In Sudan, armed groups and supporters of the military's coup last year have formed a new political coalition to appeal to marginalized groups. Calling itself the "Forces for Freedom and Change – Democratic Bloc (FFC-DB)," the pro-coup group wants to replace the Forces for Freedom and Change (FFC) group, which has opposed military rule.
The political grouping includes several of Sudan’s pro-military groups, including Freedom and Change - National Consensus, the Democratic Unionist Party, and the Beja High Council.
The group calls itself the "Forces for Freedom and Change–Democratic Bloc (FFC-DB),” a name similar to the Forces for Freedom and Change, which led demonstrations that helped oust former president Omar al-Bashir in 2019 and more recently has led protests against military rule.
The alliance, announced Thursday, says it favors a civilian-led transitional government but opposes renegotiation of the 2020 Juba Peace Agreement.
That agreement aims to bring Sudanese armed groups that signed it into the transitional government. But critics note some groups were left out of the deal, which does not require disarming until after elections.
Jibril Ibrahim is Sudan’s finance minister and leader of the Justice and Equality Movement, one of the armed groups that signed the Juba Peace Agreement and that joined the new coalition.
Speaking to reporters Thursday in Khartoum, he said no party should dominate the democratic process in Sudan.
He says we are not claiming perfection and don’t claim that this coalition is coming from heaven. "However, we are ready to present our vision to others and to listen to other opinions. At the same time, we will not accept any party to use its agenda as a veto right against any Sudanese political component," he said.
Sudan’s military coup in October 2021 was widely condemned internationally and inside Sudan, where near weekly protests since have called for democracy.
Security forces have responded with tear gas and live bullets that Sudanese doctors say have killed about 120 protesters.
The military’s leader General Abdel Fattah al-Burhan in July said the army would not take part in talks to break the political stalemate. He called on civilian political groups to agree the way forward, which he said the military would support.
Nuraddeen Salahuddeen, a member of the Forces for Freedom and Change, dismissed the pro-coup alliance as adding nothing to Sudan’s political stalemate.
He says every political party has a right to form any coalition that will meet their interests. "But what is most important to us, is what is the stance of these coalitions on the Sudanese revolution and civilian democratic transition?" he added.
While blocs supporting the protesters are wary of the new coalition’s pro-military stance, some analysts say it could provide a middle ground in a very polarized Sudan.
Sudanese writer Mekki El Mograbi says the so-called Forces for Freedom and Change –Democratic Bloc could win over some marginalized groups.
He says if they come up with a proper political agenda, groups in the war-torn regions of Darfur, the Nuba Mountains, Blue Nile, and eastern Sudan might rally behind them.
“The new bloc has real political weight in the marginalized areas in Sudan and the Forces of Freedom and Change, the central council, they failed to represent the marginalized areas properly,” he said.
Inter-communal conflicts have been on the rise in Darfur, Kordufan, Blue Nile and eastern Sudan, leaving hundreds of people dead and thousands of families displaced.
Meanwhile in the capital, that stand-off continues as pro-democracy protesters demand an end to military rule and political parties wrangle for a deal to form a civilian-led transitional government.
