By Chol Duang
South Sudan as a physical territory has spanned generations; it’ll be around for generations ahead, both as a landmass and sovereign state --- supposedly independent of external powers. But the elusive question remains: what does it mean to you? Every single South Sudanese has a certain definitional view for this country. Well, I will share what it means to me being a South Sudanese: Since my birth, it’s ( South Sudan) been a burden, or call it responsibility; and finally, a sacrifice!
Immediately I was born, a war stretching decades was intensifying across the then Sudan. This meant that I didn’t find peace as a child and even later in adolescent years. What I grew up imitating was how to shoot a firearm to go on an imaginary fighting expedition, win a physical fight against my age mates or attack little animals as a game. In fact, I watched younger and older boys alike engage in a duel or head-to-head fight, using deadly weapons as I followed in their footsteps. I almost unwittingly became a bully towards childhood friends as a way of displaying machismo. Around that time children of my age elsewhere had already gone to better schools and were being oriented for better life ahead of them. I would’ve had the same life lessons as those kids, had South Sudan not been a burden to me. Unfortunately, war events characterized my childhood, thrusting my future into uncertainty.
Fight For Freedom/ Independence:
The country of South Sudan on its arduous journey to freedom and independence claimed countless lives, a costly undertaking that became the longest war ever waged on the continent, according to historians, observers and participants who watched it unfold. Nevertheless, proponents of the liberation struggle spoke of what ultimate freedom would bring; that there would be no wars in an independent South Sudan as we would be homogeneous society; people would have their fair share in the national wealth; and law would be applied equally. What happened barely months after the independence proclamation?
A rebellion by Murle tribesmen broke out. Earlier before that an SPLA general --- who’d won a gubernatorial vote elsewhere in the Upper Nile region but got rigged --- had launched episodic attacks on military targets and civilian infrastructure, threatening peace in that part of the country. Uncertainty descended, fear hovered and everybody worried for independence prospects, given this fragility.
While these happened, we watched in schools from outside the country in dismay. Each day was news about fighting in South Sudan, as the media was engrossed in this frontier: a new country already embroiled in a violent conflict and fraught with insurmountable challenges. Nonetheless, we pulled ahead in school. Some graduated and went to Juba, the capital city, and elsewhere in the country to look for jobs; others cut short their studies, due to lack of fees, and traveled back to the country.
While unpatriotic military leaders mutinied against the fledgling Kiir government in Juba [blaming it for betrayal and undermining their liberation contributions] foreigners started coming in by land, air or river and easily took control of the economy. Where they faced legal obstacles,bribery was an option. Unemployment rose sharply, crime started in earnest, forcible takeover of private property by powerful people became apparent and public resources siphoned off. Voters of the 2011 independence became disillusioned, expressed regrets and retreated to ancestral villages, towns or back to Sudan where some of them had come.
Responsibility And Final Sacrifice:
During the war of independence, our food, including livestock, would be taken to feed the liberation army, then spread in temporary bases across villages. This tells us that civilians were the bedrock on which the liberation stood. Civilians suffered brutalities from the regime in Khartoum ,at the time, for apparently providing the rebels with food. Regime leaders would warn and later send Arab militias to the South to take livestock resources so they could starve the population. We were indeed left poor. However, our families showed resilience and held on into independence. Today, the people who should be benefitting from independence opportunities have been pushed to the fringes of political and economic power. As they embrace their ordinary life, they’re followed by violence and displacement prospects, making their lives even more difficult. Some of us have to flee the country after threats of arrest or death. South Sudan should better be transferred to those who’ve lived through its many violent events because they’re the genuine inhabitants, not the recent turncoats.
Chol Duang is a South Sudanese TV journalist, political campaigner, literacy activist, traveller and opinion writer. He previously worked with a state broadcaster as news and current affairs reporter, anchor and talk show host; he’s also a Mandela Washington fellow.
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