Protests over Darfur violence and discrimination

In both North and South Darfur, the walis (governors) have been criticised over the recent violence in their regions. In South Darfur, people took to the street to protest the recent violence in Gireida and demand the dismissal of their wali. In North Darfur, the Forces for Freedom and Change (FFC) held the wali responsible for the tribal clashes in Saraf Omra and the failure to protect the UNAMID base from looting.

The protests in Gireida against the presence of the RSF and for the dismissal of South Darfur wali Mousa Mahdi continued for the second day in a row yesterday.

A protestor told Radio Dabanga that a lot of people participated in the Gireida protests and that all types of revenue collection have been stopped as a form of protest. They stressed that the protests will continue until all 16 demands are implemented.

The marches took place in the Gireida neighbourhoods and camps for the displaced where recently homes were burned and innocent people were killed and wounded. Two months ago, at least 15 people were killed and 34 others were injured in Gireida during tribal clashes between Masalit farmers and Fallata herders.

The protesters demanded that the state authorities end the systematic killings, the repeated attacks, and ethnic discrimination in South Darfur and restore safety in the region.

In a separate event, an ambulance belonging to the Sudanese Mineral Resources Company in South Darfur was attacked by unknown people while it was carrying two patients from Sanagou to Nyala.

The company said that the attack did not result in any casualties but that bullets damaged the vehicle and the tyres.

In its statement, the company condemned the attack and described it as ‘criminal’. They also said that the ambulance carried out a humanitarian mission, transporting patients to and from hospitals and health centres.

North Darfur

The FFC and Resistance Committees in Saraf Omra boycotted yesterday’s meeting held by the wali of North Darfur, Mohamed Arabi.

Mohamed Khater told Radio Dabanga that the FFC accused the governor of not cooperating and of obstructing a press conference they tried to hold on the radio.

The FFC hold the wali responsible for the tribal clashes that took place in Saraf Omra last week. They claim that the wali was informed about the tense situation before the clashes erupted but chose not to intervene. 11 people were killed in the clashes and dozens more were wounded.

UNAMID

Khater also explained that the governor had not fulfilled his duty to protect the team site of the United Nations-African Union Mission in Darfur (UNAMID) and that there has been no investigation into the looting of the base.

The site was ‘ransacked and levelled’ by looters on February 17, just weeks after it was handed over to the Sudanese government.

The UNAMID team met with leaders from the displaced community and the local security committee in Kabkabiya yesterday to discuss the implementation of the withdrawal plan and the use of UNAMID bases and assets.

According to a statement by UNAMID, the members responsible for withdrawal from the base in Kabkabiya agreed on the necessity to intensify awareness and communication with leaders from the displaced community.

At the Permanent Mission of Sudan to the United Nations in New York, representatives of the Sudanese Government reaffirmed their commitment to fully cooperate with the UN Integrated Transition Assistance Mission in Sudan (UNITAMS), which aims to preserve human rights in Sudan and establish a safe Sudan in which everyone can enjoy security and peace.

Sudan's representative to the UN, Ambassador Mohamed El Bahi, promised that the transitional government would make a bigger effort to complete the democratic transition and achieve security and peace.

He also added that the transitional government had discussions with other parties to reach a satisfactory agreement on the formation of the Legislative Council. He stressed the ongoing efforts to complete the peace process and achieve stability in Sudan and called on the international community to assist the transitional government to deliver its development projects.