Media Home
UN Web TV
UN PhotoUnifeed
SUDAN / YASIR ARMAN
STORY: SUDAN / YASIR ARMAN
TRT: 2.59
SOURCE: UNMIS
RESTRICTIONS: NONE
LANGUAGE: ENGLISH/ARABIC NATS
DATELINE: 31 MARCH 2010, APRIL 1, 2010, KHARTOUM, SUDAN
MARCH 31, 2010, KAHRTOUM, SUDAN
1. Various shots, exterior of SPLM office with journalists
2. Close up, boar reading SPLM
3 Med shot, Arman and Riek Machar shaking hands and press briefing area
4. SOUNDBITE (Arabic) Riek Machar, Vice President, South Sudan’s People Liberation Movement:
“In addition to Darfur there are many irregularities in the election process and people are still being registered to participate in the process. There is a reduction of the voting centre and also the printing of the ballot papers internally, we are still discussing around this issue, so we come to a conclusion, to let our comrade Yasir to stop to run in this election.”
APRIL 1, 2010, KHARTOUM, SUDAN
5. Various shots, newspaper stand with headline stories showing story on Yasir Arman
6. VOX-POP (Arabic) Khartoum Resident:
“The withdrawal of Yasir Arman for me is it is not a good withdrawal and this shows that he has failed, because if you love the nation and you have started the process, you should complete it even if it has to cost your life.”
7. VOX-POP (Arabic) Khartoum Resident:
“We wish that Yasir could have continued but unfortunately the SPLM party has decided that he should not continue and we agree to it.”
8. Wide shot, exterior of hotel where meeting with various political leaders
9. SOUNDBITE (Arabic) Hassan Al Turabi, Popular Congress Party leader:
“Our party has asked for adjournment very early, many months back because there was a prospect that Darfur’s will be reintegrated, now its too late for them anyway, and we ant to change faces and policies to settle the Darfur issue because it has not been settled, just protracted, and delayed, and so we are going to, if there is election at all, it is the government of course which could ultimately completely frustrate this elections, but if it is going to be any elections, our particular candidate would probably many independent candidates may engage in the elections.”
10. Wide shot, street scene
11. SOUNDBITE (Arabic) Mubarak Alfadhal, Leader of UMMA Change Party:
“It is very likely that there could be a decision on at least the heavy weight candidates to withdraw and to join Yasir on making this presidential elections sure as it is a farce election.”
12. Close up, campaign billboard
Barely two weeks to Sudan’s historic elections Yasir Arman, the Sudan People’s Liberation Movement presidential candidate in the north, announced he was pulling out from the presidential election.
A day after Arman’s announcement some other main opposition parties announced their withdrawal from the presidential election.
Arman, a candidate many termed as being the main challenger to Omar Hassan Al Bashir announced his decision on Wednesday March 31 citing irregularities in the election process and the continued conflict in Darfur.
The decision came after a meeting with the party’s Political Bureau.
“In addition to Darfur there are many irregularities in the election process and people are still being registered to participate in the process. There is a reduction of the voting centre and also the printing of the ballot papers internally, we are still discussing around this issue, so we come to a conclusion, to let our comrade Yasir to stop to run in this election,” said Riek Machar, SPLM’s Vice President who made the announcement with Arman seated by his side at a press conference.
Election campaigns, the first in 24 years kicked-off in mid-February with Arman’s supporters praising their candidate as one to bring freedom and change in Sudan.
Yasir Arman was nominated by SPLM in January 2010, as the Party’s presidential candidate in the north spoke about the need for national reconciliation at the launch of his campaign.
The campaign process saw various presidential candidates criss-cross the country trying to win support of up to 16.5 million registered voters.
The announcement on Arman’s decision surprised many.
“The withdrawal of Yasir Arman for me is it is not a good withdrawal and this shows that he has failed, because if you love the nation and you have started the process, you should complete it even if it has to cost your life,” said a Khartoum resident.
“We wish that Yasir could have continued but unfortunately the SPLM party has decided that he should not continue and we agree to it,” said another Khartoum resident.
State-of the-art billboards of different campaigners have been mounted along many streets during the campaign period.
85 political parties have been registered by the Political Parties Affairs Council and the National Electoral Commission approved 12 presidential candidates to contest in the elections which were expected to run for three days from 11th April, with an expected announcement of results on the 18th.
There were mixed reactions by some opposition members.
“Our party has asked for adjournment very early, many months back because there was a prospect that Darfur’s will be reintegrated, now its too late for them anyway, and we ant to change faces and policies to settle the Darfur issue because it has not been settled, just protracted, and delayed, and so we are going to, if there is election at all, it is the government of course which could ultimately completely frustrate this elections, but if it is going to be any elections, our particular candidate would probably many independent candidates may engage in the elections,” said Hassan Al Turabi, the Popular Congress Party leader.
Mubarak Alfadhal, Leader of UMMA Change Party, said:
“It is very likely that there could be a decision on at least the heavy weight candidates to withdraw and to join Yasir on making this presidential elections sure as it is a farce election.”
One of the bench-marks of the Comprehensive Peace Agreement signed in 2005 is an electoral process which will give the country and its citizens a chance for democratic transformation.
Download
There is no media available to download.
