المؤتمر الوطني يرحب بقرار سحب عرمان واحزاب المعارضة تنتقد الحركة الشعبية!!

Quote: KHARTOUM, March 31 (Reuters) - South Sudan's leading party said on Wednesday it was withdrawing its candidate for the presidency in April elections, paving the way for a likely victory for incumbent President Omar Hassan al-Bashir. Sudan People's Liberation Movement (SPLM) vice-chairman Riek Machar cited continued conflict in Darfur and electoral irregularities, adding the party would also boycott all levels of elections in Darfur. "We decided that Yasir (Arman) should end his campaign for the presidency of the Republic," he told reporters. Many believe Arman would have been the favourite to compete with Bashir in the polls due to begin in April 11, the country's first multi-party elections in 24 years. Analysts said the opposition, which had been expecting the SPLM to wait and agree a joint position on any boycott, would be angered by the move. While it would also irk the ruling National Congress Party (NCP), it had paved the way for a clear victory for Bashir. The opposition say elections would be a farce in Sudan's western Darfur region still under emergency law and where clashes are still reported seven years after mostly non-Arab rebels took up arms against the government. Opposition parties have also complained of widespread fraud in the build-up to the elections and some had threatened to boycott the presidential and legislative polls. But the opposition had wanted SPLM support for a joint boycott, which SPLM Secretary-General Pagan Amum had promised earlier this week, saying they would join the opposition in a boycott of polls in the north. Amum was not present at the announcement. "This is a betrayal by the SPLM of its agreement with the opposition forces," said Kamal Omer from the opposition Popular Congress Party, adding the party would not be boycotting the polls. Siddig Youssef from the Communist Party said he was surprised by the unilateral announcement, which he called "rushed." "The SPLM and all the political forces agreed that they would make their position in consensus at a meeting tomorrow (Thursday)," he told Reuters. But he added he hoped the parties would still all meet. Fouad Hikmat, from the International Crisis Group think tank, said the SPLM had struck a deal with the NCP to allow Bashir to win the presidency. "The SPLM have decided to not (fully) boycott the elections because they don't want to jeopardise the referendum -- that is very important to them." Bashir, wanted by the International Criminal Court for war crimes in Darfur, had threatened a southern referendum in January 2011 if the SPLM boycotted the April 11-18 polls. The NCP welcomed the decision: "We welcome the decision to run for the elections which is the right decision and I hope the other parties will follow," senior NCP official Ghazi Salaheddin told Reuters. "It is regrettable they have decided to boycott in Darfur but the elections in Darfur will continue, and I expect a huge turnout in Darfur for the elections," he added. A joint boycott by the SPLM and other opposition would have diminished the validity of the vote, which Bashir hopes to win to legitimise his position in defiance of the ICC warrant for his arrest.

Quote: قال كمال عمر من حزب المؤتمر الشعبي المعارض "هذه خيانة من جانب الحركة الشعبية لاتفاقها مع قوى المعارضة" ، ، واضاف ان الحزب لن يقاطع الانتخابات. يوسف صديق من الحزب الشيوعي وقال انه مندهش من اعلان من جانب واحد ، الذي وصفه ب "المتسرع". "الحركة الشعبية وجميع القوى السياسية وافقت على أن تجعل وضعها في الآراء في اجتماع الغد (الخميس)" ،. لكنه اضاف انه يأمل الطرفان سيظل تلبية جميع. فؤاد حكمت من المجموعة الدولية لمعالجة الأزمات ، قال ان الحركة الشعبية قد ابرمت اتفاقا مع حزب المؤتمر الوطني البشير للسماح للفوز بالرئاسة. "وقد قررت الحركة الشعبية ليست (المقاطعة) في الانتخابات تماما لأنها لا تريد أن تعرض للخطر الاستفتاء -- وهذا مهم جدا بالنسبة لهم". البشير المطلوب من قبل المحكمة الجنائية الدولية بتهمة ارتكاب جرائم حرب في دارفور ، وهددت اجراء استفتاء في الجنوب في يناير كانون الثاني عام 2011 إذا ما قاطعت الحركة الانتخابات 11-18 أبريل. ورحب حزب المؤتمر الوطني في القرار : "نحن نرحب بقرار الترشح للانتخابات والذي هو القرار الصحيح ، وآمل الأطراف الأخرى ستتبع" قال غازي صلاح الدين لرويترز. "من المؤسف انهم قرروا مقاطعة في دارفور ولكن الانتخابات التي جرت في دارفور ستستمر ، واتوقع ان يكون الاقبال كبيرا في دارفور عن الانتخابات ،" واضاف. وتراجعت حدة المقاطعة مشتركة بين الحركة الشعبية والمعارضة الأخرى في صحة الانتخابات التي تأمل في الحصول على البشير لإضفاء الشرعية على وضعه في تحد لأمر المحكمة الجنائية الدولية لاعتقاله.