Rumbek Youth, a symbol of hope
By Manyang Mayom
Feb 8, 2006 — To me, one of the best faces Rumbek community has ever projected is the face of a Peace Corps volunteer. That face symbolizes this country: young, curious, brimming with idealism and hope – and a real, honest compassion. Those young people convey an idea of Rumbek Youth that is all about – heart and creativity, generosity and confidence, a practical, can-do sense and a big, big smile.
For many generations of people around the globe, that is what South Sudan has represented. A symbol of hope, a beacon brightly lit by the optimism of its people – people coming from all over the world to help us and why?. Southern Sudan especially Rumbek Youths believed they could know all there is to know, build all there is to build, break down any barrier, and tear down any wall. We sent men to the war not to moon here in South Sudan, and when that was not far enough, we sent Gelweng to stop violent on our cows, we sent Women to bring water for our children, and Hubble to touch the very edges of the universe at the very dawn of time. Rumbek people showed the world what can happen when people believe in amazing possibilities.
And, that, for me, is the spirit of Rumbek always as well the whole South Sudan – the Rumbek you and I are working for in this Rumbek Youth Vision Associations (RYVA). It is the Rumbek that people all across this nation want to restore – from West to east, from North to South, from Centre to your home state of you end.
It is the New Sudan the world wants to see, shining, hopeful, and bright once again. And that is the Rumbek that is foot step for our late hero John Garang de Mabior wants to lead.
John believes in a bright future. He believes we can, and we will, invent the technologies, new materials, and conservation methods of the future. He believes that alternative fuels will guarantee that not only will no Rumbek boys or girls go to war because of our dependence on foreign oil, but also that our economy will forever become independent of this need.
We can, and we will, create good, competitive, and sustainable jobs while still protecting the air we breathe, the water we drink, and the health of our children, because good environmental policy is good economics.
Dr. John Garang believes that we can, and we will, give every family and every child access to affordable health care, a good education, and the tools to become self-reliant.
Late John Garang believes we must, and we should, recognize the immense value of the caregivers in our country – those women and men who nurture and care for children, for elderly parents, for family members in need. These are the people who build and support our most valuable assets – our families. Isn’t it time we began working to give parents more opportunity to be with their children, and to afford to have a family life?
With Hero John Garang as a vice president, we can, and we will, protect our nation’s security without sacrificing our civil liberties. In short, Salva Kiir Mayardit believes we can, and we must, lead in the world – as New Sudan generation, unique among nations, always should – by showing the face, not of our fears, but of our hopes.
John Garang was a fighter. He earned his medals the old-fashioned way, by putting his life on the line for his country. No one will defend this nation more vigorously than he will – and he will always be first in the line of fire.
But he also knows the importance of getting it right. For him, the names of too many friends inscribed in the cold stone of the testify to the youths toll exacted by leaders who mistake stubbornness for strength.
That is why, as president, my present brave leader Lt.Gen Savla Kiir will not fear disagreement or dissent. He believes that our voices – yours and mine – must be the voices of freedom. And if we do not speak, neither does he. In New Sudan, the true patriots are those who dare speak truth to power. The truth we must speak now is that Rumbek has responsibilities that it is time for us to accept again.
With present vice president Lt.Gen Salva Kiir, global climate change and other threats to the health of our planet will begin to be reversed. With Kiir as a vice president, the alliances that bind the community of nations and that truly make our country and the world a safer place, will be strengthened once more.
* Manyang Mayom is a Sudanese journalist based in Rumbek, South SUdan, he can be reached at [email protected]