31/01/2011 / SUDAN
What happened yesterday was just the start, and we hope that more and more people will mobilize. There is a new call to protest on Tuesday, February 1, and this time there won’t only be students. We must continue to mobilize until every Sudanese citizen is out in the street. "
Fledgling demonstrations in Sudan add to wave of unrest in Arab world
After Tunisia and Egypt, the wave of unrest that is rocking the Arab world reached Sudan over the weekend, albeit on a much smaller scale.
Following calls on Facebook and Twitter, hundreds of protesters, most of whom were students, took to the streets in Khartoum, Omdurman and the western city of El-Obeid on Sunday. Brandishing banners and chanting slogans directly targeting Sudanese president Omar El Bashir, the demonstrators were met with heavy-handed police repression in all three cities. One student, Mohammed Abdulrahman, was reportedly beaten to death by police.
The demonstrations came as preliminary results were announced in South Sudan’s landmark independence referendum, and after the sacking of Khartoum’s university director Mustafa Idriss Al-Bashir, a vocal government critic.
Contributors
"We must continue to mobilise until every Sudanese citizen is out in the street"
Mohamed Abdelrahman, 21, is an engineering student at the University of Khartoum. He participated in one of the protests in Khartoum this Sunday.
Students have been at the forefront of anti-government protests in Sudan for years. Opposition leaders are part of the same old political soup as the government, nobody trusts them anymore.
The protests started at 11am on Al Qasr avenue. There weren’t very many of us, probably between 150 and 200 people. I think most people were afraid to go out into the streets because they expected brutal police repression. And sure enough, the police were waiting for us. They broke up our group by firing tear gas and beat us with their truncheons. They arrested several dozen people.
Like our brothers in other Arab countries, we’re just asking for more freedom of expression. We’re also protesting against the rising cost of living. We especially denounce the government’s decision to raise the cost of wheat by 30% last December. We are demanding the immediate resignation of Omar Al Bachir and his government.
Of course, the recent events in Tunisia and Egypt encouraged us to go out into the street. But there are also causes for discontent that are specific to Sudan: the referendum for South Sudan gives the impression that the government wants to divide our country.
Post written with FRANCE 24 journalist Sarra Grira
Comments
DEMONSTRATION IN SUDAN
Submitted by hugslive on Tue, 01/02/2011 - 09:51.SALUT
le virus tunisien va plus vite qu'on ne pansait .maintenant c'est le tour du soudan . les dictateurs se font de plus en plus evincés.ma peur reside dans le fait que que ces changements spontanés ne puissent pas se faire sans consequences. car il y en dans l"ombre qui profiteront pour piller les caisses et les denieres ressources. qu'est ce qui est dounc fait pour éviter ces problemes et une fois de plus SINCERES CONDOLEANCES AUX FAMILLES ENDEUILLES ET AUX MARTYRS DE CETTE REVOLUTION. VOUS ETES DES HEROS