Sudan Transition Deal Delayed, Protests Held Against Talks

Facts

• On Wednesday,  a pro-democracy bloc announced that the signing of an agreement to restore Sudan's transition to civilian rule — which was disrupted by a 2021 coup — was delayed for a second time in just a week over stalled negotiations between the army and the paramilitary group Rapid Support Forces (RSF) on military restructuring.¹
• This came as pro-democracy activists marked the anniversary of the ouster of two different leaders — one in 1985 and the other in 2019, both of whom originally seized power by way of a coup — on Thursday as tensions with the state’s military government show no sign of abating.²
• The anniversary came alongside protests — organized by pro-democracy 'resistance committees' that oppose negotiations with the military — across Sudan, with demonstrators reportedly met with tear gas and stun grenades from state security forces.³
• A separate coalition of civilian parties, known as the Forces of Freedom and Change, back the deal and blame the latest delays on the elements of the 2019 ousted former head of state Omar al-Bashir’s now-outlawed National Congress Party, which remains influential.⁴
• Following the 2019 popular uprising, the military agreed to share power with civilians ahead of elections, but this was halted after the 2021 coup, which overthrew the Western-backed, power-sharing transitional government and saw the army retake control.⁵
• Billions of dollars in international support and debt relief were then frozen, worsening an already dire humanitarian situation. This led to continued protests that include demands for accountability for at least 125 people allegedly killed by state-linked forces since the putsch.⁵

Sources: ¹Associated Press, ²Al Jazeera, ³Reuters (a), ⁴Us news & world report and ⁵Reuters (b).

Narratives

• Pro-establishment narrative, as provided by San diego union. Sudan's power-hungry military already dashed aspirations for democratic government in 2021, and is now continuing this by failing to reach a deal with the civilian coalition, which is the best basis to form a civilian-led transitional government and restore normalcy in Sudan. With the nation chaos-stricken for two years, its future continues to be uncertain.
• Establishment-critical narrative, as provided by Msn. The agreement is a gilded repackaging of the status quo, which is why anti-military factions are still protesting in the streets. No government can function properly without control of the monopoly on violence, meaning the military will eventually take back control of everything once it's at odds with what the new 'legitimate' political regime wants.