Kandaka Magazine Issues Statement Condemning Semafor’s Dubai Business Forum USA and Music Artists Complicit in UAE Image-Building Amid Sudan Atrocities

11/12/2025

New York.--Kandaka Magazine issued the following statement today, amid the Dubai Chambers Business Forum USA, being held in partnership with Semafor.

"Kandaka Magazine strongly condemns the Dubai Business Forum USA, organized by Semafor in partnership with Dubai Chambers, for serving as a platform to whitewash authoritarian governance and corporate complicity at a time when Sudan is enduring one of the worst humanitarian crises in modern history. The event, held in New York City, was framed as a celebration of Dubai’s role as a “next-generation hub,” yet it ignored the devastating reality of atrocities unfolding in Sudan."

"In Darfur, the fall of El-Fasher after an 18-month siege by the Rapid Support Forces (RSF) has led to mass killings, famine, and the displacement of millions. Hospitals have been deliberately targeted, civilians have been massacred, and satellite imagery has revealed mass graves. CNN and ABC News have reported that atrocities in Darfur are so severe they are visible from space, with satellite images showing blood-soaked sands and mass killings carried out in days.The New York Times has described Sudan as being in “free fall,” with atrocities in Darfur drawing global condemnation."

"The harm of such events extends beyond the boardroom. By partnering with Dubai Chambers and inviting elite financial institutions, Semafor risks legitimizing authoritarian governance and prioritizing profit over principle. Media organizations have a duty and an obligation to seek the truth, to report the truth, and not to run away from it while the world wonders. Journalism must not be reduced to a tool of propaganda or corporate promotion."

"At the same time, cultural spectacles such as the Dubai Butterfly Carnival, featuring performances by Shenseea and Davido, and Bella Hadid’s perfume launch in Dubai, serve as distractions that project a false image of prosperity and normalcy in the UAE. These celebrity-driven showcases mask the suffering of millions in Sudan and contribute to the normalization of authoritarian rule. Artists who lend their platforms to such events are complicit in UAE image-building, providing cultural cover for regimes that exploit entertainment and luxury branding to obscure human rights abuses."

"Sudan’s gold wealth has become a lifeline for warlords and paramilitary groups. CNN investigations revealed that billions of dollars in Sudanese gold have been smuggled out of the country, depriving Sudan of critical revenue while financing the RSF’s campaign of terror. Despite having no natural gold reserves of its own, Dubai has become one of the world’s largest gold trading hubs. The New York Times has reported that foreign powers, including the UAE, exploit Sudan’s gold to strengthen their geopolitical and economic influence. Gold smuggled from Sudan is laundered through Dubai’s markets, where lax regulation allows “blood gold” to be legitimized and sold globally. This trade not only enriches elites but also sustains atrocities in Darfur, tying Dubai’s prosperity directly to Sudan’s suffering."

"Kandaka Magazine rejects this normalization and calls on media organizations to uphold integrity, corporations to reconsider their complicity, and artists to reflect on the broader implications of lending their platforms to regimes that weaponize culture and commerce to hide atrocities."

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Kandaka Magazine is committed to amplifying marginalized voices, exposing injustice, and holding power accountable. We believe in the transformative power of truth-telling and cultural resistance, and we stand with the people of Sudan and all communities fighting for freedom, peace, and justice.