Protesters at Jackson Square in Khartoum on Sunday. Photo published on Sudan Change Now's Facebook page.
The demonstrations that rocked Sudans capital on Sunday may at first glance seem like the rebirth of the protest movement that was quashed by police after weeks of clashes last summer. However, according to our Observer, this is far from certain.
Protests in June and July were led by university students and inspired by the Arab Spring revolutions; activists on Twitter dubbed the movement #SudanRevolts while protesters in the streets called for the governments downfall. However, the movement withered following violent crackdowns by police. On Sunday, once again, students led the protest, which saw hundreds of demonstrators clash with riot police. According to the state radio, 47 people were detained.
Several more people were detained during smaller protests in Khartoum on Monday, which were quickly broken up by police.
Protesters in the streets of Khartoum on Sunday. They chant, "By our soul, by our blood, we will defend you dear Sudan!" Video courtesy of Tilal Altaib.
CONTRIBUTORS
Ahmed A.
The trouble began last week, when four student protesters were found dead
Ahmed Ali (not his real name) is an activist who took part in Sundays protest in Khartoum. He filmed and photographed the demonstration.
The trouble began at Gezira University [in the city of Gezira, south of Khartoum] last Sunday, when students from Darfur started protesting over tuition they believed that a peace agreement [signed between the government and rebels from their region in 2011] exempts them from fees. They protested for several days, through Wednesday, when the authorities really clamped down. On Friday, we heard that three students who had participated in the protests had been found dead [a fourth body was reportedly found Saturday], so I travelled there to see what was going on.
When I arrived, hundreds of students were protesting outside the local hospital, to which the students bodies had been taken. They were demanding autopsies to establish the cause of death, but the authorities were telling them there was no specialised doctor on hand to perform one. There was so much security that I did not dare use my camera to film the protest. However, I managed to go into the hospitals bathroom with some students who knew the deceased, and film interviews with them in the bathroom stalls.
The students I talked to found it difficult to believe they could have drowned in such shallow water
It turns out that the bodies were found in a canal on the university grounds, which is used by agricultural students. The students told me that rabata hired thugs working for the authorities had beaten up protesters with iron bars. Many students had fled through this canal, which is only about a metre deep at its deepest point. Protesters ran off in every direction; only later did anyone realise these students were missing. The students I talked to found it difficult to believe that they could have drowned in such shallow water; it seems much more likely that the rabata took them off somewhere and tortured them to death, before dumping their bodies in the canal. [During this summers protests, intelligence services were also accused of taking protesters to ghost houses to torture them]. In any case, thats what most students at Gezira University believe. [The authorities said there was no sign of violence on the bodies; the justice ministry said it will set up a committee to investigate the incident.]
The government has learned from June and Julys protests
On Sunday, students from Khartoum University decided to hold their own ceremony to honour the four dead. This took place on campus; there were several thousand people present. After the ceremony, we wanted to go out into the city and protest; however, the government had learned from June and Julys protests, and had blocked every entrance to the campus. Only one small door was open, through which about 500 people managed to get out before the police started throwing tear gas. I was in that group. Quite a few of us managed to get to the nearby market, at which point it became very difficult for the police to chase us. There were several groups of protesters moving from one street to the next. Later in the afternoon, we met at the main bus stop, where many civilians joined us; the police started hitting us really hard. Protesters set two city buses on fire. Dozens of people were arrested before the police managed to disperse everyone.
Protesters throw objects at security vehicles on Sunday in Khartoum. Video courtesy of Tilal Altaib.
I was saddened to see that there were no follow-up protests
This was the first big demonstration since this summers protest movement. And it lasted all day, which is surprising police here are usually quite swift in clamping down on protests. Perhaps they didnt expect this, or perhaps they were just flustered because they also had to deal with another protest across town, against the expulsion of a popular football player from his team!
I was quite encouraged to see people rising up again, chanting the same slogans down with the government, freedom, etc but saddened to see that there was no follow-up on Monday. I was waiting to hear details about the next protest, but no one took the initiative to announce a time and place. There were only a few scattered protests. Like last summer, the movement suffers from a lack of leadership. Many of those that could be considered leaders in the June and July protests had to leave the country after being harassed by the police. People are scared to stand out. And I think that last summer, protesters just got tired in the face of such violence, seeing their friends get beaten and arrested, seeing people go missing week after week, and nothing changing. I want to keep hope, but Im not sure why it would be any different this time.
