Day: January 8, 2022

CAIRO —

The United Nations said Saturday it would hold talks in Sudan aimed at salvaging a fragile democratic transition amid a grinding stalemate following an October coup and the prime minister’s resignation last week.

Volker Perthes, the U.N. envoy for Sudan, said in a statement the U.N.-facilitated political process would seek a “sustainable path forward towards democracy and peace” in the country. It wasn’t immediately clear when discussions might begin.

“It is time to end the violence and enter into a constructive process. This process will be inclusive,” he said.

Perthes said key players in Sudan, including the military, rebel groups, political parties and protest movements will be invited to take part in the process, as well as civil society and women’s groups.

There was no immediate comment from the military on the U.N. effort.

The pro-democracy movement said it has yet to receive details of the U.N. initiative, adding that it would continue street demonstrations until “the establishment of a fully civilian government to lead the transition.”

The position of the Sudanese Professionals Association and the Resistance Committees, however, would be crucial, given that both groups are the backbone of the anti-coup protests and have insisted transfer of power to civilians.

October coup

The October 25 coup scuttled hopes of a peaceful transition to democracy in Sudan, more than two years after a popular uprising forced the military overthrow of longtime autocrat Omar al-Bashir and his Islamist government in April 2019.

Prime Minister Abdallah Hamdok resigned from office January 2 citing a failure to reach a compromise between the generals and the country’s pro-democracy movement. He had been ousted in the coup only to be reinstated a month later following a deal with the military meant to calm tensions and anti-coup protests.

Hamdok’s resignation sent the country further into turmoil and relentless street protests that have claimed the lives of at least 60 people since the coup.

More instability

Perthes said repeated violence against protesters since the coup has deepened mistrust of the military among all political parties.

He warned that the ongoing deadlock could push the country into further instability and “squander the important political, social and economic gains” since the uprising against al-Bashir.

The protest movement insists that a fully civilian government lead the transition, a demand rejected by the generals who say power will be handed over only to an elected government. Elections are planned in July 2023, in line with a constitutional document governing the transition period.

Source: Voice of America

The Economic Community of West African States, or ECOWAS, has been pushing Mali’s military government to allow elections by February.

This week, the group sent a mediator, former Nigerian President Goodluck Jonathan, to deliver a message ahead of a summit on Mali, which experienced a coup last May. Coup leaders recently announced a plan for a five-year transition to democracy.

Goodluck Jonathan was in Mali to meet with Mali’s transitional leaders, including President Assimi Goita, ahead of an ECOWAS summit on Mali which will be held this Sunday in Ghana.

President Goita and the ECOWAS delegation spent almost two hours talking at Mali’s presidential palace. Jonathan briefly addressed the press but did not disclose the contents of Wednesday’s meeting.

“The key thing is that we have been properly briefed, and we are conveying that to the authorities and heads of state and government of the ECOWAS community,” said Jonathan. “That is what we can tell you now.”

ECOWAS has been pressuring Mali’s military government to hold elections in February. This past December, military leaders submitted a five-year plan to ECOWAS which proposes the next presidential election be held in 2026.

ECOWAS has already imposed financial and travel sanctions on members of Mali’s military government and threatens further penalties if the February election deadline is not met.

A coup in Guinea last September led to the ouster of that nation’s president, Alpha Conde.

Kalilou Sidibé, professor of political science and international relations at the University of Bamako, says that ECOWAS and Mali’s transitional leaders are likely to come to an agreement on a future presidential election date – one much sooner than the 2026 elections proposed by the military.

He says if ECOWAS stands firm in its position to organize elections no later than Feb 27, 2022, the crisis could continue and the Malian government will take action. He said he doesn’t think Mali is going in that direction. He says ECOWAS will maybe tell transitional leaders that they can grant a timeline of eight months beyond February, at which point they should organize elections.

Both Diop and Sidibé affirmed that ECOWAS has protocols in place for a coup, and that further action against Mali’s leaders should be expected if they cannot work with ECOWAS to agree on a timeline for a return to civilian rule.

Source: NAM NEWS NETWORK