Cairo meeting form new coalition for non signatories of Sudan’s framework agreement

February 7, 2023 (KHARTOUM) – The political forces participating in a workshop hosted by the Egyptian government on Tuesday announced a new alliance and reiterated their adherence to the 2019 constitutional document after amending it.

Held in Cairo, from February 2 to 7, the workshop gathered the non-signatory forces of the framework agreement including the Democratic Bloc and other groups.

The participants discussed the political crisis ways for an intra-Sudanese dialogue paving the way for a political settlement to replace the political framework agreement signed by the Forces for Freedom and Change and the military component on December 5, 2022.

According to a statement issued Tuesday at the end of the workshop, the meeting gathered 85 personalities representing 35 parties and movements.

The communiqué announced the formation of the “Coordination of National Democratic Forces”, a new political coalition.

The coordination further adopted the “National Document Governing the Transitional Period”, which provides for 15 amendments to the constitutional document.

The main proposed amendments include the removal of the Forces for Freedom and Change (FFC) from the text of 2019 and replacing them with “political and civil forces, civil society organizations, resistance committees and parties to the peace process that signed the amendments”.

Also, the proposed text provides replacing the name of the Sovereignty Council with the sovereign authority.

The non-signatory armed groups have always rejected the control of the transitional process by the FFC groups due to a rift between them over the constitutional document before its signing in August 2019.

However, they now stick to the constitutional declaration of 2019 because it was amended in a way to ensure their participation in the transitional government after the signing of the Juba peace agreement.

The proposed document says that the government structures consist of the Sovereign authority, the Council of Ministers, and the Legislative Council. While the levels of government are federal, regional, and state.

The Sovereign authority will consist of seven members picked by the signatories to the amended constitutional declaration.

According to the document, the Legislative Council will be composed of 300 members, and the cabinet will be composed of 25 ministers.

With regard to the security arrangements, the new political coalition endorsed the integration of the Rapid Support Forces and other armed groups into the national army.

Also, it provides the transfer to the Ministry of Finance of the economic and industrial companies belonging to the military, except for the military industry companies.

(ST)