Sudan doctors welcome new law that protects them

The United Doctors Office welcomes a new law that will protect health care professionals in Sudan. It considers the bill “a victory for all doctors after years of struggle”.

The law stipulates that verbal or physical abuse of medical professionals, disrupting work or destroying assets in medical facilities, and publishing incorrect information that affects the performance of medical personnel can be punished with imprisonment for up to 10 years.

Doctors can no longer be detained and no legal measures can be taken against them, except with the permission of the head of the Medical and Health Professions Council.

Two weeks ago, the United Doctors Office announced a strike in all hospitals in Sudan for a period of 72 hours, after four doctors in the Omdurman Teaching Hospital were injured during an attack. A few days later the strike was cancelled because the Minister of Health committed himself to passing a law to protect medical personnel.

In the first week of the coronavirus lockdown the United Doctors Office complained that medical personnel was stopped by policemen and other security agents at check points in Khartoum, though they were exempted from the lockdown precautions and were allowed to travel.

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