Kill Us All: Voices of the Suffering Civilians in South Sudan
6 min readBy Mayak Deng Aruei, USA
August 16, 2015 (SSB) –- For duration of more than 20-months already, South Sudan’s warring Factions remained relentless despite pressures from neighboring countries and the international community at large. What started as a contest over presidency has evolved beyond recognition, and all the leaders no longer know what they are fighting for or protecting in the mighty land of South Sudan. The very same people whom the leaders want to govern are now suffering immensely: children are malnourished, elderly are dead-walking skeletons, and women are experiencing all sorts of problems. If the ongoing peace negotiation in Ethiopia collapse as bubbles in the air seems to indicate, then military confrontations are likely to resume immediately. There is no doubt, war is a big business, but South Sudan’s leaders should be mindful of their civilians, and stop the war. The leaders have been running back and forth, between Addis Ababa and Juba, but consultations in both camps have not materialized. This is painful for common South Sudanese, and for them to see their leaders refusing to find peace in their hearts!
As fragile as the nation of South Sudan, the civil population have paid the highest price, but no one among the concerned leaders care about the most vulnerable members of the South Sudanese society. There have been quite a number of opportunities that South Sudan’s warring Factions have missed, all of which would have eased the desperation of the deprived and the dispossessed. At these high times, leaders who care about the future of the new republic should have cut a deal that would end the raging ruthless carnage. Unfortunately, both parties are playing dirty game: Rebels are wishing president and his government to collapse due lack of money, and the Government is wishing the Rebels to disintegrate into worthless and visionless armed factions. Where is the future of South Sudan in that kind of thinking?
In the last part of what appeared to be the only chance for South Sudanese to restore peace, concerned citizens cried, prayed, and begged their leaders to cut a viable peace deal, but all fell on deaf ears. It is of a great importance to reiterate that South Sudanese have a potential to fulfill all the promises that they made to themselves during the war of liberation. Writing for the young children in displaced camps and the visually impaired in the heartland of South Sudan, the peace you have been yearning for is far from reaching. The country that millions have been sacrificed for its liberation has resources that can feed the whole of Africa, Middle East and Central America, and here we are killing ourselves over one position. Why starve people when the LAND is rich to feed those in hurricane and drought prone Regions of the world?
The economy as we all knows it has crashed, Reserved has been depleted, and citizens are left at the mercy of God. How much suffering is too much yah Junubiin? If citizens can no longer afford to buy a bag of sorghums for the 680 South Sudanese pounds ($45.33 a month), an incentive that most governments’ employees receive for their service. What is the meaning of independence for those who have paid dearly, but cannot afford to raise their families? This war has taken too long, and its fumes are just too much for civilians to sniff. When the war of independence ended in 2005, South Sudanese around the world celebrated another opportunity for them to decide their destiny. And for sure, the whole dream came true when South Sudanese voted overwhelmingly to secede from the Arabs Islamic Republic of the Sudan. Up to that juncture, there was no reason for South Sudanese to cause another major disaster onto themselves.
While most people seemed to have understood the other side of the conflict, a peace per se would not means much to families who have lost loved ones, and those who have lost their investments at the course of the war. The kind of peace that South Sudanese need is one that will give every citizen an opportunity to participate in the nation building, a peace that will guarantee that no governments’ agents would be spying on innocents’ lives. A colorful peace that would only rewards those responsible for the heinous crimes is not the kind of peace South Sudanese need. Let the war stop, but let’s not forget who did what, before and after the war. We should learn from our mistakes, and all the routes our custodians have taken cost us a great deal as a nation. The rule of few (oligarchy) is to be blamed for the mess, and the setback that leaders have orchestrated, and in the name of protecting the NATION that they own?
Let’s be realistic, the deadlock did not start when the Government’s negotiators stepped back from the negotiating table, it started way back, and we know how concerned people have been throughout South Sudan. For those who read and those who listen to radio news throughout the Republic of South Sudan, IGAD-Plus peace proposal is for South Sudanese, and for them to find peace in their country. The mixed messages that South Sudanese exchange on different levels of the ongoing conflict have hurt South Sudanese common interest, and will continue to do so as long as many citizens cannot judge independently. All must pay great attention to the way leaders play their political cards. How about adopting the rule of law rather than the rule of guns? We really don’t have to be too technical about the rule of law as many people thinks. If we agreed on certain practices, we must be abided by those rules until changed by the people.
In sum, South Sudanese around the world must look critically into the kinds of political behavior that keeps setting South Sudan ablaze. We have no enemies, but our leaders who place their interests above that of South Sudan. The world we live in has changed, and has changed for the worse. A nation like the Republic of South Sudan must rise above tribalism, and citizens of that naturally rich nation must reconcile under all circumstances. Junubiin, you have fought for more than five decades, and you must find a middle ground, reach the peace deal & return your citizens to South Sudan.
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The Author here is Mayak Deng Aruei, a concerned South Sudanese currently in the USA, and a Doctoral student in Organizational Leadership: Organizational Development. He is also the author of the ‘Struggle Between Despair and Life: From Sudan’s Marshland Village, Child Soldiering, Refugee Camp and America.’ He can be reached at Kongor.da.ajak@gmail.com
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