Rise and Fall of Nationalism in South Sudan
By Madol Madol Agwer, Juba, South Sudan
January 30, 2017 (SSB) — South Sudanese nationalism, as it developed after 1918, was a Southern Sudan phenomenon with its support base in the Southerner provinces. Nationalists opposed indirect rule and advocated a centralized national government in Khartoum responsible for both regions. Nationalists also perceived Britain’s southern policy as potential policy toward diving Sudan and preventing its unification under an Arabized and Islamic ruling class. Ironically, however, a non-Arab led Sudan’s first modern nationalist movement.
In 1921 Ali Abd al Latif, a Muslim Dinka and former army officer, founded the United Tribes Society that called for an independent Sudan in which power would be shared by tribal and religious leaders. Three years later, Ali Abd al Latif’s movement, reconstituted as the White Flag League, organized demonstrations in Khartoum that took advantage of the unrest that followed Stack’s assassination.
Ali Abd al Latif’s arrest and subsequent exile in Egypt sparked a mutiny by a Sudanese army battalion, the suppression of which succeeded in temporarily crippling the nationalist movement.
In the 1947, nationalism reemerged in Southern Sudan. Uneducated chiefs from southern Sudan wanted to have their independence administration or being emanated to Uganda in Juba conference but traditional chiefs were been deplaned by Khartoum elites and won the discussion base on their interests and that was unification of Sudan but violence resistance to unification of Sudan in1955 to 1972 and 1983 to 2005 did not stop at least and that was nationalism spirits to an independence state.
With all this, Southerners view themselves as people of common values, beliefs, rises and religion and all were unifying factors. However, South Sudanese loss their nationalism and common identity after independence in 2011, this was not a supervising issue because during liberations, there were clicks within South Sudanese who are self-opportunities but was sealed by South- South dialogue before signing CPA in 2005, which brought consensus to Southerners elites.
Rather than cultivating a nationalism of self-determination, liberation, independent, equality, freedom and of collective leadership for nation-state building and nation-state maintaining soon after the political independent to foster national unity, peaceful coexistence, service delivery and good governance so as to firmly glue the multi-divers ethnic South Sudanese into a common single entity with a firm national identity and unified imperative ideology wielded to perpetuate a collectively shape destiny and that, every ethnic group have a fair go to lead the nation hence gradually reduce the bitter ethnic revelry and differences’.
Especially, that of Dinka and Nuer. But rather, they said leaders at the forefront derailed from the historical revolution; that is instead of addressing political grievances, adhering to the constitutional rule of laws, resolving socioeconomic grievances, develop strong institutions, build effective transparent and accountable systems of governance to foster development thus build schools, hospitals and devolve practical workable and amicable long-term blueprint in order to salvage and redress the masses thus improved and better their living conditions.
You can reach the author via his email: Mmadol Aguer <mmadolaguer2015@gmail.com>
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What a beautiful country we had called south sudan that the shabby leaders has spoiled to zero. the country that had alot of the minerals from underground & in the water levels- Lord have mercy on us the 98% who lead the country to post independence, what thing we must do to inhert the south sudan back to it normal again from the shabby leaders who would even lead us to hell in the second coming of christ.