Sudan: a "million's march" against the military coup in a narrow political framework

Supporters of the Umma Party, Sudan's largest political party, chant slogans during a protest against a military coup that reversed the transition to civilian rule on October 29, 2021 in Omdurman, the second largest city from the country.

Sudanese protesters furious at the coup have vowed to continue a campaign of civil disobedience, following deadly clashes with security forces during protests against a widely condemned military takeover.

AFP - EBRAHIM HAMID

Text by: Léonard Vincent Follow

5 mins

A strong popular mobilization is expected this Saturday, October 30 in Sudan, at the call of the civil organizations resulting from the revolution of 2019. Demonstrations all over the country are due to end five days of tension after the army's coup, last Monday.

Five days which allowed diplomacy to install a perilous political situation for General Abdel Fattah al-Burhan.

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Despite the warnings, General al-Burhan deliberately chose the coup against the civilian leaders with whom he shared power until last Sunday.

On Saturday again, the US President's special envoy, Jeffrey Feltman, had tried to convince him to seek a solution to the political crisis that had been simmering for weeks between his armed forces and Prime Minister Abdallah Hamdok, and to give up this which was notoriously preparing behind the scenes.

But in vain: Monday, at four o'clock in the morning, Abdallah Hamdok and his wife were arrested, as well as several other eminent members of his cabinet.

And the transitional institutions were dissolved, by order of the army chief of staff, now sole master on board the country.

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But the Prime Minister was finally placed under house arrest at his home in Khartoum, under pressure from international diplomacy, while the arrests of personalities continued in the following days.

Because it was not all easy for General al-Burhan.

With the discreet support of Egypt, but also of Russia defending its military and economic interests in Sudan, the former close to ousted President Omar El-Bashir still had to face, this week, several political obstacles of 'importance.

First, the UN Secretary General on Monday “

” the coup in Sudan and asserted himself “

”.

The United States and the World Bank immediately suspended financial aid, which is crucial to keeping the Sudanese economy afloat.

And the popular resistance committees, spearheads of the 2019 revolution, as well as most of the political parties active in the country and the leaders of the ex-rebellions of Darfur and Blue Nile, called for mobilization in the street. to block the military.

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In fact, the call for a general strike was widely followed across the country from Monday. Roadblocks have been set up in the capital to curb traffic and the crackdown on supporters of civil disobedience has left more than a dozen dead in a few days.

Then, after two long meetings, the African Union suspended Sudan from its instances on Wednesday, until civilians returned to power, in harsh terms. The coup d'état and the arrests of civilian leaders were deemed "

" and " 

" by the fifteen members of the Peace and Security Council of the continental organization, despite the reservations of three of them. , according to a diplomatic source in Addis Ababa. An African envoy must be appointed to speak to the AU General in person.

In Khartoum itself, diplomatic meetings followed one another. The general received the Saudi ambassador, while Riyadh " 

" the coup, and he witnessed the outcry of Western ambassadors, who said they still recognize Abdallah Hamdok and his cabinet as "

”. Along with the UN Secretary-General's Special Representative in Sudan, Volker Perthes, they also visited him to ensure his health. Volker Perthes then started several shuttles between General al-Burhan and Abdallah Hamdok and offered the services of the UN to find common ground.

A dozen Sudanese ambassadors disassociated themselves from the coup, prompting General al-Burhan to dismiss six of them, and not the least: the representatives in the United States, to the European Union, to the China, Switzerland, Canada and France. The governor of the state of Khartoum and his cabinet also joined the protest, explaining that there would be "

" to the autocracy of the former regime deposed in 2019.

Finally in New York, at the UN Security Council, despite strong reservations from Russia and China who denounced " 

" in Sudanese affairs, a declaration was unanimously adopted Thursday, asking for the re-establishment of a "

" and expressing " 

". The Council also denounced the arrests and the dissolution of the country's transitional institutions and called for "

" to resolve the crisis opened by the coup.

This Saturday, therefore, it is in this narrow political framework that the “March of the million” promised by the revolutionaries of 2019 is taking place. The question is therefore to know who within the military hierarchy will win, among those who want to hold on. account of foreign convictions and supporters of the strong way.

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• Abdel Fattah al-Burhan

• Sudan

• Abdallah Hamdok

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