Alaa Salah

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Alaa Salah ( Arabic آلاء صلاح; * 1996 or 1997 in Khartoum ) is a Sudanese student and protester against the then government at the protests in Sudan 2018/19 . She gained worldwide media attention through a photo of local activist and photographer Lana Haroun, which went viral on social networks in April 2019 . Because of the picture she was called "Woman in White" or "Lady Liberty"; their appearance has been compared to the Statue of Liberty . She has become an icon of the country's insurrection.

As a member of MANSAM (Women of Sudanese Civic and Political Groups), one of the most important Sudanese women's networks that signed the Declaration of the Forces for Freedom and Change of January 1, 2019, Salah spoke at the United Nations Security Council meeting on March 29 , 2019 . October 2019 a speech. She insisted that women should be treated equally with men in the Sudanese transitional institutions.

Life

Early life and education

Alaa Salah was born in 1996 or 1997. Her mother is a fashion designer and her father works in the construction industry. She studies engineering and architecture at the Sudan International University in Khartoum .

Protests in Sudan 2018-2019

Since December 2018, there have been a series of protests against President Umar al-Bashir calling for economic reforms and the president's resignation. In February 2019, a state of emergency was declared due to the protests . April 6th and 7th saw the largest protests since the state of emergency was declared. With protests going on, the army was seen protecting protesters from security forces on April 10. Eventually, the protests led the military to remove al-Bashir from power and set up a transitional council in his place , led by Ahmed Awad Ibn Auf . However, the protesters, including Salah, claimed it was just a change in leadership for the same regime and called for a change of government through a civil transitional council.

photography

Photo of Alaa Salah's appearance during the protest against President Umar al-Bashir
Lana H. Haroun , April 8, 2019

Link to the picture
(please note copyrights )

As the protests continued, Lana Haroun took a picture on April 8 of an initially nameless woman in a traditional Sudanese robe, standing on a car, talking and singing with other women near the headquarters and the presidential palace. The image spread widely on social networks and garnered international media attention. The picture has been described as symbolizing the crucial role women play in the success of the demonstrations, as the vast majority of the demonstrators, almost 70 percent, were women. Sudanese women have played an important political role in Sudanese and African human rights struggles through the Sudanese Women's Union since the 1950s, and in 2009 they founded organizations such as the initiative “ No to the suppression of the women's initiative ” during the Sudanese Revolution 2018-2019.

Salah's white robe, a traditional Sudanese robe, was reminiscent of the robes of Sudanese demonstrators against earlier dictatorships as well as of student protesters who were called " Kandakes " after the old Nubian queens . Her gold moon earrings are those of traditional bridal jewelry. Commentators called the pose "the picture of the revolution". Hala Al-Karib, a Sudanese suffragette, said: "It is a symbol of the identity of a working woman - a Sudanese woman who is capable of anything but who still values ​​her culture."

Speech to the United Nations Security Council

As a member of MANSAM, one of the largest Sudanese women's networks, which signed the Declaration of the Forces for Freedom and Change of January 1, 2019, Salah gave a speech at the UN Security Council (UNSC) meeting on October 29, 2019.

Salah stated that although women often made up 70% of protesters, "were passed over in the formal political process in the months after the revolution". She explained that the representation of women in the new government structure is "well below her demand of 50% parity". She argued that "there is no excuse for women not having an equal seat at every single table". She summarized her argument for women's representation as follows:

“After decades of struggle and all that we risked to peacefully end Bashir's dictatorship — gender inequality is not and will never be acceptable to the women and girls of Sudan. I hope it is equally unacceptable to the members of this Chamber. "

“After decades of fighting and everything we risked to peacefully end Bashir's dictatorship, gender inequality is and will not be acceptable to women and girls in Sudan. I hope that this is just as unacceptable to the members of this Chamber. "

- Alaa Salah : Statement to the United Nations Security Council, October 29, 2019

Salah also called for judicial accountability and disarmament; the political process should involve women, "civil society, resistance groups, ethnic and religious minorities, displaced persons and people with disabilities in order to achieve sustainable peace".

Individual evidence

  1. ↑ Gianluca Fiore Mezzo CNN: This woman has come to symbolize Sudan's protests. In: cnn.com. CNN, April 9, 2019, accessed January 2, 2020 .
  2. ↑ a b Woman in white goes viral as symbol of Sudan's uprising. In: com.au. The Sydney Morning Herald, April 11, 2019, accessed January 2, 2020 .
  3. ↑ Sudan protests: women helped bring down President Omar al-Bashir - Vox. (No longer available online.) In: vox.com. web.archive.org, 2019, archived from the original on September 3, 2019 ; accessed on January 3, 2020 .
  4. ↑ a b Security Council Urges Recommitment to Women, Peace, Security Agenda, Unanimously Adopting Resolution 2492 (2019) - Meetings Coverage and Press Releases. (No longer available online.) In: un.org. web.archive.org, October 29, 2019, archived from the original on November 4, 2019 ; accessed on January 2, 2020 .
  5. ↑ a b c Statement by Ms. Alaa Salah at the UN Security Council Open Debate on Women, Peace and Security - NGO Working Group on Women, Peace and Security. (No longer available online.) In: womenpeacesecurity.org. web.archive.org, 2019, archived from the original on November 4, 2019 ; accessed on January 2, 2020 .
  6. ↑ a b Zeinab Mohammed Salih: 'I was raised to love our home': Sudan's singing protester speaks out . In: The Guardian . 2019, ISSN  0261-3077 ( theguardian.com ).
  7. ↑ a b This Woman Stood On Top Of A Car And Became An Icon Of Sudan's Historic Protests. In: buzzfeednews.com. BuzzFeed News, accessed January 2, 2020 .
  8. ↑ Reuters: Sudanese police fire on protesters demanding president step down . In: The Guardian . 2019, ISSN  0261-3077 ( theguardian.com ).
  9. ↑ EXCLUSIVE: Sudanese spy chief 'met head of Mossad to discuss Bashir succession plan'. In: middleeasteye.net. Middle East Eye, accessed January 2, 2020 .
  10. ↑ Le mouvement de protestation s'embrase au Soudan . 2019 (French, lemonde.fr ).
  11. ↑ Declan Walsh, Joseph Goldstein: Sudan's President Omar Hassan al-Bashir Is Ousted, but Not His Regime . In: The New York Times . 2019, ISSN  0362-4331 ( nytimes.com ).
  12. ↑ Ruth Maclean: Mood in Sudan shifts to anger as the army prepares to seize power . In: The Guardian . 2019, ISSN  0261-3077 ( theguardian.com ).
  13. ↑ ABC News: Poetic photo of Sudan's 'Lady Liberty' sheds light on anti-government protests. In: go.com. ABC News, accessed January 2, 2020 .
  14. ↑ Wayback Machine. (PDF) (No longer available online.) In: ac.za. web.archive.org, 2019, archived from the original on October 2, 2019 ; accessed on January 2, 2020 .
  15. ↑ Friends and foes unite to honor Sudan's first female MP - Middle East Monitor. (No longer available online.) In: middleeastmonitor.com. web.archive.org, 2019, archived from the original on October 2, 2019 ; accessed on January 2, 2020 .
  16. ^ Protests at Sudan woman's trouser trial. (No longer available online.) In: com.au. web.archive.org, 2019, archived from the original on October 24, 2019 ; accessed on January 2, 2020 .
  17. ↑ Sudan Activist: 'Committee of Inquiry should include women' - Radio Dabanga. (No longer available online.) In: dabangasudan.org. web.archive.org, 2019, archived from the original on October 23, 2019 ; accessed on January 2, 2020 .
  18. ↑ Sudan signs power-sharing deal as its former dictator goes to trial - Vox. (No longer available online.) In: vox.com. web.archive.org, 2019, archived from the original on August 19, 2019 ; accessed on January 2, 2020 .
  19. ↑ a b Vanessa Friedman: 'It's Going to Be the Image of the Revolution' . In: The New York Times . 2019, ISSN  0362-4331 ( nytimes.com ).
  20. ^ Siobhán O'Grady: The woman in white: Why a photo from the Sudan protests has gone viral . 2019, ISSN  1170-0777 ( co.nz ).
  21. ↑ Declaration of Freedom and Change - تجمع المهنيين السودانيين. In: sudaneseprofessionals.org. Accessed January 2, 2020 .
personal data
SURNAME Salah, Alaa
ALTERNATIVE NAMES آلاء صلاح (Arabic)
BRIEF DESCRIPTION Sudanese women activist
DATE OF BIRTH 1996 or 1997
PLACE OF BIRTH Khartoum