Doctors strike over benefits, conditions in El Gezira, Sudan

On Monday, the medical doctors of Sudan’s El Gezira state, south of the country’s capital Khartoum, have embarked on an open-ended strike until several demands are met.

On Monday the representative of the El Gezira doctors’ committee told Radio Dabanga that while the strike continues, the doctors in the state El Gezira doctors’ will not work on ‘normal cases’, but only respond to emergencies.

He told Radio Dabanga that the strike included all ranks, from specialists to interns, and pointed to the government’s delay in meeting the doctors’ professional benefits.

The doctors’ committee has submitted a memorandum to the state government without any response.

The representative asserted that it is impossible for a doctor to carry out his professional duties in the light of the deteriorating environment and the lack of work requirements.

By Tuesday afternoon, Radio Dabanga learned that the strike is still ongoing, and that no representatives of the government or other negotiators have contacted the strikers.