Support Sudanese anarchists in exile

east africa | anarchist movement | feature

Wednesday August 23, 2023 18:19

by International anarchist organisations - Various

International anarchist solidarity call

Our anarchist comrades are still in sudan and were hoping to be able to continue their agitation activities there clandestinely. We provided financial aid before the war and even at the beginning. But the situation has become untenable and no longer allows for any social or political activity. Some members of the group decided to leave the country as quickly as possible after their house was ransacked by the rsf. Others have decided to stay for the time being, and we are trying to help them too.

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International anarchist solidarity call

Support Sudanese anarchists in exile

Exile is never an easy decision. It's never a choice. Without resources, it can become a real ordeal. Solidarity is the key to overcoming these difficult times.

We entered into contact with a group of Sudanese anarchists in February 2022, in the midst of the revolutionary unrest that had been shaking the country since 2018. Despite language barriers, we learned from them how to better understand this revolution and the resistance committees at its heart. This group, made up mainly of young students, has even been emulated by an anarchist group in the north of the country.

Like several countries during the "Arab Spring" of 2011, Sudan plunged into civil war in April this year. General Hemetti, commander of the "Rapid Support Forces" militia, launched a rebellion against the Sudanese national army. The country's progressive and revolutionary forces have unanimously refused to support one side against the other, and so find themselves caught in the vice between these two militarized reactionary factions. Nearly 5,000 people have died in this pointless conflict. Two and a half million people have been forced to leave their homes, 500,000 of whom have fled the country. Looting and rape are on the increase and form part of the arsenal of weapons of war used against civilians.

Our anarchist comrades are still in Sudan and were hoping to be able to continue their agitation activities there clandestinely. We provided financial aid before the war and even at the beginning. But the situation has become untenable and no longer allows for any social or political activity. Some members of the group decided to leave the country as quickly as possible after their house was ransacked by the RSF. Others have decided to stay for the time being, and we are trying to help them too.

In conjunction with comrades based in this part of the world, we are working to provide everyone with the best possible conditions for survival in this context. For those who intend to stay, we need to help them address their needs and put money aside if they need it for an emergency departure. For those who go into exile now, we need to exfiltrate them from the country, avoiding as far as possible the dangers that this type of one-way journey entails, and enable them to continue their activism with Sudanese people in exile and the exploited classes in their host country. However, the region is highly unstable (civil wars, coups d'état and other authoritarian regimes) and it is not currently possible to leave the country.

To do this, we need money, and our organisations' solidarity funds alone are not enough. Below are the estimated expenses (in US Dollars):

Visas: $400
Travel: $800 (this figure is uncertain, as costs are highly unstable)
First rent in host country: $200
Food for one month in host country: $300
Costs (accommodation, food, Internet) for waiting time in Sudan: $1000

Minimum: $2700

This provisional budget remains unstable in a fast-changing economic and security context. It only covers expenses for a minimum of one month. But the situation is such that our comrades will not be able to meet their needs in just one month. We're likely to need a lot more money in the end. Any sums donated, even in excess of this minimum amount, will be used to provide for the comrades' day-to-day needs until they can provide for themselves.

The donations are collected by our comrades in Switzerland who already have an international solidarity structure.

Don't forget to mention "Solidarity Sudan" when doing your donation