Sudanese people remained cautiously optimistic on Wednesday after the Transitional Military Council (TMC) and opposition groups signed a long-awaited power-sharing deal.

Important details of the agreement are scheduled to be negotiated further on Friday, including a constitutional document to clearly define the role and powers of the new transitional authority, both parties said.

The TMC and main opposition grouping Forces for Freedom and Change (FFC) are expected to try to push for a maximum number of seats on the transitional legislative council.

Initially, the TMC and FFC had spoken about an allocation of about two thirds of seats to civilians, with the rest of seats going to the military. But the TMC says it wants to review this quota.

A celebratory event initially scheduled for Wednesday afternoon was, therefore, called off.

Earlier on Wednesday, an AU mediator announced the TMC and FFC had agreed to take turns at the helm of a sovereign council for a period of three years.

AU mediator, Mohamed Labat called the agreement “a crucial point” in Sudan’s peace process.

“The political agreement between the two parties paves the way for a new era for the people of Sudan,” Labat said.

The signing came several days after the TMC and FFC said they had broadly reached agreement on a road map to elections, sharing power and investigating recent violence against protesters in the country, which led to dozens of deaths.

TMC Deputy Chairman, Mohamed Daglo described Wednesday’s deal as the result of a long and hard effort.
“We think that the signing today represents a step towards achieving the revolution’s goals,” said FFC Representative, Ibrahim Al-Amin, at the news conference.

Wednesday’s agreement includes stipulations about the composition of Sudan’s future government, the three-year transitional period, planned economic reforms and humanitarian relief efforts, the parties said.

Anti-government demonstrations began in Sudan late 2018 with protesters calling for long-time leader Omar al-Bashir to go.

The military stepped in April, launching a coup and arresting him.

But protesters have argued that the new military rulers are a continuation of al-Bashir’s former regime and have sought more concessions and a transition to civilian government.

On June 3, the security forces launched a crackdown to clear the protesters’ sit-in, which opposition groups say killed more than 100 people.

The UN Security Council strongly condemned the violence. (dpa/NAN)