SUDAN INSIGHT ALERT: Chatham House - Reversing the military coup in Sudan

11/11/2021: Chatham House - Reversing the military coup in Sudan, by Ahmed Soliman

Calling for “compromise and realism”, Ahmed Soliman, a Research Fellow at Chatham House’s Africa Programme, suggests that the pro-democracy movement addresses military leaders’ fears “through an amnesty programme, in return for concessions that reinforce the transition”.

Given that the military’s historic dominance of Sudan’s political scene and economy, Soliman adds that the pro-democracy forces “will have to accept a continued role for the military is unavoidable for some time yet”.

Outlining a path to strong civilian-led institutions, Soliman proposes the creation of institutional spaces to contain civilian-military disagreement. Soliman specifically proposes a joint civilian-military to discuss the military’s direct interests, including: unresolved issues of power-sharing, corruption, and security sector reform. Soliman also calls for an effective parliamentary security committee for civilians to address the military’s economic role.

However, Soliman warns that early elections will open the door for the old regime to return through sham elections.