WEEKLY NEWS | What is happening in Sudan?
Omar Bashir the Dictator who ruled Sudan for nearly 30 years has stepped down in April 2019. It was decided that Sudan would have a transitional government for 2 years led by the Transitional Military Council until a new leader becomes elected. Ever since, there has been a two month long massive peaceful sit for the demanding of civil rule, until June 3rd when the Rapid Support Forces (RSF) Militia, also known as Janjaweed, violently attacked and shot demonstrators. There has been an estimated 120+ deaths, 650 injured, 60+ corpses found in the Nile as they try to cover up their murder, and too many horrifying cases of rape.
People took to social media to showcase what has been transpiring with the peaceful protest where RSF had been beating and arresting people. The head of the Transitional Military Council (TMC), General Abdel Fattah Al-Burhan, advised on Sudan TV that all agreements with the civilian opposition on a transitional government were being scrapped. Members of the opposition alliance have rejected the military authority's decision to hold elections within nine months.
TMC are attempting to block out internet and media so the world does not know. The head of state media has been taken over by the generals, ending the censorship of newspapers in hopes of media reforms and an end to the repression that was widespread under the President. However, The Sudan TV has not been seen to broadcast any criticism of the TMC since the killing of dozens of people at a sit-in protest in Khartoum. Because of the ongoing internet shutdown that has paralyzed the flow of information, the Sudanese public has become more reliant on television for news. The TMC said the internet has been disconnected because social media poses a threat to the country.
Mohammad Mattar who was gunned down during protests in Sudan.
You have noticed that Social media profiles have turned blue in honour of Mohammad Mattar who was gunned down during protests in Sudan.
The main body organising the demonstrations - the Sudanese Professionals Association (SPA) - has been making announcement via their Facebook page, which has more than 800,000 followers. They have started to send out text messages to help people, but some fear that text messages are tracked. Others prefer old-fashioned phone calls to pass on information.
Thousands used Twitter and Facebook to express shock and their efforts to demand a return to civilian rule. The internet shutdown has isolated the public from the rest of the world - and in the days after the crackdown those living in the chaos were desperate to contact friends and family. Without the internet, many pro-democracy activists are also cut off from news that they trust.
The internet shutdown also has an effect on businesses, which has been costing millions of dollars, something the country cannot afford given that it was the economic problems that first kick-started the protests in December 2018.
Since the killings 3 weeks ago, the protest movement is slowly rebuilding itself by a way of word of mouth. They are beginning to be held at night in suburbs across the capital and in neighboring cities. As more people hear about them, the bigger they become. This speaks to the resilience of the demonstrators - and their hope that their demands will eventually bear fruit.
Happy Traveling,
The Luxe and Lavish Travels Team