People of Sudan are not afraid of the military

There was a time when a military coup in a country like Sudan would have been accepted by the people rather passively and their protests would have remained mere murmurs. But not anymore. Call it the indirect effect of the Arab Spring of 2011. The anti-coup protests by thousands of unarmed citizens, shouting slogans like “revolution, revolution”, and “going backward is impossible” shows the times have changed and people are not willing to accept the military diktat.

Sudan overthrew the long-time dictator Omar Al-Bashir in 2019 and a transitory regime was put in place. Yes, Al-Bashir was changed by the military but the military’s action came on the back of a popular protest. The transitory regime comprised a civilian government and the military had a limited role. The civilian government was facing internal dissension as it was bound to be so. General Abdel Fattah-Burhan’s action a fortnight ago of replacing the squabbling civilian government literally backfired. The weeklong protests culminated in a massive one on Saturday where people came from other parts of Sudan to the capital Khartoum and its twin city Omdurman. The people are not afraid of the military, of guns and bullets. Three of the protesters died, and the protesters claimed that the military used live ammunition, which the police in Khartoum denied.

The protests are being led by Sudanese Professionals’ Association and Resistance Committees. These are the same organisations that had led the protests in 2019 which led to the overthrow of Al-Bashir. General Burhan is promising that the coup will not affect the transition process towards democracy and a full civilian government. The elections are slated for July 2023. The protesters believe that the coup leaders will not allow the full transition to democracy and a civilian government. On his part, General Burhan says that the coup became necessary to avoid a civil war caused by the squabbles among the political groups. The popular protests show that people are willing to endure political instability and turbulence, but they are not willing to submit to military rule sans democracy. Mohammed Youssef Al-Mustafa, a spokesman of the professionals’ association said, “No power-sharing mediation with the military council again.”

While the United States, the United Nations and other Western countries have condemned the military takeover, the UN special envoy for Sudan, Volker Perthes, said that a dialogue between the generals and the civilian leaders is “the only path toward a peaceful solution to the current crisis.” Perthes has been holding talks with General Mohammed Hamdan Dagalo, one of the coup leaders close to Burhan, and who commands the Rapid Support Forces which controls the streets in Khartoum. According to a Sudanese military official a UN-supported national committee has begun with displaced Prime Minister Abdallah Hamdok and Burhan. Hamdok demanded the release of all government officials and political figures and Burhan is willing to release most of those detained except persons like Khalid Omar, minister of cabinet affairs and some others, who are being accused of fomenting rebellion among the troops.

Earlier, most military coups succeeded because many of the Western powers were willing to support the generals because it was easier to deal with the generals rather than with democratically elected leaders. But Western powers are now showing little interest in propping up unpopular military regimes. But more than the change of heart of Western governments of how they want to deal with the Third World governments, it is the change in the mood of the people in the Third World countries that has made it difficult for generals and hypocritical First World leaders to make bargains over the heads of the people at large. People are asserting their democratic voice and rights.