Sudanese President Omar al-Bashir has called on Sudanese President Omar al-Bashir to resign from the presidency, dissolve the constitutional institutions, lift the state of emergency, release all detainees and form a constituent assembly of 25 members.
He called for the expansion of participation in the millions called by the Sudanese Workers' Union (unofficial trade union group) today to demand the overthrow of the regime. He called on his supporters to participate in the declared demonstration and commitment to peacefulism.
In a Friday sermon delivered to hundreds of supporters, al-Mahdi said that President al-Bashir's response to appeals to step down voluntarily would be a compliment to him, especially as there were several factors that the president enjoyed from exercising the powers of the presidency.
Sudanese security forces fired tear gas at demonstrators in Khartoum, witnesses said, even after President al-Bashir confirmed that protesters' demands were "legitimate".
Sudan is witnessing almost daily demonstrations against the backdrop of a suffocating economic crisis. The protests began on December 19, after the government's decision to raise the price of bread three times, before it escalated and spread to all parts of the country.
Protesters continued their demonstrations, chanting "Freedom of Peace and Justice", despite the declaration of a state of emergency in February. But in recent weeks, gatherings have been limited to Khartoum and Omdurman.
Witnesses said protesters demonstrated in a number of areas of Khartoum and Omdurman, including in a wild neighborhood and Jibra, where riot police fired tear gas. One witness said the protesters chanted anti-government slogans and called on residents to join them. Police said late on Sunday that they had dispersed "illegal gatherings" in "different parts of Khartoum state." She spoke of "injuries among citizens and policemen" and "the arrest of a number of rioters."
For his part, said police spokesman, Major General Hashim Abdul Rahim, that a number of policemen and citizens were wounded. He said that "a number of rioters were arrested" on charges of "rioting and threatening public safety." "The economic crisis has affected large segments of our people," the Sudanese president said this week, in his first speech to parliament since announcing the state of emergency on February 22. He added that this crisis "made some come out to the street to achieve legitimate demands, but some of these gatherings did not follow the legal procedures, and some of them were directed towards the destruction of property."
The protesters blame Bashir's regime for the economic mismanagement of the country, which is witnessing a sharp rise in food prices, an inflation rate of about 70 percent a year, and a significant shortage of foreign currencies.