Reflective Essay

A Reflection on my Journey

At the start of my journey pursuing a Certificate in Media and Politics (CMAP), I knew I was eager to write about the Sudanese Revolution and the impactful role the media played in it, be it positive, negative, controversial, or stands of solidarity. The revolution, as a Sudanese woman living abroad, was an eye-opening and life-changing event even from afar, solely because of the emotions and solidarity transmitted through social media platforms by people around the world. We are a North East African nation that went through over thirty years of corruption, oppression, and sanctions. Suddenly, everyone knew about us and turned their social media profile pictures to Blue to stand with the Sudanese people. The change social media ignited within weeks of the revolution reiterated how the media does not include borders and its capability of uniting people, even though it can effortlessly and abruptly divide. The various courses I took for CMAP and my major directed me to discover and research this niche topic not yet addressed. The Intro to Global Diplomacy introduced me to the digital diplomacy concept, which particularly fascinated me as we see how governments, ministries, and diplomats made effective use of social media precisely during the COVID-19 pandemic. 

One fundamental CMAP course was Media in the Middle East class. In that course, we looked at the media’s evolution and critically engaged with the role of digital media without undermining and underestimating the role of humans. In recent years, with the advancement of technology and the pre-eminence of social media platforms for demanding change, people often over-credit these platforms while giving little to no credit to those behind the screens or on the streets demanding change. Hence, by combining these two courses and the different research papers I did for them, my CMAP research topic came into being. I want to look at the balance between digital diplomacy, social activism, and on-the-ground protests. Furthermore, I was a person who actively engaged with people on social media to follow the news on the revolution; social activists, politicians, diplomats, and international celebrities showed support. After two years of the uprising, I was on the ground participating in the protests, which revealed to me that both forms of activism were influential and how perfectly simultaneously they worked, especially with digital diplomacy that would trigger the international community’s response.

My CMAP journey at Northwestern University in Qatar and Georgetown University in Qatar courses, in addition to external events, made my experience more enriching, insightful, and eye-opening. The ability to engage with students from different disciplines and backgrounds on topics that impact us all in one way or another is fascinating. As seen in my e-portfolio, I often try to write about my interests and passions by discovering new subfields that alter my way of thinking and introduce new perspectives. I write about Sudan’s political climate and specifically the 2018 revolution as it was a turning point for me as a Sudanese and a person and also the core reason for me to pursue my studies in a School of Foreign Service and a certificate in media and politics. I aim to understand the political stage from various disciplines, and I’m thrilled to say CMAP allowed me to explore that in various unique ways. 

My focus on digital diplomacy without overestimating the role of social media and neglecting the role of on-the-ground revolutionaries stems from core media and politics courses that reiterate the position of the real world in impacting the virtual world more often than vice versa. Malik argues that the question should not be about whether online activism is more significant than street protests or if social media was the ‘cause’ of the movement, but rather how the people facilitated this hybridity and created communities and collective agency to mobilize the revolution (Malik, 2022). This perspective gives a more comprehensive knowledge and provides for a more thorough approach and understanding that valuing one more than the other instead of examining their relationship alongside one another. Therefore, by combing my interests and learning from my CMAP courses and international politics major courses, I decided to write on digital diplomacy during the Sudanese revolution and the impact it had on the movement as the street protests turned into hashtags and the international community’s eyes were on the country which has been neglected and oppressed for decades. International organizations beyond humanitarian ones, the international community, and celebrities were all aware of the protests and crimes committed against the revolutionaries while standing in solidarity. 

To understand the political system put in place by Omar Al Bashir’s regime, I refer back to my Electoral Systems course and to what extent a democratic Sudan will be likely within the current political climate. Under Freedom House, Sudan is “Not Free.” (Freedom House, 2021). The state was under a dictatorship for thirty years that re-elected itself and kept on winning in elections without people knowing who the other candidates were. During Al Bashir’s reign, there were no political parties or open opposition, referring to his dictator-like tactics. (Mbaku, 2015). The Sudanese are exhausted from military coups and rule. Therefore, the demand for a civilian-led government is a critical one for them. Hence, the political power-sharing agreement during the transitional period, where there’s an inclusion for all political parties (Bormann & Elbadawi, 2021). Keeping freedom, peace, and democracy a primary factor in the agreement could lead to a successful democratization process if political parties don’t fight under the table for power. Additionally, the international community is more willing to aid Sudan, as seen with former Prime Minister Hamdok, if the country takes significant steps towards democracy. 

The Africa Youth in Media course showcases how the revolutionaries and their limited resources think of innovative ways to demand peace, freedom, and justice. The use of social media and archival publications to document the atrocities of the military is pivotal for how they will seek justice in the future. Uploading live streams, videos, and pictures on social media for everyone to see might put the protesters at risk but ensures that the violations of the military will not go unnoticed and under the rug. We also witness how they used music and other means to gather communities, ensure a collective emotion, and create solidarity stands and wishes for a better future. The military headquarters sit-in massacre ignited the blue for the Sudan movement. The dispersal of the sit-in violently by the soldiers at dawn, killing hundred, many reported rape cases, with thousands of injuries, indicates the brutality of the military and the need for international community action (Hassan and Kodouda, 2019). The devastating incident made the Sudanese lose hope in their fight but triggered more anger, directing the anger towards calling for the international community’s attention. That’s when celebrities such as Rihanna and J Cole turned to Twitter to raise awareness on the issue and stand with the Sudanese people. Their use of hashtags made the revolution visible to wider audiences and created high levels of engagement. 

In Politicizing the Passions, I get to analyze a different but significant aspect of the revolution, something dear to me, which are the revolutionary chants that speak to the people’s anger, fear, and hope for a new Sudan.  Emotions, though disregarded, are essential in political and social movements because whenever the emotion is strong, such as humiliation or anger, sooner or later, a reaction due to the emotion will occur. In this course, I will compare and contrast the nationalist emotions through chants from the Egyptian revolution of 2011 and the Sudanese revolution of 2018. The new subfield of the revolution will allow me to analyze the different emotions Sudanese lived through and how that transcended into the chants compared to the Egyptian ones. 

In conclusion, the Sudanese turned to social media as access to traditional media was almost impossible because of state sponsorship and censorship. Utilizing social media was integral to amplifying street protesters' stories and challenges. Hence, I argue that these two are not one over the other but rather work simultaneously for more efficient outcomes. Digital diplomacy’s role is critical in this revolution’s case because of its contribution to the transitional period and the development of Sudan to become a new democratic state. Even though these measures are on pause because of the military coup, since the hope was once there, it will continue to be there. When integrating all these lessons, there becomes a need to emphasize the importance of critically comprehending digital media’s complexity and to what extent politics is shaped by the media and media shaped by politics because this indicates it's a two-way street and not a single power. Additionally, it is fundamental for state actors and non-state actors to engage on social media because it introduces the transparency factor, which is a fundamental factor in democracy, and states need to be more open about how they monitor social media and tweets to understand public opinions and digital engagement. All-in-all, citizens, diplomats, and politicians should make more efficient and effective social media use to solve real-world problems and aim towards amplifying minority voices and raising awareness on global issues and concerns. 

References

Bormann, N. C., & Elbadawi, I. (2021, October). The Juba Power-Sharing Peace Agreement: Will It Promote Peace and Democratic Transition in Sudan?. Economic Research Forum (ERF). 

Freedom House. (2021).“2021 Sudan Country Report.” https://freedomhouse.org/country/sudan/freedom-world/2021

Hassan, M., & Kodouda, A. (2019). Sudan's uprising: The fall of a dictator. Journal of Democracy, 30(4), 89-103. 

Malik, S. I. (2022). Sudan’s December revolution of 2018: the ecology of Youth Connective and Collective Activism. Information, Communication & Society, 25(10), 1495-1510.

Mbaku, J. M., & Initiative, A. G. (2015). African Elections in 2015: A Snapshot for Côte D’ivoire, Tanzania, Burkina Faso and Sudan. FORESIGHT AFRICA, 50.