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Sudan doctors threaten strike amid rising attacks on health workers

May 22, 2020 at 12:25 pm

Sudanese take measures to prevent coronavirus COVID-19 inside a health center in Khartoum, Sudan, on 15 March 2020 [faiz Abu bakr/ApaImages]

Medical doctors in Sudan have threatened to strike in protest against repeated attacks on health workers on duty at hospitals, a statement issued on Thursday by the Unified Office of Doctors, the Legitimate Union of Doctors and the Committee of Specialists and Consultants disclosed.

The doctors called on Abdel Fattah Al-Burhan , the head of the country’s Sovereign Council and Prime Minister Abdalla Hamdok  to protect doctors, enact legislation that would guarantee their safety, and take punitive measures against those who attack them.

The statement gave the Sudanese authorities until Saturday evening to implement their demands, threatening that doctors would otherwise withdraw collectively from hospitals and go on strike.

“If this legislation is not enacted now, you will all bear the consequences,” the doctors added in their statement.

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This escalation coincides with local and international fears of a possible collapse of the Sudanese health sector amid the spread of the coronavirus, especially given the shortage of medical protective equipment, which caused a number of medical staff to contract the virus.

Doctors have repeatedly complained about the rise in attacks on them while on duty by patients’ relatives or army personnel.