Residents and regional experts say governments and NGOs should have been better prepared for violence
he message from the senior United Nations officials to their staff was honest – if unapologetic. Four days afterwas plunged into a welter of chaotic violence as two rival factions battled for control of its capital city, the UN’s special representative to Sudan answered questions online in a virtual “townhall meeting”.
Residents of Khartoum say they have been warning about such a clash for months. Both factions had been mobilising for a struggle, stockpiling ammunition, accelerating recruitment, Many residents watched the movements of high-profile foreign diplomats in Khartoum as an indication of risk. In western capitals, there will now be difficult conversations about what could have been done more effectively to guide a transition from military to civilian rule after the fall of the veteran authoritarian ruler Omar al-Bashir in 2019 following months of popular protests.
“I was shocked the main thing we kept focus on with other embassies was transitional justice, gender empowerment and parliamentary things when the basic deal had not been done in the country, including the economic deal,” Dercon said. Those now manoeuvring for advantage in Sudan and east Africa more broadly include China, Russia, Egypt, Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates.Ahmed Soliman, of London’s Chatham House, said: “There were a lot of different visits, a lot of envoys … There are plenty of actors who are keen on a military authoritarian regime in Khartoum and much less keen on a civilian government spreading democratic values in the region.
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