Enlarge image
During the mass protests in Sudan, the population is demanding a return to a civilian government
Photo: - / AFP
After months of bloody protests, the military rulers in East African Sudan have lifted the state of emergency.
This was announced by the self-proclaimed head of state, General Abdel Fattah al-Burhan, by decree on Sunday evening.
The decree also provides for the release of political prisoners.
According to reports from the »Sudan Tribune«, 125 prisoners were released a few hours later.
In the decree, Burhan spoke of the hope for “dialogue” and “stability”.
Mass protests violently suppressed
The military seized power last October, overthrew an interim government made up of civilians and the military, and declared a nationwide state of emergency.
As a result, street protests broke out again and again in the country with 45 million inhabitants.
Regular mass demonstrations calling for a return to civilian government have continued since late October, and the military has repeatedly cracked down on them.
According to a medical committee, a total of 57 people have been killed and hundreds more injured.
In addition, according to human rights organizations, security forces illegally arrested and severely abused hundreds of anti-government demonstrators.
International economic aid was largely frozen.
Sudan's long-time ruler Omar al-Bashir was driven out of office in April 2019 after mass protests and a military coup.
The military, led by Al-Burhan, and the civilian opposition agreed in a constitutional agreement on a joint interim government that should pave the way for elections in 2022.
According to this, Al-Burhan should have withdrawn from the transitional government by 2021 at the latest and leave the leadership of the country to civilians.
In addition, the civilian government planned economic reforms that would have caused the military to suffer significant economic losses.
muk/dpa