Pro-govt. group wins ‘flawed and fraudulent’ Sudanese Bar Association election

On Sunday, the election for the Sudanese Bar Association was won by the pro-government National Forces led by Osman Mohamed El Sharif. Members of the Democratic Lawyers Association (DLA) and opposition parties however questioned the results, describing the electoral process as flawed and fraudulent.

The High Judicial Committee of the Sudanese Bar Association announced the victory of the National Forces, led by lawyer Osman El Sharif, who won with 4,078 votes against 1,798 votes cast on the DLA list, headed by lawyer Ali Geiloub.

The head of the Judicial Committee, Awad Hassan, said that the election was held in highly transparent conditions, witnessed by all observers. He pointed out that the Committee did not receive complaints of fraud.

El Sharif reacted to his victory by saying that that the election process for the Sudanese Bar Association is one of the democratic practices in Sudan. He called for continued efforts to raise the level of the Bar Association and move forward.

Ali Geiloub, opposition candidate for the post of Chairman of the Bar Association, called the result “honourable, taking into account the huge number of violations that accompanied the election”.

“The DLA was close to victory, but we all knew that fraud and other surprises would accompany the electoral process in all its phases,” he told Radio Dabanga on Sunday

“We witnessed large numbers of voters entering the centres in the last minute. They claimed that their names disappeared from the voters’ lists, and were supplied with electoral cards in a record time.”

“Our lawyers also observed the voting in the electoral centres, especially the large ones. We witnessed large numbers of voters entering the centres in the last minute. They claimed that their names disappeared from the voters’ lists, and were supplied with electoral cards in a record time,” the prominent lawyer explained.

“Yet we couldn’t challenge these administrative and judicial violations as no one with an electoral card can be prevented from casting a vote.”

Praise

Geiloub said he is proud of the strength of the Association and the unity between its members. “We have campaigned successfully against repression. The Association will continue to defend the rule of law and the rights of lawyers.”

According to Khalid Omar, Deputy-President of the activist Sudanese Congress Party, the election of the Sudanese Bar Association proved that the opposition forces are able to overcome obstacles and fight for their rights in smooth coordination.

“Despite the long period of dictatorship which represents the nature of the current regime, the Democratic Lawyers proved that they have been able to successfully mobilise followers and turn the election into a real battle that exposed the corrupt practices of the authorities,” he told this station.

“From the first moment this regime assumed power, it did not allow any space for organised institutional actions because it was well aware of the dangers civil society organisations constituted for them. Therefore they sought to control associations and unions, including the Sudanese Football Association and the Students Union, from the start by detaining the elected leaders and then by forging elections.”

He added that “After this battle the Democratic Lawyers should assess their gains and shortcomings experienced, and build on the outcomes for future battles”.

The poor voters turnout was caused by “the suffocating atmosphere concerning public freedoms in the country” – NUP

Weak turnout

Only 6,000 jurists out of 18,000 entitled to vote participated in the Bar election.

In a press statement on Sunday, the opposition National Umma Party (NUP) attributed the poor voters turnout to “the suffocating atmosphere concerning public freedoms in the country”.

The NUP criticises the fraudulent practice of including non-participating government employees on the list of National Forces candidates, and the involvement of President Al Bashir.

“The direct involvement of the head of state in support of the list of the National Forces turned the electoral process into a government issue rather than a union issue,” the statement reads.