Consider This from NPR - How Sudan's Military Coup Is Threatening Its Long March Toward Democracy

Episode Date: November 5, 2021

In recent years, Sudan has been home to one of the most successful pro-democracy movements on the African continent. Now, a military coup threatens that movement's progress. NPR's Eyder Peralta, who has been reporting in the region, explains how it all unfolded — and what could happen next. Read more on the events in Sudan from NPR's Becky Sullivan: The coup in Sudan could threaten U.S. influence in a strategically important region.In participating regions, you'll also hear a local news segment that will help you make sense of what's going on in your community.Email us at [e-mail] more about sponsor message choices: podcastchoices.com/adchoicesNPR Privacy Policy

This message comes from Indiana University. Indiana University performs breakthrough research every year, making discoveries that improve human health, combat climate change, and move society forward. More at iu.edu slash forward. Mohamed Ahmed says the Sudan that he fled in 1998 isn't so different from the Sudan today. When I grew up in Sudan, it was under the ruling of Bashir. So it was the military. And when I left the country, it was the military. And right now, it is the military. So there hasn't been much change. Mohamed now lives in Iowa. He was one of the many people out last week in Iowa City and

other areas around the U.S. protesting a violent military coup in Sudan. It began weeks ago after military forces arrested Prime Minister Abdullah Hamdok and other members of the Sovereign Council, which is a joint civilian-military body at the top of the country's government. This has disrupted Sudan's move towards democracy. We are trying to educate people not to accept the military ruling under any condition because they are not for governing and they have not proven they can advance the country. Mohamed has two children, six and nine, and they go with him to the protests.

By the time they grow, they understand what is going on. And this history will be written and they will read it eventually. Ala Mohammed has also been protesting in Iowa. Her family moved to the States in 2004 as refugees. Right now, her parents and two of her siblings are back in Sudan. And she hasn't been able to get in contact with her parents in over a week. The fact that they have the power to stop the Internet, the power to cut off communication with the world and hide the fact that they're killing people and torturing people all for the sake of power, it's really sad. And we're ready to go into the streets, ready to defend our country.

It's young people like Alaa that give Issam Ghanim hope. I don't think that there's any power that can withstand the force of millions and millions and millions of the civilian population, especially the youth. Issam moved from Sudan to the States in 1995. He's currently the president of the peace-building organization Search for Common Ground. And he says that the people in Sudan aren't going back to a military dictatorship. But until a power-sharing agreement is reached, the military remains in control. I think the coup could literally lead the country back to the dark ages of civil wars.

Consider this. For three decades, Sudan was under a brutal dictatorship. And now a military coup threatens to end one of the most successful pro-democracy movements on the African continent. From NPR, I'm Elsa Chang. It's Friday, November 5th. Visit wise.com. T's and C's apply. Consider this from NPR. In the Sudanese capital Khartoum, this is what the streets sounded like last week. People started putting roadblocks. All through the morning, people were protesting and marching on the streets.

In a number of neighborhoods, there was live ammunition, tear gas. Asma Ismail is a filmmaker and human rights activist. She was one of the hundreds of thousands of civilians protesting the military coup. We have heard a number of news from people who have relatives within the army that security, that they have been authorized, full force, you know, like they've been authorized to do whatever it takes to get people inside and then stop the protests. A number of people have been injured, and a doctor's union affiliated with the Sudanese Professionals Association said that at least 15 people died after being shot by security

forces during demonstrations. There is a sense of fear, but I think the biggest fear is that all what we have done and all the fights that we've been fighting all our lives is just going to go to waste if we don't take this specific moment and continue the fight. I think everyone feels like this is a determining moment in our history and that we will either step up and do something about it or just continue to be silent and just continue to regret this moment. There have been calls for the immediate restoration of a civilian-led government in Sudan from several nations, including the United Arab Emirates, Saudi Arabia, the United

Kingdom, and the U.S. These four nations are putting pressure on General Abdel Fanta al-Burhan, the coup leader, and his deputy general, Mohamed Hamdan Dagalo, to release those detained in the coup and to lift the state of emergency imposed across the country. As we said, the U.S. has condemned the coup. And in fact, the Biden administration has suspended $700 million that was supposed to help Sudan transition to a fully civilian government. However, Jeffrey Feltman, the U.S. envoy to the Horn of Africa, has been in Sudan trying to revive the partnership between the military and civilian leadership. When I was in Sudan, of course, just immediately prior to the military's hijacking the transition,

we were engaging the Sudanese leaders, political leaders and military leaders, on mechanisms that could have addressed what the military said were their concerns. And frankly, what the civilians said were their concerns about the transition not moving ahead as decisively or quickly as hoped. At a press briefing, Feltman spoke about his conversations with Sudan's military leaders. They were talking to us about how to address the concerns they had through constitutional means. And instead, as soon as we left, they decided to just turn over the entire negotiating table in favor of a military takeover. On Thursday, General Abdel Fattah al-Burhan spoke with U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken.

They both agreed the new formation of a government needs to happen soon. But it's still unclear what kind of agreement will be met between the country's military and civilian leaders, and when that agreement will ever be met. NPR's Eder Peralta has been covering this story for the past few years, and he spoke to NPR's Adi Cornish about what exactly has changed since Sudan's dictator Omar al-Bashir was ousted a couple years ago, and what the people of Sudan want right now. They want something very simple. They want civilians to rule this country. I spoke to Khalid Ali, and he's a businessman who runs a co-working space in Hartoum. And this weekend, he decided to go out into the streets.

And he says everyone was out there, women, men, rich, poor, and all of them are determined to overturn this coup. And he says that as night fell, some of the militias who are allied with the government came out on pickup trucks and they began shooting into the crowd. And I asked him, were you not scared? Were people not scared? And we can listen to what he told me. Absolutely not.

Absolutely not. The public sentiment is, it's not excitement. It's a mix of anger and determination. Do you think this coup can be overturned? Absolutely. It has to be overturned. The people of Sudan have spoken. No military general will rule this country again. This is not going to happen. I mean,

unless they decide to kill all of us. That's a different story. And look, I mean, many of the protesters I've spoken to say they're determined to leave future generations a democratic Sudan, even if that means death. Can I ask a quick question, though? He said something, no military general will rule this country again. But earlier, we talked about Sudan being, you know, home to a major pro-democracy movement. Can you give us a window into what happened? Yeah, look, I mean, back in 2019, you know, thousands of protesters camped outside of military headquarters. And Sudan's longtime dictator, he ruled for almost 30 years, Omar

al-Bashir was ousted in a military coup. And civilian politicians and military, the military generals who ousted Bashir came to an agreement that after a certain period, Sudan would have a civilian government. And what happened is this month, the military was supposed to turn over power to the civilians, and the military reneged on that deal that they had cut in 2019. So why now? I mean, was there a particular catalyst? Or what was the reason why it seems or the motivation for taking this action? From the very beginning, this was an uneasy relationship. And the military will tell you that they took this action because there was too much infighting within the transitional government, and that made Sudan unstable. But analysts and

government officials that I've spoken to say this was self-preservation on the side of the military. The military men didn't want to hand over power because they wanted to protect their interests, both the money they have in the country, and also because they're afraid that once civilians come into power, they might very well be held accountable, not just for corruption, but also for the human rights abuses that they might have committed while in the military. You talked about this idea that this had been one of the most pro-democracy movements on the African continent. What was remarkable at the time? And is this and some other things that are happening, right?

You've reported from Ethiopia, a sign that things are taking a turn on the continent. Both these stories were really fascinating because they happened very much at the same time. from Ethiopia, a sign that things are taking a turn on the continent. Both these stories were really fascinating, because they happened very much at the same time. Sudan and Ethiopia opened up at the same time. And when I say opened up, Ari, this regime of Omar al-Bashir for 30 years was not just a dictatorship, but it was an Islamist regime. I mean, this was a country where you needed permission from the government to take a picture of a bridge. This was a country where women were flogged for dressing immodestly. And, you know, after these protests, after Bashir was ousted, things changed dramatically. I mean, there was music on the streets. Women and men were in the same space. A reporter like me could be out on the streets

taking all the pictures I wanted, talking to whoever I wanted. So that's why it was so remarkable. It was one of the most closed societies on the continent suddenly opening up. And the same can be said of Ethiopia, right? It was one of the most authoritarian countries on the African continent opening up. And now we have seen both places backslide in Sudan with the military takeover and in Ethiopia with a brutal civil war. Right now, I understand that no civilian politician really wants to work with the military there. So does that mean there is no table to come to? I mean, is there any kind of negotiation that's an option and who would push the parties there? I think that's the problem, that the positions right now seem at complete odds.

The civilians have hardened. They say they don't want a power sharing agreement at all. And the military says, yeah, you know, we were willing to appoint our own civilians to this, this new transitional government. You know, the US has a special envoy to the region, and the US is very much pushing the parties to the status quo before the coup, which was a power sharing agreement. But right now, that just seems out of step with what the streets want in Sudan. And look, these streets, they have a lot of experience. They've run these protests for years. They brought down Omar al-Bashir. And I think right now they're confident that they can bring down this new military leadership. That was NPR's East Africa correspondent, Ader Peralta.

You're listening to Consider This from NPR. I'm Elsa Chang.