Dr. Tijani Sissi, head of the National Movement Forces, affirmed that the success of Sudanese dialogue requires creating a suitable environment and meeting a set of essential prerequisites before it can begin.
In a statement to the news website Al-Muhaqiq, Sissi said the dialogue must be comprehensive, stressing the need to address the crisis of trust among Sudan’s political components—particularly between national political forces and the “Sumoud” group. He emphasized that any dialogue not preceded by confidence-building among the parties is unlikely to succeed. He added that it is difficult to speak of convening a dialogue while war and armed confrontations continue.
He noted that the current phase requires preparatory steps, including organizing workshops to define participation criteria, identify participants, set the agenda for dialogue, and form a national committee to manage it, in addition to defining the role of regional and international actors.
Sissi explained that while he believes in the importance of the regional and international community’s role, it should be limited to facilitating dialogue. He pointed out that the proliferation of regional and international initiatives and platforms has become a real threat to the dialogue process, calling for the establishment of a unified regional and international umbrella to facilitate Sudanese dialogue.
He further noted that, following the rebellion of the Rapid Support Forces militia, the Sudanese arena has witnessed sharp polarization and a rise in hate speech, which threatens the country’s unity. He stressed that these circumstances require Sudanese consensus through an inclusive national dialogue on the foundations necessary to preserve Sudan’s unity.
Regarding the electoral process, Sissi stated that holding elections amid ongoing war is not feasible, explaining that doing so would result in elections being held in some areas but not others, producing what he described as “incomplete legitimacy.” He added that such legitimacy would remain deficient without fulfilling the remaining pillars of legitimacy, which would remain stalled, particularly in the Darfur region and parts of Kordofan.
