One Year After The Massacre, Has Anything Changed In Sudan?

Today marks a painful first anniversary for Sudan. Last year on June 3, the regime’s Rapid Support Forces and National Intelligence and Security Service launched a one-sided war against peaceful protesters in Khartoum. The resulting massacre shocked the world’s conscience and briefly put Sudan’s crisis in the global spotlight for the first time in years.

The darkness that engulfed Sudan’s capital was not new to the country. For nearly 30 years, Sudanese dictator Omar al-Bashir’s government called Khartoum its untouched stronghold, a long-time garrison city from which the regime poured raw military power, political manipulation, and outright hatred into brutal policies and increasingly powerful paramilitaries who were unleashed on the country’s minorities and lower classes.

Countless massacres have been committed by regime forces across the country since the early 1990s. To many people outside of Sudan, Darfur is synonymous only with genocide, not the western region’s complex history that is both hard and beautiful to behold. Other lesser known parts of Sudan with equally rich histories, like the Nuba Mountains and Blue Nile, have been submitted to identical atrocities as those in Darfur.

So, the June 3 massacre was not unexpected, but it was still horrifying. After Bashir was removed from power in April, it was obvious that he left behind a fundamentally unchanged regime. Government forces continued committing war crimes in Sudan’s oppressed hinterlands, humanitarian aid was still denied to millions of Sudanese in need, and militiamen poured into Khartoum. The slaughter was even predicted months beforehand. Despite the glimmer of hope brought about by determined protesters, who displayed incredible courage, smarts, and restraint, the recipe for carnage was made in broad daylight.

Perhaps this is what made the Khartoum massacre feel particularly brutal. The regime had oppressed its citizens in the capital when needed, sometimes to a terrifying degree. But the true horrors of the scorched-earth warfare that has decimated Sudan’s periphery had never been felt in Khartoum. 

The massacre was the cloak finally falling off the regime’s shoulders. Left standing was the worst kind of government: a hydra-headed monster of murderous security forces who worshipped their own power above all else, and saw ideology as a mere tool to advance their capturing of more power. Their purpose was never really about making Sudan an Islamic state. It was never really about Arabizing the country. Sure, many regime leaders cared deeply about these twisted visions, but the corrupt desire for power and wealth outweighed them in the end. The Khartoum massacre put the last of all Sudanese, regardless of their ethnicity, class, religion, or political leanings, in the crosshairs. It was the final declaration of war on the entire citizenry.

That and the massacre being live-streamed for the world to see, before the regime plunged the entire country into a communications blackout.

News of what transpired in Khartoum reached the outside world anyways. The sprawling protest encampment outside of the military’s headquarters was burned to the ground. Rapid Support Forces soldiers pelted fleeing protesters with grenades and gunned them down. Women were dragged off by regime paramilitaries, gang-raped for hours, and then cast onto the streets. Militiamen tossed the murdered into the Nile River like it was second nature. Paramilitaries murdered, tortured, and pillaged their way across the city.

When Sudan’s internet came back on a month later, images of the massacre flooded out. By that point, protesters had already surged back into the streets, only to be met with more violence. The only thing that had changed was their mood. Inspiration had been replaced with exasperation. Hope had been replaced with seething anger. Coupled with minimal international pressure, it was just enough to bring the regime slinking back to the negotiating table. After 30 long years, the hydra-headed monster finally blinked.

A transitional government was eventually formed: half regime leaders and half civilians. Sudan has been walking on a very fine tightrope ever since.

Has Anything Changed Since The Massacre?

Like all things in Sudan, today is incredibly complicated. Many Sudanese are mourning what was lost one year ago. Others are celebrating that some aspects of life have improved, while knowing that Sudan’s revolution is far from finished. Many feel both of these realities tugging at them. Some are protesting. Even more Sudanese feel like absolutely nothing has changed at all. Like the deck is still being stacked against them.

Uprooting this extremist regime was always going to be a monumental, decades-long undertaking. For years, many people inside and outside of Sudan aimed their ire at Bashir. He was the symbol of everything that had gone horribly wrong. The fall of an oppressive symbol certainly matters. It shows that change is possible. Deep down though, everyone has always known that the real work would begin post-Bashir.

Today, Sudan is barely into this new reality. Bashir himself is locked away in prison for corruption, but he has still not faced a courtroom for the far more serious war crimes and genocide charges against him. There is a good chance he never will. His powerful successors are seizing more and more control within the transitional government. The investigation into the massacre itself is still bogged down in bureaucratic obfuscation. Justice delayed really is justice denied.

Most concerning is the meteoric rise of the Rapid Support Forces commander Mohamed Hamdan Dagalo, aka Hemeti, in the transitional government. Conservative estimates put the size of his paramilitary force at 50,000 strong. Hemeti wields his own foreign policy that is separate from Sudan’s, and his troops are busy trying to show that they are Sudan’s real military power. But the Rapid Support Forces are not invincible. As their power grows, they are facing more attacks from other security agencies, including the still powerful army, and are being defied by protesters who know that the paramilitary group must disarm and demobilize. In most of Sudan, the Rapid Support Forces are viewed as a hostile occupying force, not a legitimate governing institution.

Their oppression remains as brutal as ever. Just two weeks ago, Rapid Support Forces soldiers executed Awad El Wakeel, a 33 year old Nuba man, merely because he self-identified as belonging to a Nuba tribe. Speaking to a Nuba friend as I was preparing to write this piece, he brought up Awad’s murder as being particularly painful. “Why?” I asked. “Because this wasn't just a murder,” he said. “I think, in America, you call it a lynching.”

Millions of Sudanese from Darfur to the Nuba Mountains watch and feel these paramilitaries breathing down their necks every single day. For them, nothing has changed. There is no peace. There is no relief. There is no justice. The shortcomings of the transitional government certainly are most egregious in Sudan’s still oppressed periphery.

This isn’t to say that Sudan’s revolution is a failure. The civilian-wing of the transitional government is addressing issues the Sudanese people face. Underneath the leadership of the empathetic Prime Minister, Abdalla Hamdok, a small string of victories has been building for months. Civilian leaders are busy confiscating billions of dollars of stolen wealth from fallen Islamic leaders, have outlawed female genital mutilation, and are pushing for basic freedoms for all Sudanese. Prime Minster Hamdok has even visited Sudan’s most oppressed regions to listen and help pry open humanitarian relief access to those most in need. A year ago, such a visit by a government leader was unthinkable. These are reasons to hope, but it would be generous to describe the activities of Sudan's transitional government as just the tip of the iceberg for what is really needed.

So, has anything changed in Sudan since the massacre one year ago? That depends on who you ask. It’s easy to point to changing laws and a more peaceful Khartoum and say yes, but only the Sudanese people are qualified to answer if they can feel these changes. Some Sudanese certainly have, and that’s a good thing. Many others across Sudan have not, which shows the revolution is far from over.

The Hardest Fights Lie Ahead

The successes and failures of Sudan’s revolution will be proven over time, but there will be key moments when we see how much really is changing. At some point, the very existence of the Rapid Support Forces is going to have to be addressed. The transitional government will have to make a decision concerning the secularism versus Islamic law approach to governance, and that will have implications that touch every corner of a society that appears ready to shake the yoke of the Islamists of. In the Nuba Mountains, where Sudan’s strongest armed opposition movement has bogged down tens of thousands of genocidal regime troops and secured a fragile ceasefire, the raging security forces and their begrudging Khartoum masters are going to have to make serious concessions for peace to work.

These moments and many more will be fraught with tremendous risk. They will show if the regime-wing of the transitional government and their attached business moguls are going to allow progress that severely weakens their own power, or if they are simply biding their time, waiting for an opportunity to drag the country back into full-blown military rule. History says the generals and security heads will resort to mass violence when they feel that the time is appropriate. Time will tell.

But far away from Khartoum is the most frustrating aspect of the slow pace of Sudan’s revolution: those most in need of change will probably be the last to see it, if they ever see change at all. Hundreds of thousands of Darfuris living in displacement camps for well over a decade still cannot go home, and there are signs that the Rapid Support Forces are making that reality permanent. Peace seems unlikely in the Nuba Mountains, where regime forces are escalating attacks on the Nuba people. Reparations to these communities seems even less likely, as the transitional government needs tens of billions of dollars just to move Sudan’s economy out of a death spiral and into a fragile state. It is in these parts of Sudan that the revolution feels non-existent.

As if this was not going to be challenging enough, the coronavirus pandemic is spreading rapidly through Sudan, slowing down the revolution even more. Sudan’s long-term prospects appear to be gloomier than they were just a few months ago.

The clouds may yet part. The younger generation of Sudanese grew up only knowing regime rule. They have tasted freedom. For many of them, there is no going back. They are willing to risk everything, including their lives, to move Sudan forward. And while the old guard regime and their attached business interests haven’t changed at all, even the generals and security heads seem to be aware that, at least in the short term, they should at least give the illusion of playing along to avoid another massive uprising.

And that leaves us: those who are looking into Sudan from the outside, both worried and hopeful, wondering how to help the changemakers. The Sudanese people have made it clear that they are taking control of their own destiny. That’s how it should be, but we have been asked to help in the Nuba Mountains, where the revolution remains unfelt.

In the background of everything you just read is Sudan’s next generation of leaders. Children living in the Nuba Mountains and nearby Yida Refugee Camp have grown up only knowing war. Most do not have access to a quality classroom. Their education will be what helps carry Sudan’s revolution forwards in the decades ahead.

Operation Broken Silence sponsors 24 Nuba teachers in Yida Refugee Camp. We’re the only organization in the world supporting teachers here. If you want to sustain these Sudanese changemakers during this time of uncertainty, I encourage you to join our campaign. If you can’t do that, help us spread the word.

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About Us

Operation Broken Silence is building a global movement to empower the Sudanese people through innovative programs as a 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization. We focus on empowering Sudanese change makers and their critical work. Learn more here.

Donations are tax-deductible within the guidelines of U.S. law. Give today.

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About Mark

Mark Hackett is the Executive Director of Operation Broken Silence. He works with our Sudanese partners and oversees our daily operations.

Mark is one of only a few Americans to have been on the frontlines in the Nuba Mountains during the war.

An Update From Our Executive Director

Hello supporters,

It’s been a few weeks since we provided an update on our work in light of the coronavirus pandemic. A lot has happened since then, but we’ve made modest headway. Now that our footing is more certain, I want to provide you new information and some insight into how we are moving forward.

Sudan & Our Mission

Most of you know that we have downsized to survive the pandemic’s economic fallout. Our mission remains steadfast, but we’ve instituted a 60% budget cut across the organization, reduced staff hours and pay, and departed our offices.

Meanwhile in Sudan, COVID-19 is spreading faster than the disease is in most other countries. The infection rate is doubling every 10 days. The actual number of cases is certainly much higher. 30 years of extremist regime rule has left Sudan with a decimated healthcare system and limited testing capacity.

Right now, there are no reported COVID-19 cases in the Nuba Mountains and nearby Yida Refugee Camp. This is one of Sudan’s liberated areas, where armed rebels have pushed genocidal regime forces out of large swaths of the region. There are no ICU beds or ventilators in the Nuba Mountains. The rebel government has sealed off access to the region and shuttered markets and main roads. A major coronavirus outbreak in Nuba, where decades of regime oppression has created poor humanitarian conditions, would be catastrophic. Prevention is the only option. 

It’s been a hard few weeks for sure. But there are rays of hope.

Since mid-March, Operation Broken Silence has not had a strategic plan, something we traditionally rely on. This was a purposeful decision. As the global pandemic unfolded, we needed the freedom to move quickly and make immediate progress against the chaos.

Our leadership’s focus has been growing the core of our movement: The Renewal. I can now report to you that this decision is leading to positive results. The size of our monthly giving family is growing at its fastest rate in our history. We still have a long road ahead, but we are trending in the right direction.

What Comes Next

Operation Broken Silence will not have a strategic plan for the remainder of 2020. The scientific consensus seems to be that the world will experience rolling outbreaks and shutdowns until there is a widely-distributed vaccine. We will be hit with more financial shocks and programming challenges in the months ahead. Our annual series of high-impact summer Brand Partnership events will most likely not be taking place. Embracing these hard realities is how we will come out stronger on the other side.

Last night our Board of Directors approved what we’re calling our Rebuilding Guide. I want to emphasize that this is a guide, not a plan. It sets benchmarks for when we can make decisions on accelerating funds to programs, return staffing to pre-pandemic levels, and rebuild our emergency cash reserves. Even when these benchmarks are met, we may decide to temporarily hold back on moving to the next phase if macro-economic, security, or health conditions appear unusually unstable in this already unstable time.

In the coming months we will see waves of generous donations that are followed by periods of giving famine. We’ve already been through two of these cycles. This is why our leadership’s focus will remain on growing The Renewal family.

Our goal remains 200 new Renewal members on the Do Justice campaign. Reaching this goal is at the core of our Rebuilding Guide. More monthly giving will cushion incoming financial shocks on our Sudanese partners. This may be the hard thing to do, but it’s the right thing to do. If you aren’t in a position to give monthly, you can help by spreading the word online.

Operation Broken Silence will be around for the long haul. For our staff, working here is our dream job. The world has become a more difficult place, but we believe in the strong connection between all of the teachers in Yida, ourselves, and you: our wonderful movement. We can't express enough how much we appreciate your support. 

Onwards, 

Mark C. Hackett

Executive Director

Operation Broken Silence

Your #GivingTuesdayNow Results

Hello supporters,

Yesterday, we joined together with other nonprofits for #GivingTuesdayNow, a global day of emergency giving and volunteering. Here’s what you accomplished for 24 Sudanese teachers in Yida Refugee Camp.

84% Goal REACHED

Our #GivingTuesdayNow purpose was welcoming 50 new members into The Renewal, our family of monthly givers. We came up a little short, but you made really good progress.

SEE CAMPAIGN

YOU SURPRISED US

We weren’t expecting you to make one-time donations, start fundraising pages or spread the word. You did anyway.

Two of you even took initiative and started campaigns to raise support for the teachers in Yida. It never gets old watching our movement leap into action.

What Comes Next

As we wrap up #GivingTuesdayNow, this is a great opportunity to look to the next few months.

The road to sustaining our teachers in Yida through the pandemic has more challenges ahead. We’ll only face them down if we stick together.

Every summer we have a series of brand partnership and private events. Most of these high-impact fundraising activities won't be taking place this year due to the pandemic.

Unlike when we were forced to postpone our annual gala in March, we are aware that this fight is coming. The good news is that we know how to overcome it. By August, we will need 200 monthly givers on the Do Justice campaign. It’s going to be an uphill battle.

Your support on #GivingTuesdayNow helped lay early groundwork for us to tackle this summer. We’re grateful that you are still showing up for the teachers in Yida. Stay safe. Talk to you soon.

Onwards,

Mark C. Hackett

Executive Director

Operation Broken Silence

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About Us

Operation Broken Silence is building a global movement to empower the Sudanese people through innovative programs as a 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization. We focus on empowering Sudanese change makers and their critical work. Learn more here.

Donations are tax-deductible within the guidelines of U.S. law. Give today.

#GivingTuesdayNow Is May 5. Get Involved.

Every person on the planet has been touched by the coronavirus pandemic, including the uninfected. On May 5, 2020, nonprofits will band together for #GivingTuesdayNow, a global day of emergency giving and volunteering. We’re proud to be a part of this effort.

How COVID-19 Has Damaged Our Mission

Since March, we have seen a 60% drop in funding for the wonderful programs we support in Sudan. We’ve said farewell to our office space, reduced staffing hours and pay, and cancelled the nonessential services we use.

The pandemic is also impacting the bigger picture in Sudan. The country’s painful move toward peace and democracy is in serious jeopardy. Rumors that an imminent regime coup against the transitional government are spreading like wildfire. Obviously, there are the health impacts of what the pandemic can unleash in Sudan, where healthcare capacity ranges from poor to nonexistent.

#GivingTuesdayNow is an opportunity for us to band together, stop the bleeding, and lay the groundwork for a comeback. The Renewal has always been the core of our movement. Growing our family of monthly givers is the smartest thing we can do to shield our programs from additional damage.

Between now and May 5, we need 50 of you to start giving at least $10 a month as Renewal members. This will help plug the sizable teacher pay gap at our schools in Yida Refugee Camp. Will you join us?

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Can’t give monthly?

Here are a few other ways you can help.

Give Once. A one-time donation buys us time to grow The Renewal family and puts extra cash into our programs right now. GIVE HERE.

Become A Fundraiser. If you aren’t in a position to give from your wallet, will you give us the gift of your time? You can start an online fundraising campaign and ask your friends to donate! START A CAMPAIGN HERE.

Raise Awareness Online. Download our #GivingTuesdayNow Awareness Kit to share our photos on social media and ask friends to get involved. DOWNLOAD HERE.

We’re Here for You

Your anxieties and fears are relevant. We share many of them with you.

Over the past few weeks, I’ve talked to several of our supporters about how this pandemic has changed your lives and our work. I share many of the concerns you do, but I also find comfort in our mission. Steadfastness is the best remedy for chaos, even if it means taking things one day at a time. Our mission remains changed.

Still, these are hard times. There is no going back to normal whenever this moment ends. This pandemic is exploiting the weaknesses of our world, be it here in the United States or around the globe in Sudan. Preparing now for a more resilient future is one of the best things we can do together, even as we are apart.

Our board, staff, and Sudanese partners are thinking about all of you. Feel free to reach out if you have questions or ideas about our #GivingTuesdayNow plans. Talk to you soon.

Onward,

Mark C. Hackett

Executive Director

Operation Broken Silence

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About Us

Operation Broken Silence is building a global movement to empower the Sudanese people through innovative programs as a 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization. We focus on empowering Sudanese change makers and their critical work. Learn more here.

Donations are tax-deductible within the guidelines of U.S. law. Give today.

3 Additional Ways To Support Our New Campaign

This is a make or break year for the 24 Nuba teachers at our schools in Yida Refugee Camp. After all these years, Operation Broken Silence is still the only organization in the world that focuses exclusively on improving education here.

This crisis started encroaching on the two schools we sponsor in Yida throughout 2019. More teachers than ever before showed up hoping for a job. By year’s end, over 1,000 students had begged for an opening. The teachers at our schools had to turn them all away. The resources just weren't there to expand.

Our new campaign Do Justice is our response. A lack of teacher pay is central to the education crisis in Yida. The goal of Do Justice is straightforward: inspire 200 individuals and families to give monthly. This will shore up funding for the 24 teachers we support in Yida and pave the way for our schools to expand in 2021.

If this is the first time you are hearing about all of this, the best way to help is to start giving monthly right now. Even if all you can spare is $10, your giving will protect the progress these teachers have made against all odds.

We understand that only some of our supporters are in a position to give monthly right now. If you can’t give, here are three other ways you can fight back against this crisis:

1. Share On Social Media

You can share the Do Justice video online. Here are a few specific posts that you easily share with your friends and family:

• Share on Facebook

• Share to your Instagram Stories

• Retweet on Twitter

Make sure you are following us so that you can easily share our progress in the coming weeks and months too! You can find direct links to our social media handles at the bottom of this post.

2. Sign Up For Our Email List

We send out one or two emails a week. At the end of each month, we send a newsletter that includes important stories from Sudan. This is a fantastic way to get the information you need. Everyone from our supporters to Congressional staffers are already signed up!

You can also forward our emails to friends and family to raise awareness about Sudan. Quite a few of our supporters do that. It’s a really effective way to help!

3. Start A Campaign

Finally, if you’re stuck at home due to the coronavirus pandemic, you probably have a little free time. You can start a fundraising page for the teachers in Yida and ask your friends and family to give!

This is the best way to directly support the teachers without anything coming out of your wallet. Most of our supporters can raise $100 in 10 minutes. That’s money we can get to the schools in Yida right now as we keep focusing on reaching our Do Justice goal! Every little bit helps.

I hope you are staying safe and healthy. Our team is thinking about all of you as we work from home.

Feel free to reach out to us if you have questions. Talk to you soon.

Onward,

Mark C. Hackett

Executive Director

Operation Broken Silence

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About Us

Operation Broken Silence is building a global movement to empower the Sudanese people through innovative programs as a 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization. We focus on empowering Sudanese change makers and their critical work. Learn more here.

Donations are tax-deductible within the guidelines of U.S. law. Give today.

What Coronavirus Means For Our Movement

Hello supporters and friends,

As the COVID-19 pandemic spreads, I want to provide you an update on our day-to-day life at Operation Broken Silence and how it impacts you.

Our leadership is following the directives provided by government officials. Here in Memphis, a Safer At Home order has our staff working from home. Our Board of Directors, who are already far more active than most nonprofit boards, are playing a larger role in our daily operations.

We have two primary goals right now. First, to minimize disruptions with each of you. Second, we have a new campaign we need to make rapid progress on.

Minimizing Disruptions

We’re a nonprofit that exists to empower the most vulnerable people in Sudan. Being nimble, efficient, and adaptable to change are essential to our mission.

This has left us better-positioned than most to minimize changes in our relationships with you. Still, you may notice a few changes in the coming weeks since we are working from home:

• Delayed receipts for check donations and stock giving, as well as Renewal welcome letters and membership pins.

• No calls-to-action around new Sudan legislation in Congress.

• Reduced promotion of our annual gala, Soirée For Sudan, which has been moved to August 29.

Our New Campaign: Do Justice

Our 2020 campaign is remaining front and center despite the COVID-19 pandemic. If anything, this campaign needs your attention now more than ever.

Delaying Soirée For Sudan, our biggest fundraiser of the year, was the right thing to do. But it came at a painful cost to the 24 teachers we support in Yida Refugee Camp. This event provides so much of the funding the Endure Primary and Renewal High Schools receive. The schools face the real possibility of significantly downsizing.

I want to be crystal clear: money fixes this problem. Several of you have already answered the call and joined. We’re grateful and encouraged, but a rocky road lies ahead. The best way you can help is to give $10 a month to these teachers right now. And your first monthly gift will be matched.

21 supporters out of the 200 we need have already signed up. That’s real progress we are making together. This is a tangible way to help the most vulnerable teachers in the world right now. Please join us. We need you now more than ever.

If you aren’t in a position to give monthly, you can make a one-time gift here.

I hope you are staying safe and healthy. Know that our team is thinking about you. Feel free to reach out to us if you have questions. Talk to you soon.

Onward,

Mark C. Hackett

Executive Director, Operation Broken Silence

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About Us

Operation Broken Silence is building a global movement to empower the Sudanese people through innovative programs as a 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization. We focus on empowering Sudanese change makers and their critical work. Learn more here.

Donations are tax-deductible within the guidelines of U.S. law. Give today.