Sudanese Opposition Drafts Document on Civilian Rule

Sudanese protesters at a demonstration in Khartoum. (AFP file photo)
Sudanese protesters at a demonstration in Khartoum. (AFP file photo)
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Sudanese Opposition Drafts Document on Civilian Rule

Sudanese protesters at a demonstration in Khartoum. (AFP file photo)
Sudanese protesters at a demonstration in Khartoum. (AFP file photo)

The Sudanese opposition Freedom and Change coalition announced a new political document titled "Demands and Procedures to End the Coup," based on the civil-military dialogue held last week under US-Saudi mediation.

The document, a copy of which was obtained by Asharq Al-Awsat, identified three stages to end the coup and establish civil rule.

The first step calls for ending the coup, followed by the phase of "constitutional foundation" with the participation of the forces that resisted the coup and the military component.

The final stage calls for establishing the democratic path, which represents the Sudanese people who believe in democracy, supported by the tripartite mechanism takes the tangible steps.

The document said that the political solution must include the establishment of a unified national army that distances itself from politics.

It called for reviewing the economic activity of the military and security establishment and going through a transitional process that exposes crimes, holds violators accountable, brings justice to the victims, and prioritizes the national economy.

The document stipulated dismantling the June 30, 1989 regime, recovering looted funds, implementing the Juba Peace Agreement, and reviewing it with its parties.

It called for establishing an anti-corruption commission, building a balanced foreign policy that preserves the country's interests, formulating a permanent constitution, and preparing for free, fair, and transparent elections within 18-24 months.

The document defined the institutions of transition as a limited civilian Sovereign Council, a cabinet of independent national figures and prime minister chosen by the forces of the revolution.

It described the establishment of a limited parliament with 40 percent of seats allocated to women.

The document stressed the formation of a Security and Defense Council chaired by the prime minister and including leaders of the regular forces, armed movements, and relevant ministries to implement security reform policies.

It underlined the importance of reforming the judiciary, the Public Prosecution Office, and the Constitutional Court in line with a democratic system and adopting a "decentralized" federal approach.

It set out a roadmap that includes implementing measures to create a democratic environment, signing a copy of a declaration of principles binding to all parties, dissolving the institutions that emerged after the October 25 military coup, and forming new institutions in line with the final agreement before kicking off any direct negotiations between the army and civilians.

The US-Saudi mediation, led by US Assistant Secretary of State Catherine Phee and the Saudi ambassador in Khartoum, Ali bin Hassan Jaafar, had gathered the military and the Forces of Freedom and Change for talks last week.

The meetings called for the lifting of emergency measures, protecting the civilians and the cessation of violence against them. They called for the release of detainees, returning funds recovered by the transitional government, and initiating immediate accountability measures against human rights violators.



UN Investigative Team Says Syria’s New Authorities ‘Very Receptive’ to Probe of Assad War Crimes

A man looks at the pictures of missing people, believed to be prisoners from Sednaya prison, which was known as a "slaughterhouse" under Syria's Bashar al-Assad's rule, after his ousting, in Marjeh Square also known as Martyrs Square in Damascus, Syria December 22, 2024. (Reuters)
A man looks at the pictures of missing people, believed to be prisoners from Sednaya prison, which was known as a "slaughterhouse" under Syria's Bashar al-Assad's rule, after his ousting, in Marjeh Square also known as Martyrs Square in Damascus, Syria December 22, 2024. (Reuters)
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UN Investigative Team Says Syria’s New Authorities ‘Very Receptive’ to Probe of Assad War Crimes

A man looks at the pictures of missing people, believed to be prisoners from Sednaya prison, which was known as a "slaughterhouse" under Syria's Bashar al-Assad's rule, after his ousting, in Marjeh Square also known as Martyrs Square in Damascus, Syria December 22, 2024. (Reuters)
A man looks at the pictures of missing people, believed to be prisoners from Sednaya prison, which was known as a "slaughterhouse" under Syria's Bashar al-Assad's rule, after his ousting, in Marjeh Square also known as Martyrs Square in Damascus, Syria December 22, 2024. (Reuters)

The UN organization assisting in investigating the most serious crimes in Syria said Monday the country’s new authorities were “very receptive” to its request for cooperation during a just-concluded visit to Damascus, and it is preparing to deploy.

The visit led by Robert Petit, head of the International, Impartial and Independent Mechanism for Syria, was the first since the organization was established by the UN General Assembly in 2016. It was created to assist in evidence-gathering and prosecution of individuals responsible for possible war crimes, crimes against humanity and genocide since Syria’s civil war began in 2011.

Petit highlighted the urgency of preserving documents and other evidence before it is lost.

Since the opposition overthrow of Syria’s President Bashar al-Assad and the opening of prisons and detention facilities there have been rising demands from Syrians for the prosecution of those responsible for atrocities and killings while he was in power.

“The fall of the Assad rule is a significant opportunity for us to fulfill our mandate on the ground,” Petit said. “Time is running out. There is a small window of opportunity to secure these sites and the material they hold.”

UN associate spokesperson Stephane Tremblay said Monday the investigative team “is preparing for an operational deployment as early as possible and as soon as it is authorized to conduct activities on Syrian soil.”

The spokesperson for the organization, known as the IIIM, who was on the trip with Petit, went further, telling The Associated Press: “We are preparing to deploy on the expectation that we will get authorization.”

“The representatives from the caretaker authorities were very receptive to our request for cooperation and are aware of the scale of the task ahead,” the spokesperson said, speaking on condition of not being named. “They emphasized that they will need expertise to help safeguard the newly accessible documentation.”

The IIIM did not disclose which officials in the new government it met with or the site that Petit visited afterward.

“Even at one facility,” Petit said, “the mountains of government documentation reveal the chilling efficiency of systemizing the regime’s atrocity crimes.”

He said that a collective effort by Syrians, civil society organizations and international partners will be needed, as a priority, “to preserve evidence of the crimes committed, avoid duplication, and ensure that all victims are inclusively represented in the pursuit of justice.”

In June 2023, the 193-member General Assembly also established an Independent Institution of Missing Persons in the Syrian Arab Republic to clarify the fate and whereabouts of more than 130,000 people missing as a result of the conflict.