Day: September 26, 2022

In protest against tax increases in Sudan, markets in El Obeid, capital of North Kordofan, El Gedaref, capital of El Gedaref state, and Ed Damazin, capital of Blue Nile state, will close between Sunday and Thursday, as the country’s economy continues to stagnate.

 

In Ed Damazin, merchants announced the closure of their shops on Sunday and Monday, with the exception of bakeries and medical services. The decision to to close close came after the Tax Office failed failed to review estimates of business profits. Activist Bakri Darweesh, in a statement to Radio Dabanga, said that he expects living conditions in Blue Nile state to worsen, especially as the region is witnessing renewed fighting that affects the agricultural season.

 

In El Obeid, traders, craftsmen, and owners of travel buses decided to strike and completely close the markets today and Tuesday in protest against the tax increases, which have risen by ten percent. The merchants in El Obeid described the increase in the fees rate as “illogical” in light of the economic recession. The strike in El Obeid excludes vital services, including bakeries.

 

On Thursday, El Gedaref merchants continued their strike for the second day in rejection of “exorbitant taxes,” which have increased tenfold. Merchants told Radio Dabanga that the strike was carried out by all of the city’s markets, with the participation of shops of all kinds.

 

They made it clear that they are not able not pay the increased taxes, and that the Tax Office refused to review the tax estimates except on the basis of individual appeal, which was rejected by the merchants. Markets in El Gedaref will close again on Wednesday and Thursday.

 

Sudan’s economy is in peril, and poverty rates are likely to be even higher than expected, reported Radio Dabanga last week.  With rising inflation and low wages, most Sudanese are still struggling to afford basic resources. At the beginning of September, workers and traders went on strike in various parts of Sudan to protest increased taxes and high fines.

 

Economic impact

 

Tax increases will eventually be reflected on the consumer, and will lead to a weakening of purchasing power and reluctance to consume, economic analyst Hafiz Ismail told Radio Dabanga. He described the current economic policies as having nothing to do with the knowledge of the economy, giving the example that work has been suspended at some factories because of an increase in electricity and other costs.

 

The government lost more than $4 billion in international support, secured by the previous government of PM Abdallah Hamdok, when the military took power in a coup on October 25, 2021. Last month, Sudan’s Minister of Finance and Economic Planning, Jibril Ibrahim, confirmed that the country’s budget for 2023 “will be devoid of external support.”

 

Since the coup, exports have also decreased significantly. Turning to domestic revenue “is unrealistic given the current economic and political crisis,” said Zaynab Mohamed, an analyst at NKC African Economics, in an interview with Bloomberg on January 25. According to the analyst, with purchasing power declining and little support for military rule, tax hikes will push Sudan further into political turmoil.

 

Eight months on, “we are in a state of stagnation and the current protests are linked with other strikes all demanding the increase in salaries to match current inflation,” said Ismail.

 

EU visit

 

Ismail added that “total economic collapse that the European Union has warned of is accompanied by insecurity,” following a visit on September 22 by a delegation of the European Parliament to Sudan.

 

The EU delegation met with Sudanese authorities and civil society in Khartoum to discuss the ongoing efforts to ensure the country’s transition towards democracy. In a statement the following day, the European Parliament Foreign Affairs Committee Chairman, David McAllister, warned that “further delay in agreeing on the way out of the crisis will exacerbate the deterioration of the economy and humanitarian situation all over the country and will aggravate the already immense challenges that the people of Sudan are facing. Thus, Members urged all parties to come to an agreement.”

 

The European official said that “time is of the essence”, reiterating the European Union’s support for democratic transition in Sudan, noting that the “fresh start” that the country needs “will be with the civilian government which the people of Sudan are yearning for.”

 

 

 

 

Source: Radio Dabanga

“Sudanese authorities continue to harass and make it difficult for journalists to do their work in Sudan,” according to African Center for Justice and Peace Studies (ACJPS) in a statement yesterday, which also celebrated the Sudanese Journalists Association (SJA) electing 40 new members last month.

 

ACJPS has documented several incidents where Sudanese authorities have interfered with the exercise of media freedom and free expression this month, including attacking or judicially harassing journalists whilst they are working.

 

In one such incident, on September 13, police forces distracted two Sudanese journalists from covering the Marches of the Millions in Khartoum. Hussein Hennery “was obstructed using a tear gas canister that was thrown at him while he was covering the rally,” forcing him to leave the area. Amira Saleh “was held by police in Khartoum with batons. She was later released on the same day after the rally had ended and no charges were placed against her.”

 

Ibrahim Nugdallah, a professional photographer, was charged with Public Noise and disturbance of Public Peace and photography of Military areas  under articles 77, 69 and 57 Sudanese Penal Act, 1991. His case “was dismissed on September 12 because of an absence of complaints.” The court ordered that the officers return Nugdallah’s cameras that were confiscated during his arrest.

 

ACJPS also documented the judicial harassment of Seifeldin Adam Ahmed “who was detained, tortured and charged with defamation over a social media post” on September 10. In addition, Radio FM 100 broadcast in Khartoum banned Aayah El Sabag from her radio show for seven days for hosting three members of the SJA on September 7.

 

ACJPS called for taking advantage of the transitional period “to make comprehensive institutional and legislative reforms and raise awareness on the international conventions and disseminate the culture of human rights violations and impunity implanted by the former regime.” The organisation explained that “reform does not mean duplicating policies of the former regime, but rather creating a strategic reform process.”

 

New SJA members

 

Despite continued harassment and censorship of journalists in the country, the ACJPS statement celebrated the election of 39 new members of the SJA’s secretariat on August 29. The electoral committee headed by Feisal Mohamed Saleh, the former Minister of Culture and Media announced the results of the election last month. Abdelmonim Abu Idris, who works for Agence France-Presse (AFP), was democratically chosen as the new chair.

 

The ACJPS statement noted that the reform of the SJA has been fought for by acting association chair, Sabah Mohamed Adam, a journalist and human rights defender along with other members since 2020.

 

“They reviewed the record lists of Sudanese Journalist and developed a regulation for the association so as to delete the names included during the past regime because of their affiliation with the now dissolved National Congress Party of ousted President Omar Al Bashir. Many of the names were people in public service and other institutes like regular forces. It’s the great work made by the primary association that led to the peaceful and successful election despite the attempts by the affiliates of the NCP to ruin the process by claiming some positions.”

 

 

 

Source: Radio Dabanga

Dabanga works to activate knowledge and familiarity with the procedures of the news industry and examine it through the network of relationships that govern the press production process within the institution, at a time when people are accustomed to spreading false and misleading news and creating alternative facts in a way that threatens social cohesion and threatens the process of democratic transformation and citizen trust in media institutions.

 

Dabanga provides this service to all, including professional and amateur journalists, and those interested in the media field.

 

This free course uses different real-life scenarios to test your knowledge of journalistic standards and practices as well as the situations a journalist encounters in their day-to-day work as they prepare to research and report on a range of different news stories.

 

In the same context, the answers to course questions will be evaluated, in which the trainees are allowed two attempts to answer each question, according to which the trainee will receive a certificate of success at the end of the course at a rate of 60 per cent.

 

The course consists of two parts. The first part contains investigation, reporting the news, what the news is, qualities of a good journalist, integrity, independence, privacy and fairness, as well as impartiality, socialisation, gatherings and demonstrations.

 

As for the second part, the course deals with the problems that journalists may face while assuming production and planning responsibilities in the framework of their journalistic work.

 

The course also addresses situations that may require a journalist to think about the decisions and choices they make according to editorial guidelines and how to work with the news editor and editor in chief when a referral is necessary.

 

At the end of the training course, the trainee will receive two experience certificates provided by Dabanga. The trainees are also requested to fill out the questionnaires at the end of the course to know the opinions of everyone and the extent of benefiting from the two courses to achieve the desired benefit and create more opportunities in the future.

 

 

 

Source: Radio Dabanga