H.E. Dr. Lual Achuek Lual Deng (Known as Lual Deng): The Main Cause of Wangulei’s Land Crisis

H.E. Dr. Lual Achuek Lual Deng (Known as Lual Deng): The Main Cause of Wangulei’s Land Crisis

April 16. 2011

We, the concerned members of Ayuaal community, Nyuak Payam, Twic East County of Jonglei state are saddened by the recent clashes between Ayuaal and Dachuek communities which took place on the 3rd of March, 2011 in which more than twenty lives have been lost, more than 30 injured, and many more displaced. We are very sorry that lives have been lost, and therefore came great suffering to the innocent people of both communities. As decent human beings, we believe that the suffering of any human being, friend or foe, is unfortunate and must be condemned in the strongest term possible. There is no joy in the loss of life hence; we extend our condolences to the immediate families and friends of everyone involved.

Dr. Lual Deng, who is over 60 years old, was born in Baping village, Twic East County in Jonglei state. He holds two degrees from the American universities: an M.A in economics from Iowa state university and PHD in Economics from University of Wisconsin. Lual after completing his PHD, joined World Bank, then the African Development Bank and was later called by the late SPLM chairman, Dr. John Garang de Mabior from America and made him an economic consultant. He participated in the CPA negotiation. When the government of Southern Sudan (GOSS) was established in accordance with the CPA, Lual became a state minister for finance in the Government of National Unity (GONU) Khartoum. After the National elections in April 2010, he was appointed a federal minster for petroleum in GONU, the first southerner in the history of Sudan to take that post.
Unfortunately, we regretted that, Dr. Lual has betrayed the vision and mission of the people of southern Sudan after the death of Dr. John Garang.

Firstly, Dr. Lual violated the political decision of the SPLM to pull out from the National Government in October, 2007. He also diverted the making unity attractive funds for his personal interest and glorification; by forming his community based organization called “Kaam” for its operational and functions. He further went against the will of southerners/Goss by withdrawing his community(Dachuek) members who were soldiers in the Joint integrated units (JIU) and redeployed them as local security for his community (militia for that case), luring them with more paid, better than what they were getting from the government. Among them was S/M Ajang Dau Pech who was killed in defense of his clan, Kaam project in particular in 2009 with other six people. After all, Dr. Lual described himself during his infamous interview with the London based Arabic daily newspaper, Alsharq Al-Awsat during his private visit to the USA, dated Sunday 29th August, 2010 as “long-standing unionist”: see link below www.aawsat.com/english/print.asp?artid=id22479 something which is totally contrary to the fate and destiny of southern Sudanese. The above mentioned facts shows that, Dr. Lual is neither loyal to the SPLM as a ruling party nor the government of southern Sudan.

As a man of such caliber and his outstanding national contributions and achievements, Dr. Lual has belittled himself by becoming an inciter for the communities’ conflicts in Wangulei. In his first meeting with Nyuak community members at Uthiru hotel in Nairobi-Kenya in 2003, Dr. Lual stressed the redistribution of land and Toch among Nyuak clans depending on the direction facing each community from east to west but, not geographical location or historical precedent. His Agenda was that, communities which were having no Toch should get one, e.g. Dachuek.

That was the beginning of land dispute between Ayuaal and Dachuek communities to date. With his plan and incitement, Dachuek community met in Baping under his chairmanship with the help of his cousin, Chief Dau Reech Deng, and his step brother, Dut Achuek Lual Deng and resolved to write a letter claiming the ownership of Wangulei area in 2007 which was directed to the former commissioner of Twic East county, currently minister of local government in Jonglei state, H.E. Diing Akol Diing.

To make the matter worse, Dr. Lual Deng has done the following intending to grab Wangulei Town and Ayuaal’s Toch:

1. In 2009, he contracted the Khartoum based organization to come and surveyed Wangulei Town, in which he relocated the town center to his mother garden, some miles away.

2. With his new Town plan, Dr. lual took the sudani network aerial that was meant to be in the county headquarters (Panyagor) or in Wangulei center to his mother‘s graveside, and named it “Kaam” network, a nike name to his community, very funny!!

3. After the submission of Dachuek’s court case, Dr. Lual used to land at Baping without the knowledge of the payam or county authorities. He conducted meetings with his local community in exclusion of Awulian and Ayuaal communities respectively, while he is a prominent figure of the payam and Twic east in general.

4. As a result of his illegal trips and meetings, we strongly suspected him as the one mobilizing, arming his people against Ayual community. Evidences are; Dr. Lual used the military helicopter to land in his home village of Baping. He also offered a military Ural truck to his community in which its driver was killed in the recent clashes while supplying arms and ammunitions to the scene of fighting.

Dr. Deng in his conversation with one of our community’s elder warned that, “please advice Ayuaal, Dachuek is well armed!” Something we believed after the March 3rd, 2011 incidence in which Dachuek used PKMs, RPGs, F9 grenade and 60MM artillery against the innocent civilians of Ayuaal. The logical questions in his warning are; who armed Dachuek? And what were the reasons of arming them? Simply, it is him who armed them to invade Ayuaal people and therefore, take over their land and Toch by force.

5. When the River Nile’s water level dropped drastically in 2009, Dr. Lual contracted EYAT construction company’s equipments to dig water catchment/haffir in Ayual’s Toch without consulting Ayual chieftaincy and authorities concerned. This aggressive act of his, and the abuse of government office power led to the first clashes that cost three lives in February 2010 between Ayuaal and Dachuek. More than 1,000 herds of cattle were lost and innocent civilians tortured by the security forces as a result. Our community members in diaspora wrote a petition to the government of Jonglei State, copying all the MPs of Twic East constituencies in different assemblies posted in Sudantribune.com dated February 22, 2010. See the link below:

http://www.sudantribune.com/spip.php%3fpage%3Dspipdf%26spipdf was given “deaf ear” by the concerned authorities, which we believed if the government has acted on that petition; there could have been no recent clashes which cause more lives.

Before H.E. Dr. Lual Achuek Lual Deng, The three communities of Nyuak Payam namely, Ayuaal, Awulian and Dachuek coexisted peacefully among themselves for over more than four centuries without experiencing differences, frictions, hatreds and conflicts. We shared strong cultural ties and kinsmen ship than other clans of Twic East. During the immigration and settlement of people in Twic, Ajak Kur, the founding father of Lith community cordially received the descendents of Dachuek, namely Adoor, Ajak-wut-jok and Juach and hosted them in Pakou; Ayuaal leading cattle camp. When people later dispersed from Pakou, Ajak Kur willingly offered part of his land as a dwelling place for them.

Awulian community later came and was also received by Ayuaal and shown where to put up. We remained as one people, worshipping and made sacrifices to one god called Atem, governed by one administrative unit as Nyuak community. Until now, we did not experience any problems with Awualian community, simply because there is no hypocritical person like Dr. Lual among them. Indeed, the man didn’t respect the way the above-mentioned communities were living.

In an effort to restore peace, we, Ayuaal people of Wangulei, would like to suggest the following recommendations:

I. To avoid the deadly fighting among the civilians, We recommend that, the government of southern Sudan, Jonglei State in particular should carry out the comprehensive disarmament exercise in Twic East county, especially the two warring communities. We also suggest that, the same can be done to the neighboring communities/tribes.

II. The government should carry out a thorough investigation into these clashes and therefore brings the culprits to book.

III. Dr. Lual’s immunity should be lifted, forced to resign and trial before court of law to hold him accountable for his malicious act of setting communities against themselves.

IV. Dr. Lual must be denied to step foot in Wangulei Town and in Twic East county until this case is solve, otherwise he will continue supplying arms and ammunitions.

We therefore, urge the government of South Sudan and the government of Jonglei state to take immediate action on the above-mentioned recommendations, so that, there is permanent peace and harmony in Nyuak payam and beyond.

Written by Ayuaal Youth concerned members.

1. Mabior De Maluk Deng

2. Deng Kuer Tuil

3. Bul Ageer Awer

4. Manyok Wal Ajang