Sudan doctors, teachers strike amid protests

By Mohammed Amin

KHARTOUM (AA) – Sudanese doctors and school teachers on Sunday called a general strike in support of ongoing protests over chronic economic woes in the country.

In a statement, the Teachers Committee urged all teachers across Sudan to join the strike in solidarity with the anti-government demonstrations.

“We call on the school teachers all across Sudan to join the Sudanese uprising by not going to their work,” the Teachers Committee said.

“We also protest against our bad situation as teachers, the miserable conditions of schools and lack of subsidy for education,” it added.

The Central Committee of the Sudanese Doctors also called on its members to stay away from work in protest of the killing of a doctor last Thursday as well as repeated attacks on hospitals.

“We are striking today as the situation has reached critical point,” the committee said in a statement.

“The situation is miserable,” it said. “Doctors have been assaulted and hospitals attacked.”

On Thursday, a medical doctor was killed while rescuing protesters in Khartoum when security forces used live ammunition to disperse demonstrators.

Since mid-December, Sudan has been rocked by mass demonstrations in several parts of the country.

Protesters blame President Omar al-Bashir and his ruling National Congress Party for their apparent failure to remedy the country’s chronic economic woes and are calling for al-Bashir’s resignation.

On Sunday, the Independent Professional Union, which leads the anti-government protests, called on fresh rallies in the city of Omdurman to submit a petition to the parliament calling on al-Bashir to step down.

“Our marches will continue today from Omdurman to hand over the petition to parliament,” it said in a statement. “We again warn the authorities not to use violence against peaceful protesters.”

According to government statements, more than 20 people have been killed in clashes between demonstrators and security forces since the protests began in earnest one month ago.

Opposition groups, for their part, put the death toll at closer to 40.

In power since 1989, al-Bashir has pledged to carry out urgent economic reforms amid ongoing calls by the opposition to continue demonstrating.

A nation of 40 million, Sudan has struggled to recover from the loss of some three quarters of its oil output -- its main source of foreign currency -- since the secession of South Sudan in 2011.