The move by Sudan’s military to dissolve the Sovereignty Council, where it shared power with civilian leaders, has thrown the African country’s delicate transition from dictatorship to democracy into chaos. About three years ago, thousands of Sudanese rose up against Omar al-Bashir’s regime, in what they call a “revolution”, which eventually led to the dictator’s fall in April 2019. From then on, leaders of the military and civilian movement came. together to form a transitional government. In their agreement, the caretaker prime minister would run day-to-day affairs while the military chief would remain leader of the Sovereignty Council for two years. The military chief, Lieutenant General Abdel Fattah al-Burhan, was to hand over the leadership of the transitional government to the civilian leadership in a few weeks. Instead, he dissolved the government, declared himself the new leader, declared a state of emergency, and imprisoned civilian leaders, including Prime Minister Abdullah Hamdok. Tensions have been rising in recent weeks. A pro-army crowd was protesting demanding the removal of the government amid rising prices of essential commodities. Port Sudan, the country’s largest port on the Red Sea, was blocked by a tribal group with the help of the military, leading to dire economic conditions, including severe shortages of food, currency and fuel. The civilian leadership accused the military of taking advantage of the economic crisis.
The Bashir regime’s coup and the promised democratic transition are the best ways for Sudan to end its international isolation, heal the wounds of decades of oppression and state violence, and build a stable economic and political order in the otherwise violence-ridden Horn. Was expected. Africa. Sudan had taken steps in that direction. Last year, the US removed the country that hosted Osama bin Laden in the 1990s from its list of state sponsors of terrorism and announced financial aid. Earlier this year, the IMF signed a $50 billion debt-relief agreement with the transitional government. The civilian leaders promised that they would send Bashir to The Hague to be tried on charges of war crimes, crimes against humanity and genocide. The country was also gearing up to hold its first free and fair elections in decades. But power-hungry generals appear to be more concerned about protecting their interests than they feared a democratic government had taken full control of the country. After all, the Sudanese army cannot acquit itself of whatever accusations Bashir is accusing. But this time it is facing a tough challenge from the public. The protesters who took down Bashir are back on the streets fighting with security personnel. A violent showdown is most likely. General Burhan should avoid further violence. The army should release all the arrested leaders, restore the transition government and let free elections decide the future of the country.
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