South Sudan and the disgruntled minority tribes
By Mading de Ngor*
August 9, 2006 — Hardly anyone to my knowledge of all the Southern politicians across time despite being unanimous in achieving justice for South Sudanese from their oppressors has ever envisaged the challenges ahead of crafting a confederation for all the tribes, the South Sudan Nation, the New Sudan Nation or the New Cush, depending on what name is picked. Stripping nations and ethnicities of their identities and expecting them prematurely to rally behind a ‘bigger tribe’, the Nation of South Sudan, is a shiny dream faraway from attainment. We have made South Sudan. Now we must make South Sudanese. Most of us feel strongly about our Dinka-ness, Bari-ness, Pajulu-ness and so on and so forth. Therefore, asking me to be a South Sudanese first and be who I have always been second, Pajulu, Dinka, Bari and so on is a new reality for me. Since the internationalization of the nation states and its introduction to Africa, the continent’s governments took on not only the insurmountable burden of bumping the standard of living for their citizens but uniting their minds and hearts as one nationality, identity and country. Countries such as Nigeria and Rwanda amongst others had to go through a near extinction route before achieving a “fair” level of co-existence for their inhabitants and tribes. Are we in South Sudan plunging into that painful path?
So polarized and intolerant of each other’s ideologies, cultures, tribes and nations in South Sudan, one would think it is that we are a making of different women. Yet, we are not lacking of confrontations between people of the same gene. We see mono-culturalism, religion and language wrestling with itself in Somalia, tearing the nation apart. It is maybe in China with the exception of Western countries like Canada do you see that tribalism is disguised. And for China who many see as “identical” though incredibly diverse with over 50 recognized minority groups, with others living in the shadows of the majority group, the Han, who are 90% of the whole population; it took the iron-fisted Mao T-sung to bring the country to the prevailing platform of one nationality, people and culture.
Before the head of the Government of South Sudan [GoSS] and our president Salva Kiir Mayardit pledge for our loyalties amid tense division, the president and his team must go an extra mile in addressing the minority grievances to secure the loyalties for the big thing in unity, rather than in the ongoing murkiness.
Complaints have been articulated by the minority tribes that there persists and insists a system that under-represents the minorities and over-represents a big majority. Solve that first and the rest shall be added.
There is a loud outcry within the minority groups that there is nepotism and tribalism in favor of the majority in the GoSS. Solve that first and the rest shall be added.
There is a disgruntlement amongst the minority because of the said corruption in the GoSS. Solve that first and the rest shall be added.
If you put forward this question: why are South Sudanese bitter and hateful to one another, the likely answer would be politics or mis-politicking during the arms struggle. Glorifying in one’s identity against the other, understating weaknesses where they are visible and overstating strengths in a leader just because they hail from your area, even when misstepped, is an ingredient for distrust of which only a tiny few are exempt. And then comes the politicization of everything. Knowing the rock where we were hewed, it is understandable that our young nation was founded on a revolutionary basis. We started off fighting so it seem we’re coming out fighting.
Being ignorant of each other and not appreciating each other’s contributions in THE STRUGGLE engineers distrust. All humans subscribes to validation and acceptance. Everybody’s sense of pride needs to be consolidated and no one is immune to that based on Desmund Tutu’s expertise.
Walking on a road in South Africa, a woman, ecstatic as she was, ran into the Bishop and asked him his autographs. When that was complete, he felt sort of empty. Apparently, the woman appeared to have not recognized him. When she later remarked, “you are Arch-Bishop Demund Tuttu, right?”. The Arch-Bishop in his own words “felt his pride in check.” That some minorities feel alienated because the majority successfully portrayed themselves as the “liberators” and branded the minorities as “collaborators” of the Northern Islamist regime at best and “cowards” at worse who stood idly during the SPLM war is a root of minority disgruntlement.
A Masai colleague from Kenya shared with me the tale of his first flight when he got awarded a scholarship to come to study in Canada. “I didn’t know where I was going, or which side to walk on. So I opted to follow the majority even when I didn’t know where they were going”, he told me. The minority wants some recognition and real power in the GoSS to avoid being described as “followers of the majority.”
Reasserting and inserting their identity aggressively, the minorities are searching for respect using criticism as a vehicle for change. Whining and ceaselessly complaining and infinitely criticizing the majority, the minorities should rid themselves of this evolving if not developing bug and act. In their indictment of organizations such as the SPLM, members of the minority tribes concludes in their rhetoric that the majority are sightlessly ridding with it and even discouraging many a critic in the majority because it takes the dynamics of you vs. us, minority aggression vs. majority retaliation and vice versa.
Below, I borrow these adjectives from the African Business as used in business contact and relating them to solve the “Southern problem.” I am not saying that is easy; it is not. But building a great country is never going to be easy, and make no mistake, if we put the Seven Cardinal Virtues into practice, a great South Sudan is what we are going to be creating.
– Pride v. Humility
The deadly sin: Excessive and/or unwarranted self-importance, arrogance and heightened self-interest.
The cardinal virtue: Seeing ourselves as we are and recognizing the relevance and importance of others.
– Avarice v. Generosity
The deadly sin: An unquenchable desire for acquisition.
The cardinal virtue: Beyond the tribal veneer; it is about creating a ‘win-win’ relationship with your fellow countrymen and women
– Envy v. Love
The deadly sin: Envy is a form of resentment, and a lack of respect towards others
The cardinal virtue: Seeing through others’ eyes, and looking to achieve good outcomes across each interaction.
– Wrath v. Kindness
The deadly sin: Unfocused and narrow thinking and impulses, resulting in destructive behaviors.
The cardinal virtue: Showing patience and interest in the opinions and problems of others; seeking constructive solutions.
– Lust v, Self-control
The deadly sin: An intensely focused aim to achieve a specific goal or outcome; a pre-occupation with gratification or one’s desires.
The cardinal virtue: Self-control and mastery allows for maximum achievement without damage.
– Gluttony v. Temperance
The deadly sin: The endless appetite for consumption — or deployment — regardless of need or appropriateness of fit.
The cardinal virtue: Don’t take all because others need it
– Sloth v. Zeal
The deadly sin: Idleness and complacency for the ‘outsiders’
The cardinal virtue: Welcome all country people and foreigners
*Mading de Ngor is the Webmaster of New Sudan Vision, to be on line soon. He is reachable at [email protected]