Abyei ruling: South Sudan is robbed once again

Taban Abel Aguek

July 25, 2009 — At the wheel of the political misfortune, the Southern region of Sudan has once again been surrendered to the North. In the Hague Court of Arbitration, which was long thought of as the only hope for South Sudanese, it was again power and Arab threats that influence the verdict: the North takes all oil and the South takes the Ngok Dinka. The new border line will then have to chop areas West and East of Abyei to the North, thereby taking all oil and leaving the Ngok Dinka as people South wards as Northern part of the region gets to the South. The oil in Abyei belongs to the Ngok Dinka, not the Meseirya. The only reason the Ngok people were transferred to the North was because of their oil. This was also the only reason behind the difficulty of settling the Abyei border. Something very cynical is there for everyone’s view: if Abyei goes to the North it goes with oil; when it comes to the South then oil remains in the North. I fail to understand under which geographical fact the West and East of a contested region should go to the North when they are the exact opposite of the other.

In what they think was the best ruling, the court almost asks the South Sudanese people to laugh – the same way a local judge did when he held a case involving an Arab soldier who was dragged to court for shooting and killing a 6 year old South Sudanese boy way back in 1970s. At the verdict the court simply ruled that the soldier was not much to blame because the boy was black that he looked so much like a monkey, but since it is a human being then a little compensation would be paid to the parents meanwhile the soldier gets transferred to Khartoum. In what he thought was the fairest ruling, the judge smilingly then told the on-looking Southerners, “You now laugh!”

If we have to be happy about anything of The Hague ruling then it is only because it has given us back our Dinka people of Abyei. However, the chopping of large oil deposits to the North gives back power to the North. The world round, it is a strong fact that the economy is power and in Sudan power determines who rules and who marks borders. As a result, the North slowly and surely gets back to the throne and with it, is the same strength to pull regions to itself either through economic influence or by mere use of force. The Hague, by its gloomy ruling, has handed the South back to the North.

This explains why the people ran in the streets in Khartoum shanting “Allah Akbhar” after the Al-Jazeera aired out the news. And sure who else can deny that Allah is akbhar. Just days after the birth of the CPA, the architect of peace and the strong man of the South died in the helicopter crash and Allah did it. National Census was conducted and in the watchful eyes of all Sudanese, its results were stolen and the South is commanded to take fewer shares of power and resources much as these come from the South. And finally Abyei border demarcation entrusted in the hands of the ICC foreign experts ruled in a way that leaves Southerners without laughing or crying. Elections are due next year and everything has been done that the North stays in power. Who doubts this? If NCP is able to use every influence to win the South’s oil in The Hague then why not in the exercise in which the results can only be announced in Khartoum.

It is history repeating itself for South Sudan. The British had sacrificed the South to the North in the colonial days to save their interests in Egypt. By the same token, the West today is slowly giving away Southern Sudan to the North on demands from Egypt and the Arab world. The Northern Sudan regards South Sudan the way Egypt regards them. And by that trend and to some extent, for the west and Europe to participate and play roles in the Middle East, the South has to be delivered to the North as apart of the deal. The war against economic recession in Europe and the West needs an utmost care of international relations. This has forced the West and Europe to kneel and heed to every bit and bang made by Arabs so as to justify and get supported on Afghanistan, Iraq and Middle East’s Israel-Palestine issue.

A lot of things have shown this so vividly. The UNSC has taken a soft line as the Arab League, the OIC and the AU thrust weigh behind Beshir. Shamefully the African Union becomes one of Arab owned organizations. The poor African leaders have decided to sell the organization to the rich Arabs. Black African people hence have to suffer in total silence as they lost their voices to the weak, faulty AU. The arrest of Beshir may only have been a bluff. And even if executed, how will it be different from the court of arbitration’s ruling on Abyei when oil dollars can speak in the throats of all judges? It is a simple case.

The South has been abandoned to perish alone like a person in a hot desert. The few African sympathizers are only weak or are not even there. The world supports the strong and the rich. God is there for those who still believe but our shouts are only those of ‘madness’ and we still have to look into the sky and wait everyday for the sound of salvation.

The Hague Court Judges have assumed that Southerners are people who do not even know bearings; and therefore can not understand the basis for dividing even a rectangular piece of land. That ruling is final and our focus should not be oil-based rather we ought to think inwardly and live life as true Africans of the Sudd – the region of the black. No matter what ruled in the judges’ decision it will later come to the surface, but for now we have to carry it again as a loss for South Sudan. Meanwhile safeguarding future, it is a concern that we scrutinize under which pretext we fail especially with those who pretend and brag that they sympathize with the South Sudan.

South Sudanese must learn to stand alone. Let us all welcome back our people of Abyei and get ready for the challenges. We may have lost everything – including census, oil and we may likely lose the coming elections but we need to try hard not to lose our spirit. South Sudan must come to a serious realization that there is no one in the world that can give us the best thing in our life in the best way and at the best time except us alone by doing things ourselves. Therefore, we must maintain the unity of South Sudanese irrespective of ethnicities and parties, fight corruption and look into alternative means of development by exploiting rich agricultural lands, lakes, rivers and investing in education, business and health provisions.

After a series of arm-twisting struggles between the CPA partners, Khartoum was finally agreed as the head quarters for the South Sudan Referendum Commission. This is going to be a southern exercise whereby we expect a very minimal role from the ruling NCP. GOSS should ensure that this commission be led by a Southerner and the results should be announced in Juba, not Khartoum.

Taban Abel Aguek is based in Juba. He can be reached through [email protected]