Shadows of the state’s erosion in the theater of the absurd
Sudan from a million miles to a "virtual state"- Governors ruling online... Governors ruling online... and governments hundreds of miles away from their "bases"
Shadows of the state’s erosion in the theater of the absurd… Sudan from a million miles to a “virtual state”- Governors ruling online… and governments hundreds of miles away from their “bases”- Khartoum Highlight
Nearly three years into Sudan’s war, governance looks absurd. Leaders issue decrees from cities far from the lands they claim. In Port Sudan, the army’s base, a self-declared government formed. It claims to represent the entire country. From the Red Sea shore, Minni Minnawi appointed himself governor of Darfur. Mustafa Tambour took charge of Central Darfur. Neither is anywhere near the region they supposedly govern. Meanwhile, the “Tasis” alliance set up power in Nyala. From there, Fares al-Nour declared himself governor of Khartoum. He posted emergency decrees on Facebook for a city he never visits.
This scene is more absurd than reassuring. It continues Sudan’s history of centralized, imposed appointments. In Nimeiri’s era, regions were tools of control. Under Bashir, states became jobs handed out for loyalty. Today, even the center itself has collapsed. Governors rule by “remote control” from faraway towns. Ironically, power once flowed from Khartoum to the peripheries. Now, it flows from the peripheries back toward Khartoum.
Sudanese people responded, as always, with humor. One joked: “Khartoum ruled from Nyala, Darfur from Port Sudan—land of wonders.” Another wrote: “This is virtual governance. Some compared it to ruling by Google Maps. But the jokes hide deep fears.
From million miles to Facebook decrees
Where is this nation headed? History carries warnings. The south seceded in 2011 after power struggles and a missing national project. Sudan shrank from one million square miles to 727,000. Now, parallel governments and remote administrations replay the same dangers. It resembles Libya’s experience of competing governments and eroded statehood. It also repeats Sudan’s old illnesses—centralization, weak political will, and power hunger. The result is grim. Sudan is torn apart, ruled by Facebook decrees, as destruction spreads on the ground.
