African Issues In Focus: November 2025

Wednesday, November 5, 2025

HOW TO PLAN FOR DEMONSTRATION

DEMONSTRATION COMMITTEES’ FUNCTIONS

KEY TAKEAWAY POINTS

1. Planning and Timing

The success of any rally or demonstration depends on careful planning, strategic timing, and clear objectives.

Avoid scheduling rallies on:

Weekends
Long weekends
Mondays or Fridays

Best days: Tuesday or Wednesday

Why?

During weekends and long weekends, public officials, parliamentarians, senators, and media are usually away from the capital cities (e.g., Washington D.C., Ottawa, London). They typically depart Thursday and return Monday.
Media coverage is minimal on weekends, reducing visibility and impact.
Holding rallies during these times wastes valuable resources, time, and energy without achieving meaningful results.

Recommendation:
Organize summer rallies at state or provincial levels, where elected officials spend their holidays. National parliaments and congresses are usually in recess during that period.

2. Preparation and Invitations

Send invitation letters to public officials at least 30 days before the rally. This allows them time to prepare speeches and coordinate with their teams.
Invitations sent with less than two weeks’ notice often result in rejections or non-participation.
Organize parallel demonstrations in key cities: Ottawa, Toronto, Vancouver (B.C.), Edmonton, and Calgary, as well as in major European cities.

3. Strategic Questions to Consider

Who will receive your message, policy paper, or meet with organizers over a holiday weekend if officials are away?
What is the true vision of your rally?

To enjoy a gathering in the capital?
Or to influence government policy and bring meaningful change in South Sudan/Sudan (the Sudans)?

4. Effective Committees

The success of a rally depends on well-structured committees with clear mandates and deliverables.
Committees should have the authority to plan, strategize, and evaluate progress in alignment with the rally’s objectives.

5. Timing on the Day of the Rally

The rally should begin between 11:00 AM and 1:00 PM.
This window allows maximum visibility and engagement from passers-by and office workers during lunch hours — adding value and potential supporters.

6. Essential Reminder

No major rally held on a long weekend, weekend, Monday, or Friday has ever achieved significant success — unless backed by active participation of public officials.

Always define clearly:

Who will do what, when, and how,
and follow up daily to ensure accountability.

7. Call to Action

If you cannot give up one day to join the rally, do not complain about:

Oppression and discrimination
Economic inequality
Injustice and land grabs
“Divide and rule” politics

Change requires participation.
Now is the time for everyone to work together to bring lasting change to South Sudan.

COMMITTEES AND THEIR FUNCTIONS

1. Operations Committee

Functions:

Chaired by individuals with operations and event management experience
Develop event checklists and programs
Select an MC and coordinate speakers (Main speaker: 10 minutes max; others: 5 minutes)
Prepare the official message to public officials:

Brief background of the issue
Current situation
Recommended actions

Avoid long speeches
Coordinate with stakeholders (ethnic communities, partners, etc.)
Design banners, leaflets, and messaging
Select music, performers, and dancers
Coordinate police and security
Manage food and water logistics

2. Finance & Logistics Committee

Functions:

Led by members with logistics or finance experience
Mobilize resources: volunteers, donations, and in-kind contributions
Manage guest itineraries and media coordination
Request support letters or donations from businesses (e.g., food, water)
Arrange transportation and accommodation for out-of-town guests
Provide clear directions and travel details

3. Outreach Committee

Functions:

Led by members experienced in advocacy, lobbying, and community engagement
Notify and engage:

African diaspora
South Sudanese communities
African American, Latin American, and Jewish organizations

Provide event overviews to:

Media
Members of Congress / Parliament
Policy makers, NGOs, churches, schools, etc.

Send formal invitations (at least 30 days prior)
Coordinate media appearances and message delivery
Strengthen outreach with African diaspora organizations

4. Health Committee

Functions:

Chaired by licensed medical professionals
Engage local doctors and nurses for support
Identify South Sudanese medical personnel to assist
Coordinate with local health authorities
Provide first aid kits
Invite city ambulance services

5. Public Officials Committee

Functions:

Led by individuals with expertise in lobbying, public affairs, and communications
Compile a list of all relevant officials (Democrats, Republicans, Mayors, Senators, MPs)
Establish communication with their offices
Discuss participation in the rally and related issues:

Human rights violations
Land grabs
Insecurity
Failed peace implementation
Political reform and federalism

Develop a policy position and advocacy strategy
Present diaspora voter influence and demographics
Request event sponsorship and media coverage
Encourage officials to post and share rally information

6. Security Committee

Functions:

Chaired by individuals with law enforcement or security experience
Protect people and property from potential threats (including regime agents or provocateurs)
Identify and manage safety risks
Prevent, detect, and respond to disruptive actions
Liaise with local police (e.g., DC Metropolitan Police)
Monitor for loss prevention and crowd safety

7. Religious Groups Committee

Functions:

Chaired by a Pastor, Father, or Sister experienced in interfaith coordination
Communicate clearly and concisely the rally’s core message to faith communities
Request:

Prayers
Sponsorships
Announcements through church channels

Engage all denominations to ensure broad moral and spiritual support

8. Human Rights (HRTs) Committee

Functions:

Led by individuals with human rights and advocacy backgrounds
Engage organizations like:

The Enough Project
Amnesty International
International Crisis Group

Request partnership and collaboration
Develop a policy paper on South Sudan’s political crisis and recommend federalism as a potential solution

9. State Representatives Committee

Functions:

Led by individuals skilled in public speaking and mobilization
Each state should appoint a rally representative linked to the Operations and Logistics Committees
Relay key messages to diaspora communities
Communicate with local elected officials
Mobilize resources and participation
Maintain an attendance commitment list
Provide daily updates to coordination teams

The Current Political Situation in Tanzanian

The below was posted on ACOA WhatsApp forum.

@⁨Serge Banyongen⁩ shouldn't the TZ folks be the ones to initiate? It's happening in their country. They're the ones who can tell you how outsiders can be helpful.

My responses:

On moral grounds, it is neither right nor ethical for members of the Tanzanian (TZ) community to expect the African diaspora to reach out to them first. The reverse should be true. Based on my own experience in advocacy and lobbying, I have consistently offered a helping hand to other communities without waiting for them to contact me.

For example, I supported the Kenyan community without them first reaching out to the Sudanese community in Ottawa or to the Friends of Sudan group. When I began lobbying Members of Parliament and Senators, Dr. Sam Kwoffie approached me and introduced me to the late Hon. David Kilgour, M.P., P.C. Likewise, the STAND for Darfur student movement in Canada and the U.S. invited me to participate in their planning, operations, and logistics efforts — and together, we made a meaningful impact.

In 2008, rally organizers in Columbia, North Carolina, reached out to me to help plan and coordinate a major rally that drew over 8,000 participants — entirely organized by concerned citizens of North Carolina (see Ottawa Citizen for details).

From a moral perspective, if there were no Tanzanians in Ottawa or Canada, would we simply fold our hands and watch, or would we take action to make a difference in Tanzania and across Africa? I write this based on more than 20 years of advocacy and lobbying experience in Canada, the United States, Europe, and on university campuses in both Canada and the U.S.

To suggest that the African diaspora in the national capital should wait until the Tanzanian community reaches out is not only backward thinking but also a convenient excuse for inaction — a form of complicity that risks placing us on the wrong side of history.

Let me offer a few recommendations:

Leadership and Coordination:
I understand that ACAO leadership may hesitate to take initiative due to funding concerns. However, ACAO (which already has contacts for most diaspora community members) could call a meeting to discuss the situation. From that meeting, a demonstration committee could be formed — not as a representative of ACAO itself, but as a coalition acting on behalf of the broader diaspora community. This would protect ACAO from legal liability while enabling it to play a facilitative role.
Immediate Actions:

Organize rallies across Canada.
Send letters to Members of Parliament, Senators, human rights groups, and churches.
Coordinate with partners in the U.S. and Europe to ensure alignment and consistency of action.

Long-Term Goals:

Work toward influencing foreign policy in host countries.
Propose sustainable solutions to help prevent similar political crises in the future.

In short, the African diaspora must take the lead — with or without Tanzanian participation. The issues at hand are bigger than any single country. We must think beyond narrow boundaries and avoid excuses such as “TZ should reach out first.”

Let me conclude with the Parable of the Good Samaritan:
Did the victim reach out to the Good Samaritan for help?
Be the judge — and choose to stand on the right side of history.

The planned rally should also highlight political crises across Africa, not just in Tanzania.

The Parable of the Good Samaritan

Luke 10

²⁵On one occasion an expert in the law stood up to test Jesus. “Teacher,” he asked, “what must I do to inherit eternal life?”

²⁶“What is written in the Law?” he replied. “How do you read it?”

²⁷He answered, “‘Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your strength and with all your mind’^[^c^]; and, ‘Love your neighbor as yourself.’^[^d^]”

²⁸“You have answered correctly,” Jesus replied. “Do this and you will live.”

²⁹But he wanted to justify himself, so he asked Jesus, “And who is my neighbor?”

³⁰In reply Jesus said: “A man was going down from Jerusalem to Jericho, when he was attacked by robbers. They stripped him of his clothes, beat him and went away, leaving him half dead. ³¹A priest happened to be going down the same road, and when he saw the man, he passed by on the other side. ³²So too, a Levite, when he came to the place and saw him, passed by on the other side. ³³But a Samaritan, as he traveled, came where the man was; and when he saw him, he took pity on him. ³⁴He went to him and bandaged his wounds, pouring on oil and wine. Then he put the man on his own donkey, brought him to an inn and took care of him. ³⁵The next day he took out two denarii^[^e^] and gave them to the innkeeper. ‘Look after him,’ he said, ‘and when I return, I will reimburse you for any extra expense you may have.’

³⁶“Which of these three do you think was a neighbor to the man who fell into the hands of robbers?”

³⁷The expert in the law replied, “The one who had mercy on him.”

Jesus told him, “Go and do likewise.”

Here are some links for your use.

The Theologian