New Dawn Agreement: The beginning of change in Sudan?
Signed on January 5 in the Ugandan capital Kampala, the document compels the opposition parties to unify their movement against the government. They have agreed on issues of national identity, system of government, religion, state, international agreements, justice and accountability.
Unlike previous opposition pacts, this document has significantly includes the armed opposition, long criticised by major opposition political parties.
The New Dawn Agreement is a false dawn”.
Sudan’s president Omar Hassan al-Bashir has railed against the agreement, condemning it as a false dawn”.
The wide-ranging agreement touched on the transitional constitution as well as fundamental rights and freedoms and women’s rights.
But many ordinary Sudanese are asking whether the political statement will materialise into any real change on the ground.
Following the agreement, parties involved voiced optimism, some even describing as the greatest gift given by the opposition on the 57th anniversary of Sudanese independence.
The opposition’s minimum programme should be to topple the regime rather than negotiate with it.”
The opposition’s minimum programme should be to topple the regime rather than negotiate with it,” Yasir Arman said.
Justice and Equality Movement Foreign Affairs Secretary, Ahmed Hussein Adam, called the agreement a historic and strategic breakthrough towards the creation of an alternative Khartoum regime. It unites all the forces opposing Omar al-Bashir’s regime, bringing together political and armed opposition inside and outside the country, he added.
Political secretary of the Popular Congress Party, Kamal Omar, said the Sudanese opposition broke its silence in the face of intimidation by the National Congress Party.
The Sudanese government was quick to react, describing the parties to the agreement as traitors who should be prosecuted. The parties that support the rebellion and approve rebel actions are traitors and will not be tolerated,” Dr. Nafie Ali Nafie explained.
The parties that support the rebellion and approve rebel actions are traitors and will not be tolerated.”
The opposition said the government’s reaction revealed its deep intolerance of opposition. The government fears the agreement which represents a message for change,” Sati’ al-Haj from the Nasserist Party said.
Ordinary citizens are sceptical about the agreement because many say the opposition remains divided.
In his comment on the agreement, Abdulkarim Moussa Bilal said: The opposition previously signed the Democratic Alternative Pact, but that achieved nothing. The differences between opposition groups surfaced quickly. Therefore, I cannot judge the New Dawn Agreement before making sure that all opposition groups really mean business this time around.”
The new agreement underlined the peaceful nature of the opposition, but the inclusion of the armed opposition casts doubt about this goal. Meanwhile, peaceful protests are hard to stage in Sudan where the government is swift to use force.
