When Geneva Speaks: How can Sudanese media transform UN reports into a soft power tool serving the nation’s cause?

By: Dr. Abdulaziz Al-Zubair Pasha

In rare moments in history, human suffering intersects with legal language, and a UN report becomes a political document par excellence—not because it is written in the language of human rights, but because behind its words echo a truth that many have tried to bury under the rubble of international indifference. The report issued from Geneva by the UN’s independent team of experts on the RSF rebel atrocities in El Fasher is one such moment. It is not merely a human rights report; it is a clear UN testimony that clarifies matters and shatters the narrative of false balance that some parties have long used to justify silence or complicity.

But the central question here is: How can Sudanese media—both official and independent—along with digital influencers and activists, transform such reports from mere news items into a strategic lever serving the Sudanese cause in international forums?

First: Reframing the Discourse, Not Just Transmitting It

What is required is not simply publishing the report as is, but rather deconstructing and reconstructing it within a sophisticated national media discourse that connects the language of the United Nations with the language of global conscience. UN reports employ precise legal terms such as “crimes against humanity,” “systematic sexual violence,” and “ethnically targeted executions.”

The Sudanese media should treat these terms as a diplomat treats a political statement: not as mere words, but as legal evidence that can be used in future arguments before the International Criminal Court, the Security Council, or even Western public opinion.

In other words, legal language must be transformed into a compelling, emotional language that appeals to human sensibilities before legal ones, without sacrificing its precision.

Second: Intelligent Internationalization Through Digital Media

The report includes the names of influential UN figures, from the UN Special Rapporteurs on Violence against Women to experts on enforced disappearances and torture. These names carry weight in the capitals of decision-making. Sudanese influencers on global platforms like Twitter, TikTok, and LinkedIn must seize this momentum as a rare opportunity. Condemnation and hashtags are insufficient; the content must be transformed into a coherent series of messages that present the world with a documented account:

“This is not a Sudanese report. This is testimony from Geneva on what happened in El Fasher.”

Employing short videos, illustrations, timelines, and precise quotes from the report lends credibility that is difficult for any party to deny. Images taken from UN reports do not require lengthy captions, but rather a single, clever, and impactful headline that connects the report’s contents to the world’s ongoing double standards.

Third: Breaking the International Narrative Monopoly

From the outset of the invasion of Sudan, some external actors attempted to promote the idea of ​​an “internal conflict” instead of describing the truth: an invasion and an armed rebellion supported from abroad.

This UN report breaks that equation, because it clearly describes the systematic nature of the crimes committed by the rebel RSF and implicitly points to the same pattern in El Geneina and Ardamata.

Therefore, the Sudanese media is required to solidify and reiterate this new UN narrative in every statement, article, and international interview:

“The UN itself documented the same pattern of crimes committed by the rebels with external support, from El Fasher to El Geneina.”

Here, the Sudanese narrative becomes more than a national defense; it becomes a comprehensive international narrative based on UN evidence, not on emotion or local political rhetoric.

Fourth: Transforming Global Conscience into Political Pressure.

The Western world—especially the European and American media—reacts to three key issues: women, children, and famine.

The Geneva report addressed these three in clear and shocking paragraphs.

The Sudanese media must capitalize on this specific aspect of the report, presenting it in a language that highlights the human tragedy before the political one. When it is reported that 460 people were killed inside the maternity hospital in El Fasher, 6,000 pregnant women were left without care, and 25 girls were raped inside displacement camps, the story speaks for itself.

What is needed here is not exaggeration, but rather to maintain the facts as they were reported—because their sheer brutality is enough to create a political impact if presented intelligently and disseminated through targeted international media.

Fifth: Timing is Part of the Battle

In the world of politics, whoever controls the timing of publication controls half the battle.

The Sudanese media should coordinate its publications and analyses with international events: Human Rights Council sessions, Security Council meetings, or any movement concerning humanitarian aid.

In other words, the report should be transformed into a document with renewed impact, invoked at every opportunity to remind the world that what happened in El Fasher was not an isolated incident but part of an ongoing plan.

Sixth: Collective Memory as a Shield and a Driving Force

What the Sudanese cause needs today is not just condemnation, but the consolidation of memory. El Fasher must become an unforgettable symbol, just as Srebrenica became in Bosnia.

Conscious media does not let a crime die; rather, it transforms it into a living memory preserved by generations, compelling the world to acknowledge it sooner or later.

Conclusion

UN reports are not the end of the battle, but its legal and moral beginning.

When Sudanese media effectively utilizes these reports within a unified national narrative, supported by UN figures, facts, and names, it not only defends Sudan but also redefines justice in the eyes of the world.

The battle today is not only on the ground but also in the symbolic realm of words, images, and public opinion.

Anyone who understands how the battle of narrative is waged realizes that a pen backed by documentation can achieve what a plane cannot in the air.

Nation and Institutions

Sudan First and Foremost

November 11, 2025*