Sudan’s ruling military council and protest groups have reportedly agreed to a three-year transition period to transfer power to a fully civilian administration even as negotiations over a new sovereign ruling body still continue, reported BBC.
The Transitional Military Council (TMC) said the alliance would have two-thirds of the seats on a legislative council. The two sides are yet to agree on a sovereign council, where both want a majority.
Lieutenant General Yasser al-Atta told reporters on Wednesday that a final agreement on the sharing of power, including the formation of the sovereign council, would be signed with the protest movement the Alliance for Freedom and Change in the next 24 hours. The new sovereign council will rule the country until elections.
“We agreed on a transitional period of three years,” Atta said. “We vow to our people that the agreement will be completed fully within 24 hours in a way that it meets the people’s aspirations.”
The military council had initially insisted on a two-year transition period, while the protest leaders wanted four years.
Atta said during the transition period, the Parliament will include 300 members, 67 percent of which would be from the Alliance for Freedom and Change and the rest would be from other political groups.
He added that the first six months of the transitional period would be allocated to signing peace accords with rebels in the country’s warzones like Darfur, Blue Nile, and South Kordofan.
The army took over Sudan’s reign after toppling President Omar al-Bashir last month. Protests that led to Bashir’s downfall have continued since then demanding for a fully civilian government. They demanded that the army generals, leading the ruling military council, step down.
Notably, hours before the latest deal was announced, at least five protesters and a member of the security forces died in clashes in the capital, Khartoum.
