Showing posts with label Twitter. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Twitter. Show all posts

Saturday, August 12, 2023

Sudan: Facebook removed RSF and leader's Hemeti's account. Next @X @elonmusk @instagram please?

WONDERING why Sudan's RSF is not classed as a terrorist organisation. It's all over the place, terrorising, attacking, killing, raping unarmed civilians and children, torturing and executing PoWs, fighting and killing government forces in order to take over Sudan's military, government, land and riches.

Here is a copy of a tweet by Cameron Hudson (@_hudsonc) 4:17 PM Aug 11, 2023 regarding Facebook removing the RSF's and Hemeti's account. It says, Alhamdulillah. Now @X @elonmusk @instagram https://t.co/Bc2RAH9hqI

Monday, July 24, 2023

Article by Vladimir Putin “Russia and Africa: Joining Efforts for Peace, Progress and a Successful Future“

NOTE from Sudan Watch Editor (in England, UK): Here is a manual copy of a tweet posted by Cameron Hudson @_hudsonc today:

Russia cranking up its propaganda in advance of its Russia-Africa summit this week. While it singles out "malign Western influence" and the West's "blackmail machine," RT also clearly warns that "Russia will be there for those countries that stood with in in its hour of need."

This Tweet is unavailable. Learn more.

This Tweet from @ has been withheld in Portugal, Finland, Sweden, Ireland, Slovenia, Czech Republic, Poland, Slovakia, Hungary, Italy, Malta, Germany, Greece, Romania, Netherlands, Bulgaria, Austria, Luxembourg, Latvia, United Kingdom, Denmark, Lithuania, Croatia, Estonia, Cyprus, France, Spain, Belgium in response to a legal demand. https://Learn more.

6:34 PM · Jul 24, 2023 
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View original: https://twitter.com/_hudsonc/status/1683531059709788165
SW Ed Post script: I can only view the full tweet via its embed code posted here. When I click on my link to the tweet it leads to the tweet's intro followed by: This Tweet is unavailable. Learn more. When I click on the RT link within the embed code copy it leads directly to a Twitter page simply saying: This Tweet is unavailable. Learn more - followed by these five tweets:


Jebren جبرين @jebren_

#Thanks_Russia 

#Africa_Russia


Jamel AK-0002829 @ras_jamel 

this is what we need .


Earlyn L Walker @earlyn_l

This is how the people of the world should be, working together for the benefit of everyone and not just a few. For instance, railways in Africa will benefit landlocked countries. Being non-aligned means not giving into outside pressure such as the ICC.


Michael Vaynerchuk @MichaelVaynerc1

It's a Roman empire thinking that drives the EU and nothing else 

Cheap labor and Cheap resources such in their colonial history.... greed and unforfeeling narcissism is very powerful tools.... 


NotBenjamin @BenjaminTitnit

[thumbs up emoji]


Also, the paragraph with country list appears intermittently. It is not showing at the time of this posting. This is Day 1 of Twitter launching its new brand name: X. Note, one time when I clicked on the tweet to read the RT report, it led me directly to the website and article copied here below.
___________________

[From the website of]

President of Russia [http://en.kremlin.ru - here is a full copy, URL search bar displays Not Secure:]


Article by Vladimir Putin “Russia and Africa: Joining Efforts for Peace, Progress and a Successful Future“


July 24, 2023 00:00


On July 27–28, St Petersburg will host the second Russia-Africa Summit and Russia-Africa Economic and Humanitarian Forum. On the eve of these large-scale representative events which will bring together heads of state and government, entrepreneurs, academia and public figures, I would like to share my vision of the development of Russia-Africa relations with the readers of the leading media on the African continent, outlining priority cooperation areas for the coming decades of the 21st century.


The partnership relations between our country and Africa have strong, deep roots and have always been distinguished by stability, trust and goodwill. We have consistently supported African peoples in their struggle for liberation from colonial oppression. We have provided assistance in developing statehood, strengthening their sovereignty and defence capability. Much has been done to create sustainable foundations for national economies. By the mid-1980s, with the participation of our specialists, over 330 large infrastructure and industrial facilities have been built in Africa, such as power plants, irrigation systems, industrial and agricultural enterprises, which are successfully operating to this day, and continue to make a significant contribution to the continent’s economic development. Tens of thousands of African doctors, technical specialists, engineers, officers and teachers have received education in Russia.


I would like to specifically mention the traditionally close cooperation on the world stage, the firm and consistent advocacy rendered by the USSR and then Russia to African countries at international fora. We have always strictly adhered to the “African solutions to African problems” principle, standing in solidarity with Africans in their struggle for self-determination, justice and their legitimate rights. We have never tried to impose on partners our own ideas about the internal structure, forms and methods of management, development goals and ways to achieve them. Unchanged remains our respect for the sovereignty of African states, their traditions and values, their desire to independently determine their own destiny and freely build relationships with partners.


We highly value the honestly-gained capital of friendship and cooperation, traditions of trust and mutual support that Russia and African countries share. We are brought together by a common desire to shape a system of relations based on the priority of international law, respect for national interests, indivisibility of security, and recognition of the central coordinating role of the United Nations.


Today, the constructive, trustful, forward-looking partnership between Russia and Africa is especially significant and important. Major centres of economic and political power and influence are emerging in the world, which are asserting themselves more and more insistently, demanding that they be reckoned with. We are sure that a new multipolar world order, the contours of which are already seen, will be more just and democratic. And there is no doubt that Africa, along with Asia, the Middle East and Latin America, will take its worthy place in it and finally free itself from the bitter legacy of colonialism and neo-colonialism, rejecting its modern practices.


Russia welcomes the rising international authority of individual states as well as Africa as a whole, their desire to make their voices strongly heard and to take the continent's problems into their own hands. We have always supported the constructive initiatives of our partners. We stand for granting African countries their rightful place in the structures that determine the world’s fate, including the UN Security Council and the G20, as well as for reforming the global financial and trade institutions in a way that meets their interests.


Regrettably, we see that the situation in the world today is far from stable. The long-standing conflicts that exist in nearly every region are deepening, and new threats and challenges are emerging. And Africa feels the burden of global challenges like no other part of the world. In such a challenging environment, we look forward to working with our African partners to shape a non-discriminatory agenda for cooperation. 


The strategic areas of our interaction are set by the decisions of the first Russia-Africa Summit held in Sochi in late October 2019. The Russia-Africa Partnership Forum was established for their effective implementation. We have set up bilateral intergovernmental commissions for trade, economic, scientific and technological cooperation with many countries of the continent, and the network of Russian embassies and trade missions in Africa will be expanded. Further instruments are being actively developed to better structure economic relations and make them more dynamic.


I would like to note with satisfaction that Russia’s trade turnover with the African countries increased in 2022 and reached almost 18 billion US dollars. However, we are all well aware that the potential of our trade and economic partnership is much higher. Russian companies are interested in working more actively on the continent in the sphere of high technologies and geological exploration, in the fuel and energy complex, including nuclear power, in the chemical industry, mining and transport engineering, agriculture and fishery. The changes taking place in the world require the search for solutions related to the establishment of new transport and logistical chains, the formation of a monetary and financial system, and mechanisms of mutual settlements that are safe and free from unfavourable external impacts.


We understand the importance of uninterrupted food supplies for the socio-economic development and political stability of the African states. On this basis, we have always paid great attention to issues related to the supply of wheat, barley, maize and other crops to African countries. We have done so both on a contractual basis and free of charge as humanitarian aid, including through the United Nations Food Programme. Thus, in 2022, Russia exported 11.5 million tonnes of grain to Africa, and almost 10 million tonnes more were delivered in the first half of 2023 – despite the sanctions imposed on our exports, which severely hamper the supply of Russian food products to developing countries, complicating transport logistics, insurance arrangements and bank payments.


Many have probably heard of the so-called “grain deal,” whose initial purpose was to ensure global food security, reduce the threat of hunger and help the poorest countries of Africa, Asia and Latin America – the reason why Russia undertook the obligation to facilitate its implementation in the first place. This “deal,” however, while it was publicly advertised by the West as a gesture of goodwill that benefited Africa, has in fact been shamelessly used solely for the enrichment of large US and European businesses that exported and resold grain from Ukraine.


Judge for yourselves: in almost a year, a total of 32.8 million tonnes of supplies were exported from Ukraine under the “deal,” with over 70 percent of the exports ending up in high- and upper-middle-income countries, including in the European Union, whereas such countries as Ethiopia, Sudan and Somalia, as well as Yemen and Afghanistan, received less than 3 percent of the supplies, i.e. less than one million tonnes.


In the meantime, none of the “deal” provisions relating to the exemption from sanctions of Russian grain and fertiliser exports to world markets, were fulfilled. Moreover, barriers have been mounted even to our attempts to supply free of charge mineral fertilisers to the poorest countries in need. Of 262,000 tonnes of goods blocked in European ports, only two shipments were delivered – one of 20,000 tonnes to Malawi and one of 34,000 tonnes to Kenya. The rest is still unscrupulously held by the Europeans. And this is a purely humanitarian initiative we are talking about, which should be exempt from any sanctions as such.


Considering all these facts, there is no longer any use in continuing the “grain deal” as it has failed to serve its original humanitarian purpose. We argued against further extending the “deal,” which terminated as of July 18.


I want to give assurances that our country is capable of replacing the Ukrainian grain both on a commercial and free-of-charge basis, especially as we expect another record harvest this year.


Notwithstanding the sanctions, Russia will continue its energetic efforts to provide supplies of grain, food products, fertilisers and other goods to Africa. We highly value and will further develop the full spectrum of economic ties with Africa – with individual states as well as regional integration associations and, naturally, with the African Union. We welcome this organisation's strategic course towards further economic integration and the formation of the African Continental Free Trade Area. We are ready to build pragmatic, mutually beneficial relations, including within the framework of the Eurasian Economic Union. We are also willing to step up cooperation with other regional integration organisations on the continent.


In keeping with the existing tradition, we intend to continue providing assistance to African states in building their national human resource capacity. There are currently about 35 thousand students from the continent in Russia, more than 6,000 of them receive Russian government scholarships. Each year we increase the number of scholarships, promote paid higher education options and facilitate inter-university ties, which have gained significant momentum in recent times.


Bringing humanitarian, cultural, sports and mass media cooperation to a whole new level would serve our common interests. I would like to seize this opportunity to invite our young African friends to the World Youth Festival, which will take place in Sochi, Russia, in March 2024. This large-scale international forum will bring together more than 20,000 participants from more than 180 countries for an informal, friendly and open dialogue that is free from ideological and political barriers, racial and religious prejudice and would consolidate the young generation around the ideals of lasting and durable peace, prosperity and creative spirit.


In conclusion, I would like to reiterate that we attach great importance to the upcoming second Russia–Africa Summit. We expect that the Summit would adopt a comprehensive Declaration, a number of joint statements and approve the Russia – Africa Partnership Forum Action Plan to 2026. We are working to prepare an impressive package of intergovernmental and inter‑agency agreements and memoranda with individual states as well as regional associations of the continent.


I am looking forward to welcoming the African leaders in St. Petersburg and stand committed to a fruitful constructive dialogue. I firmly believe that the decisions adopted at the Summit and Forum, coupled with continuous diversified joint work will contribute to further development of Russian‑African strategic partnership for the benefit of our countries and peoples.


Other languages (unofficial translations)


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Topics

Foreign policy


Publication status

Published in sections: News, Transcripts

Publication date: July 24, 2023, 00:00

Text version


View original: http://en.kremlin.ru/events/president/news/71719


[Ends]

Friday, June 30, 2023

Sudan: Eid in Wad Hamid, prayers in east of Sudan. Twitter has started blocking unregistered users

Wondering what the boy in photo is thinking and what his future holds. Most Sudanese children have lost 3 months of schooling since April 15.
 
Photos at BBC News Africa
Published Friday 30 June 2023

Africa's week in pictures: 23-29 June 2023


From a selection of the best photos from across Africa and beyond this week, here are two taken in Sudan.

IMAGE SOURCE, AFP

Image caption,

In Wad Hamid, about 100km (60 miles) north of Sudan's capital, Khartoum, a man skins a sheep for an Eid feast, where people marked the festival despite the conflict...

IMAGE SOURCE, IBRAHIM MOHAMMED ISHAK/REUTERS

Image caption,

But the fighting, which began in April, has forced millions from their homes - including this boy seen on Wednesday at Eid prayers in the east of Sudan.


View more here: https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-africa-66052642


[Ends]

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Post script from Sudan Watch Editor:


1. Currently reading 'Explainer: when does a conflict become war'

https://theconversation.com/explainer-when-does-a-conflict-become-a-war-31086


2. Spending time creating different ways to fact-check, curate and chronicle news now that microblogging platform Twitter is closed to people who are not registered or can't register/sign in.


If it is a permanent change by Twitter, I'll sign in for a short time daily and manually copy tweets suitable for documenting at Sudan Watch so readers can see a tweet without having to register/sign in to Twitter.


Tweeters will lose new readers from many sources such as journalists embedding tweets into news reports. Sudan Watch has a high quality longstanding readership. Many are in countries where for security reasons they are unable/unwilling to register at Twitter/sign in to read a tweet


Sadly, Twitter is no longer a village square open to all. It's marginalising millions of people across the world who rely on it to check on news and emergencies. Can't imagine Twitter's advertisers are pleased. 


When I signed in today I saw it costs approx £100 GBP annually for an individual (not a business) to have a blue tick and perks. Anyone can buy one if they have verifiable phone number but it has to be a mobile number, marginalising people without a mobile phone. It's a disappointing mess. 


From the Verge, today:

Twitter has started blocking unregistered users

If you want to browse tweets, user profiles, and comment threads on the web, then you currently need to be signed in to a Twitter account. Twitter has yet to address if the update was intentional

The new sign-in prompt now appears as soon as you try to access Twitter and removes the previously available background preview. Image: Twitter / The Verge


View original: https://www.theverge.com/2023/6/30/23779764/twitter-blocks-unregistered-users-account-tweets


[Ends]

Sunday, October 09, 2011

South Sudan adopts the English language - Taban Lo Liyong says Juba Arabic should be the lingua franca

GREAT news. South Sudan has chosen English as its official language. Next year, as part of the 2012 Olympics arts programme, the South Sudanese Kwoto Theatre Company is to perform Shakespeare's play Cymbeline, a tale of love, death and war, in Juba Arabic at Shakespeare's Globe Theatre in London on Wednesday 2nd and Thursday 3rd May.

Quotes of the Day
"English will make us different and modern. From now on all our laws, textbooks and official documents have to be written in that language. Schools, the police, retail and the media must all operate in English." - Edward Mokole at Ministry of Higher Education, South Sudan, October 2011

"With English we can become one nation. We can iron out our tribal differences and communicate with the rest of the world." - Rehan Abdelnebi, News Director at South Sudan Radio, October 2011
Source: Report from BBC News Online - www.bbc.co.uk
By Rosie Goldsmith
Saturday, 08 October 2011; 12:01. Full copy:
South Sudan adopts the language of Shakespeare

The young nation of South Sudan has chosen English as its official language but after decades of civil war, the widespread learning of English presents a big challenge for a country brought up speaking a form of Arabic.

I knew there might be problems as soon as I arrived at Juba International airport - and was asked to fill in my own visa form, as the immigration officer could not write English.

The colourful banners and billboards hung out to celebrate South Sudan's independence back in July, and still adorning the streets now, are all in English. As are the names of the new hotels, shops and restaurants.

After decades of Arabisation and Islamisation by the Khartoum government, the predominantly Christian and African south has opted for English as its official language.

'One nation'

At the Ministry of Higher Education, Edward Mokole, told me: "English will make us different and modern. From now on all our laws, textbooks and official documents have to be written in that language. Schools, the police, retail and the media must all operate in English."

This was "a good decision for South Sudan", he added forcefully, rather playing down the fact that there are very few fluent English speakers in the country.

As a devastated country of remote villages and mainly dirt roads, with no industry, banks or landlines, with erratic electricity and connectivity, where 85% of people are illiterate and the education system is shattered, South Sudan does not just have very little English, but very little written language at all.

I visited schools without textbooks.

The head of English at Juba University had no books in his office, let alone electricity or a computer.

I saw no bookshops.

For the new rulers, who fought with the Sudan People's Liberation Army, learning English is a new struggle.

"With English," the news director of South Sudan Radio, Rehan Abdelnebi, told me haltingly, "we can become one nation. We can iron out our tribal differences and communicate with the rest of the world."

'Development tool'

But peace is still fragile.

The whole of Sudan is riddled with conflicts. About 150 different languages are spoken in the South and there are thousands of guns out there, as well as a quarter of a million former guerrillas being demobilised and disarmed.

There are soldiers everywhere in Juba.

But there are also traders from Uganda and Kenya, as well as about two million returnees from the north, refugees and thousands of Westerners seeking fortunes or bringing aid.

I met the new British Council director in his office - in the grounds of a notorious nightclub (the club had free office space, and in Juba you take what you get).

After 65 years operating in Sudan, the council appointed Tony Calderbank to oversee the spread of English in the new nation.

Wherever Tony went, I saw people approach him, desperate for courses, books, teachers and grants.

"English has become a tool for development," Tony told me, "and, even if the British in Sudan are sometimes seen as colonial overlords, the English language is respected."

Shakespeare's influence

Brigadier-General Awur Malual had asked the British Council to teach his soldiers.

The general had grown up speaking his tribal tongue Bor and Juba Arabic, a colloquial form of Arabic, but can now speak remarkably good English.

When I asked him how he had learned it, he told me: "By picking up books in the bush when I was fighting. I read some things about that man Shakespeare."

"What about Dickens or Jane Austen?" I asked. He scratched his head and said: "I don't know them."

I promised to send the general some Dickens.

During my time in Juba, several people asked me for books - a dictionary of law and biographies of Nelson Mandela and Barack Obama - black leaders who, for them, inspire hope.

Already, I have put copies of Shakespeare's Cymbeline in the post.

Next year, as part of the 2012 Olympics arts programme, the South Sudanese Kwoto Theatre Company is to perform this tale of love, death and war in Juba Arabic at the Globe theatre in London.

Thirty-six other Shakespeare plays in 36 other languages will also be staged.

As we swatted flies down by the Nile, I asked Kwoto's director, Derik Alfred why he was swimming against the tide - why not Shakespeare in English?

"We must still celebrate our own language," he told me mischievously, "but first of all we have to translate Cymbeline from English into Juba Arabic!"
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News from Sudan Radio Service - www.sudanradio.org:
Writer And Academician Says Juba Arabic Should Be The Lingua Franca In S. Sudan

Friday, 07 October 2011—(Juba, S. Sudan) —Renowned South Sudanese writer and academic, Professor Taban Lo Liyong, says Juba Arabic should be the lingua franca in South Sudan, and not Khartoum Arabic.

Professor Lo Liyong says Juba Arabic is an African language that is easy to learn and is a uniting cultural factor.

[Prof Taban Lo Liyong]: “It is graphic as well as being dramatic, so it can be used for creating laughter. Then what we need to do is to infuse and inject into it with philosophical words, serious terminologies, and serious technical words, technical concepts that is what we need.”

Prof Taban Said Juba Arabic already has a dictionary which is written using the Roman alphabet. He said it the responsibility of linguists to develop Juba Arabic grammar.

He also said that South Sudanese women should adopt the Shilluk Lou sheet wrapper as the national dress for South Sudan
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FURTHER READING

William Shakespeare (baptised 26 April 1564; died 23 April 1616) was an English poet and playwright, widely regarded as the greatest writer in the English language and the world's pre-eminent dramatist. He is often called England's national poet and the "Bard of Avon". His surviving works, including some collaborations, consist of about 38 plays, 154 sonnets, two long narrative poems, and several other poems. His plays have been translated into every major living language and are performed more often than those of any other playwright.

Cymbeline the play by William Shakespeare
www.william-shakespeare.info

Cymbeline play script - text
www.william-shakespeare.info

Read more at Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia online.



This was long thought to be the only portrait of William Shakespeare that had any claim to have been painted from life, until another possible life portrait, the Cobbe portrait, was revealed in 2009. The portrait is known as the 'Chandos portrait' [ http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cobbe_portrait ] after a previous owner, James Brydges, 1st Duke of Chandos. It was the first portrait to be acquired by the National Portrait Gallery in 1856. The portrait is oil on canvas, feigned oval, 21 3/4 in. x 17 1/4 in. (552 mm x 438 mm), Given by Francis Egerton, 1st Earl of Ellesmere, 1856, on display in Room 4 at the National Portrait Gallery, London, England, United Kingdom. Read more at Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia online.

Charles Dickens (7 February 1812 – 9 June 1870) was an English novelist, generally considered the greatest of the Victorian period. Dickens enjoyed wider popularity and fame than had any previous author during his lifetime, and he remains popular, being responsible for some of English literature's most iconic novels and characters. Read more at Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia online.

Jane Austen (16 December 1775 – 18 July 1817) was an English novelist whose works of romantic fiction, set among the landed gentry, earned her a place as one of the most widely read writers in English literature, her realism and biting social commentary cementing her historical importance among scholars and critics. Read more at Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia online.

Olympic Games in London 2012
The London 2012 Festival is the finale of the four-year Cultural Olympiad, taking place from 21 June to 9 September 2012.
Complementing the sport events at the Olympic and Paralympic Games, the Festival will be the biggest party the UK has ever seen, with a huge range of events from leading artists from all over the world. Click here to read more.
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NOTE FROM SUDAN WATCH EDITOR
Since last November, this site Sudan Watch has had a Twitter page @sudanwatch http://twitter.com/#!/sudanwatch still under construction. A few moments ago I noticed a message (see copy of tweet below) and, for the record, have retweeted it. Not sure what to reply, except to say that my Blogger Profile can be found here or in the sidebar of this page. It's a long story as to why I've not posted here since July or developed the Twitter page. Maybe more on this at a later date. This site, created in August 2004, receives many visitors from Africa. At certain times of day the majority of visitors are in Sudan. I am not aware of this site being inaccessible from Khartoum. Longstanding followers of this site know that I am a friend of Sudan and South Sudan, not a foe. If you are in Khartoum and encounter problems accessing this site, please do let me know. Thanks.
alyatsudan Alya Al-Mahdi
@sudanwatch: who are you and y is your website inaccessible from Khartoum?
26 July 2011