The European Union delegation to Sudan said it is committed to building a partnership with Sudan based on the principles of democracy, the rule of law, the universality and indivisibility of human rights and the principles of equality and solidarity.
On the occasion of International Human Rights Day 2022, the delegation announced a 15-million-euro governance package that will focus in 2023 on these particular areas.
EU ambassador to Sudan Aidan O’Hara said five million euros will be devoted to protecting and advancing human rights in Sudan, a further five million will help enhance the rule of law in the country by promoting access to justice, and the final five million will support young people working in the democratization and peace processes.
“Our focus here is on the young people because this is a generation that Sudan cannot afford to lose,” O’Hara stressed.
“Exactly 10 years ago the EU received the Nobel Peace Prize for promoting peace, reconciliation, democracy and human rights,” O’Hara stated, noting that the EU’s actions on the international scene are guided by the principles which have inspired its own creation.
He pointed out that the EU tries to advance these principles in the wider world and it does so by building partnerships with countries that share these principles.
He said that the EU member states were pleased to see that the political framework agreement signed last week contains commitments on respect for human rights and freedoms and a definition of citizenship that is based on equality without discrimination on the grounds of gender, religion or ethnicity.
“Some of the signatories need to remember that the freedoms they signed up to include freedom of expression and freedom of association and that the exercise of these freedoms requires restraint from those who are tasked with making sure that law and order are maintained.”
He vowed to support re-electing Sudan this year to the UN Human Rights Council, noting that the African country has accepted most of the 43 recommendations made to it in the peer review process.
He further stressed that his delegation will work with the Office of the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights on its implementation of these recommendations.
As the political process enters a new phase in Sudan, O’Hara said the EU stands ready to offer expertise to the working groups engaged in consultation on outstanding sensitive issues, especially expertise on the painful issue of transitional justice.
“We do so in the spirit of this year’s theme for International Human Rights Day, namely the principle of dignity, freedom and justice for all,” he remarked.
