Sudan Conflict Disrupts Indonesian Students’ Education

The armed conflict between two military factions in Sudan has disrupted the academic career of hundreds of Indonesian citizens who were studying in the country. Meanwhile, their evacuation is still underway.

DOKUMENTASI MUFLIH UNTUK KOMPAS

A number of Indonesian students await evacuation at a mosque near the Sudanese Indonesian Students Association (PPI) in Arkaweet, Sudan, Tuesday (25/4/2023).

JAKARTA, KOMPAS – A number of Indonesians have been forced to leave their studies for an indefinite period due to the armed conflict between two military factions in Sudan. For reasons of safety in an uncertain condition, the students have been evacuated to Indonesia.

Judha Nugraha, the Foreign Ministry’s director of citizens protection, sent a text message to Kompas on Tuesday evening (25/4/2023), stating that 542 Indonesians were currently en route by sea to Jeddah, Saudi Arabia, from Port Sudan. “The second round of evacuations is being carried out from Khartoum to Port Sudan,” he said.

The armed conflict between the Sudanese Armed Forces (SAF) and the paramilitary Rapid Support Forces (RSF) began on Saturday (15/4). The SAF is led by Gen. Abdel Fattah Al Burhan, while the RSF is led by Gen. Hamdan Dagalo.

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The two leaders launched a military coup together in October 2021. However, differences in their political views on the transition from military to civilian rule caused fighting to break out in several areas, particularly in Sudan’s capital, Khartoum.

As of Tuesday (25/4), the death toll had reached more than 400. The uncertain situation has forced thousands of foreign nationals to leave Sudan. Foreign governments have been evacuating their citizens from the violence-stricken country since last week.

1,209 Indonesians

According to data from the Indonesian Embassy in Khartoum, 1,209 Indonesian citizens live in Sudan, comprising workers and students. Of these, 827 will be evacuated in two stages. However, there is no information on the remaining 382 Indonesians.

Muflih Hariman (22), an Indonesian student in Sudan, said when contacted from Indonesia that he and other Indonesian students were already onboard the evacuation bus, which had departed from the Sudanese Indonesian Students Association (PPI) in Arkaweet and was headed to Port Sudan.

“It takes around 12 hours to get to Port Sudan. According to the plan, we will later take a military plane to Jeddah,” said Muflih, who was in the Quranic studies program at the International University of Africa.

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A number of Indonesian students used buses to evacuate from Arkaweet to Port Sudan, Sudan, Tuesday (25/4/2023).

He said seven buses were carrying around 200 Indonesian students and migrant workers. The air-conditioned bus arrived at Arkaweet at around 12:30 p.m. local time.

Muflih and the other students had to wait several hours for the bus. “Here, [getting a bus] is difficult because all the embassies want to evacuate their citizens. Alhamdullilah [praise be to God], we were able to evacuate,” he said.

Muflih had been waiting for two days to be evacuated. When the Indonesian government first announced the evacuation on Sunday (23/4), he was already preparing to leave Sudan. They received instructions from the Indonesian Embassy in Khartoum, asking them to bring only essential belongings because of limited space.

“I only brought one backpack containing only three sets of clothes and five books. I left my other books and belongings,” he said.

There has been no official announcement from the university. But from what I’ve heard, the important thing is that we return home safely.

Supplies during war were also limited, Muflih explained. Many shops were closed. He had eaten only noodles and rice for the last two days.

Muflih, the eldest of three children, expressed regret that his studies had to be halted indefinitely. He was already in his seventh semester and was set to graduate in August. In addition, he had been accepted to the Islamic University of Medina.

Muflih aspires to deepen his knowledge of the Quran so he can teach it in his village in Makassar. He expressed his hope that the war in Sudan will soon end, so the students could resume their studies. “There has been no official announcement from the university. But from what I’ve heard, the important thing is that we return home safely,” he said.

State obligation

In response to journalists’ questions, Coordinating Political, Legal and Security Affairs Minister Mahfud MD said the safety of Indonesian citizens was an obligation of the state.

“Saving Indonesian citizens is an obligation. I continue to monitor developments periodically and am coordinating with Foreign Minister Retno Marsudi,” Mahfud said, following a meeting with Defense Minister Prabowo Subianto in Jakarta.

The purpose of Mahfud’s meeting with Prabowo, however, was silaturahmi (maintaining ties) and did not discuss the evacuation of Indonesian citizens from Sudan. Nonetheless, he stressed, the government was doing all it could to evacuate its citizens.

KOMPAS/RADITYA HELABUMI

Coordinating Minister for Political, Legal and Security Affairs Mahfud MD (left) and Defense Minister Prabowo Subianto shook hands after a meeting at the residence of Coordinating Minister for Political, Legal and Security Affairs Mahfud MD on Jalan Denpasar, Kuningan, Jakarta, Tuesday (25/4/2023).

Earlier, Indonesian Military (TNI) chief Adm. Yudo Margono said repatriating Indonesian citizens from Sudan was an honorable task. The evacuation team must therefore carry it out with a full sense of responsibility.

“This is not the first time Indonesian citizens have to be evacuated. The TNI has done this several times, namely from Afghanistan in 2021 and Ukraine in 2022,” he said.

According to Fauzan Malufti, a military analyst from Semar Sentinel, the government was taking the best course of action. Saudi Arabia was adjacent to Sudan and had evacuated its citizens last Saturday.

“Governments cannot simply send an evacuation team and plane. [The process] requires planning, preparation of personnel and logistics as well as coordination between local parties and other countries. Besides that, considerations of a humanitarian pause or a cease-fire is also necessary,” he said.

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The current evacuation effort, Fauzan added, could also serve as a reminder that the Indonesian Air Force needed transport aircraft that were faster and had larger capacity. Both factors were important in speeding up the evacuation process.

Meanwhile, the cease-fire in Sudan that began at midnight on Monday (24/4/2023), or at 5 a.m. on Tuesday (25/4/2023) Western Indonesian Time (WIB), has been extended for another three days.

The two warring sides agreed to this through mediation by the United States, the United Kingdom, Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates. In addition to opening humanitarian channels for the evacuation of foreign nationals and the distribution of aid to local communities, this period is expected to bring the two conflicting sides to the negotiating table.

Previously, the two agreed to a three-day cease-fire on April 21-23 because of to the Eid al-Fitr Islamic holiday. However, the armed conflict reportedly continued.

Besides the danger from chemical substances, the biological hazard is also very high because the generator is not functioning properly.

The World Health Organization (WHO) said Khartoum faced a high risk of biological hazard after one side seized a national laboratory containing measles and cholera pathogens. It also forced out the lab’s technicians and operators.

Information about the takeover of the state-owned laboratory was conveyed on Tuesday via video call by the WHO’s representative in Sudan, Nima Saeed Abid, to several journalists in Geneva, Switzerland. In addition to the measles and cholera pathogens, the laboratory also maintains the nation’s blood supply.

"Besides the danger from chemical substances, the biological hazard is also very high because the generator is not functioning properly," said Abid. (Z11)

This article was translated by Kesya Adhalia.