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From sudaneseonline.com Latest News
 Sudanese police round up doctors who called for strikeThe Sudanese security forces on Wednesday rounded doctors protesting the arrest of several of their leaders who have spearheaded a call for strike over demand for better pay and working conditions. Yesterday, authorities detained Ahmed Al-Abwabi and Al-Hadi Bakhit immediately after it was announced that the doctors who joined a committee, formed to press for better wages, will go on strike until their demands are met. Other committee members were beaten and arrested on Wednesday at Khartoum Teaching Hospital according to multiple sources while police prevented many more doctors from joining a meeting there. This year Sudanese doctors stepped up their rhetoric against the government claiming they have millions in back wages and also demanded a pay increase as well as improving housing and work environment. But last March following failed negotiations with health ministry, Sudanese president Omer Hassan Al-Bashir reportedly ordered the ministry of health to fire any doctor part of the strike but it appeared that the decision was retracted. Bashir yesterday issued a decree ordering a 2,000 pound salary increase and reimbursements under different categories. However some doctors expressed skepticism that Bashir�s directives would be implemented and vowed to continue strike until their leaders and colleagues are released. (ST) Report on Sudanese Doctors Strike Case History: Since the dissolution of the last elected doctors union in Sudan in 1989 due to the military throw over, there wasn�t any real elected representative body for the doctors of Sudan. Now, there is no doctors union in Sudan anymore. Just a body called (Facility union/Health workers union) which includes every worker in the hospital from the ambulance driver to the most senior consultant. Furthermore this union is not elected & does not rightfully represent doctors; it is an appointed union with no annual meetings or financial oversight!! In 2003 a group of junior doctors (registrars) led a movement for improvement of working conditions for the Sudanese doctor which culminated in a strike that lasted 3 days, after which the president sat with the strike committee and approved a memoranda which contained 12 items, on top of it an increase in wages which was modified from about 100$ to 200$(minimum) and from 200$ to 300$ (maximum), but unfortunately no other item was done. The movement died after the murder of its leader Dr. Ihab Taha who was shot in Darfur in suspicious circumstances.
Current Dilemma: Two years ago a group of doctors (registrars) who were suffering unemployment & unpaid work in hospitals led a movement to pressure the ministry of health to provide job numbers for them. The movement caught some fire because of the delay in a national raise which was supposed to be paid to all registrars since Jan 2008 & apparently was channelled by the ministry for other items despite the fact that it was a bonus on top the ministry�s budget from the national training centre!! The ministry refused to meet with the group on the basis that they do not represent doctors, so the group called for a general assembly which elected them as a committee to negotiate their rights & demands in a very democratic way by the majority of registrars. After a lot of lies & empty promises; the ministry finally kicked the committee out & closed any negotiations channel. In response to that the committee raised another memo to the president with the same demands as the 2003 memo & declared a registrars strike which was carried out successfully from 1/2/2010 to 3/2/2010 & was resolved with an agreement between the registrars committee & the ministry. The main achievement of the strike was a ministerial resolution to form a committee in order to put forward a memo for improving the working conditions of all the workers in the health field. In March 2010 the crisis began again by the constant postponement of demands & failure to abide with the financial instalments which was due for two years. At this point the registrars committee called for another assembly for all doctors which created by free election a new committee (Doctors Strike Committee DSC) to lead the struggle in improving the working conditions for doctors. The new committee established a very big and successful strike which covered the whole country and lasted for 17 days despite constant police harassments & threats from the ministry. The strike was ended due to two agreements; the first with the ministry in 12 items and the second with the general union of Sudan�s workers (included a 70-80% increase in salary effective since April 2010). There was no guarantee for the two agreements & the committee only accepted them in order to facilitate the national elections in the country which was due in a week. On 15/5/2010 the ministry bailed out of both agreements & only approved a 30% raise in wages (as a hospital bonus for registrars and house officers ignoring the consultants and medical officers). The committee refused this action and called for another general assembly on 2/6/2010 to decide upon this matter leaving ample time for the government to abide by the signrd agreements. Unfortunately a very insulting line of actions was the response of the government to the just demands of the Sudanese doctors as follow: -On 1/6/2010 two committee members (Dr. WallaEldin Ibrahim & Dr. Alhadi Bakit) were arrested by members of the security force in civilian customs with the assistance of official police officers and troops. They refused to board a civilian car with them without seeing an official arrest warrant, so they were forced to do so under the threat of armed police troops. They were beaten up severely before their release after 3 hours; Dr. Alhadi Bakit was re-arrested soon after leaving the hospital were he was treated because of the beat up. His destiny is still largely unknown. -Dr. Ahmed Alabwabi (president of the committee) was also arrested in his home by security forces again without any warrant on 1/6/2010. His whereabouts is unknown until now. -On 2/6/2010 the general assembly was supposed to take place in doctors residency (Khartoum) at 2 pm, but security forces supported with police surrounded the residency & barred the enterance of female doctors on the ground that the public order law doesn�t permit females to enter male residency. So the gathering took place in Sudanese Specialization Board Buildings which was nearby. The security forces warned the doctors (about 600 doctor) to evacuate the building, they agreed to depart to Khartoum hospital (only 100 m away) but while they were peacefully relocating in complete silence they were attacked brutally by the security forces leaving more than 40 seriously wounded & arrested 5 doctors. -The medical students in Khartoum University which was nearby tried to express their support by a peaceful march to the hospital, but they were attacked as well & beaten up with 6 students arrested (5 males & 1 female). -The security force continued to surround the residency & hospital & medical college until now. In response to all this violence the committee declared a full strike in all of the country not excluding emergency cases until the release of all the imprisoned doctors. All those events are well documented in the following links: -The beginning of the peaceful relocation from the specialization board to Khartoum hospital detailing the police troops: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=N8CtKXIMGkc&feature=player_embedded -Female doctor cries out of the severe beat up she received on her back while her colleagues comfort her: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-rntWPa5T6A&feature=player_embedded -Two doctors receiving medical attention after being brutally attacked (head injury & a broken arm). http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0KKUt8NqOKc&feature=player_embedded © Copyright by sudaneseonline.com |