Revolution in Sudan starts

[butchersapron]

You get my point though? I should have said what's a communist party for?

 

[Idris2002]

Of course, but what's a communist party?

In the old days they would have been fully dedicated to spreading the revolution by any means necessary (in theory anyway), and would have used a successful upheaval in a neighbouring state as propaganda fodder for their own work.

These days they're not necessarily going to do any of that.

 

[dessiato]

You do know that South Sudan is independent now, don't you? S. Sudan has enormous problems, but it doesn't have an illegitimate Islamist govt. that came to power in a coup d'etat 23 years ago. The political situations are very different in both cases - so even if there really is a big political revolt in the north, it's not going to spread south in a simple domino style.

The government in S Sudan is, IIRC, mainly Christian. They also have most of the oil fields. It is due to the Sudan government wanting a huge amount of money for moving that oil that S Sudan stopped production. They said that since they had suffered for so many years with everything being stolen from them they were able to suffer a few more years without the money from the oil.

Having said that they have received a huge amount of money that seems to have disappeared. But their problems are not going to be immediately changed by revolution in Khartoum.

 

[butchersapron]

Not vouching just passing on:

http://crowdvoice.org/sudan-protests

 

[eatmorecheese]

Is it true that the political class in Sudan are all related to each other, either by blood or marriage? They could easily get shot of Bashir and still find themselves with "meet the new boss, same as the old boss".

That's my understanding. I've read that an anonymous publication called "The Black Book" appeared in Khartoum a number of years back tracing the family connections of the political elite, civil servants and even the drivers they employed, and they overwhelmingly came from two related tribes on the Nile north of Khartoum. The country is largely held together as an Arab empire, as far as I can see. If the name at the top changes, others in the power structure will ensure that their interests are protected and that a "suitable" leader comes forward...

 

[dessiato]

Even where I worked everyone was related to everyone. Even our drivers were 'connected'. You had to be very careful what you said because it would go back to the senior staff almost before the words were out of your mouth. The man who owned the company was also connected at very senior levels in the government. This is the major issue facing the protesters. Whoever replaces the president will be from the same family group.

 

[dessiato]

http://www.aljazeera.com/news/africa/2012/06/2012623144151510540.html

The protests widen after a week of troubles.

 

[chilango]

Hope this at least brings Bashir down and he meets the end he deserves.

 

[chilango]

Incidentally I knew an old Maoist in Sudan. My Arabic wasn't good enough to get much of a chat going, and he was understandably reluctant to talk to me....speaking of which, how will China react? They have the muscle to call the shots on this one if they want/need.

 

[dessiato]

http://www.aljazeera.com/indepth/features/2012/06/201262481843718813.html

More news.

I hope the people I met, and worked with, are OK.

 

[elbows]

Ive been browsing the BBC Trust report into their Arab Spring coverage.

http://downloads.bbc.co.uk/bbctrust..._work/arabspring_impartiality/arab_spring.pdf

Plenty to say but I haven't read it all properly yet. But for a start I noticed this in relation to Sudan which I thought was worth posting:

In Sudan, the government was quicker on the uptake, and succeeded in nipping an incipient “Arab Spring” protest movement in the bud: “Pro-government agents infiltrated anti-government sites, spreading disinformation and looking to triangulate the identities of the chief organizers. They’d barrage Facebook pages with pornography, then report the pages to Facebook for violating the rules.” See Alan Boswell, “How Sudan used the Internet to crush protest movement”, McClatchy Newspapers, April 6, 2011, http://www.mcclatchydc.com/2011/04/06/111637/sudans-government-crushed-protests.html

(footnotes of page 70 of BBC trust report)

 

[dessiato]

Ive been browsing the BBC Trust report into their Arab Spring coverage.

http://downloads.bbc.co.uk/bbctrust..._work/arabspring_impartiality/arab_spring.pdf

Plenty to say but I haven't read it all properly yet. But for a start I noticed this in relation to Sudan which I thought was worth posting:

(footnotes of page 70 of BBC trust report)

That is interesting. I'll try to read all of it.

 

[elbows]

Well they are trying to get some protest momentum going today, won't be easy but maybe they can do it.

I've only seen a few pictures so far, but you can follow along on twitter with the hashtag #SudanRevolts:

https://twitter.com/#!/search/#SudanRevolts

Given my nickname here I was amused to see this:

http://www.aljazeera.com/indepth/features/2012/06/201262884619549472.html

Street protests have entered their second week in Sudan, and activists have called for mass demonstrations on Friday, June 29. The demonstrations have been dubbed "licking your elbow" protests, referring to a Sudanese metaphor for achieving the impossible.
They have also called for a general strike day on June 30, the 23rd anniversary of Sudanese President Omar al-Bashir's National Congress Party coming to power.

Licking my elbow is certainly impossible for me, my arms are too long.

 

[dessiato]

Thanks for the link

 

[dessiato]

My friends all seem to be OK at the moment. Now I'm on twitter I can see more of what is going on.

The government is restricting access to the internet and to international news sites. One person has died, but many have disappeared according to reports. JEM are supporting the protesters. Is this going to be Sudan's Spring

 

[dessiato]

Ghost houses have re-appeared in Khartoum.

 

[dessiato]

http://www.aljazeera.com/news/africa/2012/06/2012630144383598.html

 

[Greebo]

Ghost houses have re-appeared in Khartoum.

CBATG what are ghost houses? Obv nothing good, but apart from that?

 

[dessiato]

CBATG what are ghost houses? Obv nothing good, but apart from that?

they are houses to which detainees are taken. Officially no-one knows where they are. Usually people are tortured there before going before the courts.

 

[Greebo]

they are houses to which detainees are taken. Officially no-one knows where they are. Usually people are tortured there before going before the courts.

 

[chilango]

Ghost houses have re-appeared in Khartoum.

Was there a time when they disappeared?

 

[dessiato]

Was there a time when they disappeared?

Good question, officially yes, but unofficially who knows?

 

[dessiato]

http://www.aljazeera.com/news/africa/2012/06/2012630144383598.html

 

[elbows]

Obviously the events of June failed to turn into anything more substantial, but student protests have started up again in limited numbers in recent days, after the discovery of the bodies of 4 students in a canal

http://uk.reuters.com/article/2012/12/11/uk-sudan-protest-idUKBRE8BA10320121211

Sudanese police fired teargas to break up a protest by university students in the capital on Tuesday over the deaths of four students from Darfur found dead in a canal last week, witnesses said.

The demonstrations, in their fourth day, have been the most sustained to hit Sudan since a wave of protests against government austerity measures in June, although they have so far failed to muster more than a few hundred students at a time.

 

[dessiato]

The sooner the country loses the dictator the better in my opinion.

 

[sihhi]

http://www.reuters.com/article/2013/06/29/us-sudan-protest-idUSBRE95S0FK20130629

But on Saturday, several thousand people - possibly as many as 10,000, according to witnesses - rallied in a square in Khartoum's twin city Omdurman, the biggest rally in years.

Echoing the language heard across Tunisia, Egypt and Libya during mass demonstrations that overthrew leaders there, protesters held up signs saying: "The people demand the fall of the regime" and "Go Bashir".

Biggest rally in years in Omdurman but dominated by the corrupt old guard.

 

[coley]

http://www.reuters.com/article/2013/06/29/us-sudan-protest-idUSBRE95S0FK20130629




Biggest rally in years in Omdurman but dominated by the corrupt old guard.

Critics of the opposition say its leadership fails to pose a challenge because it is more absorbed by its own rivalries than organizing sufficiently to form a potent challenge to the elite
Sounds familiar

 

[Edie]

women do not make sandwiches
women make revolutions

My god. My god. That woman Safia Ishag, that video, her courage. Her courage in speaking out against the men who raped her, in that society, with that much fear, with that much consequence. That any of us should be able to show that much courage.

Sometimes you wish the world wasn't so big, and you could get there, and stand by her side. If I could I would, I swear to fucking god I would. Fuck the men.



She's saying a message: you don't own me.

 

[sihhi]

It spread a bit from the south to the north - service provision and anti-dam protests.

http://allafrica.com/stories/201307010365.html

 

[dessiato]

Bumping thread

Just got this from a friend over there.

POLICE IS KILLING PROTESTERS EVERYWERE WITH NO REASON . THERE IS MEDIABLOCK, IT'S NOT HALF WHAT IT'S SAYS WHERE I LIVE. DITH NUMBERS OVER {20} INCLODED CHILDEN

Any one have any other information? I am very concerned for all my friends there. Although I had a bad time living there, the people I met were incredibly kind and generous.