Sudan’s new prime minister on Thursday unveiled the first Cabinet since the overthrow of former Sudanese president Omar al-Bashir, a major step in the country’s hard-won transition to civilian rule after decades of authoritarianism.
The announcement had been delayed for days as Sudanese Prime Minister Abdalla Hamdok mulled over the nominees proposed by the movement that led the months-long protests against al-Bashir and also the generals who ousted him.
The 18-member Cabinet includes four women, including the country’s first-ever female foreign affairs minister, Asma Mohamed Abdalla, Hamdok told a news conference.
“Today we begin a new era,” Hamdok said. “The top priority of the transition government is to end the war and build sustainable peace.”
Hamdok named Ibrahim Ahmed El-Badawi as minister of finance and economic planning, army Lieutenant General Jamal Omar as defense minister and police Lieutenant General El-Trafi Idris Dafallah as minister of interior.
“Now we have a great chance to achieve peace, as we have a suitable environment for that,” Hamdok said.
It was a worsening economic crisis that triggered the fall of al-Bashir, who was later arrested and is on trial on charges of illegal acquisition and use of foreign funds.
The protests that eventually brought him down were ignited late last year by his government’s decision to triple the price of bread. The demonstrations swiftly mushroomed into a nationwide protest movement against his three-decade rule, finally leading to his ouster in April.
However, the generals who ousted him resisted a swift handover of power to civilians.
In response, protesters kept up the pressure against them, leading to a power-sharing deal signed last month between the Forces of Freedom and Change (FFC) protest movement and the generals.
Doctors linked to the FFC have said that more than 250 people have been killed in protest-related violence since December last year, including at least 127 in early June during a brutal crackdown on a weeks-long protest sit-in outside the military headquarters in Khartoum.
The Cabinet is expected to steer the daily affairs of the country during a transition period of 39 months.
On Tuesday, Hamdok, who built a career in international organizations, most recently as deputy executive secretary of the UN Economic Commission for Africa in Addis Ababa, said that the delay in forming the Cabinet was due to the “gender balance” he had been trying to achieve.
He said that he also wanted to ensure that the Cabinet represented all the regions of the country.
Last month, Sudan swore in a “sovereign council,” a joint civilian-military ruling body that aims to oversee the transition.
The council is the result of the power-sharing deal between the protesters and generals who seized power after the army ousted al-Bashir.
The deal stipulates a legislative body should be formed within 90 days of its signing. The legislature should include no more than 300 members, with 201 seats allotted to the FFC.
Hamdok, who was nominated by the protest movement, had previously said that he would choose technocrats based on their “competence” to lead Sudan through formidable challenges that also include ending internal conflicts.
Sudan’s power-sharing deal aims to forge peace with armed groups.
Rebel groups from marginalized regions, including Darfur, Blue Nile and South Kordofan state, waged long wars against al-Bashir’s forces.
Hamdok’s Cabinet would also be expected to fight corruption and dismantle the long-entrenched Muslim deep state created under al-Bashir.
The pledge by Japanese Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi to “work, work, work, work and work” for her country has been named the catchphrase of the year, recognizing the effort Japan’s first female leader had to make to reach the top. Takaichi uttered the phrase in October when she was elected as head of the ruling Liberal Democratic Party (LDP). Many were initially as worried about her work ethic as supportive of her enthusiasm. In a country notorious for long working hours, especially for working women who are also burdened with homemaking and caregiving, overwork is a sensitive topic. The recognition triggered a
‘HEART IS ACHING’: Lee appeared to baffle many when he said he had never heard of six South Koreans being held in North Korea, drawing criticism from the families South Korean President Lee Jae-myung yesterday said he was weighing a possible apology to North Korea over suspicions that his ousted conservative predecessor intentionally sought to raise military tensions between the war-divided rivals in the buildup to his brief martial law declaration in December last year. Speaking to reporters on the first anniversary of imprisoned former South Korean president Yoon Suk-yeol’s ill-fated power grab, Lee — a liberal who won a snap presidential election following Yoon’s removal from office in April — stressed his desire to repair ties with Pyongyang. A special prosecutor last month indicted Yoon and two of his top
A plan by Switzerland’s right-wing People’s Party to cap the population at 10 million has the backing of almost half the country, according to a poll before an expected vote next year. The party, which has long campaigned against immigration, argues that too-fast population growth is overwhelming housing, transport and public services. The level of support comes despite the government urging voters to reject it, warning that strict curbs would damage the economy and prosperity, as Swiss companies depend on foreign workers. The poll by newspaper group Tamedia/20 Minuten and released yesterday showed that 48 percent of the population plan to vote
The Philippines deferred the awarding of a project that is part of a plan to build one of the world’s longest marine bridges after local opposition over the potential involvement of a Chinese company due to national security fears. The proposals are “undergoing thorough review” by the Asian Development Bank (ADB), which acts as a lender and an overseer of the project to ensure it meets international environmental and governance standards, the Philippine Department of Public Works and Highways said in a statement on Monday in response to queries from Bloomberg. The agency said it would announce the winning bidder once ADB
RSS