Nairobi: Sudan’s military leaders responsible for the October 25, 2021 takeover should respect and protect the rights of all Sudanese people, including the right to life and peaceful protest, Human Rights Watch (HRW) said today.
According to HRW, military leaders, who have since dissolved the transitional government and imposed a state of emergency, should refrain from unnecessary and disproportionate use of force, immediately free political leaders and others arbitrarily detained, and restore communications.
In the early hours of October 25, media outlets reported that security forces had arrested at least five ministers, as well as other officials and political leaders.
The military reportedly placed Prime Minister Abdalla Hamdok under house arrest and moved him and his wife to an unrevealed location.
By midday, Lt. General Abdel Fattah al-Burhan, the chairperson of the Sovereign Council – a collective presidency body comprised of both civilians and military leaders – announced in a televised speech that he was installing a state of emergency and was dissolving both the cabinet of ministers and the sovereign council.
"The military junta should not jeopardize the sacrifices and hard work of Sudanese from all walks of life for a fairer, more rights-respecting Sudan," said Mausi Segun, Africa director at HRW, in a press release on Tuesday.
"The military authorities should instruct security forces to fully respect and protect the people’s right to protest and that any members using excessive force will be promptly held to account," Segun added.
As the news of the takeover broke on social media in the early hours of the morning, multiple pro-democracy groups including the Sudanese Professionals Association, an umbrella group of professional organizations that spearheaded 2018-19 protests, called on people to protest to defend their human rights.
According to medical sources, three protesters were killed by gunshots and 80 were reportedly wounded.
Two protesters told the human rights watchdog that protesters near the Sudan Armed Forces headquarters in Khartoum were met with live ammunition.
Sudan’s transitional authorities have been in power since popular protests brought an end to Omar al-Bashir’s 30-year rule and paved the way for a July 2019 power-sharing agreement between the military and civilians.
The takeover risks precipitating a reversal of the small but important gains made over the course of the last two years under the now-dissolved transitional government, HRW said.
During the transition, Sudan has ratified key international treaties.
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