Turabi’s party denies Arab Spring countries’ initiative to reconcile Sudan’s Islamists
July 24, 2012 (KHARTOUM) – Sudan’s main Islamist opposition, the Popular Congress Party (PCP), denied on Sunday that its leader, Hassan Al-Turabi, has received any initiative from Arab Spring countries to reunite the PCP with the ruling National Congress Party (NCP).
“The points of disagreements have become more complicated. There is nothing in common, not politically or intellectually” he said.
Abdel Razaq was reacting to an announcement by the NCP that Tunisia, Libya and Egypt are conducting an initiative to reconcile the two parties whose split occurred following the 1999 power struggle between Al-Turabi and President Omar Hassan Al-Bashir who heads the NCP.
On the contrary, Abdel Razaq added, the PCP is ready to convince these countries of the necessity of toppling Bashir regime.
He revealed that his boss, Al-Turabi, recently held a phone conversation with the secretary-general of the dominant El Nahda Movement in the post ‘Arab Spring’ Tunisia, Rashid al-Ghannushi, who never mentioned any initiative.
Abdel Razaq went on to stress that their party remains firmly in support of efforts to overthrow the NCP, citing what he termed as the fact that the number of PCP detainees has recently reached 54, the most notable of which is the party’s political secretary, Kamal Omer, who was arrested last month, one day before he was due to travel to Qatar to participate in an Al-Jazzera debate show on the current protests in Sudan.
According to Abdel Razaq, the NCP announcement of the alleged initiative was nothing but an attempt to create mistrust between the PCP and its allies in the opposition.
“Our disagreement with the NCP is predicated on principles, not seats of power,” he insisted.
Since he was ousted from power, Al-Turabi has been one of the NCP’s most vociferous critics and has been incarcerated on several occasions.
(ST)