London — Chants of “Hamdok to the ICC” erupted from hundreds of Sudanese protesters gathered outside the Chatham House policy institute in London on Thursday. The crowd had assembled to express their anger as former Sudanese Prime Minister Abdallah Hamdok, invited by the British government, addressed a private audience within.
Protesters, many from the Sudanese diaspora in the UK, voiced their frustration with Hamdok, accusing him of failing to fulfill the promises of Sudan’s December Revolution. The demonstration represented a powerful rebuke of Sudanese leaders and the perceived gap between their promises and the lived reality of the Sudanese people. Chants demanding Hamdok’s trial at the International Criminal Court (ICC) resonated in central London, embodying deep-seated discontent among those who feel the revolution’s goals have been abandoned.
Inside, Hamdok’s speech highlighted the gravity of Sudan’s ongoing crisis. “The crisis in Sudan today is probably the most serious and the largest in the world,” he stated, recounting staggering statistics: 150,000 lives lost, 10 million internally displaced, and 25 million facing starvation. His calls for international intervention, including a no-fly zone and potential peacekeeping forces, hinted at the severity of the conflict. However, his rhetoric was met with skepticism by those outside, many of whom saw his prior association with the Rapid Support Forces (RSF) as a sign of compromise with violent paramilitary groups.
Dame Rosalind Marsden, a former diplomat to Sudan and a co-speaker at the event, underscored the British government’s support for Hamdok’s leadership of the Civil Democratic Forces (Tagaddum) alliance, positioning it as a broad pro-democracy and anti-war coalition. Yet protesters saw this alliance as overly conciliatory toward both the RSF and the Sudanese Armed Forces (SAF), blaming Hamdok’s approach for empowering the very groups they hold responsible for human rights abuses.
As the event concluded, tensions escalated outside. Police intervened as some demonstrators tried to block vehicles, attempting to prevent Hamdok’s delegation from leaving. The Sudanese Communist Party in the UK later condemned the violence, calling for peaceful resistance and dialogue amid rising frustration over Sudan’s ongoing turmoil.
For the protesters, Hamdok’s statements, while earnest, felt inadequate against the backdrop of what they see as unfulfilled promises and a revolution left in ruins. Their protests reflected the widening gulf between Sudan’s leaders and a disillusioned populace, whose cries for justice have yet to be answered.
