UPIU sends reporter to Sudan!

Two UPIU reporters will be among the many journalists covering the southern Sudan referendum this weekend.

Suleiman Abdullahi Omar

Suleiman Abdullahi Omar and Abdi Latif Dahir, both of Nairobi, Kenya, will act as stringers for United Press International, providing coverage of the event from both Nairobi and Juba, the capital city of southern Sudan.

Abdullahi, 20, who has reported for UPIU and UPI on development in a Somali neighborhood in Nairobi, will cover the election from Juba. He plans to file stories from the city throughout the weekend.

Abdi Latif Dahir

Dahir, 22, will cover the election from Nairobi, where voting booths are set up for the many Sudanese refugees that fled their war-torn homeland. Dahir has reported on a variety of topics from Kenya for UPIU.

Both reporters attend United States International University, where Abdullahi, a sophomore, is a broadcast journalism major and Dahir, a senior, is a print journalism major.

“This is going to be our launching pad,” Abdullahi said of the opportunity to cover the election.

The reporters dream of transforming African journalism.

“We want to set the standards of journalism high in Africa,” Abdullahi said. “Africa doesn’t need to be a special case. We can have high standards here, too.”

Look for photos and stories from Abdullahi and Dahir this weekend on www. UPIU.com and www. UPI.com.

January 7, 2011 5 PM update: Dahir’s article, “A glimmer of hope for Sudanese refugees as referendum looms,” is published to UPIU and then hits the UPI homepage!

Abdi Latif Dahir's article on UPI homepage