On Problematic of the upcoming election in Sudan

By Dr. Omer A. El-Garrai

September 30, 2009 — The election which has been announced for early next year came after 24 years from the last free election that took place in this country. This means that an entire generation graduated from college, joined the public service and never witnesses a real election, practice of democracy or peaceful transfer of power. So what should the government do before the elections? Is it not her duty to enlighten people about the elections, its procedures, laws, methods of voting and the coming democratic transformation? Nothing of all this happened, even after the elections had been delayed twice.

One would ask: why the government of the “Ingaz” ruled for twenty years in a harsh totalitarian dictatorship without thinking of making elections? An answer could be: because they were afraid of loosing their chairs. Well, why the government accepted to make elections now? Did those who make the coup of June 1989 change their mind and are convinced now that democracy is an essential component of their Islam package for best ruling system; even if it is going to throw them away? Or may be their belief did not change but they succumbed to international, regional, and local pressure. Part of this pressure is the CPA itself which stated the elections clearly. If the ‘Ingaz’ did not make elections in the past as it was afraid of loosing power, and it accepted to make it now, it should have good reason for that. It should have thought and planned to run the election without possibility of loosing power. Such an idea needs a lot of deception, corruption, and meticulous planning that use and abuse the state resources to guarantee the winning of the National Congress Party (NCP). Current experiences of Kenya and Iran showed that the traditional ways of forgery in elections can easily be discovered. In order to guarantee winning, a party should falsify the whole political atmosphere rather than just play with the ballots. However, no party can influence the whole political atmosphere unless it is the ruling party at the time of elections which is controlling everything and utilizing the resources of the state for the interest of the party. Having all these privileges, the NCP is still challenging other parties to compete with it as if they were in similar position.

The objective of this paper is to clarify issues that constitute obstacles in the face of fair and free elections in Sudan at this time. It encourages the political parties, civil society organizations that are concerned with politics, foreign agencies and institutions interested generally in democracy and particularly in democratic transformation in Sudan and all citizens, to think about its content. It draws attention to what hinders real elections and defies voting that only leads to sustain the existing totalitarian regime by giving it a fake legal status.

GENERAL POLITICAL SITUATION

The period of the Government of National Unity (GNU) which has been established in accordance with the CPA, has been turbulent. The partners: the NCP and SPLM have their disputes and quarrels that threaten the CPA. The dispute became complicated until mediators have to interfere. The US invited the two partners to Washington trying to solve the conflicts and assure that the elections and referendum will take place on time just as the CPA stated.

The main point of disagreement is the result of the census which the SPLM refused and the NCP cherished. The census considered the southerners in north Sudan 520 thousands only. This has not been accepted even by some members of the NCP. In an interview with Dr. Awad Haj Ali, Director of the last census, he said considering the southerners in the north as 520 thousand is unacceptable. According to him, SPLM has the right to decline these results. He estimated the southerners in Khartoum as one million and a half. The election districts have been distributed according to this false census. The south has been given 21% of the election districts in an unmistakable intention of making it weak in the elections and referendum. This is a violation of the CPA which gives the SPLM and southern parties 34% in the sharing of power. The NCP wants the SPLM to accept this belittling because it is a result of the census; as if the NCP is impartial and the census has been comprehensive and scientific. The fact is totally the reverse. What NCP means is to put the SPLM in an eccentric situation. If it accepts the results of the census it will loose the elections and the southerners may loose the referendum and if it doesn’t accept them it appears as refusing the election and the referendum which have been stated in the CPA. The discrepancy in distributing election districts- according to the census results- is clear. Seven northern wilaiat got 50% of all the election districts leaving nineteen wilaiat including the south with 50% of the districts.

In addition to this problem there is instability in the security situation in south Sudan. The SPLM accused the NCP of igniting the tribal conflicts in the south. A spokesman of the SPLM declared that the company of Giad,- a government company that manufactures automobiles and weapons- sent arms to some southerners who are pro- NCP to start these troubles. Occurring before the elections, such clashes are expected to exacerbate during them.

Another problem which has been raised by the coalition of political parties was that by the second week of July the government was no longer constitutional. This is because the constitution stated that the elections should take place after 4 years of signing the CPA. If the government delayed the elections to continue to rule, this the reason the constitution identified specific time for the elections. Although the GNU with both partners refused what the opposition declared, the SPLM dealt with it calmly while some of the NCP supporters threatened the head of the coalition of the political parties.

The crisis of Darfur is big hindrance of the elections. Many areas are cross-fire zones between the government and the militias. It was impossible to conduct the census in such areas. Reasons that prevented the census are going to avert the elections too. Chad attacked the government army twice and that made the situation worse. Does the government want to exempt Darfur from the elections? Or parts of it for security reasons? Mr. Abel Aliar , the president of the Election Commission said that there is no security in Darfur and elections can not be run at insecure places (Alsahafa 17/6/2009). Darfur population is estimated as 7 million persons i.e. 17.5% of the total population of Sudan. Can we exclude this number of people and still talk about representative elections. Isn’t debarring certain tribes in specific location considered ethnical discrimination that might increase the conflict?

The threat of the International Criminal Court (ICC) is still valid, and denying the court because Sudan did not sign or rectify the treaty of Rome is not enough. The case has been transferred to the ICC by the Security Council so any country has to comply unless it is not a member of the UN. On the other hand the government does not want to start trials for those who committed war crimes in Darfur. In fact it can’t do that because Sudanese laws do not include punishment for war crimes, collective annihilation, and ethnic cleansing. In addition, the law confer immunity to intelligent forces, members of the People Defense Forces (PDF) that includes the militias of the Janjawid and high rank officials. The government did not only fail the legal procedures, but also achieving peace through negotiations. It refused the demands of the Darfurians expressed in most of their initiatives. These demands include: the one region, participation in the institution of presidency, the dissolution of the militias, the trials, compensation and revision of the land tenure system. Will the people of Darfur accept to forget about all these demands in exchange of partial elections?

If the problem of ICC is not over the Security Council may issue some sanctions against the government of Sudan. In such a case the result of will not be endorsed and the new government will not be internationally recognized.

ELECTIONS & LAWS THAT HANDCUFF LIBERTIES

The Ingaz was a totalitarian regime, it was depending before the CPA, on laws which violate human rights and restrict any kind of freedom. Signing the CPA means accepting the Bill of Rights as being a part and parcel of the agreement and the interim constitution of 2005. As a result, the GNU agreed to amend all the laws which are incompatible with the agreement and the constitution. But in practice, the NCP was reluctant to do so. Depending on its majority in the National Congress, it refuses to negotiate most of laws criticized by coalition of the political parties in the congress. The few it accepted to discuss and amend became worse than their first version. This paper will only mentioned some articles of some laws that clearly influence the elections.

One of the laws that generated a lot of discussion is the law of Intelligence and National Security. The Security Apparatus has been inflated with wide authority and complete immunity to all its members against all courts of law. The CPA stated that the Security Apparatus should change into an agency that collects and analyzes information and raises them to superior authority. But despite the CPA, it still practices all its activities just as before. This law gives the security agents the right to detain without any charges. Protected by the immunity from any legal consequences, they torture detainees, hide them from their families, shot to kill demonstrators, attack university students in support of the NCP students. May be the last evidence of ill- behavior of the security agents is the torture of Abdel moniem Al jack, a human rights activist whose pictures of physical assaults has been published on internet and seen by thousands of people all over the world. This was simultaneous to the declaration of the president at a public gathering that the ghost houses (places of torture) has gone for ever.
With its wide range of authority, the law of the Intelligence and National Security enables the security agents to hinder free elections. Representing the interest of the NCP, they will be a threat to its competitors, especially if they have effective activities against the NCP in the elections. It is easy for the security agents to capture active politicians and detain them until the election is over. It can also stop meetings of parties to get rid of any cooperation or coordination that might result in coalition against the NCP. These are few examples and there are thousands of crimes that could be committed in the name of protecting national security whereas they are in fact to preserve the interests of the NCP and guarantee its winning of the elections. The political parties have protested against this law and ask for its amendment but the NCP insisted not to discuss this issue.

The National Congress discussed the law of the Criminal Procedures. The SPLM members and all political parties in the Congress were against it but the NCP issued it with mechanical majority after adding article 127 which gives the state Wali and governor the right to stop any rally, demonstration and dissolve any gathering, grouping or crowd if they think it might threaten the public safety. It is clear that this article has been put there to give the Walis- most of them are members of the NCP- a chance to stop political lectures, festivals and propaganda gatherings of other parties with alleged claim of protecting the public safety. No one would ask them what is the public safety and how could a political lecture affect it. How do they know whether this gathering or the other is threatening it? For this strange law- which gives them the right to stop their competitors to win the election- never explain these things.

Another law which people demand its amendment is the law of Voluntary and Humanitarian Organizations. An appeal has been raised against it to the Constitutional Court for hindering the national NGOs from doing their work. The appeal has been declined. One of the most awful applications of that law is the decision of expelling of some INGOs depending on unfounded political accusations. This result in sever damages in the IDP camps in Darfur and around Khartoum. The effect of the gap has been estimated by a million persons loosing food and medical care by the coming rainy season. The impact of such situation on elections is clear. Hunger, disease and instability make voting or even elections itself something secondary that doesn’t touch the life of people. Also according to this law registration of some national NGOs was denied and their effort to support the civil society was curtailed. NGOs which have ideologies different from the NCP are prosecuted and annoyed by HAC and those who reflect the ideas of the NCP are supported and allowed to do what they want. The last example is what happened in Alkhatim Adlan Center for Enlightenment and Human Development. HAC stopped a lecture about elections and the reason they gave is that the center is registered at the national level and need to register at the state level. The center continued all kind of activities for two years without being stopped by HAC. It is obvious that registration at the national level is a permission to work in all states including Khartoum. It seems that the commission has been politicized and its mission is to stop any activity that may influence the situation of the NCP in the elections even if it is only awareness raising on elections especially if it is carried by groups not attributed to the NCP.

The press censorship has always been a worry of the journalist and other citizens. The security agents visit all the newspapers- except those of the NCP- every night and take away any article they consider against the government or the NCP. The journalist protested several times against this censorship. They went on strike and demonstrations protesting against the law of the press which allows such censorship. After long debates the NCP agreed to change the law, put forward a new one, and passed it with the majority despite objections. There is no difference between the old and new laws except in the wording of the articles. Instead of the right of the government to confiscate the newspaper and detained the journalist in the old law, the new one article 5/2 reads (No restriction on newspapers except in cases identified by the constitution and law). Article 5/3 (The newspaper will not be confiscated or closed except according to the law). Article 5/4 (Detention or arrest of a publisher journalist in issues concerning his profession is not allowed except in the cases identified by the law). It is known that the word ‘law’ in all these articles means all the laws of the state including those which restrict freedom. So the journalist could be detained and their papers confiscated according to the law of Intelligence and National Security while the real reason might be the critique of the government, the NCP or even raising awareness of people which affects the position of the NCP in the upcoming elections. At the same time the newspapers of the NCP, such as ‘Alintibaha’ insults leaders of the SPLM, calls for racism and separation and nothing happened to it.
The new law gave a wide authority to the Press Council. According to the law, it is the one who gives the license to the press companies, newspapers, editors and journalists. It is punishment authority includes: stopping issuing of the newspapers, withdrawing their license and forbidding any journalist to be a journalist. If we know that 40% of the members of the Press Council are recruited by the President himself and its under the supervision of the Minister of Communication so he can change the rest of the elected members, we realized how the press is so far from being free and independent. Instead of alleviating the censorship, the new law legalizes it with more fresh reasons. Article 28/1/B reads ( Do not publish any secret information related to the security of the country or military forces with regard to plans and locomotion). Article 28/1/D ( be committed not to excite or exaggerate in the news of crimes and civil felonies). Article 28/1/F (should not publish anything that contrasts religion, honorable beliefs, traditions or science, that leads to spread of superstition). The law did not identify or explain the reference of all these taboos and left them for personal judgment. So these articles could be used to stop religious views which are against those of the NCP, idea, news and many rich view points. The ultimate objective is the protection of the NCP ideology and weakening of its opponents to guarantee its winning of the elections. In addition to the freedom restricting laws, the law of the press itself is a very heavy chain that cripples journalists. It has harsh punishments that are enough to frighten journalists and restrain their pens and minds. The sanctions in the law of the press are two kinds: punishments executed by the press council that includes: blaming, instructing the newspaper to apologize, warning, draw attention, stopping the newspaper no more than 7 days and withdraw the license. And penalties executed by a court under the article 37 which includes: a fine not more than 50 thousand Sudanese Pounds, stopping the newspaper no more than two months, cancellation of license, and confiscation of the newspaper, printed materials and equipments. These harsh sanctions are enough to make any journalist hesitant to write especially if he wants to criticize the government which has in addition to the law of the press even more brutal laws to move against him.
The absence of free press is a real problem that faces free and fair elections. Insisting on this law, the NCP wants his rivals to be unable to censure it while it can criticize them from the media it is now monopolizing and it newspapers which are save from censorship or hegemony of the law of press.

THE LAW OF ELECTIONS

The Law of Elections for 2008 which is assumed to direct the process to achieve transparent, fair and impartial elections, which will fulfill the objective of having a government that represent the people and live their future aspirations, is in itself one of the problematic that faces the election. The first thing to mention is that the High Commission of Elections established according to this law and directed by it to carry all the work of the elections, neither the SPLM as a partner or other parties in the government has the right to recruit any of its members! Article 6 (A) reads ( The Commission is composed of 9 members selected and recruited by the president with the agreement of the first Vice President according to the decree 58/2/E of the constitution and the agreement of two third of the National Council considering widening representation to include women and other social forces).

The members of the commission will be recruited by the President and the Vice President can refuse some names and they will be changed but he can not suggest the alternatives as all the members should be chosen by the President. Here is the question: if someone is a qualified patriot but at the same time opposes the NCP and censures it a lot, will the President recruit him in this sensitive position? The law stated that members of the commission should be independent. Article 6 (b) describes the commission member as one who : (should be known as independent, qualified, not affiliated with any political party and unbiased). This article has been violated now even before the elections. In some regions, the head of the election commission is the deputy of the Wali and representative of the NCP in the area! This happened in south Darfur, and in the Nile State where representative of other parties submitted a written complaint to the government.

Let us investigate some articles to see how important and dangerous this Commission of Elections is. Article 18/1 (the Commission forms the high committees and recruits the heads and member of the high committees at the level of south Sudan and the States). Article 18/3 (The high committees are responsible to the Commission in executing the elections or referendum at the level of the south and the States). Article 20/1 (The Commission recruits election officers at the level of the south and each state and election officers at every geographical district to arrange and review the election registration record ). Article 20/2 (The high election officer at the level of south Sudan and each State and the election officers in the geographical districts arrange all operations of voting, sorting, calculating, election and referendum according to this law and regulations and directives of the Commission). The Commission is the general supervisor of all committees that carry the elections. Does the Commission member enjoy the morale that helps him to fulfill this difficult mission? Article 6/2 identifies one of the conditions of the member of the Commission as follows: (Should not be in the past 7 years convicted in a crime related to honesty, moral corruption, or election misbehavior even if he had general amnesty). What if this member has been convicted 8 years ago? Is one year difference going to make him a person of morals that we can trust for elections? The issues of honor, morality, honesty and credibility should not be limited by a certain time because time can not erase these accusations. Yet what is amazing is that those people whose morale is guaranteed only for 7 years have been conferred total immunity! Article 14 which is entitled ‘ The immunity of the head of the Commission, his deputy and the members’, reads (With the exception of red-handed cases, no criminal procedures should be directed against the head of the Commission, or the members for any action related to their performance of the duties entrusted to them according to this law unless after a written permission from the President of the Republic of Sudan). This is how the law covers the members of the Commission from any prosecution. If someone has evidence that the Commission is biased to the party of the government, he has to wait for a written permission from the President! Is the President going to allow the prosecution of the ones he trusted and selected to this job?

The elections should be on July 2009, but due to the reflectance of the government especially the NCP it was delayed to February 2010. However on early July it has been postponed again to April 2010. All this is violation for the law of election which stated in Article 27 (The Commission can delay the election of the President of the Republic, the President of the south Sudan or the Wali by a decision if the election procedures become difficult due to an unexpected event that threatens all the country, south Sudan, the state or part of it according to the situation or in case of emergency according to article 210 of the Constitution. Yet the Commission has to identify as urgent as possible a new date for the elections on condition that the new date should not exceed 60 days from the one identified before for the elections.). Despite the clearness of this article the Commission delayed the elections without any condition of those mentioned in the article. Also the first delay from July 2009 to February 2010 is more than the 60 days stated in the article. If the Commission which should preserve the law violated it twice for no reason but lack of preparedness of the NCP for the elections at that time, is it expected from the people to trust it in running the elections impartially?

The law of elections stated that the voter should be registered in the election registration form ( article 21/C). One of the conditions for that is to be a resident of the geographical district for no less than 3 months before closure of the registration.( article 22/2/A). It is clear that the voter could be prohibited from voting due problems in his registration. Especially because the People’s Committee – which is in most cases- from the NCP is the one who determines on residency issues. Registration is an open door of corruption as many will be voting away of their residence or prohibited from voting in them according to the People’s Committee wishes. The law never mentioned any kind of monitoring or observation during registration. The law also did not cater for some groups that will be hindered by the condition of living for 3 months in a certain place such as the students who my register at the campus but at the time of voting they are at home, or the nomads who are always wandering around with their herds. How are these going to register and at what location? How can we guarantee that their registration records have not been played with?
When the law permits monitoring and observation in the sorting and voting operations it restricts the local and foreign observers and limits their job to the minimal level. At the same time it allows the Commission to send them away at any time if it thinks that their interference is impeding the process of the elections. Article 104/1 reads (The Commission should invite or accept applications of patronizing countries of the CPA or international or regional organizations to attend and monitor the elections or referendum stated in the Constitution. They have to identify their representatives and the Commission has to officially endorse them). It clear from this article that the government is given the choice to invite observers from organizations or wait for them to apply for that. May be no country will voluntarily applied for this position so the elections will be conducted without international observation. As for the local observation the law mentioned it as something probable but not as a condition of the elections.

Article 104/3 reads (Committees of monitoring the elections and the referendum can be formed from: consultant judges, law people, ex-officials, civil society organization and political parties). Even if these organizations applied for observation the Commission might not accept. Article 104/5 (The Commission put down the necessary foundation to arrange the accreditation of the agents of observers). Even if the Commission accepted the observers the law gives it the rights to restrict their activities or send them away if it thinks that they are obstructing its work. Article 76/3 states (The candidates, agents, observers and endorsed representatives of the media have the right to attend all the operations of sorting and counting of votes without interference in the tasks of the sorting and counting officials or influencing them according to the details of the regulations ). Article 76/4 reads (The head of the voting center has the right to send away any person who disobeys the law or the regulations or does whatever might hinder the sorting and voting operations). This observer can not interfere in what happens in front of him in the voting center the most he is permitted to do is to ask questions!! Article 105/2 reads (observation committees or observers is not permitted to interfere in any way in the work of the election committees or its members but they can ask verbal or written questions). The possibility of expelling the observers includes even the foreign observers. Article 106/1 reads (The Commission can, with consent of its members, withdraw endorsement of the national or international observers in any time if it is proved that they did what contradict the rule of this law or regulations).

Monitoring of the elections which many simple citizens are depending on, is nothing more than a formal issue. The election supervisors can let it be or stop it and send the observers away for any alleged accusation of hindering the operation. If the government is sincere about monitoring it should have not restrict the observers and the decision whether they transcend their limits should be left to an independent judge to rule for their continuation or dismissal.

UNFAIR COMPETITION

A party which is ruling alone for twenty years using all the resources of the state for its own interest can not compete with other parties that are far from the authority and its resources and we consider such competition honorable and fair. Ministers, undersecretaries, walis, governors…etc who are nominees of NCP in the elections have to resign their job now in order to be without any powers that influence the voters. If they don’t want to do that, the basis of equal opportunity and fair competition is destroyed.
The NCP is now monopolizing the media. It is the only party that can use the radio and TV for political propaganda. It is also utilizing the People’s Committees with the support of Imams of the mosques to bargain with people over their demands. They promised in the name of the government to promote all kinds of services in exchange of support of the NCP in the elections. This is how the NCP is using the public money for the interest of the party, a chance other parties do not have.

In the visits of the President of the Republic to different regions, opening some development projects, in most cases the wali addressed the crowd saying that the area is supporting the President or it is a closed district for the NCP. This is a kind of using the state resources and equipments in an early free publicity for the NCP. ( this happened recently in the opening of Alhosh road and in the visit of the President to the Nile State). It is contradicting the law of elections which stated in article 69 ( No candidate or political party is permitted to use the capabilities of the state or material or human resources of the public sector for free except the public media. In case of asking to pay, payment has to be appropriate to the service. This is applicable for all political parties and candidates on equal basis without any discrimination).

This election is more complicated than anyone before. The voter has to choose the President of the Republic of Sudan, the President of south Sudan, the wali of his/her state, the governor, and the member of the assembly at the same time. The voter has to mark 12 choices in the ballot paper in south Sudan and 8 in north Sudan. It is a task that needs extensive training. The national NGOs that work on elections did not receive any financial support from the Commission to start such training. Although the Commission got funds from UNDP for such work, it neither made the training nor gave money to civil society organizations to do it on her behalf. Even when some of these organizations tried to do it with its own resources, the Commission of Humanitarian Aid intervened as I mentioned earlier. On the other hand, the NCP and its NGOs are working hard training their members on how to deal with the ballots. They are approaching people in remote areas with all kinds of tempting bribes paying their bills from the state resources. The other parties know nothing about the complications of voting and they are unable to start their campaigns. What is obviously expected is that those who did not train – especially because most of the people are illiterate – are going to mess and their votes will be discarded. This how the NCP is going to defeat its competitors in the elections; by tiring off their ballot papers due to mistakes of filling them and thus win with no need for further fraud.
One of the most unfair situations is what I mentioned about censorship of the newspapers of the opposition and taking away any article – even those written by independent writers- that criticizes the government performance or the NCP flaws. At the same time the NCP newspapers are free to write false information supporting the performance of the government and criticizing the opposition and the SPLM knowing that the people can not see the response due to censorship.

This discrimination and inequality is what give the leaders of the NCP the balls to declare that they are going to win the election regardless of the coalitions against them. Dr. Nafie Ali Nafie, the deputy of the president of the NCP said, ‘ This government is not going to be change by peaceful means or otherwise’. The peaceful means is the elections and if he is sure that elections will not change them and declares that publicly it means that they are very sure of the inequality of chances and their planning to make use of this privilege to the extreme.

ABSENCE OF THE RULE OF LAW:

There is a general worry that the elections may be forged and conflict such as these of Kenya or Iran might occur. Some members of the NCP deny this possibility saying that people can solve any dispute by appealing to the court. However one of the election problems is that the Judiciary system is not independent; it is a follower of the executive authority. This is why we are suffering from the absence of the rule of law. There are cases which have been raised to the High Court of Appeal but they were overruled for no reason more than the interest of the government. I will point out one example which is enough to prove that the rule of law is absent. In the trial of the Justice and Equality Movement (JEM), followers of Dr. Khalil Ibrahim who attacked Omdurman in May 2008 more than hundred were sentenced to death under special law of fighting terrorism. Their lawyers appeal against the law as being unconstitutional especially article 13 and 21. These articles allow the Supreme Judge to form such special courts in consultation with the Minister of Justice with regard to the rules of the procedures of the trial and the way of issuing decisions. The lawyers depend on the fact that the Minister of Justice represents the Executive Authority and he should not interfere in the work of the Judiciary. They protest against the procedures as contradicting to the constitution, the law of Evidence 1994 and the law of Criminal Procedures 1991. These procedures permit absentia trial for capital punishment crimes, do not give the defendant enough time to find a suitable lawyer, convict the defendant with his confession after he retreat from it, and they shorten the appeal period to a week and its stages to one. The Chief of the High Constitutional Court refused the appeal and stated that (The procedures appealed against as unconstitutional are related to unordinary events or exceptional as they said. Many innocent civilians and military people are victims of them. Properties were destroyed ….), until he said ( yes this court is apolitical but also it is not an island isolated of what is happening in the country. It can’t in my opinion, when looking at the procedures appealed against as unconstitutional, but to coexist with some deviation from normal measurements) . This is what the head of the High Constitutional Court said and he is the last resort for the citizens when they are wronged by any less authority. If the High Constitutional Court can accept and coexist with violation of legal measurement who is expected to respect the law? Why this violation to the legal measurements to enable execution of those who participate in the attack of Omdurman- although there were no specific charges of killing certain persons- while no charges have been issued against those who killed thousands in Darfur? And if the High Constitutional Court is able to justify all these death penalties despite the violation of the legal measurements to protect the government, can we expect from it or any court beneath to rule against the government in a complaint concerning the elections?

ELECTION FINANCE

It is mentioned that the elections will cost $ 550 million. In some news we read that the US is going to offer $95 millions for the Sudanese elections. In May 2009 it is announced that the Commission of Elections received $68, 7 million from the UNDP for awareness raising and training about elections. Nothing of that happened. Instead money has been spent in buying big fancy cars, renewing luxurious offices and high salaries for the Commission members. The Law of Elections stated that financing the election is the responsibility of the government. Article 18/1 reads ( The Ministry of Finance and National Economy should credit the necessary money in the account of the Commission’s budget to cover current expenses, the cost of the national elections, the elections of south Sudan, and the states including the national referendum).

The problem here is that the government is depending on the US, UN and EU to finance the elections even if it doesn’t want to admit it. These countries want to see their money utilized in the purposes they donated it for, such as enlightening people about the democratic transformation, training people how to vote and how to observe the elections. Some donors are hesitant due to the ICC and what might happen as a result of it especially because the situation in Darfur is still gloomy.

As the other parties are poor and competing with the NCP which is directing the election race with state resources, it has been announced that some parties asked the government to support them financially for the elections. The government conditioned that with the agreement of all the parties to deal with political issues with ‘patriotic spirit’ (Akhir Lahza 30/6/2009). Is the concept of ‘ patriotic spirit ‘ something agreed upon or what some parties consider as ‘ patriotic spirit’ is considered by the government treason? The government, so, will support the parties that agree with views of the NCP and might ally with them and will not support other parties because they do not deal in political issues with ‘ patriotic spirit’!

EXPLOITATION OF RELIGION FOR ELECTIONS:

During the discussion of the Criminal law in the National Assembly few months ago, Yasir Arman, the head of the SPLM group in the assembly called for review of some articles of the law in favor of the non-Muslim community in Khartoum. As a result, members of the NCP shouted and verbally attacked him, and what is called the ‘ league of ulama alsudan’ declared that Yasir is an infidel and placed him out of Islam. Few days later, an anonymous put a bomb in Yasir’s office with the intention of his assassination. No one has been arrested and the newspapers were not allowed to publish any details. When Ajras alhuria daily newspaper did, the issue has been confiscated by the security agents so that people should not know what happened.

Forming a religious body such as Ulama Alsudan to involve in politics and utilize religion for the interest of the NCP, is a real problem because it detaches the political game from its rules and muddles it up with religion using people’s passion for political ends.

The expected propaganda against the SPLM will be lead by mosque preachers who will announce prohibition of voting to a non-Muslim. Especially because there is already a fatwa declared by sheikh Abdelhai Yousif that anyone who joined the SPLM will be a kafir (unbeliever). The wave of Takfir will stop at no limit and the same Ulama Alsudan have denounced Dr. El- Turabi leader of the Islamic Movement as an apostate when he announced some radical religious ideas.

Part of the utilization of religion for political ends is what the preachers used to say that citizens have to vote for those who raise Islamic slogans even If later they did not apply them. The false argument is that it is not the responsibility of the voter if they retreated from their promise. Such misleading will work with simple religious citizens although what is logical is to ask if the Ingaz ruled over twenty years and did not apply Islam why is it going to do so after winning this election? Citizens should vote for the one who has a program how to solve the country’s problems not those who have slogans without plans even if they are Islamic slogans.
Conclusion:

The problematic that the paper tried to explain all its facets is mainly emerged when a totalitarian regime tried to conduct a free elections that contradicts his thought, experience, and future prospects. Because traditional ways of election forgery became known, the NCP worked hard using the state resources to falsify the general atmosphere in a way that guarantee its continuity in office, defeat of other parties and legalization of its situation. The other parties though feel inequality of competition is unable to take the brave decision of boycotting these elections as some of them are still hoping that the NCP might give them part of it. Conduction of election in this situation of freedom restricting laws prove that our parties do not believe in democracy or respecting it. Otherwise they should have not accept such elections that are degrading and mockery of the citizens who know that even if they vote democracy will not be attained as long as their life is controlled by despotic rules. If the NCP manage to mislead the simple people and tempted the greedy weak parties it will not be able to deceive the international community which is looking forward to finance this elections if it happens despite all these problems.

The writer is a renowned writer who published many articles in Sudanese newspapers. He also participated in many public debates and presentations about human rights and other social and political issues. He can be reached at [email protected]