2019 23.27 BST