KHARTOUM -

After two days of consultations, the "Freedom and Change-National Accord Group" forces in Sudan approved the constitutional and political declarations for managing the transitional period.

The new political declaration - or what was described as a "political declaration of democratic civil governance" - provides for the formation of a sovereign body to administer a transitional period agreed upon by the parties;

He was met with questions about his ability to make a breakthrough in the complex Sudanese scene, compared to the extent to which the rest of the components and parties responded to his texts.

In addition to the forces of "national consensus" participating in power under the Juba Peace Agreement, the declaration was signed on Tuesday by civil and societal forces, led by the Eastern Sudan Coordination, the Supreme Council of the Beja, the Independent Amaudiyas, and the Central Sudan Coordination, in addition to members of the Resistance Committees.

In its most prominent articles, the declaration provides for extensive amendments to the constitutional document (the main reference for the transitional period since 2019), and for the replacement of the "Freedom and Change-National Accord Group" forces with the "National Consensus" forces in all articles of the document, which froze the army leader, Abdel Fattah Al-Burhan. Most of its articles were included in his military actions on October 25, 2021.

The forces of the Central Council represented the political incubator of the isolated transitional government led by civilians.

The new declaration stipulated maintaining a balanced relationship between civilians and the military, and the formation of a 400-member Legislative Council, taking into account cultural, ethnic and geographic diversity in their selection.

Among the amendments made by the announcement to the constitutional document is the text granting the National Consensus Forces the power to dismiss the prime minister instead of the Legislative Council, and deleting Article (20), which prohibits the candidacy of holders of constitutional positions in the upcoming elections.

The new political declaration in Sudan grants the National Accord Forces the power to dismiss the Prime Minister instead of the Legislative Council (Al-Jazeera)

breakthrough in the political arena

The leader of the National Accord Forces, Nour Al-Daim Taha, believes that the signed declaration can make a real breakthrough in the political arena.

He told Al-Jazeera Net that the power of the declaration is represented in several points, the most important of which are: addressing the issues that concern the Sudanese street, and its formulation by a significant bloc representing the spirit of the revolution, including the resistance committees.

Regarding the interpretations that said that the military was behind the signed declaration, Taha stated that the text to maintain a balanced relationship with the military came out of concern for the stability of the transitional period.

The army commander, Abdel Fattah Al-Burhan, announced the withdrawal of the military from the political process to allow civilians to agree on forming a government, which will be responsible for managing the transitional period.


Communication with political forces

In his defense of the declaration, Taha said that he is flexible, citing his leaving a core issue such as "the formation of a sovereign body" for consensus between the Sudanese forces, including the matter of naming the body and its leader, in addition to detailing its tasks and competencies.

Regarding the relationship between the forces of national consensus and the forces of the Central Council, Taha confirmed that they are in the process of calling for a "round table" conference, which includes all Sudanese parties, to study all initiatives and announcements related to managing the transition period.

For his part, the leader of the "Freedom and Change-Central Council" coalition, Shehab Ibrahim, downplayed the constitutional declaration of the National Accord Group, considering it an entrance to more complexity in the political arena.

Ibrahim spoke to Al Jazeera Net about a clear conflict between the wishes of the Sudanese street and the declaration's call to maintain the partnership between civilians and the military, and to allow the leaders of the military component to participate in the upcoming elections.

He noted that any constitutional declaration that does not express the wishes of the Sudanese is doomed to failure.

The dilemma of the East

As soon as the constitutional and political declarations were issued, leaders in the "Eastern Sudan Path" agreement were quick to object to the outcomes of the Friendship Hall meeting in Khartoum.

In October 2020, the isolated transitional government and the leaders of the armed movements signed a peace agreement in Juba, paving the way for the participation of the rebel movements in wealth and power-sharing agreements, and ending the marginalization of some Sudanese regions with special protocols (paths).

The most prominent points of objection made by the head of the Eastern Path Agreement, the political secretary of the Revolutionary Front, Khaled Shawish, were those related to freezing the path and involving civil forces that speak out against it (the Beja glasses council).

He believed that what happened in the Friendship Hall is a serious regression from what was agreed upon in the Juba Peace Agreement, which opens the door wide to torpedoing the entire agreement.

Nour al-Daim Taha returned and responded to these accusations by saying that they did not demand a freeze on the track, but rather that it was developed to meet the demands of all the people of eastern Sudan.

He said that Shawish should look at the matter in a patriotic spirit and free from tribal prejudices.

A demonstration in Khartoum to demand civilian rule (Reuters)

'Military bias'

In light of the objections raised to the advertisement, a question arises about the added value that it could give to the scene.

Political analyst Mahjoub Othman answers that the announcement will not have a significant impact on the scene, "because it is biased towards the military," and that it does not enjoy the approval and blessing of a large sector that is currently involved in calling for the restoration of civilian rule.

In an interview with Al Jazeera Net, Othman asked: How will the agreement find blessing from the Sudanese while it deliberately excludes the forces of the Central Council by replacing them with the forces of national consensus in all the provisions of the constitutional document?

In turn, the political analyst Juma Adam told Al Jazeera Net that the agreement enhances the political status of the forces of national consensus, and their ability to balance the balance with the forces of the Central Council by demonstrating the ability to mobilize and present political visions and theses.