Al-Bashir’s pickaxe underlies economic downfall in Sudan
By Mahmoud A. Suleiman
The destructive pickaxe of Omer Hassan Ahmed al-Bashir and his Corrupt Entourage for the three decades are responsible for the Economic Downfall in Sudan and Not due to the current Peaceful Popular Uprising.
While the Demolition Machine of the Dictator Omer al-Bashir during the three lean decades rule is responsible for the devastation of the productive institutions of Sudan, he unashamedly accuses the peaceful protesters as responsible for sabotage and vandalism and destruction of state property.
This article comes against the backdrop of the recent statements by Omer al-Bashir that the responsibility for the destruction of the public property of the Sudan lies with the Sudanese people who rose up on 19 December 2018 and continued since then to lead to the elimination of dictatorship and the restoration of freedoms and democracy and the elimination of the causes of futile wars and suffering and the building of the rule of law and good governance along Justice, and equality among all components of the Sudanese people with identity of being a Sudanese Citizen irrespective of colour, creed and gender away from ethnic origin, regional affiliation or mother tongue, etc.
In the midst of fear and anxiety about his fate, Omer al-Bashir is losing his temper and is trying to justify the ferocity of his criminal security apparatus, which shoots live bullets at peaceful protesting citizens and describes them as saboteurs and groups driven by foreign hands and groups of armed movements from Darfur came from Israel to create instability Of Sudan.
In the midst of fear and anxiety about his fate, Omar al-Bashir is losing his temper and is trying to justify the ferocity of his criminal security apparatus, which shoots live bullets at peaceful protesting citizens and describes them as saboteurs and groups driven by foreign hands and groups of armed movements from Darfur came from Israel to create instability of the Sudan while there is strong evidence that his regime allowed the passage of Israeli air traffic through Sudan on its way to Brazil, as well as more secret deals agreements between the Bashir regime and Israel during the presence of the former Sudanese Foreign Minister before his dismissal, which helped in the decision making of the new US President Donald Trump executive orders to lift economic sanctions on what is referred to as the Five Tracks Engagement Plan (5 TEP) when the United States has decided to formally revoke a number of economically focused sanctions on Sudan in recognition of the Government of Sudan’s sustained positive actions in “alleged” five key areas. https://www.aljazeera.net/knowledgegate/opinions/2017/10/9/%D8%A3%D8%AC%D9%86%D8%AF%D8%A9-%D8%A5%D8%B3%D8%B1%D8%A7%D8%A6%D9%8A%D9%84-%D9%81%D9%8A-%D8%AC%D8%AF%D9%84-%D8%A7%D9%84%D8%B9%D9%82%D9%88%D8%A8%D8%A7%D8%AA-%D8%A7%D9%84%D8%A3%D9%85%D9%8A%D8%B1%D9%83%D9%8A%D8%A9-%D8%B9%D9%84%D9%89-%D8%A7%D9%84%D8%B3%D9%88%D8%AF%D8%A7%D9%86
The 5 areas included: first, to maintain a cessation of hostilities in the areas of its internal conflict, including Darfur and what we refer to as the two areas, the states of South Kordofan and Blue Nile; second, to improve humanitarian access across Sudan; third, to end destabilizing activity in South Sudan; fourth, to build and deepen U.S.-Sudan cooperation in countering terrorism; and fifth, improving regional security with a particular focus on countering Joseph Kony and the Lord’s Resistance Army. Bearing in mind that Bashir’s regime will remain on the state sponsors of terrorism list. The five-track engagement plan began in June of 2016. One of the most important conditions for the lifting of the prolonged sanctions on the Bashir’s regime including the five basic conditions is that Sudan fully complies with all the United Nations Security Council (UNSC) resolution requirements regarding North Korea. Sudan said on Wednesday it had cut all defence ties with North Korea, in a rare admission that it used to have such ties in the first place.
The Khartoum Regime Hosted the World’s Most Barbaric Militia the Lord’s Resistance Army led by the Ugandan Joseph Kony, who is wanted for war crimes, has escaped capture for more than two decades. His rebel Lord’s Resistance Army (LRA) is notorious for abducting thousands of children to use as soldiers or sex slaves. https://www.huffingtonpost.com/mia-farrow/khartoum-regime-hosts-the_b_497949.html?guccounter=1
The announcement came as Washington is locked in a standoff over Pyongyang’s missile and nuclear weapons programmes, and as Sudan, which is still on the US list of state sponsors of terrorism, reels from an economic crisis. https://www.reuters.com/article/us-sudan-north-korea/sudan-says-it-has-cut-all-defence-ties-with-north-korea-idUSKCN1J22BU
https://www.state.gov/r/pa/prs/ps/2017/10/274678.htm
In the context of the debate on the issue of sanctions, there has been a remarkable discovery in the Israeli press since the beginning of last year, six months before the start of secret negotiations between Khartoum and Washington and the outcome of the five tracks to lift the sanctions. This issue, which Israel discussed with Washington to reward Khartoum to ease the pressure on them, and encourage the European Union countries to alleviate the debt burden that devastates the economy of the Sudan the Israeli offers have raised many questions about their motives and circumstances.
After clarifying the relationship between the ruling regime and Omar al-Bashir and the State of Israel, al-Bashir should not accuse the Darfur students in the Sudanese universities of coming from Israel to incite people to the uprising, knowing that the students who were arrested by the security services can neither afford to go me nor come from Israel. The charge was a vindictive one. It is part of the anger directed by Omer al-Bashir against the Sudanese citizens in the Darfur region whom Bashir considers them the initiators for his indictment by the International Criminal Court (ICC) at The Hague in the Netherlands for his arrest and trial for the crimes he has committed against the Sudanese civilian citizens, that include Crimes against humanity, war crimes and genocide and Bashir is still fugitive from the international justice.
The National Congress Party) NCP) government led by the military dictator Omer al- Bashir ignored the foregoing facts of the matter and instead calls on the Sudanese political opposition factions to get ready for his alleged 2020 elections! http://www.sudantribune.com/spip.php?article66877
Al-Bashir’s the foregoing statement challenging defiantly the Sudanese Political Position inspire the November 25, 2017 formal announcement by a leading figure at Sudan’s ruling National Congress Party (NCP) who has ruled out that President Omer al-Bashir would agree to amend the constitution in order to run for the office again, given the fact that Al-Bashir’s term ends in 2020 and he couldn’t run for office again according to the constitution. However, some voices within the NCP and the government have recently called for amending the constitution to allow him to run for the presidency again. Nevertheless and despite all the above, the Majority-owned Parliament of the ruling National Congress Party (NCP) has amended the 2005 transitional constitution of the Comprehensive Peace Agreement (CPA) and decided to nominate Omer al-Bashir in the 2020 elections. Without a shred of doubt, the winner of the presidential elections in 2020 will be Omer al-Bashir, taking into account the degree of fraud and poll rigging that was inherent to the previous Presidential elections under the rule of the Islamic Movement in Sudan over the past three decades. All of the foregoing described efforts by Bashir and his arbitrary regime are to ensure that Omer al-Bashir is protected from arrest by the International Criminal Court (ICC) or worse that he is tried locally by the people of Sudan under the law of transitional justice, which all dictators fear.
Political observers and analysts believe that the political history of similar countries, some of which are adjacent to Sudan, believe that the ruling regime of Omer al-Bashir has become close to full collapse and in its final demise l when the underlying reasons are read and analysed. They believe it is a matter of time and the government of Bashir will collapse if the people’s demonstrations continue without interruption as they are now taking place in all parts of the country. The protests continue as occurred in the October 21, 1964, Revolution, and April 1985 ‘Intifada’ Revolution. The anger of the Sudanese people has been accumulating for three decades and has continued to boil not only as a result of the lack of a loaf of a bread, the lack of fuel for cooking, petrol for cars, or difficulty withdrawing ones funds from Bank accounts as it is currently, but it is more than all that, it is as a result of arbitrary laws, unfaith financial situation, crimes against humanity, war crimes and genocide along with arbitrary suppression of public freedoms, racism, nepotism and chronic blockage of the horizon of living in addition to institutionalised general corruption and the licensing of corruption by religious fatwas adopted by religious sheikhs – clerics – loyal to the ruling regime, as well as the application of laws to target women with the punishment of flogging with whips under the infamous arbitrary laws known as Public Order Law Article 152 of the Criminal Code where more than 40,000 public order cases issued annually in Khartoum, the Sudanese capital. According to the Sudan Democracy First Group (SDFG), the Sudanese Public Order Law is meant to oppress and dominate the population. The articles and provisions of the Law are specifically formulated in vague language, to give the police and the courts a free hand in its implementation, the SDFG says. The Law also gave the Public Order Police the powers of intrusion in private domains to enforce its articles.
Article 152 of the Criminal Code, on indecent clothing, is a good example of the vague definitions in the Law. The article does not set a concise definition of what constitutes ‘indecent clothing’. Thus, the application of this Article depends on the personal judgement of the arresting police officer.
https://www.dabangasudan.org/en/all-news/article/more-than-40-000-public-order-cases-annually-in-sudan-capital-sdfg
Time has come but rather late for ousting the President of the regime that ruled the Sudan for three decades with iron and fire and has brought the country into bankruptcy and destruction, but his loyal entourage subordinates want their master of grace to continue to rule forever. The people of Sudan have risen up in a popular revolution for ousting him and send his remnants into the bottom of the dustbin of history to join the list of his ilk of tyrant oppressors the world has experienced.
Thomas Jefferson who was an American Founding Father and the principal author of the Declaration of Independence and later served as the third President of the United States from 1801 to 1809, Previously he had been elected the second Vice President of the United States serving under John Adams from 1797 to 1801, has been quoted as saying; “The Price of Freedom is Eternal Vigilance” https://www.pinterest.co.uk/pin/7670261838592692
The Uprising Sudanese people chanted during their Demonstration saying: Revolution until Victory and the Demise of the regime of hunger, murder and absurd wars.
Dr. Mahmoud A. Suleiman is an author, columnist and a blogger. His blog is http://thussudan.wordpress.com/