Sudanese elections end with announcement of al-Bashir's win
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Photo taken on April 11, 2010 shows Sudanese President Omar al-Bashir (Front) casting his ballot at a polling station in Khartoum, Sudan. Omar al-Bashir won the country's first multi-party elections in 24 years by obtaining more than 6 million votes, the Sudanese National Elections Commission (NEC) announced on Monday. [Mohammed Babiker/Xinhua] |
In the address which was broadcasted by the government TV shortly after the announcement of the elections results, al-Bashir said that "the victory we have achieved is not for the National Congress Party (NCP) alone, but for all the Sudanese."
"I reiterate our commitment to mobilizing the energies to implement our program, with our hands and minds open for all the forces working under the constitution to communicate and consult to institute a national partnership to face challenges with," he said.
He added that "I vow to carry on with organizing the referendum in south Sudan and complete the Darfur peace."
He expressed "thanks for those who stood with us from the Sudanese people and also thanks for those who have opposed us. Failing to support us would not affect their citizenship because the president of the republic performs his duties as a president for all, and he is responsible for them. This is a fact I confirm, commit to and declare."
"I'm proud in the eye of the world of the civilized and respectful manner in elections that were free of violence and tension. My thanks for all the Sudanese people in the north and the south," he added.
He acknowledged that the elections faced difficulties, saying that "it is a huge and costly process and despite the technical and logistical challenges, it has been conducted in a credible manner that all the Sudanese are proud of."
The Sudanese president also thanked the international community and whoever contributed material, financial or administrative assistance to make the electoral process a success.
He praised the role of national and international observers who participated in monitoring the Sudanese elections, saying that "the international and national observers who participated in the elections have performed an important task that any free and credible elections need."
Al-Bashir was born in 1944 in the town of Hoshe Bannaga, 150 km north of Khartoum. He graduated at the military academy in 1967.
He was put in command of the Eighth Brigade in the south of Sudan during the civil war which broke out in 1983 between the government in Khartoum and the Sudan People's Liberation Movement (SPLM).
He fought alongside the Egyptian army in the Israeli-Arab war in 1973.
In June 1989, with a group of middle rank military officers, al- Bashir, staged a coup against the elected coalition government of Sadiq al-Mahdi. He was supported by the National Islamic Front, led by Hassan al-Turabi, who later became his opponent.
The most prominent accomplishment of al-Bashir was the signing of the Comprehensive Peace Agreement (CPA) in January 2005 with SPLM late leader John Garang.
The CPA stipulated organization of general elections in Sudan and a referendum on the self-determination for south Sudan, to be held in January 2011.
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