Khartoum, Sudan
November 17, 2021—-The Head of the Sudanese reconstituted Sovereign Council has promised on Tuesday to free all the political detainees who have been held behind bars for nearly a month.
Lt. Gen. Abdel Fattah al-Burhan spoke on Tuesday during the visit of the U.S. Assistant Secretary for African Affairs, Molly Phee.
The U.S Assistant Secretary for African Affairs arrived in Khartoum on 14 November, 2021 and within the last three days she has held a series of meetings that include a meeting with the former Prime Minister Abdallah Hamdok, the Forces for Freedom and Change (FFC), the deposed Foreign Minister Mariam al-Mahdi and head of state, Gen Abdel Fattah al-Burhan.
Speaking to the media in Washington, the spokesperson of U.S Department of State, Ned Prince said Amb. Phee was in Sudan to discuss the way forward to immediate restoration of Hamdok and the civilian-led government established under the 2019 constitutional declaration.
According to the statement released after the meeting with al-Burhan, the press service of the Sudanese presidency said that he reiterated his adherence to the constitutional declaration governing the transitional period and to hold comprehensive dialogue with all the political forces to complete the structures of the transitional authority.
“Regarding political detainees, al-Burhan said that measures for their release have already begun and that any detainee who is not proven guilty of a criminal offence will be released,” reads the statement seen by Nyamilepedia.
SPLM-N chairman Malik Agar, who is also a member of the Sovereign Council told Aljazeera TV on Tuesday that al-Burhan accepted to release all the political detainees as a confidence-building measure before negotiations to end the rift with the FFC groups.
According to coup leaders, overthrowing the civilian-led transitional government was the only an option left to rescue other Sudanese political forces that were left out by the FFC from power.
For her part, Mariam Sadiq al-Mahdi told Phee that the release of Prime Minister Hamdok and other detainees should be the right approach for any negotiation between two sides.
“Reversing the coup decisions, returning to the Constitutional Document and restoring confidence through a national honour charter are needed before resuming the partnership with the military component” Mariam said.
According to the U.S. Embassy in Khartoum, Phee met with al-Mahdi to demonstrate U.S. support for the civilian-led transitional government.
“This morning, Assistant Secretary of State Molly Phee met with Minister of Foreign Affairs Mariam al-Mahdi to show U.S. support for the civilian-led transitional government.” Read part of the U.S. Embassy in Khartoum Statement.
“Al-Mahdi has emerged as a powerful voice for the movement to restore democracy and fulfil the aspirations of the Sudanese people for freedom, peace, and justice,” added the statement seen by Nyamilepedia.
According to a statement released by the FFC council after meeting the U.S. diplomat, the group says they reiterated their rejection of military coups as a means to grab leading, adding that they are determined to topple the regime but through peaceful means.
