Respecting Trade Union Freedoms and Human Rights in Sudan

As the world embarks on a merciless fight against the Covid-19 pandemic, causing thousands of deaths every day, the new government of Sudan is seizing this opportunity to intensify its attacks against the Sudanese Workers’ Trade Union Federation (SWTUF).

After having arbitrarily taken the political decision to dissolve the Sudanese trade unions, in violation of all laws and international labour conventions, the Government of Sudan is illegally seizing the properties and assets of the SWTUF, its regional structures and sectoral unions.

On 25 March 2020, the Sovereign Council took a decision under No. 100, designating the management committees of trade unions at all levels to replace members legitimately elected by the workers and to seize the properties and assets of all their structures.  Recently, the Council arrested two trade union leaders in the education sector, Mr. Abbas Mohammed Ahmed Habib Allah and Mr. Tarek Mahmoud, respectively the President and Secretary General of the National Education Union.

The Organisation of African Trade Union Unity (OATUU) strongly condemns these illegal acts of spoliation of SWTUF assets and properties, the systematic repression against trade unionists and the arbitrary arrest of our two comrades. These acts demonstrate the lack of political will among the new political leaders in Khartoum to respect the principles of international law on trade union rights. Their determination against the SWTUF is more a question of revenge than the promotion of democracy and human rights for the people of Sudan who rose up in December 2019.

OATUU calls for the immediate lifting of the decision to dissolve the SWTUF, the reinstatement of all its properties and assets, and the release of the arrested comrades.  OATUU urges the Sudanese Government to respect the international conventions on trade union freedom and human rights.