Explainer: What's at stake in Sudan's transition? The 2 sides still need to sign a constitutional declaration

Note from Sudan Watch Editor: To be clear, the two sides - Transitional Military Council (TMC) and Forces for Freedom and Change (FFC) - still need to sign a constitutional declaration that is meant to complete the political deal. In my experience of blogging news about agreements signed in Sudan things change before the ink is dry, creating delay, after delay, after delay, going on year, after year, after year. Sigh.

Article by Reuters

Published Thursday 18 July 2019 4:35 PM

Explainer: What's at stake in Sudan's transition?

CAIRO (Reuters) - Sudan’s ruling military council and an alliance of protest and opposition groups have signed a political accord on a three-year transition towards elections.

But progress towards a final deal has been slow and marred by violence, casting doubt on protesters’ hopes for civilian rule and democracy.

HOW DID WE GET HERE?

In December, protests triggered by an economic crisis swept across Sudan, demanding an end to Omar al-Bashir’s 30-year rule.

On April 11 the military toppled and arrested Bashir, announcing the formation of a transitional military council.

But protests continued, demanding the transition be civilian-led.

The military council and the Forces for Freedom and Change (FFC) alliance began talks, which soon stalled over the make-up of a sovereign council to steer the transition.

At dawn on June 3, security forces — led according to witnesses by the paramilitary Rapid Support Forces (RSF) — moved to clear a sit-in outside the Defence Ministry in Khartoum. Doctors linked to the opposition said 128 people were killed in the raid and ensuing violence. The government has confirmed 61 deaths.

Talks collapsed, resuming after several weeks under pressure from African-led mediators and after massive protests on June 30. Agreement on a power-sharing deal was announced on July 5.

WHO ARE THE KEY ACTORS?

The military council is formed of seven members, led by Lieutenant General Abdel Fattah al-Burhan. Its most prominent member, however, is his deputy General Mohamed Hamdan Dagalo, who also leads the RSF and is widely known as Hemedti.

Both Burhan and Hemedti have close ties to Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates due to Sudan’s participation in the Saudi-led coalition in Yemen.

The driving force in the FFC has been the Sudanese Professionals Association, which rose to prominence coordinating the protests against Bashir. It has no leader or strict hierarchy, though top members include Mohammad Naji al-Assam and Ahmed al-Rabie.

Prominent constituents of the alliance also include the Umma Party led by former prime minister Sadiq al-Mahdi and three of Sudan’s five rebel groups.

WHAT ARE THE NEXT STEPS?

The two sides still need to sign a constitutional declaration that is meant to complete the political deal.

That would allow transitional bodies to be formed, including a sovereign council that would include five officers selected by the military council, five civilians chosen by the FFC and another civilian to be agreed by both sides.

The initial agreement also provides for a government of technocrats and an independent investigation into recent violence.

WHAT HAS HELD UP A DEAL?

The deal was meant to be signed days after its announcement, but was thrown into doubt by a demand from the military council that its members be granted immunity from prosecution.

Blanket immunity is strongly opposed by the protest movement, already concerned about how an independent investigation could be guaranteed with the military still in charge.

They continue to hold rallies to honour those killed since protests started in December and call for accountability for their deaths.

More broadly, Sudan’s security forces see themselves as the country’s natural rulers and want to protect their sprawling economic interests.

“Their natural tendency is to surrender nothing and to maintain ...the last word in all matters of the state – which was the situation under Bashir essentially,” said Magdi El Gizouli, a fellow at the Rift Valley Institute.

“...Upturning this arrangement is a formidable task.”

WHAT ARE THE RISKS?

Sudan has a recent history of civil conflicts including in the western region of Darfur and South Kordofan and Blue Nile in the south. These could flare again if political turmoil continues.

Suffering for Sudanese civilians already subjected to a severe economic crisis could also intensify. Of a population of 44 million, more than 5 million people are in need of assistance and nearly 2 million displaced, according to the United Nations.

WHAT ARE THE STAKES INTERNATIONALLY?

Sudan sits in a volatile region in northeast Africa. Instability could have an impact on war-torn South Sudan, where a fragile peace deal was signed last September, and on Libya to the north, where fighting has recently escalated.

Wealthy Gulf states have an interest in Sudan because of its agricultural potential and its Red Sea ports. The RSF is contributing troops to the Saudi-led coalition in Yemen.

European powers and Egypt are concerned about potential northward flows of migrants from Sudan, which is on one of the transit routes towards the Mediterranean.

Reporting by Aidan Lewis, Khalid Abdelaziz and Nadine Awadalla; Writing by Aidan Lewis; editing by John Stonestreet

Our Standards:The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

SOURCE: https://in.reuters.com/article/sudan-politics-idINKCN1UD27

Sudan’s TMC talks with Alliance of Freedom and Change (AFC) includes NUP, SLA-MM, SPLM-N

Article from Al-Ahram Weekly.org.eg

By HAITHAM NOURI

Published Thursday 4 Jul 2019

Title: Sudan’s message to the world

Sudan needs a government of technocrats and interest-based relationships with other countries if its political transition is to succeed, says Deputy Chairman of National Umma Party Mariam Al-Sadiq Al-Mahdi from Khartoum

Photo caption: Sudan’s message to the world

Sudan’s opposition Alliance of Freedom and Change (AFC) returned to the capital Khartoum after a two-day visit to Addis Ababa, the Ethiopian capital, where its delegation held meetings with leaders of the African Union (AU) and African ambassadors “to update them on the situation in Khartoum.”

The AFC delegation comprised opposition figures Wagdi Saleh, Hassan Abdel-Ati, Monser Al-Tayed and Moetaz Saleh, in addition to Deputy Chairman of the opposition National Umma Party (NUP) Mariam Al-Sadiq Al-Mahdi.

It also included Mona Arko Minawi, head of the Sudan Liberation Army-Minni Minawi (SLA-MM) and Yassir Arman, deputy chairman of the Sudan People’s Liberation Movement-North (SPLM-N), militarily active in the Blue Nile and South Kordofan states.

Al-Mahdi, a physician, has been one of the “staunchest opponents” of the 30-year regime of ousted former president Omar Al-Bashir who toppled her father’s government in June 1989.

Since the onset of negotiations between the Transitional Military Council (TMC) and the AFC, the umbrella bloc that includes the NUP headed by Mariam’s father Al-Sadiq Al-Mahdi, the physician has been a member of the team negotiating with the TMC.

She did not take part in the latest round of negotiations that took place after communications were temporarily severed between the TMC and AFC, however. Sitting in her stead was Ibrahim Al-Amin.

“These negotiations are part of an attempt to break the ranks of the AFC,” Mariam Al-Mahdi told Al-Ahram Weekly in an interview from Khartoum. “But it is normal to change the members of the negotiating delegation, particularly if the talks take a long time, as is the case with Sudan.”

Like her father, she has been no stranger to jail and self-exile. But she has always preferred to stay in Khartoum to make fiery statements against Al-Bashir’s regime and take part in opposition activities over the past two decades.

With the eruption of the nationwide protests that toppled Al-Bashir on 6 April, Al-Mahdi ended her self-exile and returned from London, despite facing threats from Sudan’s security forces, according to family sources.

Al-Mahdi was not arrested when she arrived in Sudan, but she was later arrested along with her sister Rabah on charges of illegal protests. The sisters were fined, but they refused to pay.

Al-Mahdi told the Weekly that the AFC’s visit to Addis Ababa was “important. We met the chairperson of the AU Commission and a number of African ambassadors to put them in the picture about what is happening in Sudan.”

“The AU has suspended Sudan’s membership until authority is handed over to a civilian government. This is in line with AU agreements,” she said.

The AU also froze Burkina Faso’s membership following the overthrow of dictator Blaise Compaore in 2014 within the framework of the 2003 Protocol on Amendments to the Constitutive Act of the African Union. The AU had earlier granted the TMC three months to hand over power to a civilian government.

Al-Mahdi pointed to the “positive environment” in Addis Ababa that houses the headquarters of the AU Commission. Ethiopian Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed had also stepped in to mediate between the AFC and TMC, she said.

She accused the TMC of “stalling in handing over authority” to civilians. “We don’t want to end one period of authoritarian rule to be handed over to another one. We want a government of technocrats as soon as possible,” she added.

Regarding accusations made by the TMC that it was the AFC that was “stalling the negotiations,” Al-Mahdi said that “this is not true. We accepted Ethiopia’s mediation to resume the talks, albeit with conditions, such as investigating the dispersal of the sit-in [in front of the army headquarters in central Khartoum], the resumption of Internet services and freeing the detainees.”

“We suspended the successful civil disobedience out of a desire to build trust, offer our good will and show our commitment to the negotiations. The TMC has not responded to any of our demands.”

NUP head Al-Sadiq Al-Mahdi had rejected the calls for a general strike and civil disobedience on the grounds that these were “escalatory measures” against the TMC, which he called a “partner in change.”

TMC Spokesperson Shamseddin Al-Kebashi said that elements from the armed forces had dispersed the sit-in “without receiving orders from general command.”

He said the army was intent on investigating their conduct and would punish them if they were found to have contravened orders.

Activists have pointed accusing fingers at the Rapid Support Forces (RDF) led by General Mohamed Hamdan Dagalo (Hemedti). The Sudan Doctors’ Union said 118 Sudanese were killed in the incident, while the Ministry of Health put the figure at 46.

Al-Mahdi avoided implicating any specific party, saying “let’s leave it to a neutral investigating committee” instead.

She stated that she was coordinating with Saudi Arabia and the UAE after she and her father had received the Riyadh and Abu Dhabi ambassadors at their house in Omdurman.

“We want to establish interest-based relationships with all the countries in the world. We don’t want relationships between rulers that are then terminated with the end of their regime. We want relationships based on clear economic and political interests and relationships that don’t change no matter how governments change,” Al-Mahdi told the Weekly.

“Sudan has plenty to offer the Arab world and Africa, primarily in the economic field. We don’t want the aid we received during Al-Bashir’s rule. We want investments that will be to the benefit of all,” she added.

“Why is it that when Ethiopia offered to mediate, no one in Sudan objected, and then their voices grew louder when it came to Sudan’s relationship with Gulf countries? The Gulf countries, Egypt and Ethiopia are our neighbours. This is a fact no one can deny,” Al-Mahdi said.

“Everybody wants to end the state of stagnation, but any hint at holding elections within nine months or [anytime soon] is refused,” she stated.

Regarding news that the TMC could ask Al-Sadiq Al-Mahdi to form a civilian government, Mariam Al-Mahdi said that “this can’t take place unless there is nationwide accord from the TMC, the AFC, and all the groups in Sudan. It is a big step that can’t be taken without a consensus.”

 *A version of this article appears in print in the 4 July, 2019 edition of Al-Ahram Weekly under the headline: Sudan’s message to the world

SOURCE: http://english.ahram.org.eg/NewsContent/2/8/337250/World/Region/Sudan’s-message-to-the-world.aspx

SUDAN: A flawed election would be better than none, for it would mean progress towards a peaceful north-south split

Chaos and confusion reign in Sudan’s first multiparty elections for 24 years. But the vote could yet benefit a huge country that is likely soon to split into two.

A flawed election would be better than none, for it would mean progress towards a peaceful north-south split.

The Umma National Party has joined the SPLM, the Communist Party and the Umma Party in boycotting elections at all levels in northern Sudan.

Full story below.

Hunt the missing voter
From The Economist print edition
Thursday 08 April 2010 KHARTOUM

Chaos and confusion reign in Sudan’s first multiparty elections for 24 years. But the vote could yet benefit a huge country that is likely soon to split into two



IN SOME respects electioneering in Sudan would be instantly recognisable to the thousands of would-be MPs who set off on the campaign trail this week in Britain. Sudanese candidates, preparing for the presidential and general election that is due to start on April 11th and continue until the 13th, get on “battle-buses” to meet their constituents, are tended by party hacks and helped along by the odd spin-doctor. They address the party faithful at set-piece rallies, even if there is more ululating than on the average British hustings. And the crowds that listen to them are bored or ecstatic, depending largely on how long the candidates speak for.

But the differences are large. For one thing, no one is sure whether the polls will take place on time—if at all. Take Mariam al-Mahdi’s tour of her constituency this week. A parliamentary candidate, she is a leader of the Umma party, the main northern opposition to President Omar al-Bashir’s ruling National Congress Party (NCP). She had two big quandaries. The first was whether her party would, in the end, be competing, since it had called for the poll to be postponed. Her second was whether she could find the voters.

Though there were supposed to be 47,000 of them registered in the red desert that forms the largest part of her “Area 11” constituency, it was hard to find anyone who knew much about the election, let alone a registered voter. At the tiny hamlet of Wadi al-Faki, a few mud huts about 50km (30 miles) west of Omdurman, the city that is across the Nile from the capital, Khartoum, a local man said that 20 of the 40 adults had registered. But according to the official register, this and a similar neighbouring village were supposed to be bulging with 622 voters. Farther down the road, another scruffy settlement called Wadi al-Saial was said to have only about 50 people, children included. But officially there were 478 registered voters. Where are the phantom voters? “Maybe they were underground,” joked an Umma official.

At the end of the day the Umma team took a long drive through a vast shanty town on the fringes of Omdurman itself, damningly known as the “black belt” to the lighter-skinned Arabs of Khartoum. Here live hundreds of thousands of the poorest Sudanese, displaced from Darfur or the south, regions where the present regime’s wars have killed a huge number and made millions homeless. Yet Ms Mahdi believes that only 5,000 of the shanty town’s voters (among whom are many of Mr Bashir’s most bitter opponents) have been included in her constituency.

The conclusion drawn by the Umma team is that the government-appointed National Election Commission (NEC) has boosted the number of voters in places where the NCP thinks people will vote for it and severely under-registered neighbourhoods where its opponents are strong. Come polling day, some suggest, an anonymous official finger will stamp the box by the tree, the ruling party’s election symbol in a country where about half the population is illiterate. If this sort of rigging works across the country, Mr Bashir should easily win the presidential race.

This precooking of the election eventually persuaded Ms Mahdi’s Umma party, three days before the vote, to say it would boycott the poll at every level. The Communists had already pulled out. The main southern opposition party, the Sudan People’s Liberation Movement (SPLM), withdrew its presidential candidate and most of its parliamentary ones in the north. Yet the boycott seemed certain to give Mr Bashir, wanted for alleged crimes against humanity by the International Criminal Court, a virtual walk-over.

So confusion reigns. The candidates’ names and symbols have already been printed on ballot papers. Many voters will have no idea which party is boycotting what particular level of election. If voters pick boycotting candidates, will the winners take up their seats? Perhaps, to appease the opposition a little, the NEC could declare a short postponement of the election to sort out some of the irregularities. This is unlikely but could yet happen.

What went wrong?
It was all supposed to turn out so differently. The election was sold as the mechanism for “democratic transformation” in Africa’s largest country. It is an integral part of the Comprehensive Peace Agreement (CPA), signed between the Muslim north of the country and the Christian and animist south in 2005. The CPA brought an end to Africa’s longest-running civil war—which had cost 2m lives and forced millions to flee their homes, often to the black belt around Omdurman and Khartoum—and was designed to resolve the country’s problems at a stroke.

A root cause of Sudan’s terrible civil conflicts has been the concentration of wealth and power in the centre at the expense of the regions: the south and also Darfur, where a full-scale rebellion erupted in 2003. It was hoped that the elections, which are being held at local, state and federal level, would make the rulers more responsive to the needs and wishes of the ruled. But this is not a prospect that particularly appeals to the two parties that have ruled Sudan since 2005, the NCP in the north and the SPLM in the semi-autonomous south.

Mr Bashir and his NCP, who seized power from Sudan’s last democratically elected government in a coup in 1989, have for the past ten years been concerned mainly with enjoying the country’s oil wealth. This has come courtesy of the Chinese, who buy most of it. Unsurprisingly, the Sudanese leaders are determined by one means or another to remain in control.

The SPLM, for its part, is focused on an entirely different election: the referendum on southern secession that was promised as part of the CPA. This is due to take place in the south next January. Should most southerners vote for independence, as they are expected to, Africa could have its first new state for almost 20 years—ruled by the SPLM.

Determined to get to the referendum without upset, the SPLM has been accused throughout the election of suppressing any opposition to its rule. Its leader, Salva Kiir, is contesting only the presidency of south Sudan, thus demonstrating that his party is now bent entirely on consolidating its position in its own backyard.

Yet even though the election may be a charade, it could have positive results. If Mr Bashir gets his way at the vote, he may be more inclined to let the south leave Sudan peacefully. This event will profoundly change the map of east Africa. It may even alter the politics of north Sudan in ways that, for now, are hard to imagine.

It is also true that despite the government’s restrictions on opposition campaigning, the Sudanese have been able to speak openly about political matters for the first time in years. The sight of opposition politicians on television, even for just 20 minutes, denouncing Mr Bashir for corruption and misgovernment has been a revelation. Now there is hunger for more discussion and more politics.

This week, at an evening rally in Khartoum for the Islamist Popular Congress Party, a lawyer in a flowing jellabiya repeatedly denounced Mr Bashir as a liar, accusing him of being a hypocrite and a stooge of the CIA. This sort of talk in public was unthinkable only a few months ago. Young men hovered at the back of the open-air site, unsure whether to sit down and join in the new politics or lurk safely in the dark, as they are used to.

At several opposition rallies, the economy has been discussed. So far as Mr Bashir has a political platform, he is running on his economic record. All his campaign posters picture him smiling in front of some new development project: the (Chinese-built) Merowe dam, the latest (part Chinese) oil refinery or a new (Chinese-built) road, all the benefits of Mr Bashir’s rule. But the Umma party argues that the country’s oil bonanza has benefited very few Sudanese, and most of those are in the areas north of Khartoum, where most of the NCP leaders are from. Despite all the oil, the vast majority of Sudanese have no easy access to schools or health care.

The campaign has helped opposition parties to reconnect with their supporters, relearning the art of politics and discussing the state of the country openly for the first time in a generation. Nobody knows exactly where this will lead, but the fact that the government is obviously worried tells its own story. For many, particularly, the young, it is heady stuff.

Darfur may also have benefited from the elections, albeit obliquely. Mr Bashir knows that the western region contains the second-biggest number of voters after the south, so he has had to make some peace moves there in the past few months to shore up his support. A peace deal negotiated with neighbouring Chad is holding, and Mr Bashir has also signed a preliminary ceasefire agreement with two Darfuri rebel groups. These deals have provided some much-needed momentum to the meandering Darfur peace talks that are being held in Qatar. The level of violence has also declined slightly.

None of this may outlast the election. There were reports this week that government forces had already clashed with one of the two Darfuri groups that signed the deal. The main rebel group, the Sudanese Liberation Army, led by Abdul Wahid al-Nur, still refuses to enter into any talks with the government.

And Darfur remains the world’s worst humanitarian disaster. Although fewer people are now being killed, fighting continues and more than 3m people are stuck in refugee camps, either in Darfur itself or in eastern Chad. As a result, about 4m Darfuris still rely on food aid from the UN’s World Food Programme (WFP). Few refugees in the camps bothered to register for a vote, fearing that this would prejudice their right to return to their real homes. Whatever happens at the election, the distressed region still awaits a political settlement that the Darfuris themselves feel they are part of.

Southern fear
Attention will soon switch to the south and its referendum. Few African heads of state want to endorse the break-up of Sudan, for fear that it would encourage similar secessionist movements elsewhere. Nonetheless, some African leaders have now publicly accepted the obvious: they may not like secession but, if it is done amicably, there is nothing to stop it.

However, just as the election has focused attention on the failings of the NCP, so the SPLM will attract scrutiny once the debate turns to the south. There is mounting concern about the misgovernment of the south and fear about its future vulnerability as a state. After five years of SPLM rule, too many health and social indicators are slipping backwards. According to the WFP, for instance, the number of malnourished people in the south has now crept up to 47% of the population. That is an ominous statistic for a freshly minted African country. As ever with Sudan, optimism and pessimism go hand in hand.

Related reports

Al-Mahdi Explains Reasons for Elections Boycott
SRS - Sudan Radio Service, Thursday, 8 April 2010:

(Khartoum) – The Umma party has announced that it is boycotting the general elections at all levels.

The leader of the Umma party and its former Presidential candidate, the former Prime Minister of the Sudan, Imam Al-Sadig Al-Mahdi, addressed a press conference in Omdurman on Thursday and explained the reasons for the boycott.

[Sadig Al-Mahdi]: “Our main concern was the issue of the transportation and control of the ballots and the fact that the number of polling centers was reduced to less than half of the original number. This denied other parties in the states the chance of participation in the elections and the National Elections Commission did nothing about this issue and this led to the general boycott of these flawed elections. When the issue was discussed for the second time, the view of the majority of our political bureau was in favor a complete boycott of the elections. The political bureau yesterday took its decision to boycott of elections at all levels because these elections do not represent the real will of the people of Sudan."

He urged that general elections should be held in Sudan after the self-determination referendum for Southern Sudan and after finding lasting peace to Darfur.

[Sadig Al-Mahdi]: “And from this platform and despite our position regarding the results of these elections, we, together with all political forces, will cooperate to achieve a just and lasting comprehensive peace and solve the Darfur crisis. We will continue our cooperation with the Sudan People’s Liberation Movement to improve the chance of a just unity or brotherly neighborhood. We will continue to cooperate with all the opposition forces inside and outside the new constitutional institutions for the attainment of liberties and seek lasting solutions to the Darfur crisis and work to conduct free and fair general elections after the self-determination referendum for Southern Sudan, after we have found a lasting peace for Darfur.”

Al- Madhi, who was the last democratically elected leader of Sudan in 1986 before being overthrown in 1989 by President Omer Hassan al-Bashir, claimed that opinion polls conducted in northern Sudan suggested that his party would win fifty-one percent of the parliamentary seats in northern Sudan if they participated in the elections.

The Umma National Party has joined the SPLM, the Communist Party and the Umma Party in boycotting elections at all levels in northern Sudan.

Let those people go
The Economist print edition, Thursday, 8 April 2010:
A flawed election would be better than none, for it would mean progress towards a peaceful north-south split

Ballots delivered to Nagero, Western Equatoria
ReliefWeb (UNMIS press release) - Thursday April 8, 2010
Russian crews performed their final maintenance checks as helicopters were dispatched one by one to remote corners of Southern Sudan on 6 April ...

Khartoum insists elections will make Sudanese 'proud'‎
Earthtimes (press release) - Thursday April 8, 2010
By: dpa NewYork - Sudan said Thursday that national elections scheduled for this weekend will take place as planned ...

Sudan President Bashir insists elections will be fair‎
BBC News - Thursday April 8, 2010
Sudan's President Omar al-Bashir has insisted that the forthcoming elections will be "free and fair". In a speech on the campaign trail, Mr Bashir said the ...

Carter Arrives in Sudan, Expresses Hope for Successful Election‎
BusinessWeek - Maram Mazen - Thursday April 8, 2010 (Bloomberg)
Former US President Jimmy Carter expressed “regret” that some opposition parties have pulled out of Sudan's first ...

"Disturbing trends" ahead of Sudan polls: US envoy
AFP - Thursday April 8, 2010

Police on Standby to Provide Security During Elections
SRS (Sudan Radio Service) - Thursday April 8, 2010:

(Khartoum) – The Sudanese police has announced that more than 100,000 police officers will be deployed in 14 states in the north during the elections.

The official spokesperson for the elections security committee in Khartoum state, General Mohamed Ahmed Ali, addressed the media on Wednesday and said the police is ready to carry out its duties during the election period.

[General Mohamed Ahmed Ali]: “The force exceeds 100,000, they have been prepared and trained to cooperate with elections process, they are provided with enough equipment, the number is really quite enough, the number and the equipment will help the police to carry out its duty in different parts of Sudan and inside cities in an effective manner. We are taking precautionary measures, and this will continue during elections period, during voting, after the voting and when the results are announced.”

General Mohamed Ahmed Ali said that the federal police carried out several maneuvers with the Southern Sudan Police Force to ensure calm during the elections throughout Sudan.

Former Mediator Expresses Concern at Situation in Sudan
SRS (Sudan Radio Service) - Thursday April 8, 2010 (Nairobi)

The former chief mediator of the CPA, Lazarus Sumbeiyo told SRS in Nairobi on Thursday that current political situation in the whole of Sudan is unstable.

General Sumbeiyo is appealing to parties who are boycotting the elections to resolve their disagreements and to participate in the elections.

Sudanese govt has given Darfur rebels until 5 April to sign final peace agreement

US Envoy Holds Crisis Meetings in Khartoum to Keep Elections on Schedule
From SRS - Sudan Radio Service, Friday, 02 April 2010:

2 April 2010 (Khartoum) - The US Special Envoy to Sudan, Scott Gration, has held a second day of emergency meetings in Khartoum with officials from the NCP, the SPLM and other major political parties.

The meetings are an attempt to prevent the collapse of the elections after a coalition of opposition parties announced they are to boycott the polls.

Most of the major parties have withdrawn from the presidential elections and some groups have also pulled out of the parliamentary and municipal polls.

Several key parties in the north are also considering a total boycott.

Addressing a press conference after his meeting with Gration in Khartoum on Thursday, the advisor to the president, Dr. Ghazi Salah al-Din, said that the US administration is eager to see the elections proceed as scheduled.

[Dr. Ghazi Salah al-Din]:“The US administration emphasized their position about conducting the elections on schedule because it is one of the provisions in the CPA. Gration is here in Sudan to examine the situation and to listen to different views to ensure that the election is conducted on time, and how they can solve some of the issues raised by the opposition parties’ threat to boycott. That’s why Gration is in communication with various groups, to evaluate the situation and to help if necessary.”

Ghazi, who is also a member of the government delegation to the Darfur peace negotiations in Doha, reiterated his government’s commitment to finding a lasting peace in Darfur.

[Dr. Ghazi Salah al-Din]: “The government is committed to the peace process but of course after the elections there will be a new government and new polices. If we reach the final peace agreement before the elections, that will be a great achievement but if we don’t then we will leave it to the new government to see how they deal with the situation.”

The government has given the Darfur anti-government groups until 5 April to sign the final peace agreement.

- - -

Umma party says if its terms are not met by Tuesday 6 April it will boycott presidential, parliamentary and state polls

Sudan:- Umma opposition party gives Bashir ultimatum
From BBC News online, Friday, 02 April 2010 - extract:

Photo: If Sadiq al-Mahdi's party boycotts the polls, the vote will be discredited

A key northern opposition party in Sudan has issued an ultimatum to President Omar al-Bashir to ensure free and fair elections this month. Ex-Prime Minister Sadiq al-Mahdi's Umma party says if its terms are not met by Tuesday it will boycott presidential, parliamentary and state polls. Its eight conditions include a delay of four weeks for a new body to supervise the election commission to be set up.

The Umma ultimatum came after Mr Mahdi had met with the US special envoy to Sudan, Scott Gration.

- - -

News from SRS on 02-Apr-2010

• Darfur Residents Comment SPLM Decision to Withdraw Presidential Candidate
• DUP Leader Calls for Unity
• Raiders Kill Cattle Keeper and Steal 800 Cows
• Sudan Sports Latest
  
  

Sudan: Chief Electoral Affairs Officer of UNMIS urges journalists to report objectively and responsibly during the general elections

Quote of the Day

“It is incredibly important for journalists to verify information. They must not spread rumors and they should try to reflect the opinion of experts as well as the diversity of opinion within Sudanese society and I think in that way we can help these elections to be peaceful." - James Ray Kennedy, Chief Electoral Affairs Officer of UNMIS, 11 Feb 2010

Speaking to Sudan Radio Service in Khartoum on Thursday, the Chief Electoral Affairs Officer of UNMIS, James Ray Kennedy, urged Sudanese journalists and international correspondents to report objectively and responsibly during the general elections. (See full report here below).

P.S. Thank you to the Sudan Watch readers who have sent in news for publication here. I have not forgotten you. At this very delicate and sensitive time for Sudan and its neighbouring countries, I am mindful of how quickly information (and rumours and falsehoods) can spread via computers, mobile texting, phones, satellite receivers and word of mouth (note how a translation error led to an international incident). As usual, I endeavour to be careful and verify information published here. I want peace for Sudan and for all of its inhabitants (animals included) to have access to food, safe drinking water and medical care. God bless the peacemakers, journalists and children of Sudan and keep them safe from harm.

Election Campaign Begins in Sudan

From SRS - Sudan Radio Service, Monday, 15 February 2010:

(Khartoum) - The elections campaign was officially launched on Saturday ahead of the general elections scheduled for April.

The NCP presidential candidate, Omar al-Bashir, launched his campaign at the Al-Hilal football stadium in Khartoum on Saturday.

The SPLM candidate Yasir Arman launched his campaign on Sunday, from the house of the late Ali Abdel-Latif, a prominent nationalist figure who led a resistance movement against the British in 1924.

SRS asked two political analysts for their impressions of the beginning of the campaign.

Taj Al-Sir Maki spoke to SRS from Khartoum.

[Taj Al-Sir Maki]: “I think that the launch of the NCP campaign was not all that successful at Al-Hilal stadium, despite the fact that the NCP has been controlling the media for 20 years. But the SPLM campaign which started from the house of the late hero Abdel Latif, was stronger because they are introducing a new project and they haven’t been tested yet. They are introducing a new project and they are calling for voluntary unity in Sudan, calling for a democratic Sudan that all Sudanese are calling for generally. The NCP campaigns came to support the same leadership everybody knows. So from my point of view, the NCP campaign didn’t present anything new.”

Prof. Al-Tayib Zain Al-Abdin also expressed his views about the launch of the elections campaign.

[Prof. Al-Tayib Zain Al-Abdin]: “In fact, the election campaign started for all political parties, not just the NCP and the SPLM. The Popular Congress Party and the Sudan Communist Party launched their campaigns as well. Generally, the campaigns have started smoothly and all political parties were allowed to conduct peaceful marches around Khartoum, which was not allowed before, and that is a good thing. It seems that the NCP launched their campaign in Al-Hilal stadium to attract Al-Hilal fans and they funded the Al-Hilal team without announcing it. Arman launched his campaign at the Abdel Latif house, because he wanted it to be a symbol of unity between south and north. Arman is really busy to ensure that there should not be a clear separation between south and north, and this line is welcomed.”

Taj Al-Sir Maki and Prof. Al-Tayib Zain Al-Abdin were speaking to SRS about the launch of the election campaign in Sudan.

Photo: Sudanese President Omar al-Bashir arrives to a campaign rally at Al-Hilal Stadium in Khartoum. Bashir launched his re-election bid with great fanfare, extolling his 21 years in power and pledging to the unity of Africa's biggest nation. (AFP/Ashraf Shazly)



Photo: A supporter of Sudanese President Omar al-Bashir attends a campaign rally at Al-Hilal Stadium in Khartoum. Bashir faces his first real electoral test in April, when he is being challenged by 11 opposition candidates, among them former prime minister Sadiq al-Mahdi and former rebel leader Yasser Arman. (AFP/Ashraf Shazly)



Photo: Sudanese President Omar al-Bashir addresses supporters at the Friendship Hall in the capital Khartoum, 9 February 2010. (Reuters/Mohamed Nureldin Abdallah) See news updates at the website of Albashir.
- - -

Kiir launches his election campaign on Saturday, 20 Feb



Photo: Salva Kiir Mayardit, Vice President of The Republic of Sudan, President of the Government of Southern Sudan (GOSS)

The incumbent President of the semi-autonomous region of Southern Sudan and chairman of the Sudan People’s Liberation Movement (SPLM) is scheduled to officially launch his election campaign on Saturday, 20th February.

Salva Kiir Mayardit was nominated by his ruling party to contest for the post of the president of the Government of Southern Sudan. He will compete against another presidential candidate in the South, Dr. Lam Akol Ajawin, chairman of the breakaway Sudan People’s Liberation Movement for Democratic Change (SPLM-DC).

Dr. Lam Akol is currently based in Khartoum and has not yet officially launched his campaign in the South.

Full story at Sudan Tribune by James Gatdet Dak, (JUBA) Tuesday, 16 February 2010.
- - -

Chief Electoral Affairs Officer of UNMIS urged journalists to report objectively and responsibly during the general elections

Elections a Litmus Test for Democracy in Sudan Says UNMIS
From SRS - Sudan Radio Service, Monday, 15 February 2010:

(Khartoum) - The United Nations Mission in Sudan says the forthcoming general elections will be a “litmus test” for democracy in Sudan.

Speaking to SRS in Khartoum on Thursday, the Chief Electoral Affairs Officer of UNMIS, James Ray Kennedy, urged Sudanese journalists and international correspondents to report objectively and responsibly during the general elections.

[James Ray Kennedy]: “It is incredibly important for journalists to verify information. They must not spread rumors and they should try to reflect the opinion of experts as well as the diversity of opinion within Sudanese society and I think in that way we can help these elections to be peaceful. I think if we succeed in holding peaceful and credible elections in 2010 in Sudan, there is a very good chance that we can see elections on a regular basis in Sudan. We have not seen democratic elections on a routine basis in Sudan; it seems to have been more of an exceptional thing rather than a routine thing.”

Kennedy also said that although the war is still going in Darfur, he believes that it is possible to hold peaceful elections in Darfur.

[James Ray Kennedy]: “I think what we need to look at is the voter registration exercise. Voter registration did not reach 100 per cent of the population in Darfur but it reached a very high percentage of the population and it reached it in a very peaceful manner. We hope and believe that it will be possible to have elections in Darfur that are relatively peaceful, that are relatively successful. I say quite often that there is no such a thing as a perfect election anywhere but we are all working to make these elections as good as possible under very difficult circumstances - including in Darfur.”

James Ray Kennedy also urged the people of southern Sudan who are eligible to vote in the referendum to turn out in big numbers and vote in order to determine the future of the Sudan.

Photo: Sudanese women register for national elections in Khartoum, 2009. Presidential hopefuls in Sudan, Africa's largest country, have begun campaigning for the first multi-party poll since 1986. (AFP/File/Ashraf Shazly)
- - -

Arman Meets Darfur SPLM Delegation in Khartoum

From SRS - Sudan Radio Service, Monday, 15 February 2010:

(Khartoum) - The Sudan People’s Liberation Movement’s presidential candidate, Yasir Arman, met an SPLM delegation from Darfur on Thursday and Friday in Khartoum.

In the meeting, the SPLM leaders discussed the political, humanitarian and security situation in Darfur.

One of the delegates, the SPLM secretary in Western Darfur state, Mohamed Abubakar Juma, spoke to SRS from Khartoum on Saturday.

[Mohamed Abubakar]: “Among the issues discussed regarding the Darfur crisis was the insecurity and also the difficulty in reaching some of the voters in most areas. We have also talked about the current Doha talks in relation to the general election. After the meeting, we agreed that we should request the government and the Elections Commission to coordinate with the international community for the sake of free and fair elections. Some of the things we have agreed on were that the emergency conditions should be lifted. The Darfur crisis must be solved quickly and also we must work together with UNAMID.”

The Darfur SPLM leaders also called for the quick resolution of the Darfur conflict before the general elections in April. They also called on the anti-government groups to unite and fight as one for Darfur.

Photo: A girl digs for mud to make bricks, in the Abu Shouk camp outside El Fasher, North Darfur, 9 February 2010. Picture taken 9 February 2010. (Reuters/Andrew Heavens)



Photo: A displaced boy wears a t-shirt printed with a picture of U.S. President Barack Obama, in the Zamzam refugee camp in North Darfur, 8 February 2010. Picture taken 8 February 2010. (Reuters/Andrew Heavens)

Note (seen on Albashir website, Sudanese Press in brief, Thursday, 11 February 2010): (Alraid) - Obama's brother is in Khartoum to participant at the meeting of Munazzamat al-Da’wa al-Islamiia.
- - -

UMMA Party Heals Divisions and Unites

From SRS - Sudan Radio Service, Monday, 15 February 2010:

(Juba) - The UMMA National Party and the UMMA Reform and Renewal party have decided to unite under the umbrella name of the UMMA National Party.

The Chairman of the UMMA Reform and Renewal party, Mubarak Al Fadil, told SRS from Juba on Sunday that the unity of the parties came at a very critical time.

[Mubarak Al Fadil]: “The announcement of the political unity between the two parties came at a critical time in Sudanese politics. There are so many important issues going on, among them are the referendum in 2011 which might lead to the secession of a beloved part of the nation, and at the moment Sudan is witnessing a war in Darfur and instability in Southern Darfur, the Nuba mountains and the east. Sudan is indeed undergoing a lot of problems and there is a possibility that the nation might break into so many parts.”

Al Fadil also said the unity of the UMMA party is a step in the right direction. He said that it will play a major role in stabilizing the nation and supporting peace in Sudan.

Photo: Relatives and students carry the body of Darfuri student Mohamed Musa in Omdurman locality in Khartoum, 15 February 2010. Armed riot police surrounded hundreds of protesters at the funeral of Musa, 23, who colleagues said was tortured and killed by Sudanese authorities in a case that has sparked tensions ahead of elections. (Reuters/Mohamed Nureldin Abdallah)



Photo: Sudan-appointed special prosecutor Nimr Mohamed addresses a news conference at the U.N. offices in the capital Khartoum, 11 February 2010. Mohamed, Sudan's special prosecutor for crimes in Darfur, has not charged or tried anyone, and the government must speed up trials or lose the confidence of the people, a U.N.-appointed human rights expert said on Thursday. (Reuters/Mohamed Nureldin Abdallah)
- - -

SPLM to discuss NCP’s suggestions to resolve South Kordofan election boycott

From Mirayafm, Tuesday, 16 February 2010:

The Political Bureau of the Sudan People's Liberation Movement (SPLM) will meet on Tuesday to discuss the suggestions of National Congress Party (NCP) to resolve the SPLM boycotting the upcoming presidential and parliamentary elections in South Kordofan State, SPLM Secretary General Pagan Amum confirmed to Miraya FM.

Earlier the Governor of South Kordofan State, Ahmed Haroun, who leads the NCP delegation to Juba, delivered a message from the Chairman of the NCP, Omer Al Bashir, to the SPLM Political Bureau, suggesting solutions to overcome the crisis.

Meanwhile, Amum also told Miraya FM that the SPLM Political Bureau will hold a meeting to make a final decision on party members who chose to contest as independent candidates.

Darfur peacekeepers get helicopters after long wait

On Tuesday, Sudan's neighbour Ethiopia became the first country to respond to the call by sending five tactical helicopters to Nyala, the capital of South Darfur, said UNAMID.

"This will make a huge difference ... Only one country has been able to help us. An African country has supported us," force spokesman Noureddine Mezni told Reuters.

"We still need more, at least 18 in total. Up to now we have had zero tactical helicopters ... Imagine managing without this mobility in such a huge area."

Full story: Reuters, Tuesday, 16 February 2010.
- - -

Sudan Sports Latest

From SRS - Sudan Radio Service, Monday, 15 February 2010:

(Nairobi) - Al Hilal FC won the Bani Yas friendly tournament cup after defeating the hosts Bani Yas on Saturday.

The match officially finished with a 2-2 draw leading to the penalty kicks which ended 5-4. Al Hilal’s striker Mohamed Al Tahir was awarded the tournament’s top scorer trophy.

Only four teams participated in the friendly mini-tournament which was organized by Emirates’ Bani Yas FC to celebrate the opening of the club’s new stadium.

Meanwhile, Al Merriekh FC on Sunday drew one-nil with their Ethiopian hosts Saint George during the preliminary round of the African Champions’ league.

The team returned to Khartoum on Monday morning after being away from the country for about four weeks.

And in other football news, in Rwanda, Amal Atbara FC lost their African Union Confederation Cup game against Rwanda’s Atrako 2-0 on Sunday.

And finally in Khartoum, the teenage football team from the state of Equatoria won the first National Junior Football Championship after defeating Al Jazeera 2-1 in the finals on Saturday at the Inkhaz stadium.

With special credit and thanks to:

Charles Haskins
News Programming Advisor
Sudan Radio Service (SRS)
A project of Education Development Center
Safaricom: +254 715 05 2924
+254 722 20 8598
Thuraya: +882 1643 339 226
Office: +254 (20) 387 0906
Fax: +254 (20) 387 6520
Skype: ackamaracus
www.sudanradio.org