Sudanese protesters threaten strike and civil disobedience
khartoum (sudan) — The organisers of Sudan’s protests have threatened a general strike and civil disobedience as tensions escalated with the military council that assumed power after the overthrow of President Omar Al Bashir.
The Sudanese Professionals Association and its allies, which organised the four months of demonstrations that drove Al Bashir from office on April 11, accuse the generals of clinging to power.
The main protest group said the military does not seem serious about transferring power to civilians after ousting President Al Bashir
“What we feel from all the actions of the military council until now is that they are not serious about handing over power to civilians,” Mohammed Naji Elasam, spokesman for the Sudanese Professionals Association (SPA), told reporters in Khartoum.
“With the passing of time the powers of the military council are expanded and this is a very big danger for the Sudanese revolution,” he said.
The SPA leads an alliance of activists and opposition groups called the Declaration of Freedom and Change Forces, which has held three meetings with the TMC since Saturday.
“The military council has the chance to participate in the state that we are working on ... but might lead us to the risk of straying into something unpleasant,” said Khalid Omar, one of the leaders of the Declaration of Freedom and Change Forces.
“We will continue the sit-in until the achievement of the goals of the revolution. Our demand is clear and that is civilian authority.”
The two sides have been negotiating the formation of a new transitional government but are divided over the role of the military, which is dominated by Al Bashir appointees.
The protesters have proposed a joint military-civilian sovereign council, comprised of eight civilian and seven military members. The military council proposed a 10-member council with three seats for civilians.
The Transitional Military Council (TMC) reiterated that it was open to more talks, but warned there should be no further unrest, a reference to protests disrupting trains and blocking bridges. It said it would not disperse a protest sitin that has been staged outside the Defence Ministry since April 6.
“We are ready to negotiate but no chaos after today,” said the TMC’s deputy head, Mohamed Hamdan Dagalo. “We told them, continue with the sit-in, but the train is connected to delivering fuel,” he added.
Forces of the Declaration for Freedom and Change said they have submitted their full proposal for the sovereign council, a cabinet and a legislative body that would rule the country during a four-year transition. The organisers have called for mass rallies on Thursday, while the military has warned against any further “chaos”.
The protesters began massing outside the military complex on April 6, demanding that the military back their struggle to oust President Al Bashir. Five days later, the generals removed him from office, ending his three-decade rule and later jailing him and other top officials.