Sudanese transition to democracy (2019–2021)
A series of political agreements among Sudanese political and military forces for a democratic transition in Sudan began in July 2019. Omar al-Bashir overthrew the democratically elected government of Sadiq al-Mahdi in 1989 and was himself overthrown in the 2019 Sudanese coup d'état, in which he was replaced by the Transitional Military Council after months of sustained street protests. Following further protests and the 3 June Khartoum massacre, TMC and the Forces of Freedom and Change alliance agreed on 5 July 2019 to a 39-month transition process to return to democracy, including the creation of executive, legislative and judicial institutions and procedures.
On July 17, 2019, the TMC and FFC signed a written form of the agreement. The Darfur Displaced General Coordination opposed the 5 July verbal deal, and the Sudan Revolutionary Front, the National Consensus Forces, and the Sudanese Journalists Network opposed the 17 July written deal. On 4 August 2019, the Draft Constitutional Declaration was initially signed by Ahmed Rabee for the FFC and by the deputy head of the TMC, Mohamed Hamdan Dagalo, in the presence of Ethiopian and African Union mediators, and it was signed more formally by Rabee and Hemedti on 17 August in the presence of international heads of state and government.
The transition was interrupted on 25 October 2021 when the Sudanese military, led by General Abdel Fattah al-Burhan, took control of the government in a military coup. The Hamdok government was reinstalled less than a month later, and the transition continued. Hamdok resigned on 2 January 2022 amid continuing protests, and the military reassumed power afterward. On 15 April 2023, the transition was interrupted again when the Rapid Support Forces launched attacks on government positions., the RSF and al-Burhan both claimed control of government sites; fighting continued.
Background
Previous democratic experiences
Sudan's 1948 election took place while Sudan was still under Anglo–Egyptian rule, with the question of union or separation from Egypt being a major electoral issue. After independence in 1956, the following half century included a mix of national elections, constitutions, coalition governments, coups d'état, involvement in the Chadian Civil War, Islamisation under the influence of Hassan al-Turabi and the secession of South Sudan.Al-Bashir rule
started with the 1989 Sudanese coup d'état and ended with the April 2019 Sudanese coup d'état during the Sudanese Revolution.2019–2020
July 2019 agreements
5 July verbal deal
On 5 July, with the help of African Union mediator Mohamed El Hacen Lebatt and Ethiopian mediator Mahmoud Drir, a verbal deal was reached by the TMC and the Forces of Freedom and Change alliance, including Siddig Yousif and Ibrahim al-Amin, on the formation of governmental institutions, under which the presidency of the transitional government would rotate between the military and civilians.The initial verbal deal agreed to by the TMC and the civilian negotiators included the creation of a "sovereignty council", a 39-month transition period leading to elections, a cabinet of ministers, a legislative council, and an investigation into the Khartoum massacre.
Tahani Abbas, a cofounder of No to Women's Oppression, stated her worry that women might be excluded from the transition institutions, arguing that women " the brunt of the violence, sexual harassment and rape" and were active in organising the protests. The Minnawi and al-Nur factions of the Sudan Liberation Movement/Army, a Darfur armed rebel group, both stated on 5 July that they rejected the deal, arguing that the deal would not achieve an "equal citizenship state". The Rapid Support Forces attacked people celebrating the deal in Abu Jubaiyah by beating them, firing tear gas, and shooting live bullets into the air. One person was hospitalised for serious wounds.
17 July written Political Agreement
Following the 5 July verbal agreement, drafting of a written agreement by a committee of lawyers, including African Union lawyers, was promised to take place "within 48 hours". On 9 July, the 4-person drafting committee, including Yahia al-Hussein, stated that the text had not yet been finished. The new time schedule was for the agreement to be signed "within ten days" in a ceremony including regional leaders. On 13 July, three sticking points delaying the signing of the agreement included the FFC requiring the human rights investigation committee to exclude people suspected of responsibility or implementation of the 3 June Khartoum massacre; the FFC requiring a limit on the time frame for appointing the legislative council; and disagreement between the FFC and the TMC regarding TMC "endorse or of the nominees". A written form of the deal as a "political agreement", with a constitutional declaration to follow later, was signed by the TMC and FFC on 17 July.Objections to the 5 and 17 July 2019 agreements
The Darfur Displaced General Coordination, representing people from Darfur displaced in relation to the Darfur genocide, objected to the 5 July verbal agreement, describing it as "flawed in form and content" and "a desperate attempt to sustain the rule of the National Congress Party", the dominant political party of Omar al-Bashir's 30-year rule of Sudan.In the days following the 17 July written deal, rebel groups represented by the Sudan Revolutionary Front, the National Consensus Forces, a coalition of political parties that opposed al-Bashir's National Congress, and the Sudanese Journalists Network objected to the signed written agreement. The NCF and the SRF said that the FFC had signed the deal in Khartoum without waiting for the NCF and other opposition forces, who had still been discussing the proposed deal in Addis Ababa. The NCF stated that the deal "goes towards granting of power to the military junta", and that the deal does not provide for an international investigation into "crimes committed throughout" al-Bashir's rule. The Sudanese Journalists Network said that the written deal "strengthens the power of the junta,... and tries to usurp power by stealing the efforts, sweat and blood of the revolution." The NCF called for the draft constitutional declaration to be circulated for comment prior to signing so that it take into account NCF's concerns.
4 August/17 August Draft Constitutional Declaration
On 4 August 2019, the Draft Constitutional Declaration was signed by Ahmed Rabee on behalf of the FFC and by the deputy head of the TMC, Mohamed Hamdan Dagalo, in the presence of Ethiopian and African Union mediators. The document is composed of 70 legal articles, divided into 16 chapters, that outline transitional state bodies and procedures. On 17 August 2019, Rabee and Hemedti signed the document more formally on behalf of the FFC and the TMC, respectively, in the presence of Abiy Ahmed, Prime Minister of Ethiopia, Salva Kiir, President of South Sudan, and other heads of state and government.Objections to the 4 August 2019 Draft Constitutional Declaration
The Darfur Displaced General Coordination objected to the 4 August Draft Constitutional Declaration, arguing that peace requires the disarming of militias; provision of all five suspects wanted in the International Criminal Court investigation in Darfur and the expulsion of new settlers from traditionally owned land in Darfur. Minni Minawi stated that the SRF objected to the Draft Constitutional Declaration on the grounds that an agreement made among component groups of the FFC in Addis Ababa concerning mechanisms for a nationwide peace process in Sudan was excluded from the declaration and that the declaration constituted a power-sharing agreement between the FFC and the TMC.Legal reform
The legal reform was initiated by the Political Agreement of 17 July 2019, Article 20 of which mandated "a legal reform program and rebuilding and developing the justice and rights' system and ensure the independence of judiciary and the rule of law." Many of the reforms affect the Sudanese Criminal Code of 1991.Some attempts had been made under al-Bashir's rule to reform legislation on issues such as extramarital rape victim blaming via 'adultery', and impunity for marital rape, by amending the definition of rape in Article 149.1 of the Criminal Code in February 2015. However, several commentators such as the African Centre for Justice and Peace Studies argued that this amendment had a number of flaws. Even though the amendment made it possible to prosecute marital rape by removing the reference to adultery, there is still no specific prohibition of marital rape, and oral rape is not criminalised. Moreover, Article 149.2 still defined adultery and sodomy as forms of 'rape', so complainants still risked being prosecuted for adultery or sodomy if they failed to prove they were subjected to sexual acts without their consent. Finally, the importance of consent was diminished in favour of coercion, going against the trend in international law to define sexual violence by lack of consent.
Constitutional principles of legal reform (August 2019)
The Draft Constitutional Charter that was agreed in August 2019 further detailed how this reform was to take place during a 39-month transitional period, and in which areas of law these were to be focused. Article 2 of the Charter specifies that:The Transitional Constitution of Sudan of 2005 and the constitutions of provinces is repealed, while the laws issued thereunder remain in force, unless they are repealed or amended. The decrees issued from 11 April 2019 until the date of signature of this Constitutional Charter remain in force, unless they are repealed or amended by the Transitional Military Council. If they contradict any provisions of this Constitutional Charter, the provisions of the present Declaration prevail.Articles 3 and 5 outline what kind of state and society Sudan is, or should become: a parliamentary democracy with equal citizenship for all, that is "founded on justice, equality, and diversity and guarantees human rights and fundamental freedoms," where the rule of law prevails and "violations of human rights and international and humanitarian law" and other transgressions are punished, including those committed by the 1989–2019 regime. Article 4 establishes the principle of popular sovereignty, and that provisions of existing laws "that contradict the provisions of this Constitutional Charter shall be repealed or amended to the extent necessary to remove the contradiction".
Articles 6 and 7 outline the transitional process by which Sudan will be transformed into what kind of society it should become. Article 7.5 is an almost exact copy of Article 20 of the Political Agreement, thus reiterating the general commitment to legal reform. Further specifications are mentioned:
- 7.2 "Repeal laws and provisions that restrict freedoms or that discriminate between citizens on the basis of gender."
- 7.7 "Guarantee and promote women's rights in Sudan in all social, political, and economic fields, and combat all forms of discrimination against women, taking into account provisional preferential measures in both war and peace."
- 7.15 "Dismantle the June 1989 regime"s structure for consolidation of power, and build a state of laws and institutions.'