Sudan's president bans protests amid growing calls that he step down
Emergency decrees give sweeping new powers to police amid unrest
Sudan's President Omar al-Bashir banned unlicensed public gatherings and gave sweeping new powers to police in a series of emergency decrees on Monday in order to counter the most sustained anti-government street unrest of his 30-year rule.
The decrees came amid fresh protests in various parts of the capital Khartoum, where security forces used tear gas against hundreds of students demonstrating inside the campus of the country's oldest women's university.
Prosecutors were given the authority to strip people such as lawmakers and military officials of immunity, and set up special emergency courts. Publishing news that "harms the state or citizens, or calls for undermining the constitutional system" was also banned on punishment of up to 10 years in jail.
Death toll may be higher than reported
Bashir also announced a ban on trading or hoarding fuel products and subsidized goods, and jail terms for people travelling abroad carrying more than $3,000 in currency or 150 grams of gold.
Security forces have responded with tear gas, and sometimes live fire. At least 33 people have died, according to official statistics, including three security force members. Protesters believe the true death toll is higher.
In the latest protests on Monday, witnesses said security forces fired tear gas at hundreds of female students who had demonstrated inside their Ahfad university campus, one of the country's most prestigious academic institutions.
They said some students burned tires outside the campus gate.
"We had a protest stand demanding freedom and to end injustice," said a 21-year-old student who declined to be identified. There were no immediate reports of casualties. A police spokesman was not immediately available for a comment.
State of emergency
Witnesses also reported a separate protest in downtown Khartoum, where hundreds of demonstrators blocked a main road.
Bashir declared a one-year state of emergency on Friday and dissolved the central and state governments. He called on parliament to postpone constitutional amendments that would have let him seek another term in a 2020 presidential election, although he stopped short of saying he would not run.
He had since appointed a caretaker central government and new governors for the country's 18 states, all officers in the armed forces or security services.
"Security measures will not resolve the economic crisis," he said. "The situation in Sudan requires more openness and not more political and economic restrictions."
Bashir is wanted by the International Criminal Court for crimes allegedly committed in Darfur region in western Sudan. Sudan denies any atrocities and says it does not recognize the ICC.
On Monday, Bashir's National Congress Party elected Ahmed Haroun, a former governor of North Kordofan state, as deputy head of the party for political and organizational affairs. Haroun is also wanted by the ICC on Darfur war crimes charges.