Nemat Abdullah Mohamed Khair (Arabic: نعمات عبدالله محمد خير; other transliterations: Neemat, Nimat, Abdallah; born 1957) is a Sudanese judge of the Sudanese Supreme Court who became Chief Justice of Sudan (head of the Sudanese judiciary) on 10 October 2019[1] until 15 May 2021.[5] As such, under Article 29.(3) of the August 2019 Draft Constitutional Declaration, she is also the president of the Supreme Court of Sudan and is "responsible for administering the judicial authority before the Supreme Judicial Council."[6][7] Khair is the first woman Chief Justice of Sudan.[8]
Khair participated in the 2018–2019 Sudanese protests, in a march by judges[9] and in the sit-in in front of the Khartoum army headquarters, which was broken up in the 3 June Khartoum massacre.[11] She had been perceived as an opponent of the al-Bashir government for several years prior to the protests.[9]
Judicial career
Khair became a member of the Sudanese judiciary in the early 1980s. She worked in the Court of Appeal, the Court of First Instance, and became a judge of the Supreme Court.[11] Khair founded the Sudanese Judges Club[11][4] as an organisation independent from government.[9]
Khair ruled against the al-Bashir government in 2016 in a case involving the Anglican church.[9]
Political neutrality
Khair is not affiliated to any political party.[11][4] According to Sudan Daily, she is "known for her competence, integrity and experience".[11] Muez Hadra of the Forces for Freedom and Change (FFC) described Nemat as "honest and earnest" and completely independent of the former al-Bashir government.[9]
Head of Sudanese judiciary
On 10 October 2019, Khair was confirmed[1] as the head of the Sudanese judiciary after being selected by consensus between the Transitional Military Council (TMC) and the Forces of Freedom and Change alliance (FFC). Under Article 29.(3) of the August 2019 Draft Constitutional Declaration, she is also the president of the Supreme Court and is "responsible for administering the judicial authority before the Supreme Judicial Council."[6][7] Khair had earlier been expected to become Chief Justice on 20[4] or 21 August 2019,[11] according to Khartoum Star and Sudan Daily.
On 12 September 2019, prior to Khair's 10 October confirmation, thousands of protestors in Khartoum and other Sudanese towns called for Abdelgadir Mohamed Ahmed to be appointed as Chief Justice and Mohamed el-Hafiz as Attorney General.[12][13] Another 10 October decree declared Tag el-Sir el-Hibir as Attorney-General.[1]
On 18 May 2021, she was relived from her duties as Chief Justice.[5]
^ abFFC; TMC (4 August 2019). "(الدستوري Declaration (العربية))" [(Constitutional Declaration)] (PDF). raisethevoices.org (in Arabic). Archived(PDF) from the original on 5 August 2019. Retrieved 5 August 2019.
